Eric Cantor Nixes Obamacare Shutdown Push

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA)
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House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) poured cold water Friday on conservatives’ effort to shut down the government if legislation to keep it open after Sept. 30 includes funding to implement Obamacare.

He said there aren’t enough votes to make it happen in the Senate.

“In order to avoid a government shutdown, we need 60 votes in the Senate and 218 votes in the House to pass a continuing resolution,” Cantor told National Review’s Robert Costa. “To get 60 votes in the Senate, you need at least 14 Democrats to join Republicans and pass a CR that defunds Obamacare. Right now, I am not aware of a single Democrat in the Senate who would join us. If and when defunding has 60 votes in the Senate, we will absolutely deliver more than 218 votes in the House.”

The remarks appear to be the first from a House Republican leader on the push, which is being advanced by conservatives during the August recess.

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