The Homa Files

Nobody should be surprised by this move …

President Barack Obama appears ready to reverse his position and allow unpopular deal-sweetening measures in the hopes of finding Democratic support for legislation.

To clinch support, Obama is backing away from his insistence that senators purge the legislation of a number of lawmakers’ special deals.

Taking a new position, the White House will only object to state-specific arrangements, such as an increase in Medicaid funding for Nebraska, ridiculed as the “Cornhusker Kickback.”  That’s being extended to all states.

The new rule: provisions that could — under prescripted circumstances affect more than one state are OK.

That means deals sought by senators from Montana and Connecticut would be fine — even though last week they were singled out as items Obama wanted removed.

There was resistance, however, from two committee chairman, Democratic Sens. Max Baucus of Montana and Chris Dodd of Connecticut, and the White House has apparently backed down.

Excerpted from AP: Obama heads to Ohio looking for health care votes, Mar 15, 2010 
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100315/ap_on_bi_ge/us_health_care_overhaul

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