Photoshop: Reader Rachael in Ky

With delay comes opportunity…opportunity to continue making your voices heard. The Senate Finance Committee postpones mark-up on Obamacare until after the July 4 recess:

The Senate Finance Committee is delaying its first public drafting session on major health care legislation until after the July Fourth recess, a lengthy setback but one that even Democrats say is critically needed to let them work on reducing the costs of the bill.

The Finance Committee’s bill is believed to have the best chance of bipartisan support. The drafting session had been scheduled for Tuesday. But new cost estimates by the Congressional Budget Office on health care proposals came in much more expensive than expected, emboldening critics and alarming Democrats.

A spokesman for the Finance Committee chairman, Senator Max Baucus, Democrat of Montana, said the goal was to get the best bill.

“Senator Baucus wants to ensure the committee gets the mark right and will take the time to do exactly that,” the spokesman, Scott Mulhauser, said. “While it’s simply too early to say when the mark-up process will begin, the committee will continue to work hard over the next week and a half to produce a bill that is fully paid for and can pass the Senate. Senator Baucus will continue to work with members on both sides of the aisle and remains confident we’ll have a budget-neutral bill that can pass the Senate.”

The Senate health committee pressed ahead with its drafting session today despite the high cost projections, prompting harsh criticism from Republicans.

More from Ed Morrissey on the signs of retreat.

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Today’s Obamacare bogus statistic of the day via Chris Moody at Cato:

Mike Tanner points out that the Congressional Budget Office released its initial scoring of the health care bill, concluding that it would result in roughly 23 million people losing the insurance they currently have.

This was only moments after Obama said no one would lose their insurance. Oops!

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So much for welcoming “diverse” viewpoints. From Greg Mueller at CRC:

ABC is refusing paid ads for its health care program at the White House. Thus they’re refusing even a paid-for alternative viewpoint.

We requested the rates to buy a 60 second network spot immediately preceding the broadcast of the Town Hall meeting. We would have produced a spot specifically for this program.

Here is statement from Rick Scott, chairman of Conservatives for Patients Rights.

“It is unfortunate – and unusual – that ABC is refusing to accept paid advertising that would present an alternative viewpoint for the White House health care event. Health care is an issue that touches every American and all potential pieces of legislation have carried a pricetag in excess of $1 trillion of taxpayers’ money. The American people deserve a healthy, robust debate on this issue and ABC’s decision – as of now – to exclude even paid advertisements that present an alternative view does a disservice to the public. Our organization is more than willing to purchase ad time on ABC to present an alternative viewpoint and our hope is that ABC will reconsider having such viewpoints be part of this crucial debate for the American people. We were surprised to hear that paid advertisements would not be accepted when we inquired and we would certainly be open to purchasing time if ABC would reconsider.”

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