Quote:
Originally Posted by Tchocky
Pardon me for what may be a stupid question - but wasn't the best time to fight the ACA when it was up for a vote?
Or voting for the guy who said he'd repeal it?
I'm just saying these were better days to fight. Not now, when the President won't sign a repeal, the Senate won't pass it, and 3/4 of the country opposes shutting down the government in order to hack at the ACA?
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Not a stupid question at all.
Congress has two completely separate but related authorities when it comes to legislation.
1. Congress drafts, debates, writes, and approves legislation.
2. Congress appropriates funding needed to enact the legislation.
The success of the first does not mandate the second.
Congress is well within their rights to approve the AHA but not fund it. Not saying that is right or even a good thing to do, but it is legal according to the rules of congress.
Remember Kerry with his voting for something before he voted against it? This was what he was talking about. A senator can vote for a law and then vote against funding it. Not all that uncommon.
Since the GOP can't get rid of the ACA as that would require a vote from both houses, they are attacking it from a funding standpoint. All funding bills must originate from the House (article 7 section 1).
The executive branch can not spend any money that has not been appropriated by the congress. Only congress has the authority to borrow money or to spend money it does not have.
"best time to fight the ACA when it was up for a vote?"
Yes it is, and yes it was fought. It was the 111th congress that signed the ACA into law. That was during a time when the democratic party held majorities in both the Senate and the House. The GOP was simply outvoted.
Such is life when you have a representative form of government.
Now that the GOP has a majority in the House, they are enacting their political revenge.
This is what happens when there is a switch in majorities in congress. The new party in power proclaims that what the former party in power did was wrong and they feel they have a right to change things. Happens all the time.
Fortunately/unfortunately, the house controls the spending bills.
It is important to remember that the president can only ask congress to consider things, the president never tells congress.
We can emotionally accuse congress of not doing their job. But in actuality, they are doing exactly their job.
Some may agree with the house, some may disagree with the house. But the basis of our representative government is that the majority of the representatives elected by the people, get to decide.
The fact of the matter is that the GOP has a majority in the House.
My biggest gripe is that the Speaker is preventing a bill to be voted upon. I think it is scandalous that one person can prevent a vote -- normally the cornerstone of democracy. I wish that the House rules would allow the members to override a vote infringement action on the part of the speaker.
But the house makes the house rules. And since both parties take advantage of the rules, neither side is eager to change the rules.