Funding For Obamacare And The Small Print

Ed Morrissey at Hot Air posted an article yesterday stating that despite the bill the House Republicans passed to defund Obamacare, the mandatory funding mechanisms of the bill were not touched.

Mr. Morrissey explains:

“The problem is that House rules prevent statutory changes through budget bills.  Since ObamaCare has already been signed into law, King’s amendment would have to change the law to reverse the mandatory spending.  The rule prevents members from slipping changes in statutes into must-pass budget bills, as well as protect entitlement programs like ObamaCare.  King knew about the restriction but offered the amendment on the floor in order to serve notice of the funding mechanisms remaining for ObamaCare.  Unless the Rules Committee wanted to set a new precedent — one that might haunt the GOP when they return to the minority — House leadership had little choice in the matter.”

The article further reports:

“But that may change in the next big showdown with Barack Obama and the Democrats in the Senate.  The House has to consider a debt-ceiling hike, and one of the demands they may make is to strike those mandatory-spending mechanisms.”

Stay tuned.  This is not over yet.