Ross: Counting on Blue Dogs to block healthcare will leave right 'sorely disappointed'

[babylonsister]

http://briefingroom.thehill.com/2009/07/19/ross-counting-on-blue-dogs-to-block-healthcare-will-leave-right-sorely-disappointed/

Ross: Counting on Blue Dogs to block healthcare will leave right 'sorely disappointed'
@ 2:16 pm by Michael O'Brien


Conservatives who are counting on Blue Dog Democrats to scuttle healthcare reform will be "sorely disappointed," one of the Blue Dogs' leading members said this weekend.

Rep. Mike Ross (D-Ark.), the chairman of the centrist Blue Dogs' healthcare task force, said that that the coalition would seek to "resuscitate" the House healthcare reform through amendments in the House Energy and Commerce Committee's markup of the bill this week.

"There's some folks from the right that have been calling my office very pleased that they perceive I'm trying to kill healthcare," Ross said during an interview with National Public Radio (NPR) on Saturday. "At the end of the day, I suspect they're going to be sorely disappointed, because none of us within the Blue Dog Coalition are trying to kill healthcare reform."

The House healthcare bill made it through mark-up in two committees this past week after having been unveiled on Monday of last week. Some centrist Democrats on the House Ways and Means and Education and Labor committees joined Republicans in opposing the effort.

"What we're doing is improving upon the bill; in no way are we watering down the bill," Ross said. "We're simply trying to force Congress to contain the costs, and for us to do anything less than that would be, in my opinion, watering down the bill at worst and sugarcoating it at best."

Blue Dogs have earned the enmity of some more liberal Democrats, especially on blogs, for not cooperating with Democratic leadership to pass healthcare reform.

For his part, Ross said that a final deal is fast approaching, but warned against what he termed "artificial deadlines."

"We're very close, and whether it happens August 1, or a day or two or a few weeks after August 1 — the American people are ready for us to slow down, and have time to debate these issues, and improve upon the final product, and actually have the time to read the bills we're voting upon," Ross said.

[Kingofalldems]

1. Karl Rove's DU pal will not like this one

[Blue Idaho]

2. Never Underestimate the Power of Doing Nothing

These Blue Dog Democrats are the best friends the republican party ever had and Mike Ross is lying through his purley whites. Like many of their red state colleagues these Blue Dogs understand the best course of action in Washington is no course of action. They will pimp, posture, and preen - wring their hands and fuss and fret. All the while big pharma and insurance cartels are stuffing money in their sweaty little hands. In Congress, it seems, nothing is better than something. These turncoats will indeed scuttle heath care reform - if we let them.

There will be NO meaningful health care reform unless we all get in the faces of our elected representatives and encourage our friends and neighbors to do the same. They need to understand that their cushy little jobs are in jeopardy if they do not act with courage NOW to reform health care. Its our job to push them off their fat asses and into action. Otherwise, all is lost.

[tnlefty]

4. Werlcome to DU, Blue Idaho!

:hi:

[inna]

5. "Mike Ross is lying through his pearly whites" - that's my impression, too.

good post, Blue Idaho!

:hi:

[Kingofalldems]

3. Kick this one

[rhett o rick]

6. I wish DU'ers would stop calling Blue Dog's centrists. They are republicans in Democrat clothing.

Damn them to hell.