Obamacare in trouble?

The President's proposed solution to the country's health care crisis looks like it might be on life support itself.
Drawn from ObamaCare's Eroding Support The Wall Street Journal, July 18, 2013.
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. refrain
    part of a song or poem that recurs at regular intervals
    The Washington refrain is that Wednesday night's House votes delaying ObamaCare mandates were a pointless dead end, but the White House shouldn't be too confident.
  2. mandate
    assign under an official instruction or command
    The Washington refrain is that Wednesday night's House votes delaying ObamaCare mandates were a pointless dead end, but the White House shouldn't be too confident.
  3. bipartisan
    supported by both sides
    Opposition to more of the Affordable Care Act is becoming bipartisan.
  4. codify
    organize into a system, such as a body of law
    The first measure, which sailed through 264 to 161 with 35 Democrats in favor, codified President Obama's decision to suspend the Affordable Care Act's employer mandate to extend insurance benefits to workers or else pay a penalty.
  5. fiat
    a legally binding command or decision
    The White House lacks the legal authority to delay the mandate by fiat, so the vote was a vindication of the rule of law.
  6. vindication
    the act of defending against criticism or censure
    The White House lacks the legal authority to delay the mandate by fiat, so the vote was a vindication of the rule of law.
  7. defection
    withdrawing support or help despite allegiance
    These defections are unusual because Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi whipped aggressively against the bills and the White House issued a formal veto threat.
  8. veto
    a vote that blocks a decision
    These defections are unusual because Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi whipped aggressively against the bills and the White House issued a formal veto threat.
  9. repeal
    cancel officially
    Since there is a subzero chance that Mr. Obama would sign the legislation, some of the Democrats were probably trying to get political cover by voting to repeal the unpopular purchase mandate without actually repealing it.
  10. in toto
    in entirety
    They want to repeal and defund the law in toto, as do we, but they claim that incremental steps dilute political opposition and would "fix" ObamaCare.
  11. incremental
    increasing gradually by regular degrees or additions
    They want to repeal and defund the law in toto, as do we, but they claim that incremental steps dilute political opposition and would "fix" ObamaCare.
  12. dilute
    reduced in strength or concentration or quality or purity
    They want to repeal and defund the law in toto, as do we, but they claim that incremental steps dilute political opposition and would "fix" ObamaCare.
  13. tweak
    adjust finely
    Fixing this monstrosity is impossible, even if the House has rightly declined to make the technical, operational and funding tweaks that the White House desires.
  14. fiscal
    involving financial matters
    That died as part of the fiscal-cliff deal earlier this year.
  15. wield
    have and exercise
    As for the politics, the anti-"fixers" have no realistic plan for repeal as long as Mr. Obama wields veto power.
  16. dismember
    divide into pieces
    Attempting to dismember the law plank by plank highlights the failed parts of the bill, while also making swing-seat Democrats take difficult votes.
  17. angst
    an acute but unspecific feeling of anxiety
    In another sign of bipartisan ObamaCare angst, freshman Democrat Joe Donnelly and Republican Susan Collins make the case nearby for rewriting the employer mandate's regulatory definition of the workweek at 40 hours, rather than the White House's preferred 30.
  18. regulatory
    restricting according to rules or principles
    In another sign of bipartisan ObamaCare angst, freshman Democrat Joe Donnelly and Republican Susan Collins make the case nearby for rewriting the employer mandate's regulatory definition of the workweek at 40 hours, rather than the White House's preferred 30.
  19. defect
    desert in order to join the opposing cause, country, or army
    More may defect when their constituents get a load of ObamaCare in practice.
Created on Sun Jul 21 16:32:40 EDT 2013 (updated Fri Aug 02 14:45:06 EDT 2013)

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