House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn today agreed with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi that the House cannot pass the Senate bill as-is.
“No, we can’t,” Clyburn said on MSNBC. “I think the speaker is absolutely correct.”
“Everybody keeps focusing on the Senate getting to 60 [votes], and they don’t seem to remember that we have to get to 218 in the house. Even elementary, you can get to 60 quicker than you get to 218,” he said. “We all know that.”
He said the bill needs to be changed in order to get enough support in the House.
“We can do some corrections and modifications with that bill and get that through the House under reconciliation. But we can’t in its current form,” Clyburn said.
Earlier today, Pelosi said, “I don’t see the votes for it at this time.” She did hedge, however, saying, “Everything is on the table.”
