Chuck Grassley: “The Nelson amendment is the wrong idea at the wrong time. The amendment doesn't even provide the resources for enrolling…”

“The Nelson amendment is the wrong idea at the wrong time. The amendment doesn't even provide the resources for enrolling people afterwards. We did in the amendment just adopted. How are we going to get people to enroll if the administration doesn't have the resources to do it? It is too early to make a decision, when we don't have final enrollment numbers yet. Right now enrollment is going very well. A quarter of a million people sign up every week. Many who are calling for delay in the enrollment deadline didn't support the legislation 2 or 3 years ago. They have admitted that. They have been encouraging citizens not to enroll. Extending the deadline until the end of the year is a cynical attempt to tell seniors not to enroll this year. The other side says May 15 is an arbitrary deadline. Americans live with deadlines every day. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question is on agreeing to amendment No. 3009. The yeas and nays have been ordered. The clerk will call the roll. The assistant legislative clerk called the roll. Mr. McCONNELL. The following Senator was necessarily absent: the Senator from Minnesota (Mr. Coleman). Further, if present and voting, the Senator from Minnesota (Mr. Coleman) would have voted ``yea.''”