House Dems Confident in Overcoming Abortion Rift

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http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2010/03/20/us/politics/AP-US-Health-Care-Overhaul.html

(snip)
Slaughter, D-N.Y., chastised Barton, a GOP leader on health care, and said his party had ''opted out'' of co-operating on the legislation. ''We have to get on with it,'' she said.

Democratic leaders and Obama focused last-minute lobbying efforts on two groups of Democrats: 37 who voted against an earlier bill in the House and 40 who voted for it only after first making sure it would include strict abortion limits that now have been modified.

(snip)
Leaders worked into Friday night attempting to resolve the dispute over abortion, and Saturday morning they were increasingly confident it would not scuttle the bill.

Rep. Bart Stupak, D-Mich., who succeeded last November in inserting strict anti-abortion language into the House bill, had hoped to do so again. But Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., told The Associated Press leaders are closing in on the votes to pass the bill and probably won't need Stupak's backing. ''That's the likely outcome,'' said Waxman, chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, and an author of the House bill.


Waxman: No health deal with abortion opponents
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/03/20/AR2010032001189.html