Deal-cutting and compromise are essential arts in legislating, and the health care reform bill now being debated in the Senate is no exception. But on abortion, which has become perhaps the biggest threat to the $848 billion overhaul of the health insurance system, middle ground is hard to come by. That’s not stopping Sen. Bob Casey Jr. from trying.The Pennsylvania Democrat has emerged as one of two anti-abortion voices in the Senate Democratic caucus. The other, Sen. Ben Nelson of Nebraska, has said he won’t vote for the bill without abortion language that mimics its cousin in the House of Representatives. A last-minute push from the Conference of Catholic Bishops and a bloc of anti-abortion Democrats secured House language preventing anyone who receives a government health insurance subsidy from buying a plan that covers abortions.
Loading ...
