Hispanic Caucus Threatens to Vote Against Health Care Bill

We are in the final countdown to an up-or-down vote on healthcare reform in the House of Representatives. Lawmakers are beginning to realize that now is the time to make their voices heard on the issue.

The Hispanic Caucus is meeting with the White House today to discuss their concerns about certain immigration-related provisions in the health care bill. They threaten to vote against the bill if the Senate language that bars undocumented immigrants from buying insurance from the proposed exchanges with their own money isn't removed.

President Obama is pushing Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) "to go further than Obama has previously disclosed" to strip the special deals for individual senators from the final health care reform bill. These include Sen. Ben Nelson's (D-NE) 'Cornhusker Kickback' and a handful of other deals.

It is never good when your secret backroom deals go public and get a name, like 'Cornhusker Kickback', attached to 'em! I bet Sen. Nelson wishes he had just supported the bill in the first place ... without using his blackmail techniques to get special treatment.