They do not have the numbers. Stop them.
This is it. This is the week. As a great, Drudge-recommended piece by Clive Cook states in The Financial Times…
What the Obama administration lacks in clarity of message it makes up for in sheer nerve. Mr Obama has doubled down on his healthcare gamble. He has delayed a planned trip to Asia this week, so that he can exert more influence as the House Democratic leaders try to corral the vote. If the effort fails, he will be fully implicated in the failure.
We need to make sure it fails. Call, fax, Twitter, and email your rep this morning.
Per FireDogLake:
The quiet confidence among Democratic leaders over the health care bill belies the hardball tactics going on behind the scenes.
The reason they’re having to play hardball is because we’re playing hardball. Only it’s a game of life and death. Bear that in mind as you keep playing. Call, fax, Twitter, and email your rep this morning.
Latest whip count, from FireDogLake.com (although it’s soon to be updated… will post when that happens)…
From The Hill, March 13:
House Democratic leaders don’t have the votes to pass healthcare reform. At least not yet….
Pelosi is clearly down in the vote count. 34 House Democrats are either firm no votes or leaning no, according to The Hill’s whip list. Dozens more are undecided….
If every House member votes and all Republicans reject the bill as expected, Pelosi can only afford 37 Democratic defections. That breakdown of the votes would lead to a 216-215 tally.
Of the 34 no votes/leaning no votes, 8 of them backed the House-backed bill in November. Meanwhile, 9 Dems who voted no last fall are publicly on the fence.
Friday’s decision by Democratic leaders to forge ahead without the backing of anti-abortion rights Rep. Bart Stupak (D-MI) has dealt a blow to the chances the lower chamber can pass a health bill….
From The Hill, March 14:
Democrats don’t currently have the votes necessary to pass healthcare reform in the House, Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-SC) acknowledged today.
House leaders are frantically trying to gather enough votes to pass the Senate bill as early as this week, but so far they’ve fallen short, Clyburn said.
“No we don’t have them as of this morning but we’ve been working this thing all weekend,” Clyburn told NBC’s Meet the Press….
“I’m very confident we’ll get this done,” he said. “I think the members are going to vote for this.”
We frankly need to rub Clyburn’s confidence in his face. Call, fax, Twitter, and email your rep this morning.
[Graphic via The Financial Times]
Jill Stanek is a nurse turned speaker, columnist and blogger, a national figure in the effort to protect both preborn and postborn innocent human life.
If Obama gets defeated I’m:
1. Praising God
2. Praising God some more.
3. Finding out what Bart Stupak drinks and sending him a case every Christmas for the rest of his life.
Jill, win or lose, you have rallied the troops better than any general in history!! Thank You.
Ok, I called my congresswoman Debbie Halvorson’s DC and Joliet offices, faxed a letter, and sent her an email.
Please join me in contacting your congressperson TODAY.
Gerry, thanks so much… :)
LOL,
Obama delayed his Asian trip? He better use the time to practice ducking flying shoes. Indonesians have been getting a lot of shoe throwing practice with his posters.
WHY is this administration so hell-bent in going against the will of the majority???
Are they so far up PP’s rear-end, they don’t see the light anymore?
*Yeah, PP’s running this show…you can actually see the strings on Obama, Reid and Pelosi…
Pelosi and Reid make me think of a couple of criminal weasels who do the mob boss’s bidding with threats, intimidation, and bribery, and live in fear of the boss’s wrath should they not produce the desired results.
I think they are scared to death of Obama and Emanuel.
Hi RSD,
It is Obama who refuses to accept defeat and it is his wrath that Pelosi and Reid will face and that I am personally convinced, live in mortal terror of.
Narcissists/sociopaths do not gracefully take “no” for an answer. That’s why they often function as dictators and crime bosses. It is totally against Obama’s nature and he will fight for victory to the bitter end. His determination and defiance of the American people is exactly what I expected, and he’s proving me correct…again.
Of course if this is defeated, it will be everyone’s fault but his, mainly Pelosi and Reid’s.
Ever see those spoof Youtube videos of Hitler flying into an insane rage when informed of something not to his liking, for example Brown winning Massachusetts? A typical SPD/NPD response to frustration and failure.
Well check out Youtube to see what Pelosi and Reid will face if this is defeated. I’m sure they would rather shake hands with the devil in hell.
I will send another email to Representative Chris Van Hollen’s office (and follow it up with a phone call), but he is one of the ringleaders and I doubt it will do much good.
Done. Done. Done.
I said if they voted for Obama’s socialized healthcare grab they would be looking for new jobs.
I wish I could make a call or e-mail, but I’m a Canadian unfortunately. Don’t let Europe and Canada conquer by stealth the land of the free!
Today, the Bishop of Arlington declared a diocese-wide fast in support of the healthcare resistance. If you are opposed to abortion, consider joining in the sacrifice.
Andrew,
An excellent idea. I’ll use all the spiritual tools available to defeat this mess of a bill.
Unfortunately, e-mails, twitters and faxes will make no difference. I live in “Massa-land,” so we are without representation. Of course I have contacted Senators Gillibrand and Schumer many, many times before even though those efforts are wasted.
Is is possible to contact Bart Stupak even though he is not my representative? I’m sure he is in need of fortification and encouragement.
This whole things is surreal.
An amazing event in Haiti demonstrating God’s omnipotence:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=30rWm84z-zg
Go to the Drudgereport to see the “resurrection” photo of Obama that was printed in the NY times.
Kind of reminds me of the “halo” photo.
I think there is also one of Obama taking his daily stroll on the Potomac River.
Nerina, I am in a similar boat, but am encouraged to remember we have an audience with the King whenever we’d like. Because of the One who’s gone before, we may boldly approach the throne of Grace, praise God!
Phil, I saw the Haitians’ cry out to God on Prophecy in the News the other week and wept to see them, wondering what it would take for our nation to do likewise. The population of Haiti is just under 10 million and estimates put the prayerful at over a million—the equivalent here would mean over 30 million.
FYI, there’s a quick & easy form to complete at StandWithStupak.com to contact 6 dems to encourage them to commit to no abortion funding.
How can you call yourselves “pro-life” yet be so viciously opposed to health care reform that would provide more than 30 million Americans with access to basic and lifesaving healthcare?
Does some vague and unprovable pronouncement that this bill would potentially provide funding for abortions — even though the text explicitly says that no funding will be provided for abortions other than the Hyde Amendment exceptions (rape, incest, saving life of mother) — does that justify the many deaths of uninsured Americans who have little or no access to healthcare? Do those people even count in your calculations? People with children, families, mothers, fathers, husbands, wives, people who depend on them? Are 30 million potential deaths so insignificant to you that they don’t even factor in your equations?
I am one of those tens of millions of uninsured Americans. I work full time and receive no benefits. Because of a cancer diagnosis five years ago and CNS dysfunction from being hit by a car 9 years ago while I crossed a street, I can’t get health insurance. Every month I have to decide which of the medications I depend on to be able to function and work and get up in the morning I can afford and which ones I can muddle through without. And I am many months late for the yearly tests and CT scans that would determine if the serious, aggressive cancer I was diagnosed with five years ago has come back. Without insurance, without this reform, I will never be able to afford the $5000 price tag for those tests. There is a 1 in 5 chance that cancer has metastasized in my body right now, which is a virtual death sentence (7% five year survival rate).
I am betting my life on health reform because I have no other options. And mine is only one story. There are tens of millions of people uninsured today who are in situations like mine, or who have put off going to the doctor so long that what would have been a minor problem is now life threatening, or who will die because they didn’t have access to basic medical care that can identify cardiovascular problems, diabetes, and other chronic and common conditions.
Do those lives matter? Is preventing some imaginary funding for abortions that isn’t even in the bill worth sacrificing the lives of people who need reform now, today?
How can you call yourselves “pro-life” when your actions, if successful, will be responsible for thousands, tens of thousands, maybe hundreds of thousands of deaths that are happening every day simply because we can’t afford health care, or because insurance companies are withholding coverage for the care that would save their lives?
Or do we have to be fetuses to matter at all?
And by the way — 25 pro-life organizations say, “We believe that the provisions below provide extensive evidence that longstanding restrictions on federal funding of abortion have been maintained. Furthermore, this bill provides new and important supports for vulnerable pregnant women.”
Read their letter in SUPPORT of health care reform, which reiterates in detail all of the ways the bill does NOT fund abortion:
http://ncronline.org/blogs/ncr-today/pro-life-group-urges-congress-pass-senate-health-care-bill
Mary – good find. Posting that photo.
Why hello, Violet. Is the excitement of #livetweetingabortion dying down? Trying to forget you were the last person to whom @nextthurs spoke before disappearing? Welcome to my world. Stay and learn.
Violet,
What we need is health insurance reform, not gov’t takeover. Gov’t bureaucrats will make insurance agents look like pushovers.
We support reform that encourages free market competition across state lines. Of course companies can pick, choose, and abuse when they’re the only show in town. We want to see companies competing for your business like Allstate and Geico. You don’t have trouble getting car insurance do you? We want doctors and hospitals to compete for your business.
Have you checked out Wal-mart’s program for $4.00 prescriptions? Pharmaceutical companies have programs that offer reduced prices. There are on-line Canadian pharmacies. Personally, I think some international pharmaceutical company competition would be good as well. Have you spoken to hospitals or your doctor about payment plans? Have you talked to social services?
So many people in your circumstances see a panacea with the gov’t. The gov’t is already deeply in debt and how will they manage even more debt? By telling you what care you can or cannot have,by putting you on a “waiting list”,and by closing certain hospitals.
God, I pray you would help our leaders make the right decision to NOT support government run healthcare. Help them to have the courage to NOT subject Americans to pay for abortions in Jesus’ name.
Violet, I too work full time and cannot afford health insurance (I work for a non-profit organization and my employer can’t afford to pay for it for me, nor can I afford private insurance). Thankfully I can pay for my medical appointments, eyeglasses and high-blood pressure medication, but would be lost if it came to paying the costs of a drastic illness like cancer.
I support the idea of health care reform in principle as do my Catholic bishops. I am not opposed in principle to the government partnering to pay health insurance costs.
All the same, I’d rather go for the rest of my life without health insurance than support this bill. I am not willing to let innocent babies in the womb die for my health. (Yes, of course abortion in the bill. Why else would Pelosi and co. be supporting it? Why else would Planned Parenthood be all for it?)
But it goes even deeper than that. We have an administration and a ruling class in general in this country that is ideologically committed to social engineering of people’s lives. Members of this administration (Holdren, Singer) in the past have been in favor of rationing care, even forced abortion and euthanasia. President Obama himself has hinted in favor of rationing of medical care. This is a direct hit on human freedom. No one should get any decision in what care I receive by myself and my doctor. And once government is allowed to take over our freedom, we’re not going to get it back again. Just pray, if we are saddled with this bill, that your cancer treatments aren’t cut off once you’re no longer considered a “useful member of society.”
We can do better than this. As Americans, we should DEMAND better of our government.
Those organizations signing that letter you mentioned are not pro-life, just pro-Obama at all costs. I don’t trust them.
Violet,, I’m a Canadian and benefit from healthcare. I have no complaints about it. I am also healthy. Apart from ER waits I’m fine and think the idea of universal health care is great, however, there are issues…. Here the great taboo is private health care.
The US system needs to be reformed to prevent abuse, not overhauled and complete controle of the health care. Quick and efficient health care is why some Canadians go to visit you. They are tired of the wait.
Violet,
I was stunned to hear about your cancer diagnosis from five years ago. I hope that your health is better now- cancer is horrific. Is everything okay now? A lot of people in my family have suffered from cancer and I know how difficult that it is to see someone suffering- I can’t even imagine how difficult that it is to suffer yourself. I hope that everything is okay with your health, though.
I’ve tried to respond to all of the questions/comments, and between the length of my answers and the problems last night getting comments posted here it seemed simpler to post them at my blog rather than take up pages and pages here. You can read my responses at http://iamsteel.wordpress.com/2010/03/16/response-to-comments-on-jill-staneks-blog/ — Thanks.