Even though dozens of senators and representatives scheduled to attend President Obama’s health care summit, some voices are likely to be heard over the rest.
About 20 lawmakers from each chamber will attend. The top leaders will of course have their turn at the microphone. They include House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev. as well as Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio.
Some of the more interesting GOP players to watch, however, may come from further down the roster:
Rep. Paul Ryan — The person whose words are most likely to resonate with Obama is Ryan. Young, smart and telegenic, Ryan seemed to make a real connection with Obama at his televised exchange with the GOP at their January retreat. Ryan is the top Republican on the House Budget Committee and can easily tick off the potentially negative economic effects of the Democratic plan without sounding purely partisan. He will likely be tapped to present many of the GOP’s alternatives, including the idea of allowing people to shop across state lines for insurance policies.
Sen. John Barrasso — The conservative, junior senator from Wyoming is the one of two Senate GOP doctors who will attend the summit and he is likely to give the president an earful about why health care should not be passed using a 51-vote procedural tactic known as reconciliation. Barrasso, an orthopedic surgeon who opposes the Democratic plan, has argued that such a significant bill should only be passed if it can get at least 70 votes in the Senate. Which of course, it can’t.
Rep. Eric Cantor — The House minority whip, Cantor, of Virginia, has been one of the most vocal opponents of the Democratic plan and will likely hold that title at the summit. The politically ambitious Cantor, who clearly has his sights on the speaker’s gavel, has promised to “hand down an indictment” of the Democratic plan. But he will have to work to make sure Republicans do not emerge from the event with the obstructionist label Democrats are eager to stick them with.
Sen. Tom Coburn — Republicans can dodge the “Party of No” moniker with the help of Coburn, an Oklahoma physician who co-authored the Republican health care reform plan that the Congressional Budget Office has determined will cut the deficit and health care costs, though it would only insure an additional 3 million people. Coburn represents the conservative wing of the Senate Republican Conference and will no doubt deliver his staunch opposition to the much bigger Democratic plan in blunt terms. He makes no bones about the fact that he believes the Democratic health care proposal will kill the U.S. economy and hurt medical care.
Rep. Dave Camp — Camp is the top Republican on the House Ways and Means Committee but straddles both the conservative and moderate factions in the GOP conference. His job will be to explain the Republican viewpoint that the tax increases included in the Democratic health care plan will be bad for the nation’s struggling economy and could jeopardize long-term recovery.
Sen. John McCain — The Arizona senator and former Republican presidential nominee has no doubt angered conservatives in his party on issues like global warming, campaign finance and immigration reform, but he has not disappointed them on health care. McCain has repeatedly shredded the Democratic plan. Despite complaints about him within his own party, when McCain talks, people listen.
