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There Will Be No Roll Call: Sanders Withdraws Single-Payer Amendment
WASHINGTON - Sen. Bernie Sanders' plan to create a single-payer health insurance system won't get a vote this year.
The Vermont independent withdrew his amendment to the Senate's health care reform bill at 2:45 p.m. today after Republican Sen. Tom Coburn of Oklahoma requested that Senate clerks read aloud all 767 pages of the proposal on the Senate floor.
Sanders accused Republicans of trying to bring the U.S. government to a halt in a moment of crisis. He cited widespread support for his plan, which he said will eventually become law when Congress has the "courage" to stand up to those who "profit off human sickness."
"I was more than aware that that amendment would not win," he said. "But I am absolutely confident that this legislation or legislation like it will eventually become the law of the land."
Reading the entire text of Sanders' amendment was expected to take 10 hours. The clerks began at noon and could be seen on C-SPAN, trading places at the lectern. One stopped to take a drink of water.
Bill readings are usually waived. A request for one is considered a delaying tactic.
Coburn said in a statement today the reading "will provide a dose of transparency that has been lacking in this debate."
"I admire Sen. Sanders for his willingness to fight for publically what many advocate only privately - a single-payer health care system funded and controlled by bureaucrats and politicians in Washington," Coburn's statement said. "Every American should listen to the reading of this amendment and pay careful attention to its vote tally."
Sanders' amendment would establish a health insurance system regulated and funded by the federal government through payroll and income taxes but administered by states. The full amendment is posted on the Vermont independent's Web site at http://sanders.senate.gov.
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26 Comments so far
Show AllFHAT. THE. WUCK.?
Dr. Tom Coburn should turn in his medical license because he is honoring the hypocrites' oath rather than the Hippocratic Oath.
Every other Western democracy provides health care for their populations, many with successful single-payer systems.
Our Congress is too corrupt to give a damn about us. It's time we threw all the Corporate Tools out on their fat asses.
Coburn knew he was on solid ground since Obama prevented single-payer from ever being put "on the table" when health care "reform" legislation started earlier this year.
Ah, if we only could.
I feel sorry for all those who begged their senators to support Sanders's amendment. Tom Coburn may be a nutcase but he sure did a fabulous job of exposing the rot in Washington that pols are not only shameless sellouts but that they also refuse to read what they want to pass most of the time. As for Sanders withdrawing his amendment, well thanks for nothing ! He could have bravely read the amendment so that more people might have awoken from their stupor and joined us in trying to get his amendment to pass but nooooooooooo, he gave up and it stinks ! :.(
I agree he should have had them read it to the end. Sander's had nothing to loose. If anybody started to complain he could just point to Coburn and say "HE made us do it!"
Physically reading the bills, which by legal necessity have to be wordy and long, is not practical. In fact it would be absurd. The whole idea is a monkeywrenching tactic.
When a mine inspector goes to a mine, does he read all 770 pages of 30 CFR Parts 1 through 199 to the miners?
Sigh, generally that is true. I just thought that for once I could be witnessing a counter-Strom.
I don't know about mine inspection but would it hurt to go through it all just once? I think that we are talking two different cases.
For Sanders, this was his best chance to show what a braveheart he could be for 12 hours and tell the country every single detail of what he supports. That would motivate more voters to join us and put the rest of the pols to shame and possibly interfere with the disastrous Obamacare and force single payer on the table. But alas, it was a big letdown and I feel sad that Sanders had to give up despite the powers he had to make the case and be positively popular. ::(
Re-posting here, what I just posted on the earlier thread:
So ... Sanders was "forced" by Democratic party "leaders" to withdraw his single-payer amendment. There will be no vote on single-payer today. Senators will not have to choose between a career-ending vote of "no" on single-payer, or a conscientious vote of "yes" on single-payer. This, according to what I've just witnessed on C-SPAN 2 and read elsewhere.
And all this because Sen. Coburn asked for the amendment to be read aloud before the vote? This reading would have delayed other Senate business, and therefor Sen. Sanders had to withdraw his amendment?
IF THAT'S TRUE, then why didn't Sanders promise that he will ask that Republicans' amendments be read aloud before being voted on? Why didn't Sen. Reid promise Republicans that HE will ask that their amendments be read aloud before they can be voted on, IF COBURN WOULD NOT WITHDRAW HIS REQUEST?
And, if voting on the DOD funding bill today was so damned important, why is the Senate in a quorum call now? They aren't doing a damned thing!
This is B.S.! Obama and Reid don't want a vote on single-payer! They want to keep up the charade that they want single-payer, but can't get it through Congress.
I want a LIST of NAMES of Senators who vote "no" on single-payer. If they vote "no" we can replace them in coming elections. We can't get that list of insurance-industry shills until there is a vote.
Obama and Reid are the enemies of single-payer. I wouldn't be surprised if they conspired with Coburn to kill the vote on single-payer.
Agree with you Naturally. What a weakxxx effort to get the single-payer amendment up for a vote. Boo hoo, we are going to have to stay late 10 hours to actually have the bill read. Can't do that after having just spent 10 months slaughtering the bill! Can't allow a vote on something a large segment of the population actually wants! Can't afford to embarrass the Democrats. Thanks for the side-show!
Apparently the great Senator Sanders is just another con man, just like the rest. So what if it would have taken 10 hours, or 10 days, or 10 weeks to read the bill aloud?
This just makes me sick.
No, I don't think Sanders is a con man. Just the opposite.
I think that the "party leader" who pressured him into withdrawing his amendment is Obama.
Why does one senator, Joe Lieberman, have the power to remove the public option and expanded Medicare from the bill? Because that's what Obama wants.
Why does another senator, Bernie Sanders, NOT have the power to even have his amendment voted on? Because that's what Obama wants.
Obama leads and Reid follows. Reid can render any Senator powerless. That's why Lieberman can do what he wants, and Sanders cannot.
"Reid can render any Senator powerless."
If Sanders had any character at all, he would have announced to the press what Reid was pressuring him with, and he would have continued to insist that his bill get a roll-call vote, so that everyone in the Senate would be on record, for or against single-payer.
We all deserved this chance to identify our enemies, especially the ones who have made such a success of misrepresenting their true agendas. But Sanders caved.
This is more agreeable than your first comment. I agree with every part of it, except one.
You must know that Reid COULD have kept the Sanders amendment from ever coming to the floor for a vote. (In fact, the vast majority of proposed legislation never gets to the floor.) So, yes Sanders could have refused to withdraw his amendment, but Reid could have then prevented Sanders from ever getting another bill to the floor.
And, the party and corporate media would have further marginalized him by smearing him as the "extremist" who held the Senate hostage for a day, while "knowing" his bill would not pass anyway. I can just imagine Chris Mathews shouting at any guest who tried to disagree with that framework.
I wish Sanders had forced the vote, and for the very reasons you say. But, I don't think he has "no character at all." He has character, but perhaps not enough. Or, perhaps "guts" is a better word.
"Obama leads and Reid follows. Reid can render any Senator powerless. That's why Lieberman can do what he wants, and Sanders cannot."
Well put. And it is the weakness of this particular power structure that makes the republicans so successful in maintaining and even expanding their satanic agenda.
q
Is it a weakness in the structure, or is it just the wrong person in the presidency?
Sanders said:
..."But I am absolutely confident that this legislation or legislation like it will eventually become the law of the land."
I agree with him, but its going to take a LONG time. That's because as Winston Churchhill was said to have once uttered, "You can always trust the Americans to do the right thing, AFTER they have tried EVERYTHING ELSE first..."
Why the hell does single-payer need 767 pages??
Just amend the Medicare Act to remove the words "over 65".
The gloves should come off right now. Single payer or single term. Period! If that puts a Rethug in a Dems seat for the next 4 - 6 years well then good, next time you run you will know what side to support. You will also know exaclty why you will be cleaning out your desk the day after the election.
OBAMA ---- ALL OUT TO PREVENT PUBLIC OPTION
Below is an excellent article on how our make believe government really works.
“Of all the posts I wrote this year, the one that produced the most vociferous email backlash -- easily -- was this one from August, which examined substantial evidence showing that, contrary to Obama's occasional public statements in support of a public option, the White House clearly intended from the start that the final health care reform bill would contain no such provision and was actively and privately participating in efforts to shape a final bill without it.
From the start, assuaging the health insurance and pharmaceutical industries was a central preoccupation of the White House -- hence the deal negotiated in strict secrecy with Pharma to ban bulk price negotiations and drug reimportation, a blatant violation of both Obama's campaign positions on those issues and his promise to conduct all negotiations out in the open (on C-SPAN). Indeed, Democrats led the way yesterday in killing drug re-importation, which they endlessly claimed to support back when they couldn't pass it.
The administration wants not only to prevent industry money from funding an anti-health-care-reform campaign, but also wants to ensure that the Democratic Party -- rather than the GOP -- will continue to be the prime recipient of industry largesse.
As was painfully predictable all along, the final bill will not have any form of public option, nor will it include the wildly popular expansion of Medicare coverage. Obama supporters are eager to depict the White House as nothing more than a helpless victim in all of this -- the President so deeply wanted a more progressive bill but was sadly thwarted in his noble efforts by those inhumane, corrupt Congressional "centrists." Right.
The evidence was overwhelming from the start that the White House was not only indifferent, but opposed, to the provisions most important to progressives. The administration is getting the bill which they, more or less, wanted from the start -- the one that is a huge boon to the health insurance and pharmaceutical industry.”
http://www.salon.com/news/opinion/glenn_greenwald/2009/12/16/white_house/index.html
Exactly! Thank you, and thanks Glenn Greenwald.
I'll just add, it's congressional Democrats who are too weak to oppose Reagan-cum-Obama, not the opposite. Now, they are sacrificing public health for party power. They are protecting their Obamastein, rather than calling him out.
I wish Bernie had attached his ammendment to the Bomb Your Neighbor Bill.
I'm really sick of this. They know what's right. Why are we still trying to please the concrete heads. Why should I have insurance and not be able to go to the doctor because the deductibles and copays are too high.
My husband is working lots of hours to get over time to get Christmas for our two girls. So he's way over working which is his usual ocd reaction. (That's kiddin not clinical) Anyway, he worked himself into Bronchitis. Between the two doctors visits and the medicine we've spent 165 dollars, on top of buying new tires for my car. This is within one pay period, of two weeks. I'm lucky my kids didn't get sick. There goes alot of his extra money. He's still working too, no time off. He'll do that.
So it's not just the uninsured. I hate my health insurance. He also has acid reflux so I had to pick that up too. Forgot about that. He has high blood pressure and no he's not fat at all. He's just an A type personality. WE are lucky that he is the only one in this family so far that has any real issues, except of course our teeth. Yes, we have that insurance. But a lot of good that does. It won't be long and I will have some problems. We are both 52. I was hopeful when they were going to do the medicare at 55. But, we would still have to have insurance I think because our girls are quite young.
The insurance we have is just sucking up our money and we can't use it. Preventative care is where it's at. I'd love to be able to just go to the doctor with out having to worry about having money to do so... If I were being taxed the amount I pay now, with no co-pays or deductibles, I'd feel safe secure and like my government was working for me and not the insurance companies and oh, the pentagon...
I have high blood pressure too and I've found that, in the absence of adequate medication, a good high-intensity introspective activity such as martial arts or dancing can really help to keep hypertension under control, especially when accompanied by realistic but effective dietary controls.
The physical exertion will be good for the lungs, too.
Hell, anything's better than taking medication. I'm sixty and I take an occasional acetaminophen for pain or a Benadryl for allergies.
Ultimately, our healthcare is our individual responsibility.
I hope that you feel better.
q
The Democrats are such wimps!! They are fearful of an up or down vote on a single-payer bill because they know most voters want one.
Why didn't Senator Sanders (one of only a few honorable Senators) say, fine, go ahead,have it read.
I guess, however, he felt the need to obey the dictates of the caucus. The clerk(s) would have had to read the bill and that would probably not have been much fun, but in this case,it would be part of their job.
it is still time to shame congress into subjecting the healthcare industry to standard antitrust legislation and abolish so their price rigging and force them to outbid each other.
additionally, as a price to do business and as a service to the nation, they should be forced to compete in states where only one insurer is active.
most importantly, a "reasonable profit" limit should be imposed on them (and on doctors, etc, who facture say more than $200k per year), a limit akin to those nominally imposed on weapons manufacturers when they sell anything to the government.
healthcare is at least as important, as expensive, and as "profitable" as is national defense. the government needs only to imitate the few tricks that it uses on a daily basis to keep (somewhat) in check the greed of the military-industrial complex.
even if "medicare for all" and the "public option" are killed by bribed congressmen, nobody will be able to defend the position that market-place laws meant to foster competition should not apply to a de facto cartelized healthcare sector for which competition obviously means nothing at all.
let's put the healthcare leeches and their co-bloodsucking bribed politicians on the spot using their own arguments about free markets !
and let's hear what they can invoke to justify why the weapons industry should be more heavily regulated than, and not be allowed to be as "profitable" as, the healthcare leeches.