Senate Health Care Law Repeal Amendment

Mar 22, 2013

U.S. Senate

Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Tom Harkin (D-IA) debated an amendment to the 2014 fiscal year budget that would repeal the Affordable Care Act.

 

•  

  R. Cruz, R-Texas

  11:29:26 AM (02:29:10)

  54 seconds
  Mr. CRUZ. Mr. President, tomorrow is the 3-year anniversary of the passage of ObamaCare. ObamaCare is hurting. It is hurting seniors,
  it is hurting Hispanics, it is hurting African Americans, it is hurting single moms, and it is hurting the economy. It should be repealed.
  Yesterday over 70 Members of this body voted to remove one of the most pernicious taxes in ObamaCare, the tax on medical device providers. I happily voted for the amendment, but I would point out this is a wealthy industry which can afford to hire lobbyists.
  We should be responsive not only to wealthy corporate lobbyists but to the people and small businesses that are being hurt by ObamaCare and to the workers who are being hurt by ObamaCare. We should be responsive to the American people. For that reason, this amendment would create a deficit-neutral reserve fund to defund ObamaCare and repeal ObamaCare.
• 

  Thomas Harkin, D-Iowa

  11:30:27 AM (02:30:11)

  1 minute
  Mr. HARKIN. Mr. President, this will be the 36th time we have voted to repeal the Affordable Care Act. I know the Senators on the other side want to revote to repeal it. That is fine. I wish to warn you, due to the way this amendment is drafted, it also repeals what we put in that bill on education; to wit, we put in money to increase Pell grants. We put in money to increase funding for Historically Black Colleges and Universities. We put in money also to help the community colleges, $2 billion.
  We also included the more generous income-based repayment system to ensure people don't need to pay more than 10 percent of their discretionary income to pay back their student loans. All of that is wiped out in the Senator's amendment.
  Again, maybe it is just a drafting error. But I think Senators should know you are not just voting to get rid of the Affordable Care Act. That is fine if you want to do that. I don't think Senators on the other side of the aisle who are here wish to vote to decrease Pell grants and to decrease funding for universities.

• Mr. CRUZ

  Mr. CRUZ. I ask for the yeas and nays.

• The PRESIDING OFFICER

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second? There appears to be a sufficient second.
  The question is on agreeing to the amendment.
  The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant legislative clerk called the roll.

• Mr. DURBIN

  Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from New Jersey (Mr. LAUTENBERG) is necessarily absent.

• The PRESIDING OFFICER

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Are there any other Senators in the Chamber desiring to vote?
  The result was announced--yeas 45, nays 54, as follows:
  [Rollcall Vote No. 51 Leg.] 

  
  
  YEAS--45
  Alexander
  Ayotte
  Barrasso
  Blunt
  Boozman
  Burr
  Chambliss
  Coats
  Coburn
  Cochran
  Collins
  Corker
  Cornyn
  Crapo
  Cruz
  Enzi
  Fischer
  Flake
  Graham
  Grassley
  Hatch
  Heller
  Hoeven
  Inhofe
  Isakson
  Johanns
  Johnson (WI)
  Kirk
  Lee
  McCain
  McConnell
  Moran
  Murkowski
  Paul
  Portman
  Risch
  Roberts
  Rubio
  Scott
  Sessions
  Shelby
  Thune
  Toomey
  Vitter
  Wicker
  
  NAYS--54
  Baldwin
  Baucus
  Begich
  Bennet
  Blumenthal
  Boxer
  Brown
  Cantwell
  Cardin
  Carper
  Casey
  Coons
  Cowan
  Donnelly
  Durbin
  Feinstein
  Franken
  Gillibrand
  Hagan
  Harkin
  Heinrich
  Heitkamp
  Hirono
  Johnson (SD)
  Kaine
  King
  Klobuchar
  Landrieu
  Leahy
  Levin
  Manchin
  McCaskill
  Menendez
  Merkley
  Mikulski
  Murphy
  Murray
  Nelson
  Pryor
  Reed
  Reid
  Rockefeller
  Sanders
  Schatz
  Schumer
  Shaheen
  Stabenow
  Tester
  Udall (CO)
  Udall (NM)
  Warner
  Warren
  Whitehouse
  Wyden
  
  NOT VOTING--1
  Lautenberg
  
  The amendment (No. 202) was rejected.