The Politics of Health Care - 1

The Politics of Health Care – 1
In pursuit of the truth – www.cinopsbegone.com – Sunday, January 3, 2010

Ref. National Right to Life News (NRLC) – November/December, 2009
(Scorecard of Catholics in Congress – Catholic Advocate – Morley Institute)
U.S. Senate Rejects NRLC-Backed Nelson-Hatch Amendment – 54 to 45

On December 8, 2009, during consideration of a massive bill to restructure the health care system, H.R. 3590, the U.S. Senate rejected an amendment offered by pro-life senators Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) and Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), which was supported by NRLC, by a vote of 54 to 45

The bill under consideration, proposed by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nevada), contains a number of pro-abortion provisions, including language that would result in funding of abortions by a new federal insurance program (the “public option”) and federal SUBSIDIES to help pay for private insurance plans that cover elective abortion.

The Nelson-Hatch Amendment would have prohibited funding of abortion by the government insurance program, and prohibited federal subsidies for private plans that cover abortion (with exceptions for abortions in case of rape, incest, or to save the life of the mother)…

38 Republicans and 7 Democrats voted against killing the amendment. 52 Democrats and 2 Republicans voted to kill the amendment.

WHAT DOES ALL OF THE ABOVE MEAN? Well we had one Catholic-label Republican senator (Susan Collins of Maine) vote to kill this pro-life amendment. And we had only one Catholic label Democratic senator vote for the pro-life amendment. His name was Robert Casey of Pa.

WHY DID THIS AMENDMENT FAIL? WE HAD THE FOLLOWING CATHOLIC-LABEL DEMOCRATIC SENATORS VOTE TO KILL THE PRO-LIFE AMENDMENT. THEY ARE:

CHRIS DODD – CONNECTICUT --- CLAIRE McCASKILL - MISSOURI

RICHARD DURBIN – ILLINOIS --- JACK REED – RHODE ISLAND

TOM HARKIN – IOWA --- PATRICK LEAHY – VERMONT

MARY LANDRIEU – LOUISIANA --- MARIA CANTWELL – WASHINGTON

BARBARA MIKULSKI – MARYLAND --- PATTY MURRAY - WASHINGTON

JOHN KERRY –-- MASSACHUSETTS

THE NELSON-HATCH AMENDMENT WAS DEFEATED BY THE VOTES OF CATHOLIC-LABEL DEMOCRATIC SENATORS. SHOULD NOT THIS BE HEADLINE NEWS IN CATHOLIC PUBLICATIONS COUNTRY-WIDE?
George H. Kubeck