A pack of dogs has emerged in the House of Representatives, and they are demonstrating just how "alpha" they can be.
The "Blue Dog" Democrats -- a group of fiscally conservative representatives who account for 52 seats in the House -- are demanding that the massive bill to revise existing health insurance plans will provide an affordable government option for small businesses and competitive pricing to keep private insurers in business.
The group met with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel in closed-door meetings for more than seven hours Tuesday night, but a compromise between the Blue Dogs and party leaders was not struck.
"No agreement's been reached," Rep. Mike Ross, D-Ark., a member of the Blue Dog coalition, said after Tuesday's late-night negotiations. "We leave each meeting with a little bit of progress."
Ross, who said health care is growing at twice the rate of inflation, added: "We want to squeeze everything we can out of our broken and inefficient health care system."
Rep. Jane Harman, D-Calif. -- also a member of the coalition -- said negotiations have been "very, very hard" because of the tight deadlines that had been set. Harman said that while members of the group share the same concern over reducing cost and lowering drug prices, they disagree on "specifics."
"Democracy with a little 'd' is working. It may not be pretty, but it is noisy," she said. - FOX News Story
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