Posted on 03/20/2010 3:08:31 PM PDT by phrogphlyer
After hearing out everyone everyone from President Obama to tea party activists, Dover Democratic Rep. Zack Space announced today that he'll oppose the health care reform bill that's up for a vote on Sunday in the House of Representatives.
Space, who represents a sprawling southeast Ohio congressional district with a high concentration of Republicans, said he doesn't like the bill, and his constituents don't like it, either.
"Probably the most significant concern is the pay-fors in the bill," said Space. "They are opening the door to taxing employee benefits as income, which is going to create, I don’t care how you slice it, a hardship for middle class families that they can’t afford to endure right now."
Space said the version of the bill he supported last year taxed the wealthiest Americans, rather than the middle class, to pay some of the working poor's health care costs.
"This bill has taken those people out of it," said Space.
Space has been targeted by Republicans since he won a seat previously held by scandal-tainted GOP Rep. Bob Ney. This afternoon the National Republican Congressional Committee sent out an email that asked whether Space would "slash Medicare benefits for Ohio seniors" by supporting the bill, and called the vote potentially "career-ending" for him.
Earlier this year, Space issued a statement that strongly disapproved of the Senate bill. He said he told a group of roughly 13,000 constituents who participated in a telephone town hall meeting with him on Friday night that he'd vote against the bill.
Space's announcement leaves Toledo Democratic Rep. Marcy Kaptur as the only uncommitted Ohio member of Congress on the controversial vote. She has concerns about the bill's handling of abortion, but has said she is leaning towards a "Yes." All Ohio Republicans oppose the bill, along with Cincinnati Democrat Steve Driehaus, who worries the bill won't do enough to keep tax dollars from funding abortions,
The rest of Ohio's Democrats back the bill.
Big win for the GOP. That’s 202 firm nos by my count, with about 20 “undecideds,” maybe 15.
Dear God in Heaven, let it be so! Amen and amen.
If this bill goes down to defeat, there is political cover to the Democrats who joined Republicans (and the American people) in killing this thing.
If this bill passes, there will be NO political cover to those Dems who voted against it.
Alright, I know you’re a sharp guy, so what am I missing?
As far as I can see, the moment that Deem and Pass was abandoned, it made it necessary for two votes. One for the reconciliation bill and one for the senate bill. Yes on one doesn’t mean yes on the other, so it would seem that all whip counts would need to be thrown out and looked at again in that new light.
I can see the reconciliation bill passing for sure, but ther senate bill is another story entirely.
Where am I going wrong?
Good news ping!
Keep those prayers coming!
Some Republican on FOX “over-promise/under-fund”
^
Nailed it.
This article scares me a little, last line says “all other Ohio Ds voting yes.” My count still has Driehaus undecided and Kaptur with Stupak. Have you heard any different on them?
All this procedure is beyond me, but I THINK that we win if a reconciliation bill passes, because then it has to go back to the Senate where a filibuster would kill it. Someone better versed in House/Senate procedure needs to weigh in.
Yeah someone posted that he was voting yesterday, but today people were saying he was still undecided so I am glad that he has confirmed he is voting NO
Good point. What bill are we talking about?
Kaptur is up in the air. She needed a $2 million special grant from Zero to vote for the “stimulus” bill, so she is feeling the heat. Driehaus is part of the Stupak group, and has been a little too willing to talk to Nancy. So I’m betting he’s a yes.
A move to Yes to No at this point is a big deal.
Actually 3 votes are planned -
1. To exempt Tricare (military)
2. For the Senate Bill
3. House “fixes” to the Senate bill
LS, you need concentrate only on the senate bill. The only thing that can be ‘reconciled’ is a LAW. In other words, nothing can be reconciled until the senate bill becomes law. Why do you think Obama is still in the country if this thing had to go back to the senate for weeks more? He’s here to sign a bill if he can get it.
My take is that previously, with the Deem and Pass, the senate bill would have been bundled with the reconciliation bill, so they were duping members into voting for the senate bill while promising them a fantasy of reconciliation that would never actually materialize. The senate bill would then have been signed into law by Obama before anyone knew what happened.
Now, they actually have to pass the senate bill and have it signed into law first, which would seem to be a deal breaker to me for a lot of these guys who really hate the senate bill. They will have no guarantee that the senate will pass their ‘fixes’ and in fact the senate Republicans are telling them outright that they won’t ever see the light of day.
I think the bill suffered a major setback today when Deem and Pass went out the window. I can see them passing the ‘fixes’ bill, but not the senate bill.
We’ll take any we can get at this point!
I’m listening to the Rules Committee again...they’re arguing about whether or not abortion is covered under this -with our tax dollars.
Which any Dem with half a brain (I know how many of them are there to begin with?) would know.
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