Byrd Overcomes Health, Weather to Cast Vote for Final Senate Health Care Bill
EmailABC News' Kristina Wong reports: Despite his fragile health and the freezing Washington, D.C. weather, Sen. Robert Byrd, the 92-year-old Democrat from West Virginia and the longest-serving senator, made yet another appearance this week at the Capitol to cast his vote for the final Senate health care reform bill.
Arriving early this morning at the Capitol via wheelchair, Byrd jubilantly waved hello to reporters on his way in.
As he cast his vote, he waved his finger in the air, and shouted, “Mr. President, this is for my friend Ted Kennedy. Aye!”
Since being hospitalized for six weeks earlier this year for a staph infection, Byrd has only come to the Senate for crucial votes, often to break Republican obstructionist tactics. Yet over the past week, he has shown up for every vote, including two of them at 1 a.m. and one in the middle of a blizzard.
On Wednesday afternoon, Byrd was wheeled onto the Senate floor to help provide Senate Democrats the 60 votes needed to end debate on the health care reform bill, in order to meet President Obama’s deadline of Christmas Day.
At a triumphant press conference Wednesday, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., paid tribute to Byrd, pointing out that without Byrd's vote, the health care reform bill would not pass.
“This is a strong man,” Reid said, “One of the most remarkable human beings I have ever met.”
Byrd’s most recent visits to the Capitol have been wrought with emotion, from himself and his colleagues, who have welcomed him with applause, standing ovations and earlier this fall, a special resolution honoring his service as the longest serving member of the Senate.
Moved by the resolution, Byrd wept openly on the Senate floor, thanking his colleagues, and his deceased wife of 68 years, Erma.
Byrd is the president pro tempore of the Senate, placing him third in line of presidential succession.
ABC News' Jonathan Karl and Brian Hartman contributed to this report.
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The latest Quinnipiac University poll shows only 36% of the voters in favor of health care reform legislation, and 38% agrees with Obama’s handling of health care reform. Also, only 18% believes that the health care reform bill can reduce the budget deficit of the nation.
Posted by: austin | December 24, 2009, 10:30 am 10:30 am
austin: Let us know what the polls say after the changes kick in…okay?
history tells us that there was the same level of anxiety when social security bill first passed.
Posted by: New Wave | December 24, 2009, 11:29 am 11:29 am
The latest Quinnipiac University poll also shows overwhelming support for a public option.
Q23. Do you support or oppose giving people the option of being covered by a government health insurance plan that would compete with private plans?
Support 56%
Oppose 38%
Posted by: gary | December 24, 2009, 12:43 pm 12:43 pm
Today, I am so proud to be a Democrat. Finally! Healthcare reform.
Posted by: Amy in Maine | December 24, 2009, 12:52 pm 12:52 pm
Either way the nation is financially insolvent. Pass it and give people what they want until it blows up in our faces.
Posted by: Huh | December 24, 2009, 1:26 pm 1:26 pm
The Dems has been a class act through all the yelling and lies. Give it up! Senator Reid, my mom always told us to think, pray and STAND! She called it QUITE STRENGTH. Thank you! I felt a righteous wind this morning! I too am Proud to be a DEMOCRAT.
Posted by: sara | December 24, 2009, 2:23 pm 2:23 pm
Lyndon BAINS JOHNSON…uhm, REID.
Posted by: sara | December 24, 2009, 2:24 pm 2:24 pm
Sara said :”I felt a righteous wind this morning!”
That was probably gas. You’ve been sold a bill of goods missy and my guess is your very young. Our system is completely corrupt. Read the papers and see what Reid had to promise members of his own party to get them to vote for the reform bill. More pork. When I was young, the Democratic Party was the party of the Family – Hubert Humphrey pleaded for Family Values at the ’68 convention- now both parties represent the special interest groups only. Labor, Teachers. gay rights activists on one side and Corporate America on the other. Those of is in the middle have no voice and take it whichever way it comes. You’ll get Healthcare out of this bill if it passes, but you’ll also get higher taxes to pay for it , in one form or another. Stupid government is too chicken to accept a European way of adopting healthcare, instead we get a hodge-podge mess that the government will surely screw up again.
Posted by: mark | December 24, 2009, 2:46 pm 2:46 pm
If the bill actually reduces the deficit and health insurance costs it will be a good move but the CBO has already admitted it will cause a 170 million dollar deficit in social security, not a good start. I do have 3 questions. If those who work now pay for those who are not working or retired, and the population cannot continue to grow forever or we will basically destroy the planet. How will we continue to pay for this when the number of retired greatly surpasses the number working? Or is the whole idea behind this selfish and I shouldn’t care about the future, like they did to us with social security and Medicare. Question 2, If we have increased spending by almost 1 trillion and taken money from Medicare, what is left to actually reduce the debt? I think cuts in defense, social security and increase taxes are the only thing we have left. Question 3, If forcing people to but a service from a private company is found to be unconstitutional, what do we do, this law will not work without it? Please don’t start with the car insurance argument, laws enacted by the state to drive on a public highway is not the same as a federal law to buy or go to jail, it could happen
Posted by: Brian | December 24, 2009, 4:17 pm 4:17 pm
oops, the deficit is in medicare not SS – my bad
Posted by: Brian | December 24, 2009, 4:31 pm 4:31 pm
Democrats SHOULD be proud, it was the right thing to do. Bravo.
Posted by: trueblue | December 24, 2009, 4:56 pm 4:56 pm
Byrd ought to show up to vote for , after all he got a 500 million dollar bribe to vote for it Vt. gets 500 million in medicaid. Nebraska gets free medicaid forever, and we get insurance premiums that will keep going up but if you dont pay you get fined or go to jail. What did your senator get for your state or should you vote him out of office for not getting a few million for your state, at least a personal bribe.
Posted by: earl | December 24, 2009, 6:22 pm 6:22 pm
In the spirit of the holiday, I will be gentle. Hey “earl” Sen. Byrd is from W. virginia. I hope you’re not in charge of Santa’s GPS tracker.
Posted by: B. Bear | December 24, 2009, 6:57 pm 6:57 pm
Senator Coburn asked all Americans to pray that Senator Byrd wouldn’t make it to vote or even worse. Now the GOP has shown what Christian Values we should follow. Now the prayer done by some wing nut Americans worked except it was Senator Bunning who was a NO Show and with God’s blessings the Health Care Bill passed.
Posted by: Jackie | December 25, 2009, 12:47 am 12:47 am
The CBO analyzed the ‘public option’ in the House bill (which they will try to stuff into the final product).
It concluded that premiums for the public option would be AS HIGH OR HIGHER than premiums for private plans.
In short, this bill does NOTHING to reduce costs.
Posted by: Joe White | December 25, 2009, 1:19 am 1:19 am
While it is commendable that Senator Byrd has been West Virginia’s representative for so long, he needs to ponder the idea of retiring so that an able bodied, clear thinking individual with fresh ideas is able to serve. What if he wasn’t able to attend the vote? Is being the “oldest serving senator” that important?
Posted by: js | December 25, 2009, 7:08 am 7:08 am
He is not from Nebreaska either so whats your point.
Posted by: earl | December 25, 2009, 8:52 am 8:52 am
Did he have to have a pen placed in his hand or did he just have to raise his hand and mumble? Sorry, but this guy hasn’t been with it for the last 20 years.
Posted by: LongT | December 25, 2009, 12:40 pm 12:40 pm
Rick Klein is ABC’s senior political hack, not reporter. Bryd comes to the Senate to break Republican obstructionist tactics could very well have been said, Bryd joins Democrats in ramming unpopular healthcare reform down American throats. A hardened Repub when voting said, for that womanizing lush Teddy, Nay! There is always another side, except for Ricky.
Posted by: jerry | December 25, 2009, 2:59 pm 2:59 pm
Its a wonderful day for Americans.
Our congress stood up against the monied interests and took a stand for ordinary americans – for a change.
Posted by: citizenvoters | December 25, 2009, 8:20 pm 8:20 pm
citizenvoters; The congress ‘caved’ to money interests. The greedy insurance industry is still very much celebrating this bill’s passage. You haven’t been following this issue very closely have you?
Posted by: LongT | December 26, 2009, 9:03 am 9:03 am
As he cast his vote, he waved his finger in the air, and shouted, “Mr. President, this is for my friend Ted Kennedy. Aye!”
Ted Kennedy’s idea of health care was to leave a woman behind in the car underwater; and drag his own sorry rear end home to go to bed, before calling the ambulance in the morning.
Posted by: Joe White | December 26, 2009, 10:42 am 10:42 am
These people who just can’t stand to remove themselves from the limelight (retire) and still apparently think that they are doing a great service for the country long after they’ve become comatose make me sick.
Posted by: Ron | December 26, 2009, 1:56 pm 1:56 pm
The part of the bill that requires insurance companies to dedicate at least 85% of premium money to actual care hasn’t gotten the positive press it deserves.
Right now, the major companies use 22% of your premium on overhead (corporate jets, exec. bonuses, etc.) and 7% for profits. Only 71% goes for health care. By comparison, PRIVATE companies from Switzerland to Japan spend 94% on health care (6% on overhead, non-profit).
That should put a small dent in premiums. Additionally, so should the fact that higher prices for insured people to offset the non-insured non-payers won’t cost that average insured person and extra $934 in premiums each year. That should more than offset the additional costs due to no denials of coverage, etc.
The bills aren’t perfect and don’t do enough to slow down costs, but they’re a step in the right direction.
Posted by: The_Mick | December 26, 2009, 4:52 pm 4:52 pm