|
|||||||||||
Dear Friends,
Last week, President Obama sent a message to Congressional Democrats: Just get health care done!
President Obama has demanded that Congress send him a health care bill on an up-or-down vote, a tacit endorsement of Senator Harry Reid’s (D-Nevada) and Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D- California) plan to use the nuclear option of reconciliation to propel the legislation through Congress with the House set to vote for the Senate bill on March 18.
Reconciliation is a fast-track legislative process for the budget that allows a bill to pass the Senate in a limited time period, and with the support of only 51 Senators. A “normal” Senate bill can be slowed down by a single Senator and blocked by 41 Senators. This is not true for a reconciliation bill. Also, in a reconciliation bill, the debate and voting time is limited to 20 hours. There is a fixed back-end that guarantees a vote on final passage. All amendments must be germane, and the majority needs only 51 votes to complete and pass the reconciliation bill.
Before reconciliation can be taken up in the Senate, the House has to pass the Senate bill and the President must sign it into law. Even if Representative Pelosi agrees to “fix” the abortion language in the House reconciliation bill, there is no guarantee that this “fix” will survive in the Senate. It is up to us to make sure that House Democrats know that they will be on the hook for the biggest expansion of abortion since Roe if they pass the Senate health care bill.
President Obama has said that he plans to do “everything in [my] power to make the case for reform” and that every American who wants reform should “make their voice heard as well.” He has already begun to put the screws to House Democrats by inviting them to the White House as well as traveling to their districts. In addition, he is bringing his “Chicago politics” to health care he already nominated Scott Matheson (brother of Rep. Jim Matheson (D-Utah), who has voted against the House health care bill) to a federal judgeship.
The bottom line: If the House passes the Senate health care bill, then it’s over. We will have government takeover of our health care system!
It is absolutely crucial that the phones continue to ring on Capitol Hill with calls from Americans opposing health care. If the phones are silent, Representative Pelosi and Senator Reid will assume that Americans do not object to the government takeover of our health care system or the government funding abortions.
Please call your Representative at 202-225-3121 and tell him/her to oppose the Senate health care bill. Also, please join in the following health care protests:
Tuesday 3/9: Moms go to local district offices.
Wednesday 3/10: Medical Professionals (don’t have to be a physician) local district offices.
Thursday 3/11: Veterans go to local district offices.
Friday 3/12: Nationwide rallies at local district offices for one hour at 12 noon local.
Tuesday 3/16: Rally in D.C. and nationwide at local district offices.
| Sincerely, | |
 Penny Nance Chief Executive Officer |
 Wendy Wright President |
 |
 |
 |