Posted on 03/20/2010 1:02:50 PM PDT by Uncledave
They Still Don’t Have the Votes [Jeffrey H. Anderson]
The most likely explanation for the breakdown of talks between Rep. Bart Stupak and Speaker Nancy Pelosi is not that Pelosi decided she didn’t need Stupak and his crew in order to have enough votes to pass Obamacare. Rather, it is that Stupak — who is increasingly emerging as this drama’s Jefferson Smith (Jimmy Stewart’s heroic character in Mr. Smith Goes to Washington) — held firm in insisting on language that would truly prevent taxpayer-funded abortions, and in insisting that such language be passed by the Senate before the bill could become law.
In turn, Pelosi either decided that by accepting the language, she would lose more votes in the House than she would gain, or else knew that Democratic senators, with their strong preference for taxpayer-funded abortion, would never go along with this concession to the views of the vast majority of Americans.
In any event, by all accounts, Pelosi is now trying to pass the bill without the pro-life Democratic vote — or at least without Stupak. As of now, it doesn’t appear that she has the votes. I currently count 208 leaning in favor of Obamacare and 214 leaning against, with 9 undecided. Here they are — with the margin by which the presidential vote was won (by one party or the other) in their districts over the last three elections:
• Marion Berry (D., Ark.) (GOP +8) — pro-Stupak Amendment
• Henry Cuellar (D., Tex.) (Dem +1) — pro-Stupak Amendment
• Bill Foster (D., Ill.) (GOP +4)
• Jim Matheson (D., Utah) (GOP +30) — with nearly two-thirds of his constituents having supported GOP presidential candidates over the last three elections, a “yes” vote on Stupak, and an earlier “no” vote on Obamacare, a “yes” vote would mean that, for the rest of his days, he would be remembered as the guy who sold his vote for the price of Obama’s having just nominated his brother to a federal judgeship
• Michael Michaud (D., Me.) (Dem +7) — pro-Stupak Amendment
• Solomon Ortiz (D., Tex.) (GOP +1) — pro-Stupak Amendment
• Earl Pomeroy (D., N.D.) (GOP +21) — pro-Stupak Amendment — yes, that’s GOP +21
• Nick Rahall (D., W.V.) (GOP +6) — pro-Stupak Amendment
• Zach Space (D., Ohio) (GOP +12) — pro-Stupak Amendment
Also, here is a partial list of some particularly key members who are leaning “no”:
• Christopher Carney (D., Pa.) (GOP +15) — pro-Stupak Amendment
• Dan Lipinski (D., Ill.) (Dem +22) — pro-Stupak Amendment
• Kathleen Dahlkemper (D., Pa.) (GOP +3) — pro-Stupak Amendment
• Glenn Nye (D., Va.) (GOP +9) — “no” last time
True...and this way way of manipulating the vote to happen now insures that they can't play with people on the issue anymore.
For the past 72 hours, FOX has been Pelosi’s handmaiden - or worse.
1. Order a pizza and have it delivered to the House of Reps.
2. They don't want to let the protesters in? I say, don't let the congress-critters out. Block all exits, bang on cars, toss trash in the drives.
They consider us to be unwashed peasants. Go medieval on the bastards!
The best ammo for the job!
Sorry, I’m not thinking right because my mind is in “pissed off” mode.
When was the last time we found news on TV?
Now that they obama has spoken all the anti Palin freepers will now start telling us how the bill is good because the media says it is and how the dems will now not lose in the fall!
Your obsession with Mitt Romney seems to be getting just a wee bit unhealthy.
I agree. Screw the RINO’s and let’s get on with the business of supporting real conservatives.
I haven’t heard anything here in OH, but I suspect he is finished if he doesn’t vote no. This is a swing seat that the GOP lost in 2008.
Pissed is putting it lightly! Am heading out to poke some holes in paper... great stress reliever and good practice for the coming storm!
>Plus, if you’re trying to stop it and the vote is going to be really really close, by lying and getting them to count your vote, you can get them to bring it to the floor when they don’t have the votes they think they have.<
Love that-it would be positively ingenius, but are these pols even capable of “strategerizing” that far ahead?
I hope this analysis is correct. But it reminds me of pundits claiming there was no way Obama was going to win Ohio.
I sure hope ~something~ derails this... I’m praying.
That's why I think this deal fails by a No vote of over 230. There are probably 15 - 20 Dems who will wait until they see the "No" vote reach 216, then they vote against it for their political survival.
again? when is someone in the media or the political world going to say out loud the obvious - that this man looks and acts like a lunatic?? Why the silence? I’d love to see headlines on newspapers saying that, because he really does look like he’s nuts.
Ive been faxing Michaud (ME) every day for the last week. His phone lines and email are usually jammed. Ive faxed his office in DC and here in Bangor, Maine. Hope he takes the hint..
I got through to his DC office around 2:40 pm. He is still undeceided. I mentioned to the staffer that to vote for taxpayer funded abortion in the Senate bill would result in him becoming a hypocrite. All his future actions and words would then be suspect and to regain trust and integrity is a very difficult thing.
Two reasons come to mind. Ratings; they like the horse race scenario predicting it for the Dems to win. See Dems, Fox News ain't so bad so don't restrict access to us.
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