Ted Kennedy Back at Work
EmailABC News’ Jonathan Karl reports: The lion of the Senate is back. After spending almost all of the winter in Florida, Senator Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., has returned to Washington, where he intends to remain for the foreseeable future. A source in Kennedy’s office says the senator gave approximately 100 of his Senate staff members a pep talk Tuesday morning, making it clear that even with his illness, he is determined to play a key role in getting health care reform passed this year. The talk lifted spirits of Kennedy staffers who have seen very little of Kennedy since he was diagnosed with brain cancer last May, but they know he is suffering from a serious illness that will limit the amount of work he is able to do. "You should expect to see him more," said one Kennedy aide, "but he is still balancing his work with his treatment plan." Kennedy got back to work Monday night, casting a key procedural vote in favor of bill he co-sponsored with Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, to expand the national service corps. On Tuesday, in addition to meeting with his staff, Kennedy met with Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, D-Kan., President Obama’s nominee to be Secretary of Health and Human Services.
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Kennedy! Now, he has become an Icon in this country…A family of working Men and women who brought a “reason to family ties”! The Kennedys…they are admired, to this, Welcome back Snator…Welcome back to the fight for America! When a family has faced as much, carry the crosses of life, you can bring to us, the Hope that one must “stand and fight” no matter the hurt, the pain, the loss…I admire the distinquishable facts that made your family greater than the Rockefellars, the era of Democracy…Welcome..If I could make one wish, it would be to meet you…Because you have endurred through time…what most of us can not imagine through time…and God has Blessed you…Angels do fall, and they do rise when God teaches…Apachecheynne
Posted by: Apache | March 24, 2009, 3:04 pm 3:04 pm
Where in the constitution does it state that it is the responsibility of government to provide health care to all citizens at the expense of the taxpayer?
Posted by: Sandcrab1612 | March 24, 2009, 3:43 pm 3:43 pm
Here is a guy who has out lived his usefullness, a true depiction to why there should be term limits. Crime is most likely what has made him bigger. Dems and Healthcare change are exactly what we do not need, at least not their ideas. But it will happen, and we will continue to destroy America and turn it into a socialist state. This is what we have come to.
Posted by: Greg | March 24, 2009, 3:55 pm 3:55 pm
Thank you Ed Kennedy for hard working. You, however, should carefully consider in historical time for all American have faced which are now;
biggest debts ($13,600,000,000,000.00),
biggest budgets($3,600,000,000,000.00),
biggest printing of money($1,000,000,000,000.00),
biggest economic crisis,
biggest chaotic Stock Market in Wall St.
highest rate of unemployeds,
highest rate of foreclosure.
Why don’t you await until economic became steadfast. But first things to do is “STOP PRINTING & BEING SPENDTHRIFT MONEY”
Posted by: Stop Printing Money | March 24, 2009, 3:56 pm 3:56 pm
Hey Teddy – would you have had the same health care if we had nationalized health care when you had your problem? I don’t think so and I don’t know that you would have recovered as quickly as you did. Just a thought Teddy – remember the river!!!!
Posted by: 45vet | March 24, 2009, 4:25 pm 4:25 pm
Please Ted, just go away….. We can’t afford you spending MORE money…
Obama has that part covered, trust me….
Posted by: Lumberman_63 | March 24, 2009, 4:27 pm 4:27 pm
He is what is wrong with both houses. He has done his duty now move on. There are to many lifers in there who think they are gods and rule the world. All the lifers with more than 10 years need to be voted out and lets start a new with fresh thinking minds. These guys and Franks need to go away.
Posted by: Jim Rod | March 24, 2009, 4:37 pm 4:37 pm
You know what’s so great about this country.
“THE SEPERATION OF CHURCH AND STATE!!!”
Organized religion is everything that’s wrong with this world.
Posted by: Nick | March 24, 2009, 4:39 pm 4:39 pm
If National Health Care is to work, the first people who MUST use it is the Presdient, the Congress, the Supreme Court and all Federal employees. An ABSOLUTE MUST, no if, ands or buts about it. The Congress has a way of passing this kind of crap and then exempting themslves. So they MUST BE THE FIRST.
Posted by: Dandydon | March 24, 2009, 4:40 pm 4:40 pm
Sorry about that. IE tab.
Posted by: Nick | March 24, 2009, 4:42 pm 4:42 pm
Hey Ted, make this your last bit of legislation before you leave us. If term limits were in place (two terms [12 years] for a Senator and three terms [6 years] for a Representative were in place then think of how the taxpayer would save on the retirement of these elected officials. Here is how their retirement would be affected using the Civil Service Reform Act of 1984. Members elected since 1984 are covered by the Federal Employees’ Retirement System (FERS). Those elected prior to 1984 were covered by the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS). In 1984 all members were given the option of remaining with CSRS or switching to FERS. As it is for all other federal employees, congressional retirement is funded through taxes and the participants’ contributions. Members of Congress under FERS contribute 1.3 percent of their salary into the FERS retirement plan and pay 6.2 percent of their salary in Social Security taxes. Members of Congress are not eligible for a pension until they reach the age of 50, but only if they’ve completed 20 years of service. Members are eligible at any age after completing 25 years of service or after they reach the age of 62. Please also note that Members of Congress have to serve at least 5 years to even receive a pension. The amount of a Congressperson’s pension depends on the years of service and the average of the highest 3 years of his or her salary. By law, the starting amount of a Member’s retirement annuity may not exceed 80% of his or her final salary. Reference is http://usgovinfo.about.com/library/weekly/aa031200a.htm . Even though they would have the minimum time to collect retirement if they served the maximum term they could not begin collecting until they attained the age of 62 as they would meet none of the other requirements listed.
Posted by: Sandcrab1612 | March 24, 2009, 4:45 pm 4:45 pm
Dandydon – As far as the federal government cost of health care you can Google FEHB and see what the different plans available to federal employees are. It should be noted that these are the same exact plans which are available to our elected federal officials. The government does not pay 100% of the employee health insurance and the portion they pay is considered a benefit in lieu of wages just like most major employers who provide a health benefit to their employees. Usually the larger the company (more employees) the more likely is that they provide the health insurance rather than paying the larger wage as most employees would rather have access to the health insurance instead of the small increase in wages. For an employee in California with a family looking at an HMO (California Health Net, High Option) this amounts to roughly $4.40 an hour. For the same family in California looking at a FFS (Blue Cross Blue Shield Service Benefit Plan, Standard Family) this also amounts to $4.40 an hour. Small business’s which have fewer employees cannot afford to offer this type of benefit to their employees without having to make drastic cuts (layoffs) or drastically raise the price of their finished product/service both of which will probably cause the business to fail in time due to lack of profit. The federal employee still has to pay to participate in the insurance ($292 a month for the HMO and $357 a month for the FFS) so the government does not provide 100% of the insurance to the government employee. Probably the best that the government could do for health care would be to somehow expand the FEHB type of insurance for the general public to participate in but with no government funding for the general public. You have to remember that the federal employee is receiving his government share of the insurance funding as part of his wage and benefit package and performing labor in return, the general public would provide no benefit to the government for any government funding of their health care.
Posted by: Sancrab1612 | March 24, 2009, 4:50 pm 4:50 pm
Go get em Ted. Millions of Americans need you to be our voice.
Posted by: Brenda | March 24, 2009, 4:53 pm 4:53 pm
OMG Apache you’re simply uneducated. The Kennedy’s are not half the family the Rockefellers were. The Rocks have givin countless billions back to this country by funding the arts and sciences. The Kennedys: Gramps was a bootleggin vote buyin penny pinchin egomaniac, JFK was gonna lose the election before he got shot anyway, his approval ratings were sour, and TEDDY KENNEDY a f’in bum that got drunk and killed an innocent girl in a car accident. But because of his last name and becuase Nancy Pelosi tells you he’s great “a lion” you want somebody to believe in, someone to lead you. What’s the matter, “the one” losing steam for you?
Posted by: HA! | March 24, 2009, 4:56 pm 4:56 pm
Your gonna pay for that with what? News Flash! This country’s broke Teddy boy. I’d like to give every American a new car. But it ain’t realistic.
Posted by: Joey | March 24, 2009, 5:15 pm 5:15 pm
B4 critizing him, maybe we should look at what he is proposing??? Alot of health care reform systems, use what we are already paying for in our taxes. Another point, National Health care does not involve government!!! Lets better ouselves, read up on things before assummptions are made!
Posted by: ht | March 24, 2009, 5:25 pm 5:25 pm
After sitting on his arse for the last 30 years Senator Kennedy now wants to make his mark in legislative history. Wouldn’t do to be remembered as the Kennedy who drank his way through his political life.
Posted by: Betsy | March 24, 2009, 5:38 pm 5:38 pm
Come on, we all know that Ted hasn’t drank a drop of booze since they invented the funnel.
Posted by: Sandcrab1612 | March 24, 2009, 5:43 pm 5:43 pm
Rush was right. Limbaugh on health care legislation: “Before it’s all over, it’ll be called the Ted Kennedy memorial health care bill”
That came straight from Media Matters. Love him or hate him he is usually right and it looks to be heading this way again with Ted working the health care reform. Remember Ted Kennedy wrote the No Child Left Behind Act that all the liberals hate and now he is going to help writer health care reform. Now that’s funny!
Posted by: OBAMANATION | March 24, 2009, 6:13 pm 6:13 pm
I would like to be able to see Mary Jo Kopechne looking down from Heaven and seeing Ted Kennedy, who lived more the forty years after he killed her, suffering in Hell. It is not that I enjoy him being sick, I wouldn’t wish that on anybody. However, he did enjoy a nice long life that she never had the opportunity to enjoy.
Posted by: Jayfl | March 24, 2009, 7:14 pm 7:14 pm
Ted Kennedy is the senior United States Senator from Massachusetts and a member of the Democratic Party. Well, he really did the sin now what does he want to do by his comeback?
Posted by: Used Car Dealers | March 25, 2009, 1:00 am 1:00 am
Some of the comments are “gutter” at it’s best. Know where you are from, and the way you live.
Posted by: sngeorgia | March 25, 2009, 7:25 am 7:25 am
Two term limits for ALL senetars and reps just like the PRESIDENT there are no term limits on TED THEY voted on it. WE’RE STUCK WITH THEM WE NEED NEW BLOOD>>>>>MY husband and I were in busness his motto was hire some one who dosen’t know the job……..By the time he does know what is going on get rid of him or her…. b efore he knows how to steel this concerns CASH EMPLOYEES……
Posted by: marty | April 16, 2009, 11:25 pm 11:25 pm
I wish we can get get rid of you YOU ARE USELESS…. At least your brothers were probably stupid but loved and not looked upon as a WHIMPPPPPP sue me
Posted by: marthastefanisko@yahoo.com | April 16, 2009, 11:30 pm 11:30 pm
sandcrab – In the Preamble, one of the purposes of the Constitution…in order to form a more perfect Union is to … “promote the general Welfare” …(of its citizens) . The founders of the country, it seems to me, wrote this phrase among others as a broad way to guide future administrations, legislators and courts…as well as, citizens about the purpose of the country. They wouldn’t be so specific as to call out every possible situation that the country might face through its history because this would hamstring the ability of future generations to address issues like the health of its population.
Posted by: 63tango | July 9, 2009, 9:42 am 9:42 am