One Hurdle Down, Health Care Overhaul Meets Next Challenge

LIANE HANSEN, host:

This is WEEKEND EDITION from NPR News. I'm Liane Hansen.

In Afghanistan, President Hamid Karzai is preparing for the likelihood of an election runoff amid allegations of voter fraud. It is complicating decision-making by the Obama administration over whether to commit more American troops to the region.

To talk about this and other political news, NPR congressional correspondent David Welna joins us from Capitol Hill. Good morning, David.

DAVID WELNA: Good morning, Liane.

HANSEN: So, how much attention is Afghanistan getting on Capitol Hill?

WELNA: Well, lawmakers here are really in a wait-and-see mode. The clamor from Republicans here has died down for General Stanley McChrystal to come to the Hill and testify about why he, as the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, wants 40,000 or more U.S. forces sent there. At the same time, some leading Democrats, including Senator Dianne Feinstein, who chairs the Intelligence Committee, and Appropriations Chairman Dan Inouye, are joining Republicans and calling for President Obama to heed General McChrystal's recommendations.

HANSEN: Let's talk about health care because that is getting a lot of attention on Capitol Hill as well.

WELNA: Indeed.

HANSEN: Where is it? Where does the makeover stand right now?

WELNA: Well, things have moved from open committee debate to horse-trading behind closed doors among Democratic leaders. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is trying to merge the three health care bills that House committees have produced, but I don't think we're going to see a House vote on such a bill until the Senate acts. And that's because the more conservative Democrats in the House don't want to vote on anything that goes beyond what the Senate is willing to do.

First, though, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is going to have to marry the two bills that the Senate and Health - Senate Health and Finance Committees have reported out. And Reid's biggest challenge is coming up with something that can get the support of the only Republican in Congress who's voted for one of the committee bills, Maine's Olympia Snowe. And that's because a number of conservative Senate Democrats are reluctant to back a bill without the backing of at least one Republican as well. And Reid's biggest decision may be whether to include a public option in that Senate bill. The House bill is expected to have such government-sponsored insurance. But it was not in the finance bill that Snowe voted for, and Reid hasn't indicated which way he's going on that. In any case, I don't think we're going to see any floor action on health care until next month.

HANSEN: Are the Republicans saying no to a lot of other things?

WELNA: Well, they are. You know, the minority party in the Senate, unlike in the House, has many ways of jamming things up. And lately, almost every bill Harry Reid has brought to the floor has run into GOP-led filibusters. Commerce funding bill has stalled because Republicans want to vote on an amendment that would add a question to the nationwide census next year about immigration status.

A defense policy bill already approved by the House is stalled because Republicans object to a measure in it that expands the definition of hate crimes to include anti-gay attacks. And Democrats are crying foul. Here's Majority Leader Reid.

Senator HARRY REID (Democrat, Nevada; House Majority Leader): We get the Republican shuffle. We can't get things done. We can't get nominations done. We can't get simple votes on pieces of legislation that are so elementary, so simple. It's just a big stall. They are betting on Obama's failure.

WELNA: Or you could say that at the very least, Republicans are betting that they have more to gain politically by holding things up than by cooperating with the Democrats.

HANSEN: And in the few seconds we have left, David, what about unemployment benefits? I mean, jobless rate 10 percent, House has passed a bill to extent benefits; why hasn't the Senate?

WELNA: Well, it only takes one senator to block such a bill and in this case, it's Oklahoma Republican Tom Coburn. He argues that any money for extending unemployment benefits should come from the stimulus package that Congress passed earlier this year. Democrats say that money has already been earmarked for other projects, aside from the fact that those unemployment benefits come from the special fund that still has plenty of resources in it. I think Republicans are running the risk here of looking insensitive to the plight of the unemployed even as they hammer on the Democrats about the high jobless rate.

HANSEN: NPR congressional correspondent David Welna. David, thank you.

WELNA: You're welcome, Liane.

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