Kucinich will vote to override Bush veto

[rjones2818]

Although he's still unhappy with a children's health insurance plan adopted by Congress, Cleveland Democratic Rep. Dennis Kucinich said today that he's planning to vote to override President Bush's veto of the bill "because I think that the president has to be held to an accounting."
http://blog.cleveland.com/openers/2007/10/kucinich_will_vote_to_override.html

Dennis had voted for the original House version of the SCHIP renewal. He voted against the compromise bill because it removed coverage for legal immigrant children.

"What do you do when a child is sick?" Kucinich said. "Do you ask the child for their papers, for their documentation? What's happening to America when we take that kind of approach?"

With Kucinich's decision, the House leadership needs to find http://blog.washingtonpost.com/capitol-briefing/2007/10/democrats_begin_schip_veto_ove.html">roughly 14 votes to override the veto from President Bush.

The magic number of votes Pelosi will need is a bit of a moving target at this point, depending on how many lawmakers are present for the vote. There are currently two open seats vacated by a death and a retirement, meaning if all 433 current members voted Democrats need 289 votes to win.

During the vote on final passage last week, the House voted 265-159 in favor of the legislation, with one "present" vote and eight lawmakers absent. At least two of those eight -- GOP Reps. Jo Ann Davis (Va.) and Barbara Cubin (Wyo.) -- have been ill and have not attended votes in quite a while, making it likely they won't be on hand for the SCHIP override vote. That would lower the override threshold to 287 votes in favor, out of 431 total lawmakers voting.
http://blog.washingtonpost.com/capitol-briefing/2007/10/democrats_begin_schip_veto_ove.html

Let's hope they find those extra votes.

Go Dennis! :woohoo:
http://dennis4president.com
Choose Peace!

[n2doc]

1. Good For him!

He obviously knows the time to fight and the time to compromise. People don't give him credit for that, and too many compromise way to early, or never at all.

[cali]

2. I knew he'd come through on this!

Good for Dennis.

[Dhalgren]

3. Kucinich always finds a way to the heart of the matter:

"What do you do when a child is sick?" Kucinich said. "Do you ask the child for their papers, for their documentation? What's happening to America when we take that kind of approach?"

This is a humanity issue, not some kind of chit-tallying! If a child needs medical care who gives a fuck about anything else? You get that child medical care, period! Americans have become so...so...I can't even finish this sentence...

[cali]

6. Sorry, politics is not only about idealism. It may be hackneyed

but it's about the art of the possible. This bill can be amended in '09 if they override bushco's veto, and those left out can be added.

[rjones2818]

8. The good thing to come out of this

is that we know what was 'compromised' out to try to get a veto proof majority. That, plus the fact that we get Dennis' vote to override, is a really strong thing!

Go Dennis! :woohoo:
http://dennis4president.com
Choose Peace!

[netania99]

10. what if

the bill had left out blond children instead of legal immigrant children? Would it have been okay to let that go and amend it to add them in later?

[cali]

12. That's so utterly ridiculous that

it hardly bears commenting on. You realize that even if they had kept SCHIP for legal immigrant children, illegal immigrant children would still have been left out right? Are you Ok with that?

We're not talking about the kind of bigotry you bring up in your post. Children of all different racial and cultural values are included as covered in this legislation.

[Dhalgren]

14. Sorry too, that the blood-drenched grip of the corporations and

the monied class has so warped and skewed the political thinking in this country that your statement won't get any debate, just jaded acceptance...

[cali]

15. Try using an argument instead of off the shelf

banalities. You've argued nothing, just indulged in lurid and meaningless sloganeering.

The bottom line, which seems to utterly escape you, is that millions more children will get health insurance. Glad you're so willing to sacrifice them on your purity bonfire. The children of poor and working class families surely thank you for your concern.

[Pawel K]

20. Even though I agree with you that this is better than nothing

leaving out LEGAL immigrants out of this bill is sickening. There is an excuse that most americans will buy when you leave out illegal immigrant children, there is no excuse for this and I don't understand why in the hell democrats aren't making a big deal out of it. This kills the entire anti-illegal immigration argument the GOP has used for years, this shows they are anti-immigration period. Kucinich did the right thing not voting for it in the first place since he knew it would pass, he wanted to bring attention to this bigotry.

[Dhalgren]

22. I have no idea what you are so incensed about. I began by simply

saying that Kucinich is right in asking what we have become when we withhold medical care from a child (or anyone else, for that matter) for the reasons stated (I would go further and say 'for any reason, at all' - but that's just me). Then you responded by implying that the political reality was such that dealing with human beings in this way, politically, was idealism or naivete. What do you think the source of the disregard for human care and suffering in our political system is? I truly believe that it arises out of the iron control of our government and politics by the corporations and the monied class. That isn't "sloganeering", I believe it is true. And sorry, your "gritty realism" can accept and even honor the selling out of one child for the humane treatment of ten others, but I will continue to lament the one who is discarded - politics be damned...

I can still see no reason for your vitriolic response...maybe you're having a bad day?

[lonestarnot]

4. Kick ass Dennis!

:bounce:

[Selatius]

5. Bush health care motto: Getting sick? Tough shit. n/t

[lonestarnot]

7. Be sick, you can't help yourself, so tough shit.

[Rhythm and Blue]

9. Thanks for changing your position on this, Dennis nt

[Fresh_Start]

11. So how many of his fellow Congress Critters did he

marshall to do the same?

Or doesn't he realize that one vote won't cut it.

[rjones2818]

17. There are apparently announced at least two others,

Boren and Barron Hill, who are switiching also.

BTW: How many have you converted?

[Fresh_Start]

21. My Congress women are voting the right way

Strange that you think that I should be as powerful or influential as Kucinich.

[rjones2818]

23. Nah...

I just thought that you were politically active enough to be sending out e-mails and marshalling the other congress critters to try to get them to change their vote.

I guess I expected too much.

[Fresh_Start]

26. Many Congress people dont accept emails from people

that are not their constituents.

So yes, I've tried in the past to influence more than my share of Congress Critters.
But it hasn't been successful.

[rjones2818]

30. That's good to know!

Not about the e-mail but trying to influence the congress critters!

:)

[Fresh_Start]

31. I've emailed committee heads and congress critters

but for some reason, the only ones that respond are my delegates.

I'm a bit disturbed that committee heads don't respond especially since most committees don't have representation from every state.

[Pawel K]

13. "it removed coverage for legal immigrant children" is this a typo?

Please tell me that this is a typo and really it meant to say illegal immigrant children.

[rjones2818]

16. Nope...

That was one of the prices the other Dems were willing to pay to try to get a veto proof majority.

[Pawel K]

19. These republican assholes are racists

not that we didn't know this before, this simply makes it official.

[rjones2818]

24. It doesn't say much for the Dems

that went along with it, does it?

:(

[Virginia Dare]

36. Which is why we need to work like hell to get a stronger majority..

these types of compromises will not have to be made. This thing can and will be repealed when we get a Dem in the White House.

[book_worm]

18. Of course he will and that's another reason why I support him.

[Clark2008]

25. Will they then vote to give all smokers, countrywide, a raise?

Because, if they don't, smokers will quit or get their cigs from the black market, thus rendering this program moot.

Tax everyone if the program is so good (and I believe it is, don't get me wrong - I take issue with sin funding for EVERYTHING extra - one finally reaches the point of diminishing returns).

[porphyrian]

27. Maybe I need to move to his district, because I can't get representation like that here.

In fact, there's a good chance I'll get none at all, at least, in the primary.

[Froward69]

28. So he changed positions...

Why didn't he vote for it in the first place???

[rjones2818]

32. Probably so we'd know that the

legal immigrant kids got 'compromised' out of the original house version of the bill. We almost certainly wouldn't have heard about it if he hadn't have voted against the compromise.

[MadHound]

29. While I admire Kucinich, support him, and will vote for him

I have to disagree with him on this one, and I hope that the needed votes aren't found.

Sorry, but I have huge issues with putting a regressive tax on one of the poorer sectors of society. What I find odd is that so many Democrats around here are supporting this last minute Republican funding plan. The original Democratic bill was funded via cutting huge subsidies provided under the Medicare Advantage program to the health care industry. But now, sadly, Democrats are endorsing regressive taxation on one of the poorest sectors of society. Whether or not you smoke, you should realize that this simply isn't fair.

Hopefully this goes down to defeat, and brought back later with a better funding mechanism.

[onenote]

33. SCHIP and legal immigrants

A number of posters are upset with the fact that SCHIP doesn't cover legal immigrants and some even seem to think that this bill changes the law to eliminate coverage that previously existed.

Unless I'm mistaken (and I'm open to someone showing me that I am), the proposed law does not substantially change current law with respect to coverage for legal immigrants. Moreover, the current law does not impose an absolute bar on SCHIP coverage for legal immigrants. What it imposes is a five-year 'waiting period'. Here is one explanation of the law that I found:

Currently: Permanent documented immigrants are eligible for public coverage but are subject to restrictions and stipulations. The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 restricted documented immigrants arriving after August 22, 1996 from receiving federally-matched Medicaid coverage for their first five years in residence.

See also http://www.cms.hhs.gov/MedicaidEligibility/downloads/FiveYearBar3.pdf

As I understand it, there was an attempt made to include language in the new SCHIP bill that would've given states the option of covering legal immigrants during their first five years of residence, but that provision didn't make it into the final bill. I wish it had, but I think its important (assuming the information I've found is correct) not to overstate the current (and proposed) law's treatment of legal immigrants.

[rjones2818]

34. The language was in the House bill that originally passed,

and which Dennis voted for. The language was 'compromised' out of the final bill which Dennis voted against originally. He's decided to vote for the override attempt.

[Virginia Dare]

35. Slight update to the article..

Jo Ann Davis has died, so that will definitely be a non vote. I hope they can pull this off!