Nelson says he'll vote no on budget bill

[Omaha Steve]

I called yesterday when asked by several different groups to do so. The office was obviously busy taking lots of calls. :-)

Published Tuesday
December 20, 2005

Nelson says he'll vote no on budget bill

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Sen. Ben Nelson, D-Neb., said he has changed his mind and will not vote for the deficit-reduction bill.



Sen. Ben Nelson

Nelson, considered a swing vote on the contentious bill that would cut some federal benefits and trim budget deficits by $40 billion, said Tuesday that the legislation doesn't cut spending. Rather, he said, it unfairly shifts the burden of paying for federally mandated programs to the states.

"It makes no sense to cut programs in Washington just to force state and local governments to make up for it," Nelson said in a conference call to reporters. "This is not balanced budgeting, and it's irresponsible."

Vice President Dick Cheney on Tuesday cut short a diplomatic trip overseas to return home to be a tiebreaker for the bill, seen as one of the Bush administration's top priorities.

Nelson was among two Democrats who voted for the Senate version of the bill when it passed 52-47 last month, and he was considered a swing vote this week. He said the Senate version was more balanced, but the House one was "unacceptable."

The bill returned form House-Senate negotiations with stiffer cuts to the Medicaid health care program for the poor and disabled.


Full story: http://www.omaha.com/index.php?u_pg=54&u_sid=2085781

[TheFarseer]

1. He's just holding out for more goodies

Those republicans are going to have to pay up for his vote. Or maybe something made him think that he doesn't have to vote for this as part of his plan to make Nebraskans think he IS a republican, so they don't have to vote him out of office next November. I'll believe him voting against this when I see it.