Blue Dog Says Pelosi Claim On Votes Questionable

[masuki bance]

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., today insisted everything is smooth sailing with the House bill that would require every American to have health insurance or pay a fine; create a government run health plan to compete with private insurers to drive costs down; and impose an up to 5.4% new tax on top wage-earners.

“I have no question that we have the votes on the floor of the House to pass this legislation,” Pelosi told reporters.

But a leading conservative “Blue Dog” Democrat told ABC News that claim is questionable.

“No, I don’t think they have the votes,” Rep. Mike Ross, D-Ark., said, arguing if that were the case he and the other six Blue Dogs on the House Energy and Commerce Committee who have been holding up the bill in committee would be under far less pressure.


Ross says the concerns Blue Dogs have about the current House bill being too expensive and not doing enough to contain health care costs are widespread.

“We’re speaking for a silent majority within the Democratic caucus,” he said. “The American people want us to slow down and they want us to get it right.”

And what about on the Senate side?

Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., chair of the Senate Finance Committee, was overheard jokingly telling House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Maryland, “let me tell you, praying might be helpful here.”

http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2009/07/leading-blue-dog-democrat-pelosi-does-not-have-the-votes-for-health-care-reform.html

A silent majority?

[Engineer4Obama]

1. You know what made the silent majority silent

THEY DIDN'T VOTE They stayed home on election day and generally didn't care about the way things went in the country, because they might get jury duty someday. In democracy if your gonna be silent you might as well not be there at all.

[BlueIdaho]

2. Any way we can make their future in congress questionable? nt.

[babylonsister]

3. Mike Ross, the pharmacist?

Blue Dog Mike Ross Made Millions Selling Prescription Drugs, Threatening to Kill Health Care Reform

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=389&topic_id=6123102

[BlooInBloo]

4. Blue dogs are liars.

[Hutzpa]

5. The thing these people do under the guise

of the American people is perplexing, it makes you drunk just thinking about
it.

[MarjorieG]

6. Guess Ross doesn't like being described as not having ultimate leverage.