House passes bill

Moments ago, the House of Representatives wrapped up more than fourteen hours of debate and passed their version of the health care reform bill.

In a narrow victory, the bill passed 220-215. Only one Republican voted for the bill, and 39 Democrats voted against the bill.

In a press conference following the House Vote, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi said the vote was “bipartisan” since a Republican voted for the bill, she quickly added that they would continue to seek common ground. While the Democrats are celebrating a party victory, Madame Speaker’s comments may be a little inflated. Bipartisan, by Merriam-Webster’s definition, is “marked by or involving cooperation, agreement, and compromise between two major political parties”. While her comments may be ‘technically true,’ this is certainly not a bill that bridged the Republican/Democrat split down the aisle.

In addition, while Madame Speaker may continue to say “seek common ground”, I’m betting it’s not about finding a common ground as much as it is about finding votes.

Stay tuned, much more to come