House Passes Landmark Medicare Drug Bill

[Barad Simith]

Saturday, November 22, 2003 5:56 a.m. ET

http://news.lycos.com/news/story.asp?section=MyLycos&storyId=801120

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. House of Representatives on Saturday approved a White House-backed bill to add a drug benefit to Medicare and inject more market competition to the federal health plan for the elderly.

The $395 billion 10-year legislation, a domestic priority for President Bush, now goes to the Senate, where Republican leaders expect to pass it early next week.

[Malva Zebrina]

1. what they have done

what they have done. :-( :cry:

[leftyandproud]

2. I don't care what was in the bill...This sucks!

Even if it were a good bill...which it isn't, we should not have passed it this year. Dumbya will be getting credit for anything that passes. "We have finally delivered when the democrats have been promising you for decades...they couldn't deliver...they fought it...but we won...and you finally get a plan for prescription drugs." just wait...It's going to be disgusting..and harmful to our cause

[koopie57]

32. I understand your anger

but on the other hand, I feel if this type of bill had to be passed, I'm glad it is done while Bush is in office and he will receive all the credit? for it. The Seniors in this country are not stupid, nor do they tend to keep their feelings to themselves.

Even the most sordid of republicans have parents who have medical bills for which someone will have to pay. If grandma needs meds that cost $1,000 a month or needs a hospital stay and her medicare coverage will not cover it, are they going to let her go without? I don't know, I sort of think this might happen. What do you think?

Anyone seen Sen. Coryn? from Texas on c-span. He was speaking on this benefits of this bill, but he seemed sort of sick to his stomach that he found himself doing this (but he was probably just hungover). I wonder if there are any republicans out there who are disturbed by what they are doing? They can't all be blood sucking, passive murderers. Can they?

[demdave]

37. I thought our cause was to get a good medical plan for seniors.

Your plan, obviously, is simply to have power. What would possess you to oppose a bgood bill? Are you so calculating in your quest for power that you would leave the dire health needs of people unsatisfied because it didn't suit your political purposes?


I am not saying this is a good bill, I am saying the attitude you expressed is self serving and counter productive, downright obstructionary.

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

3. .

This bill really deserves some sort of Limbaugh amendment. The big pharma execs have been using too much of their own product.

[Myra]

10. Good point

And oxymoron ammendment for the big fat,
oops I mean newly anorexic, idiot.

[nadinbrzezinski]

4. Ok what is Pelosi doing now

if the vote was taken...

Though she speaks well, of what happened tonight

[baby_bear]

5. 220-215 in favor

It was 218-216 against, for 3 hours. Apparently DeLay performed his torture act on enough Repugs to turn it around. He had to set a record on voting time to do it.

16 Dems voted yes. I would be writing to them now if any were my reps. Check here to see if yours was among them:

http://clerk.house.gov/cgi-bin/vote.exe?year=2003&rollnumber=669

This is totally despicable.

I stayed up all night for this?

s_m

[MaineDem]

6. They held the vote for 3 hours???

How disgusting!

I was so afraid my Dem Congressman would vote for this. THankfully he isn't one of those who did.

[Bozita]

17. Unprecedented --- Previous record was just over one hour

repugs working ugly

[nadinbrzezinski]

7. Look we watched history

Not the kind I wanted to see, but spread the news to people and tell
them HOW Delay got the votes, YOU SAW IT

Oh and regardless write them

EMPHASIZE that you were watching

[Myra]

11. Yeah, we watched the 2000 presidential coup too

But even that didn't phase most people I know
outside of DU. And when I EMPHASIZE that to
them they just roll their eyes. I'm such a conspiracy
nut.

Do I have shitty friends, or do they sound like your
friends too?

[Judi Lynn]

8. Absolutely outrageous that the Republicans could keep it open

THREE HOURS in order to coerce anyone to switch.

You really have to wonder what on earth could have been used to pry those votes out of them.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

They said the Senate will take up the subject later today. Does that mean there is any hope at all? I'm clueless about how these matters are resolved.

[SoCalDem]

12. They should be required to vote, and then LEAVE

no switching after you vote.. Do WE get to get our ballots back after they have been recorded?? NO..!!

This is extortion...coersion..bribery... words cannot do it justice..

Talk about changing the rules..

[Freddie Stubbs]

29. It's a good thing we didn't do that when we had a majority

[nofurylike]

9. there's gotta be knowing witnesses

to something like what just happened. otherwise, who'd ever believe it?

it was good we all watched so closely.

rest all, the senate needs to hear from everyone.
g'night...eh, morning!

be well.

peace!

[whirlygigspin]

14. Once again,

Bush gets to delay counting votes -- until he wins.

[Myra]

15. Oh heall yeah

And pleasant dreams...

[Mari333]

19. GRRR that little prick Fred Upton (R-ass)

I detest him....I hope this is his waterloo...sometimes he marches in our July 4th parade..if he does this summer Im going to BOO him and scream "HO HO HEY HEY HOW many SENIORS didja KILL today?"

[shirlden]

13. This could work in our favor

If you have been following the anger of the senior crowd on the aarp boards, you will know how really pissed this group of voters is. If this bill passes the Senate, we need to keep the word out until election time. Our candidate could effectively campaign to ditch this bill if he is elected. Seniors vote.....and they are mad.. Any Dem voting for this bill could be in serious trouble in his/her district. We need to let the Dem Senators know they will be in deep do-do over this one.
What a bunch of corrupt, greedy, immoral, arrogant thugs we have in D.C.

:argh:

[whirlygigspin]

16. you know it, Shirley!

The seniors will be up in arms.

[oasis]

20. Seniors vote too. Forget Iraq, the economy or the gay marriage issue.

This vote on medicare will run Republican sons of bitches out of Washington for all time.

[izzie]

18. Be interesting where the Rep. will live when they turn us into ....

a big dump and third world country? Maybe Southern Fr. who likes a nice country?

[mac56]

21. Which pink tutu Dem weasels voted yes?

Which bastards switched their votes?

GRRR

[NewJerseyDem]

25. Dems voting for it

Alexander (LA)
John (LA)
Marshall (GA)
Scott (GA)
Boucher (VA)
Carson (OK)
Wu (OR)
Hall (TX)
Peterson (MN)
Boyd (FL)
Cramer (AL)
Davis (TN)
Dooley (CA)
Matheson (UT)
Stenholm (TX)
Pomeroy (ND)

Republicans swithing votes:
Franks (AZ)
Otter (ID)

I believe two of those democrats switched to yes after the republicans did because they republicans had only 216 votes and then went to 220 and those are the only republicans the media mentions as vote switchers.

[LizW]

28. Cramer (AL)

Of course. A DINO. :eyes:

[Media_Lies_Daily]

31. Cramer is my rep, and for all intents and puposes he's a...

...Republican in all but name.

What a jerk. I hope this lights a fire here in the local area once they find out what he's done.

[jbutsz]

34. Hmmm..

Mostly Southern "Representatives," my my how surprising..

Folks the Wealthy Planters of the Civil War were not defeated; they've have taken over D.C. and we all are their slaves.

[0007]

22. This is a rotten shame.

The greedy fat cats win again. 'Tis time to thrown the bad apples out of office that are stealing from us.

[maryallen]

23. We WON it!

And ... they stole it AGAIN.

At what point do we get "sick and tired of being sick and tired?"

... and take to the streets?

Someone should remove DeLay.

[The Zanti Regent]

24. I don't see how it can be stopped.

Since Feinstein has come out for this piece of garbage, I am afraid all is lost.

[NewJerseyDem]

27. I don't think that she has come out for it

There was just an article saying that she might. The problem is that Daschle says he won't filibuster and there will probably be enough votes to pass it.

Republicans Snowe, Lott and McCain have come out against the bil. Nickles and Sununu have said they might. I think that Lincoln Chafee may vote no as well.

But, Democrats Nelson (NE), Landrieu, Breaux, Lincoln, and Baucus have come out for it. I assume Zell Miller will vote yes as well. Feinstein has said she might and senators like Mark Pryor, Tom Carper and Evan Bayh probably might as well. A filibuster is our only option and Daschle says they won't do it. I think this will pass.

EDIT: Olympia Snowe will vote for it. Kent Conrad will as well. It is almsot certainly over.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A5882-2003Nov22.html

[MaineDem]

30. I called Snowe's office this morning

They said she was still considering which way to vote.

I don't feel very good about this at all! In fact, I'm pretty sick about it. I can't imagine going on like this for another 5 years! We have to do something.

[Malva Zebrina]

33. after catching her act on C-span coverage

I would say she has succumbed to whorage and further looks more like a whore with her dyed black hair and her old wrinkled face not going together very well. She is apparently, in denial and made a poor showing in the debate on the senate floor. Apparently does not have the spine, as I suspected, and is more interested in sucking at Bush's balls than caring about her poorer Medicare recipients in Maine. It is time to remove the veil from Snowe's face--she is really not a competent, intelligent senator but at this point, a sort of icon. Snowe needs to go, but I am not sure that Mainers are ready to get rid of an icon. She is no Margaret Chase Smith.

[NewJerseyDem]

35. Maine got rid of Margaret Chase Smith

After a while they voted her out of office. Maybe Maine could do this a little earlier for Olympia Snowe. However, I don't see that happening. She will probably be around for another 20 years or so. It will be intersting to see if Susan Collins keeps her term limit pledge and retires in 2008. Then, maybe, a Democrat could finally represent Maine again.

[Kool Kitty]

26. HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson

was just on MSNBC and mentioned that the Prez himself called two of the repugs that voted against it initially, and they changed their vote. When he was asked what the message was, he said it was most informative to the two and let them know how important it was that they vote for the bill.

[bain_sidhe]

36. Pls note, they flipped DEMS not Repubs!

When I went to bed last night, shortly before 6 AM, there were

25 Repubs against the bill
12 Dems for the bill

The final tally was

25 Repubs against
16 Dems for

They flipped DEMOCRATS!

:mad: :cry: :argh:

[NewJerseyDem]

38. They did flip republicans

Trent Franks and Butch Otter were the two republicans who switched. I'm not exactly sure what happened with the Democrats since more definitely did switch and I guess that one congressman was voting only present for a while. Hopefully The Hill or Roll Call will have a more detailed explanation of what happened when they are published next week.

[ramapo]

41. My Republican Rep Voted No!

I'm shocked. My Congressman, Scott Garrett of NJ was one of the 25 Repubs voting against their leadership. He's quite conservative though leaning a bit Libertarian.

I did write yesterday urging a no vote and even said I doubted that he'd vote out of the GOP lockstep. Guess I'll have to follow up with a kudos for courage note.

All day I fumed thinking what's the point of even writing these guys (not that I think he took my note that much to heart).

He might've voted no for all the wrong reasons but that's ok.

[Panda1]

42. Yup....four Dems switch in the wee hours

I finally had to go to sleep and the vote was 218 NAY 216 YEA
There were 12 Dems voting YEA and 25 Reps voting NAY.
One Dem had already taken back his/her vote.


I woke up to 215 NAY 220 YEA...gavel down while most of the nation slept.
R=25 NAY 204 YEA
D=189 NAY 16 YEA total NAY=215 YEA=220

4 Dems changed their votes under cover of darkness.
I want to know who they were. :mad:

[ramapo]

43. And why...

Then we should organize a campaign against these gutless wonders.

[Panda1]

44. Definitely

They're of no use to us as Democrats if they can be swayed so easily. I want to know what "favors" they got for their districts, OR what threats they received. If it's the latter, we need to bolster them and make them speak out, if it's the former, WE need to spread the word.
Either way....those four Democrats need to be held accountable.

Yet another example of our stolen Democracy. 40 years of it.

[Evanstondem]

45. Two Republican switches put the yeas ahead

According to CNN

"In the end, at about 6 a.m., they persuaded two junior members, Rep. C.L. "Butch" Otter, R-Idaho, and Rep. Trent Franks, R-Arizona, to vote yes, tipping the scale in favor of the GOP-written bill."

http://www.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/11/22/elec04.medicare/index.html

A couple of Democrats switched their vote once they knew it was going to win anyway. The article doesn't say which ones.

[Panda1]

46. I beg to differ with CNN

I stayed up late watching.....when I went to sleep it was like this:

The vote was 218 NAY 216 YEA
There were 12 Dems voting YEA and 25 Reps voting NAY.
One Dem had already taken back his/her vote.


I woke up to 215 NAY 220 YEA
R=25 NAY 204 YEA
D=189 NAY 16 YEA total NAY=215 YEA=220

Therefore, the two Reps had already made their final votes by the 1 and a half hour mark...some time during the next almost 90 minutes four Democrats switched to YEA. The Rep votes had stayed the same. Unless there were far more shenanigans, with other Reps changing their votes to NAY...the 2, Franks(R) and Otter(R) were not the reason.

But hey, I've been wrong before and I'm used to it. :silly:

[indypaul]

39. The only thing these people will

understand is how they will stay in office. Find out
if your representative is among them and then let them
know that they are going to have a Democrat from the
Democratic wing of the Democratic Party filing against
them in next years primary election. Then seek someone
willing to do that. If no one is found do it yourself.
This is the only thing these turncoats understand.
Get involved and help defeat these people who care
nothing for their constituents and only serve to
perpetuate themselves in office to serve themselves
and other special interests and screw the public.

[newyawker99]

40. kick