Senator Ted Kennedy Fights Republicans For Children's Health Care
By Logan Murphy Tuesday Jul 31, 2007 1:31pm
Via Bob Geiger.com:
Senator Ted Kennedy (D-MA), the Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, and a longtime champion for working Americans and children, blasted his Republican colleagues Tuesday afternoon for their opposition to funding the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP).
"Every child in America ought to have a healthy start. We are about here in the United States Senate, we are about expressing priorities," said Kennedy on the Senate floor. "Those of us on this side of the aisle and a group on the other side, a small group on the other side, courageous group on the other side have stated that same concept, that every child in America should have a healthy start, number one. And number two, that every parent in America should be relieved of the anxiety about worrying whether they have sufficient resources to be able to make sure that their child is going to receive decent quality of health care." Read more...
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go ted go.
It's too bad there won't be an election in '08. I really think we had a shot at purging the majority of these repigs from office.
If they were blastocysts, embryos or fetuses, the Thugs would be all for it...
between kennedy and Barney Frank, I feel well represented here in Mass.
And the president is threatening to veto this? How the hell could he even consider such a thing? He seems to enjoy using his veto pen if the bill is something that would actually help Americans. Remember stem cells?
I am having a heck of a time getting on to this site this afternoon. It takes forever to load and it's the only site where I have this problem. Maybe Ted Stevens has crawled up and is hiding in the C&L "tubes".
Greg Palast is doing great work, but he is now broke. we all need to send him some money so he can keep on doing the job the msm won't
If Giuliani had his way, everyone would have health care when the "free market" decides it's time. This satirical Rudy Giuliani blog post pretty much sums it up.
It bears repeating: if those fundamentalist evangelicals who only seem to ask WWJD? (What Would Jesus Do?) when it benefits their myopic views don't support this bill, then they'll simply have to change the Bible passage in Mark 10:14 from "Suffer the little children" to "Make the little children suffer."
dmhlt @ 8:
They've been doing that in Iraq for years. Even during Clinton. But that was mostly under Thug control too.
Every child in America ought to have a healthy start.
..And Every State and American needs to be protected from
--> the Bush Administration.
The United States of America. Here we Are.
It looks like We are at the point where the highest prosecutor in the land,
the Atty General NEEDS to be brought to justice.
AND NOW Bush
--> Wants to ram through the "FISA "Modernization" bill.
Its obvious what they are doing.
They have already broke the law and the are trying to legislate the coverup.
They already have the power to do what they need..
Follow the LAW and Get a Court Order.
Bush ( and Rove ) started manipulating and exploiting fear last Sat address.. And the Republicans are threatening to blame the Democrats for the next terror attack if they do not pass this bill.
The next few days will be crucial for the preservation of the Bill of Rights.
Democrats NEED to hold MORE hearings NOW
and CALL OFF the Summer Recess until Gonzales is fully investigated.
That's MY SENATOR.... He still has the fire burning. A rich man who wants to do what is right. Thanks for hanging in there Ted.
you still ROCK
Senator Kennedy should realize that every child in this country would indeed have a healthy start if the United States would do what every other industrialized country has done and that is to have a government run universal health care system where every man, woman and child would not have to worry if they were to receive basic health care that every legislator already has in this country.
For Rent
http://www.portfolio.com/culture-lifestyle/culture-inc/travel/2007/06/29...
pissed off patricia @ 5:
Puzzling thing about the Grinch in Thief vetoing, the tobacco companies get the bill for this, not the fed. He should be thrilled our tax dollars will continue to fund the massacre of innocents. Guess he so completely fucking evil he'll go out of his way to pull the plug on respirators just "because" he so enjoys control over prolonging suffering and dashing hope.
Uncle Ted ought to mention this is for the 'short term', a precursor to a national system for all.
It's a start.
Of course if you have $46,000 a night to blow we can wisk you and the family off to fabulous Necker Island for a marvelous week of sun and beach.
The right hates Ted so much. All he ever does is look out for people. He is a "crazy liberal" to them, but he acts toward his fellow men the way Jesus would, a lot more so than the so-called christians on the right.
Go Ted. Way to kick asses all ove the Senate Floor.
Here in CO where I live, children's health care will be funded by tobacco companies.
Self-righteous punitive funding it is, whom mostly the poor will pay for really since they are the smokers for the most part, at least children's health care will be available which is most important.
Still, it is symptomatic of a cynical, selfish country that doesn't care if it's population lives or dies. We have a hollowed-out economy to prove it.
The darkest nightmare in the world to a neocon is a government program, any government program, that works. Success of government by the People runs counter to the neocon's desire to destroy faith and confidence in government. The more cynical citizens become about the viability of government by the people, the harder it gets for the neocons to establish their dream of government by the elites. "This would be so much easier if this were a dictatorship.....just so long as I get to be the dictator".
You can bet you rass the Bush and the overwhelming majority of GOPers are going to do everything in their power to crush healthcare - for children and everybody else. the only way they will vote for it is if it is turned into a corporate giveaway to insurance companies (who will continue to collect premiums and deny coverage).
He's absolutely correct....and it should be handled at the State level.
Kennedy is also one of the few democrats willing to stick up for vaccine injured children and support the removal of ALL mercury from vaccines (preservative mercury has been phased out of most but residual mercury from manufacturing still exists at rates over the safe limit set by the EPA in most vaccines without live or attenuated viruses).
uhm -- how about health care for everyone?
Paul @ 19:
Hey, Paul, that's this gov't PRECISELY: We pay for EVERYTHING and get NOTHING in return.
I fear this country will NEVER have universal health care. Aside from the obvious reason, medical and insurance industry lobbyists buying our "elected" officials, there is the basic fact that the "conservatives" and "Republicans", those bastions of morality and righteousness, feel that health care, like education, is a "commodity" whose price and availability is based on the market. Most other civilized nations, which put us to shame, view health care as a basic human right. Just another example of the greed and arrogance of Americans.
Soooo, how long until the Democrats fold on this issue? Five minutes? Oh I know, they can wait until after vacation. That way they can wash their hands of it and not get a backbone.
I'm not holding my breath on this one getting through.
I love Ted's passion. What an orator. At least he clearly believes in what he is talking about, unlike his repub counterparts that snivel, shed crocodile tears, and usually wind down a speech with a swipe at Democrats by mentioning "librul fascism" or something equally strawman-ish and untrue.
Thank goodness his luck has held stronger than a lot of other Kennedys'.
chris @ 22:
Totally. We're discussing a temporary bandaid at least for children until we have our national healthcare system. In the meantime of course, their parents might die, and everyone else in this country regardless of status who deserves to receive the benevolence of their society.
(not just the extremely old who have enjoyed excellent care for decades whose children are dropping like flies, anyone else noticed that?)
Can you believe the nerve of this guy? So anti-American.... Hey, those kids shouldnt have been born with disabilities. Tough shit ya hear me? -- Go apply at McDonalds and maybe after 3 years they'll give you a regular fulltime position. Shoot, go buy your own healthcare and see what parts of your disability arent covered, shoot go get a huuuge loan and go to school and maybe then you'll have a decent job where you can have healthcare.... * THAT IS UNLESS YOU DIE FROM YOUR ILLNESS FIRST, OH WELL, SUCKS TO BE YOU --- VIVA CAPITALIST AMERICA!!!
why is the media suppressing this hillary interview with keith olbermann? it shows hillary being a hypocrite regarding her recent criticisms of obama: [Deleted. Off topic and spam-Sitemonitor]
I actually love watching c-span. It gives me hope. It is so easy to become cynical and think that NO ONE in the capital is doing anything or even cares. When you tune in however you see that there are some honest to goodness respectable pols out there who actually care and who are actually doing something. I'm refering to more than just Kennedy here mind you; Sheldon Whitehouse(D-RI) also gave a very good presentation for this, comparing the cost to providing health care to children and Bush's tax cuts for the rich at the same time doing a good job of exposing the administrations blatant hypocrisy and lies.
Also compare old congresional hearings to the ones we are having now; where as before you couldn't even get a witness under oath, now we are starting to get supeonas and contempt charges brought. Everyone says this new congress does nothing, just like the old one. That is not true. Sure it will take some time to dig through all the shit left behind, but tune into
Been following this in the House and keep hearing all the jingoistic language-some "illegals" will get insurance for their sick kids, this will gut Social Security, it will increase taxes, entitlement, welfare, socialized medicine. The bottom line is that the rethugs are standing in line to protect the profits of the tobacco and insurance industries and poor children be damned.
What do those bastards make a year with their benefits? 250K or so? But, they're going to try to keep people that have insurance (but have a hard time paying for it) from switching their kids to the program. This program was set up by Newt and now the rethugs are voting against it. How do they sleep?
Senator Kennedy is owned by Big Pharma-He is part of a group that wants to make vitamins like drugs, requiring PRESCRIPTIONS for them and making higher dosages illegal-this has already happened in England and he is trying to expedite this in the USA-so don't give him an altruistic spin-expanding coverage for children helps the corporations that pay him-hhe is definitely NOT for health freedom.
no american should have to pay for health care at all. don't confuse the issue that is important to us. LISTEN TO US'
thanks
Republicans to Children: Drop Dead
I guess all that "Compassionate Conseratism" went the way of "Joementum"
I simply want to shake his hand. Then thank him.
He is not perfect. I am sure he would be the first to admit that.
He has one thing that is lacking with the majority of Congress....and that is a heart and a conscience.
Here we are. The financiers of this grotesque gov't.
We pay them to give some to them AND back to society. They give us nothing.
Oh, h'yeah, they'll take our money and give it to ILLEGALS for healthcare.
But not us. Feeling crazy? I am!
And it's OUR money.
So we're enslaved.
And they assume the choice is theirs and not ours.
Aren't they GUEST representatives, guests who rob us blind?
Being a citizen of the u.s. is a game of monkey-in-the-middle over something that BELONGS to us, this government itself.
"Aftah 65 mahtinis, I can still swim to Hyannis Port with my wife Joan on my bahk!"
Got to love Ted for his passion!
He divorced her something like 40 years ago, right? Wife #3? Envy northeasterners,which is where I'm from originally, miss vermont and sailing past hyannis!
The rest of the country is bullshit.
Yes Crazylove, we do have it good here at times (Maine).
When are you coming back? :)
Yeah? Well our corner is not only saying impeachment but is actually trying to put it into practice also; now if only we bring it against bush and dick.
"Northwest fill my lungs, kills the pain in my chest."
-Geo, Blue Scholars
It's all good though, we still got love for ya Easties.
With Republicans, it's all about getting away with murder.
There he goes again, that socialist librul Kennedy fella
gonna raise my cigarette taxes and who knows what else
teh pay for all those illegals getting me all upset and thinkin
about things i shouldn't be thinkin about! I wonder what that
nice man Reverend Parsley would say. He would say lock-n-load
cho'll never take another cigarette ouch a mah mouth over mah
dead lips..or sumtim like that.
Hooha!
"I thought this was the United States Senate, and if it is the United States Senate -- which I have my doubts about -- you vote against a program, even if it means more money for your state, if it's bad," Lott lamented. "But I don't think we do that anymore."
tent lott trying to gather votes in the senate. i wish his light would go out.
Last I heard, there is a 90% approval rating in polls for this, universal healthcare for all children - 90% and Bush is threatening a veto. Bush's motive for everything is: if he can hurt someone, he'll do it. He will choose the worst option possible in any situation.
I know we only have less than 2 years of this moron but really, can we take anymore? I don't think so. Not without a veto proof majority, we're far from that, impeachment of Bush and Cheney has to happen at the same time, somehow. I read Pelosi's thoughts on that in the most recent Nation article, who knows.
I heard Tom Coburn, Republigoon Senator from Oklahoma on NPR today propose that we give tax credits of 5400.00 to everyone in lieu of this program so they could buy healthcare. His "logic" was that the average cost of healthcare was 4400.00 and thus, everyone would make out just fine.
Evidentally this blithering idiot has never done a tax return since a 5400.00 tax credit does not necessarily put 5400.00 in your pocket---in reality it would net the taxpayer a fraction of that amount, the rest being a net expense--if they got anything back at all.
That's how stupid these delusional assholes are. They are so desperate to push their fetid corporatology on us that the facts and realities are irrelevant. To the people of Oklahoma---do us a favor--vote Coburn and Imhofe out of office immediately.
Sure hope everyone remembers the repukulans at election time and votes for them they way they voted for AMerica and its citizens . NO NO NO and more NOs.
I also hope everyone remembers to ask that at every oppurtunity why they are NOT backing the Tillman probe and demanding the Talking Monkey open the investigation. Remember they love the troops more than anyone else NOT, again Votte NO for repukulan.
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