In case you wondered who they were:The SEIU is threatening to back primary challengers to Democratic congressmen who oppose ObamaCare

Image via Wikipedia

By JOHN FUND

Speaker Nancy Pelosi is famous for muscling her members in the last hours before a vote. She may pull that trick off again with health care, but the unusual nature of the bill presents new obstacles for the Pelosi method.

Normally, a House speaker can smooth over the concerns of balky members by promising to fix areas of concern in the conference committee that reconciles the House and Senate versions of a bill. But Speaker Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid decided to skip a conference committee on health care, so the House must pass the Senate bill -- unpopular with many members -- with no changes at all. House members will just have to trust the Senate's good faith in using the awkward "budget reconciliation" process later to change the now-law of the land to the House's liking. "It's a real concern with some members that the Senate won't follow through," Rep. Eliot Engel, a New York Democrat, told me.

With fewer carrots, the Speaker and her allies are brandishing more sticks to corral the necessary votes. MoveOn.org has been raising money to finance liberal challengers to vulnerable House Democrats who vote against the bill. Rep. Bart Stupak of Michigan, leader of pro-life House Democrats who oppose the Senate's abortion funding language, tells Robert Costa of National Review that he has even been threatened with ethics complaints.

Likewise, the Service Employees International Union, which stands to gain many unionized members if health care passes, has also been active. New York Democrat Mike McMahon was visited by a top SEIU official and told that he won't get union funding if he votes "no." Indeed, union representatives hinted they might look for a primary challenger or third-party candidate to run in his Staten Island district.