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US President Barack Obama (File)
U.S. President Barack Obama is promoting historic health care reform, as a new poll shows Americans divided over the sweeping legislation he signed into law on Tuesday.
Mr. Obama is giving a speech in (the midwestern city of) Iowa City. He is expected to highlight portions of the new law that take effect this year.
Republicans are solidly opposed to the law.
A survey by Quinnipiac University shows Americans split over the law, with nearly half of the respondents saying they disapprove of it, and 40 percent saying they approve.
Congressional Democrats also have been the target of threats and acts of vandalism following the health care vote.
The speaker of the House of Representatives, Democrat Nancy Pelosi, and Republican Minority Leader John Boehner, both said those actions have no place in American politics.
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer said at least 10 members of Congress have received threats to themselves or their family members over the past few days.
An aide to Senate Democratic Majority Leader Harry Reid said Republicans challenged two provisions in a companion bill that deal with reforms to the U.S. student loan industry. The aide said the Senate parliamentarian ruled that the two provisions violate Senate rules that require all parts of the bill to have a budgetary impact.
The Senate is expected to remove the items from the bill later Thursday and send it back to the Democrat-controlled House, which narrowly approved the measure Sunday by a vote of 220 to 211.
Senate Democrats submitted the legislation under those rules to enable it to pass with a simple majority in the 100-seat Senate, where they control 59 seats.
The Obama administration backed the separate bill of health care changes in order to persuade more Democrats to support the main legislation, which had already passed in the Senate, and which Mr. Obama signed into law Tuesday.
Despite their setback, Senate Democrats used their simple majority to fight off almost 30 Republican amendments to the bill of health care fixes in an hours-long session lasting from Wednesday into Thursday afternoon.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.
