Snow, nomination and antitrust

The massive snowstorm that battered the nation’s capital over the
weekend forced the Senate to shut down on Monday, postponing the vote
of Craig Becker to the National Labor Relations Board.

With more snow in the forecast and Democrats still looking to find their way on health reform, it is likely that a major push on overhauling the nation’s healthcare system will wait until after the Presidents Day recess.

{mosads}But in an effort to generate momentum, the House this week will move smaller legislation on health reform, scheduling a vote on Rep. Tom Perriello’s (D-Va.) bill on eliminating the antitrust exemption for the health insurance industry. Still, it remains unclear whether Democrats will seek a scaled-back health reform bill or continue their uphill climb on comprehensive reform.

President Barack Obama’s decision to hold a bipartisan health summit later this month may be an indication that using reconciliation to pass health reform is not a leading option. Obama said on Sunday he wants to “consult closely with our Republican colleagues.”

He added, “I want to come back and have a large meeting, Republicans and Democrats to go through, systematically, all the best ideas that are out there and move it forward.”

This strategy would indicate a more hands-on approach by the president to craft a bipartisan bill. That could take a while. Throughout the early months of 2009, Senate Democrats and Republicans in the “Gang of Six” spent countless hours negotiating, but failed to strike a deal.

In contrast to health reform, Democrats and Republicans in the Senate are working together on a jobs measure. Sens. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) have touted their idea to provide a tax break for any private-sector employer that hires a worker who had been unemployed for at least 60 days.

Senate Democratic leadership has not finalized its plans on jobs legislation, though Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) is mulling moving several jobs bills instead of one major measure like the House did in December.

The House legislation, which did not attract any GOP support, costs $154 billion. Senate Democrats are wary of moving a bill with that kind of price tag.
There are many House and Senate hearings this week, including airline passenger technology screening, global warming and the 2010 census. 

Player of the Week: Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.)

There has been a lot of speculation over the last couple of weeks as to what kind of legislator Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.) will be.

Sens. Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins, centrist Republicans from Maine, are hoping to work with Brown on many issues. The Maine legislators have complained that the GOP has ostracized middle-of-the-road Republicans and are hoping Brown is a reliable centrist.

That may happen, but it’s far from certain. Brown said the stimulus law, which Collins and Snowe backed, did not create one new job.

Like Collins and Snowe, Brown is a proponent of abortion rights. He supports defining marriage as between a man and a woman. He does not support the Democrats’ bills on healthcare reform and climate change.

Brown does have a record as a state senator, but nothing compared to the record he will amass over the next two and a half years before he faces the voters again in 2012.

One of Brown’s first votes will be on the controversial appointment of Craig Becker to the National Labor Relations Board.

On this issue, Brown may side with Democrats. Last year, Brown was asked whether President Barack Obama should nominate Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke to another four-year term.

Brown responded, “I think it’s up to the president to determine who’s behind him and working with him. And I’ll leave that decision [to Obama].”

The junior senator from Massachusetts does support the fiscal commission proposal authored by Sens. Kent Conrad (D-N.D.) and Judd Gregg (R-N.H.).

Brown’s predecessor, former Sen. Paul Kirk (D-Mass.), did not back that bill when it hit the Senate floor last month.

{mosads}With Brown’s support, the White House-backed bill has 55 firm backers.

Gregg is calling for another vote, hoping to put pressure on a few of his fellow Republicans.

Republican Sens. Sam Brownback (Kan.), Mike Crapo (Idaho), John Ensign (Nev.), Kay Bailey Hutchison (Texas), James Inhofe (Okla.) and John McCain (Ariz.) all voted against the bill, despite being co-sponsors. A seventh GOP senator, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, had co-sponsored the bill and planned to support it but was forced to miss the vote for family reasons.