For months, Republicans have sought to slow down the pace of health care reform legislation by demanding unprecedented gestures toward transparency from Democrats. They’ve insisted that all aspects of the legislation be posted on the internet for days at a time before action can be taken.
Well, now that the bill is on the floor, and a flood of amendments is the surest form of obstruction, Republicans are perfectly willing to dispense with the whole transparency thing. This time around, it was the Democrats seeking to impose transparency requirements on the amendment process. Republicans no longer seem interested.
“In light of some of the trust problems and transparency problems we have, while this appears to lead to greater transparency, we can also see ways that this can limit the ability for the minority to offer amendments,” said Sen. Mike Enzi (R-WY), and, therefore, I object.”
Enzi was objecting to an idea proposed by Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-AR) to require all amendments be posted online before they’re considered on the floor. Looks like that won’t be happening.
