Obama may delay vacation over healthcare

Related Topics

U.S. President Barack Obama waves as he leaves an announcement on government efficiency at the White House in Washington December 21, 2009. REUTERS/Jim Young

U.S. President Barack Obama waves as he leaves an announcement on government efficiency at the White House in Washington December 21, 2009.

Credit: Reuters/Jim Young

WASHINGTON | Tue Dec 22, 2009 11:29am EST

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama may delay his year-end Hawaiian vacation to remain in Washington as a bill to overhaul the U.S. healthcare system makes its way through the U.S. Senate, the White House said on Tuesday.

"They are going to make a decision later this evening about when the president will leave," White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said at a press briefing.

Obama had been expected to leave for Hawaii, the state where he grew up, on Wednesday.

Obama's fellow Democrats in the Senate cleared the second of three 60-vote hurdles early on Tuesday to move the landmark legislation -- Obama's top domestic policy priority -- one step closer to passage by Christmas.

Republicans, who have just 40 seats in the Senate, have vowed to use every tactic they can to delay passage of the measure, which has consumed Congress for months and inspired intense political brawling.

(Reporting by Patricia Zengerle, editing by Doina Chiacu)
Politics
Barack Obama
We welcome comments that advance the story through relevant opinion, anecdotes, links and data. If you see a comment that you believe is irrelevant or inappropriate, you can flag it to our editors by using the report abuse links. Views expressed in the comments do not represent those of Reuters. For more information on our comment policy, see http://blogs.reuters.com/fulldisclosure/2010/09/27/toward-a-more-thoughtful-conversation-on-stories/
Comments (146)
bobos wrote:
Bless his little heart…how noble of our all merciful master.

Dec 22, 2009 12:16pm EST  --  Report as abuse
Streetfighter wrote:
It’s hard to have Change We Can Believe In when 40% of the leadership offers nothing constructive. When the President speaks at the next State of the Union, he should remind the obstructionists of all the benefits their constituents recieve from health care. If they respond that it was one sided. He should openly talk about the ideas they brought to the table, which one’s were included and by whom and which ones were absurd, and by whom. If all else fails, at least embarrass them into doing the right thing. People have a right to want to be healthy.

Dec 22, 2009 12:16pm EST  --  Report as abuse
logicalnoise wrote:
not taking 240 days a year off is indeed a nice change. However the health care bill should be killed and remade with a proper public option. The dems compromised before the bill even made it to committee. That is why they fail and why our country is doing nothing to help health care.

Dec 22, 2009 12:25pm EST  --  Report as abuse
This discussion is now closed. We welcome comments on our articles for a limited period after their publication.
See All Comments »