BREAKING: Sanders “Not Voting” For Health Care Bill

[Joanne98]

Speaking with Neil Cavuto on the Fox Business Channel tonight, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) stated flatly that he would not vote for the health care bill moving through the Senate.

I’m struggling with this. As of this point, I’m not voting for the bill. … I’m going to do my best to make this bill a better bill, a bill that I can vote for, but I’ve indicated both to the White House and the Democratic leadership that my vote is not secure at this point. And here is the reason. When the public option was withdrawn, because of Lieberman’s action, what I worry about is how do you control escalating health care costs?

Crucially, Sanders said he’s not voting “for the bill.” That is not necessarily a vote against cloture. There’s an opportunity for him to vote for cloture and against the bill and still be technically correct about his intentions. For conservative Democrats, procedural votes and up or down votes on the bill became one and the same, leading to the hostage-taking process. Perhaps Sanders is still trying to extract more goodies from the bill, maybe even in the area of community health centers.

Prior to this statement, Sanders has said he was undecided on the bill, and signaled that he thought the reconciliation process would have been a better use of the Senate’s time:

“If I had my druthers, I think reconciliation is an absolutely appropriate way to go,” he said. “I think what people who oppose that will tell you is that you can’t have the kind of comprehensive legislation that the Senate is trying to deal with now—and that may in fact be true—but there are a heck of a lot of things that you can do that would strengthen our health care system in a cost-effective way that could be a giant step forward for the American people.”

Other Senators, like Russ Feingold, have remained undecided, but Sanders is the first of the more liberal Senate Democrats to go as far as saying they would not vote for the bill.

Some conservative Democrats also remain undecided, like Ben Nelson, who is reportedly “weighing” whether or not to support new language on abortion services penned by Bob Casey.

http://news.firedoglake.com/2009/12/16/breaking-sanders-not-voting-for-health-care-bill/

[WeDidIt]

1. Vote Against CLOTURE, Bernie!

Kill that fucker!

[ananda]

2. Good!

Thank you, Bernie.

[krabigirl]

3. good for him!

[leftstreet]

4. K&R

[eleny]

5. If people with chronic conditions have to pay more for insurance...

I won't have to plan on not contributing to campaigns for Democrats. Husband and I will not be able to afford it. We'll be charged way more for insurance. There won't be the discretionary funds to make any contributions.

And frankly, they can go fuck themselves.

[mzmolly]

7. I had no idea this was true until I watched Ed Schults.

I agree fully. :grr:

[eleny]

12. There's no gray area for me at this point

This bill will be murder on our budget. We're older, so of course we've got this and that health issue. Depending on how high the premiums go, we might have to make a choice of which one of us will have insurance. And we're fairly comfortable. This is devastating.

[mzmolly]

18. Especially now that the 55 plus medicare buy out is

gone thanks to Joe LIEberman.

[endless october]

6. i agree. nt

[Luciferous]

8. K&R Good for him!

[RoccoR5955]

9. GO BERNIE!!

Kill the bill. It's nothing more than more corporate welfare.
SANDERS/KUCINICH 2012
TAKE BACK AMERICA!

[midnight]

10. Those pesky liberals- always making a mountain out of a mole hill. Thank you Mr. Sanders.

We don't need anymore bailouts for CorPIRATES.

[StarfarerBill]

11. Good job, Comrade Bernie!

:thumbsup:

[itsrobert]

13. KICK AND REC!!!

EXCELLENT!!

[spanone]

14. i hope they do as much to get sander's vote as they did to get lieberman's vote

[Parker CA]

16. Wouldn't that be nice. More likely that Sarah Palin begins to believe in global warming though.

[wisteria]

15. Oh from FDL as first reported by Fox News. LOL! n/t

[Union Yes]

17. atta boy Bernie! knr nt

[AnOhioan]

19. Thank you Senator Sanders n/t

[beachmom]

20. Um, his vote is still gettable. Maybe get some concessions

around the edges. But the public option is dead, folks. And Sanders will get in line when all is said and done.