Snowe says 'no' to health bill, lamenting hastened pace

Sen. Olympia Snowe said she can't support healthcare reform legislation due to the hastened pace with which it's being pursued by Democrats.

Snowe, the only Republican to have voted for a health reform bill during a markup in the Senate Finance Committee, said that the legislation was being rushed through the Senate.

"Here we are today with a bill that's dramatically different and more expansive than the Finance Committee -- in fact it's 1,200 pages more -- it was placed on the floor just short of three weeks ago," Snowe said Sunday during an appearance on CBS. "In less than 24 hours yesterday we get a 400 page amendment that was filed by the Senate Majority Leader. We are scheduled to vote on that major amendment 15 hours from now, at 1 o'clock in the morning, with no opportunity to amendment."

"All to get done the entire bill with no opportunity to amend it, to change it by Christmas so that we can adjourn for a three-week recess for a bill that doesn't become implemented until 2014," the Maine centrist added.

Snowe had been seen as maybe the only Republican likely to cross the aisle to support Democrats' healthcare bill, lending the bill bipartisan support. She had been a longtime critic of the public option, leaving proponents of the bill optimistic that they could win her support after that measure was nixed from the final version.

Snowe also expressed qualms over the size of the bill, which she had been treated with the rush and manner of a legislative appropriations bill.

But her ultimate reservations lie in the pace of the Senate debate.

"This process denies us the opportunity to thoroughly and carefully and deliberately evaluate what's at stake," she said.

---