Government Shutdown 2013: House To Vote On Continuing Resolution That Defunds Obamacare

A U.S. government shutdown at the end of the month is now very likely, as House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, caved to conservative pressure Wednesday, announcing an upcoming vote on a continuing resolution that defunds Obamacare and keeps sequester savings.

“We’re going to continue to do everything we can to repeal the president’s failed health care law,” Boehner said at a press conference with other Republican leaders. “This week, the House will pass a [continuing resolution] that locks the sequester savings in, and defunds Obamacare.”

Boehner said President Barack Obama had to sign seven bills over the last two years to make changes to the new health care law and that the Senate should plan for an eighth time.

Obama recently chose to unilaterally delay the law’s employer mandate for a year. The exchanges, which are a crucial part to the law’s implementation, begin Oct. 1, a day after the deadline for Congress to pass a temporary funding bill to keep the government running.

Republicans have argued that American families should receive the same treatment as businesses and get a delay.

“The law is a train wreck,” Boehner said. “It’s time to protect American families from this unworkable law.”

Last week, House leadership tried to tack on a bill to withhold money from the health care law to a clean concurrent resolution. They had to delay a vote on the measure after conservatives complained that without specific language to defund the law in the main resolution, the bill packs no punch.

But Obama has repeatedly said he will not accept any effort to defund the health care law.

The vote was well received by Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., who said it would accomplish what Americans have been asking of Congress.

“A solution is within sight in order to avert another crisis of Washington’s creation,” Rubio said. “President Obama and his allies in Congress should abandon their threats of shutting down the government and instead work with Republicans to pass this proposal that would keep government open while preventing taxpayer dollars from being used to inflict Obamacare’s damage on people’s jobs, incomes, current health plans and doctor relationships.”