Ryan: GOP hopes to push healthcare into 2010

Republicans may be able to push back the healthcare debate into next year, one of its top House members said Thursday.

Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.), the ranking member of the House Budget Committee, said he personally believes the GOP will be able to carry through the debate on health reform to 2010, an election year.

Ryan condemned House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) for moving quickly on their health bills, but expressed confidence in Republicans' ability to slow down the bills.

"Speaker Pelosi is trying to jam her bill through as soon as possible; Harry Reid's trying to come up with every parliamentary procedure he can come up with to move this before Christmas," Ryan said in an interview on Fox News. "I personally think we can delay that and get it into next year, but we'll see."

The House is set to vote on its healthcare bill this weekend. Earlier in the interview, Ryan asserted a belief that Senate procedure would slow down its own health bill.

On that side of the Capitol, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said Wednesday afternoon that their debate over health reform should last "weeks and weeks and weeks."

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