Original sentence: The members of Congress would rather stonewall the proposal rather than to pass the new law.

Why did you omit "rather?"

So the corrected sentence would be:

The members of Congress would rather stonewall the proposal and not pass the new law.

How about using "than" instead of "and"?

So the sentence would be:

The members of Congress would rather stonewall the proposal than not pass the new law.

Yes! :-)

Original sentence: The members of Congress would rather stonewall the proposal rather than pass the new law.

In your corrected sentence, you have successfully conveyed the same meaning by using the word "and" instead of "rather than." However, there are a couple of additional changes that can be made to improve the sentence further:

Revised sentence: The members of Congress would like to stonewall the proposal and not pass the new law.

Here's how you can break it down:

1. Identify the main idea: The members of Congress would like to stonewall the proposal.
To determine the main idea of the original sentence, you need to recognize that "stonewall the proposal" is the primary action the members of Congress prefer.

2. Determine the contrasting action: Not passing the new law.
The contrasting action here is the opposite of passing the new law, i.e., not passing it.

3. Combine the main idea and the contrasting action:
The members of Congress would like to stonewall the proposal and not pass the new law.

By making these changes, your revised sentence now reads more fluently and effectively conveys the intended meaning. Remember, clarity in writing is crucial for effective communication. Great job!