In Brief:
In a major breakthrough, union leaders bowed Thursday to White House demands for a new tax on high-cost insurance plans as part of landmark health care legislation taking final shape in intensive negotiations. The fast-paced events came as senior lawmakers spent parts of a second consecutive day at the White House for bargaining over terms of a final compromise, and Obama gave a rousing speech to rank and file House Democrats in a late-afternoon appearance in the Capitol complex. The day's events underscored the urgency with which the White House and top Democrats were working, and the tentative agreement on a new tax on high-cost plans was the most prominent fruit of the effort. While not all details were set, it appeared the union leaders had backed down on their outright opposition to a new tax, and the White House had agreed to several concessions to mollify their concerns. In an indication that lawmakers and the White House were driving for a swift agreement, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., issued a statement pledging to have any final bill posted online for 72 hours before a vote is called.
