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Published December 24, 2015
It's hard to imagine how Senate Finance Cmte negotiators can find a deal before the August recess, particularly since it seems two key negotiators are pushing back against meeting what they say is another arbitrary deadline.
After a morning health care ''state of play'' meeting in House GOP Whip Eric Cantor's office, a source tells Fox that those two senators, Chuck Grassley, R-IA, and Mike Enzi, R-WY, shot out of the office, with Grassley saying nothing - but Enzi firing an ominous sign, calling the compromise bill a "train wreck" and "not ready for prime time"
Enzi then cast serious doubt on the timeline, something he has done in recent days, saying, "I don't know anyway how it could be ready today or next week."
Grassley staff confirm that the senator feels there is no way to complete a product this week that can be ready for a full committee markup by next week.
A GOP source tells my colleague, senior House producer Chad Pergram, of the meeting, "It was a very positive, upbeat meeting talking about how we can get to a bipartisan plan that is focused on rejecting the status quo but focused on common sense principles to lower healthcare costs and increase access. It was cordial. Grassley and Enzi were clear and emphatic and were well received, everyone applauded at the end for their tough stance on getting a good bipartisan plan."
So --- looks like Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-NV, will miss another deadline. First, he and the White House said they would get a bill off the Senate floor by the recess that starts at the end of next week, then Reid said he would get a bill out of the Finance Committee by recess.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/senate-gop-negotiators-no-deal-before-recess