Key WH Players Head to Hill as WH Health Care Deadline Looms

White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel and top White House health care adviser Nancy-Ann DeParle will meet privately again today with senior House and Senate Democrats to negotiate the final contours of a health care bill that is designed to "fix" the Senate health bill now pending before the House.

The meeting will occur at 5:30 p.m. in House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's office, according to two senior congressional sources.

Emanuel and DeParle met with top Democrats Tuesday for about 90 minutes. In that meeting, House and Senate Democrats objected to White House insistence on a House vote on the Senate bill and the so-called "fix" bill that will amend it by March 18.

Even so, House leaders are trying to work out a strategy to meet or come close to the March 18 deadline, the day President Obama leaves for a six-day trip to Guam, Indonesia and Australia.

There is some hope in House Democratic circles that the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) could provide estimates on revenues, costs and budget implications for a bill to amend the Senate health care bill by this weekend. If that happens, House Democratic leaders could post the legislation on the internet for 72 hours and begin the exhaustive process of counting votes in anticipation of a final vote on the Senate bill and the follow-on "fix" legislation on our about March 18.

But numerous sources describe the situation as very fluid and say with the "fix" legislation still unwritten, it's impossible to predict when will render a final verdict on the legislation's revenue, cost and budget consequences.

"Without that, we cannot move," a senior Democratic source said. "For us, deadlines are irrelevant. We need a bill that's done right and that our members are comfortable with."

But optimism is emerging in Democratic circles with House Democratic sources saying they now see a path to victory.

"We're feeling better," said Brendan Daly, spokesman for Pelosi. "Make no mistake, it's a heavy lift. But we believe we can make this happen."