Reid Defends Slavery Comments, Says Health Reform Still Possible This Year
EmailABC’s Z. Byron Wolf reports:
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid emerged from his weekly powwow with Democrats saying he could still have a health reform bill on the President’s desk this year. “The question is, is it possible to meet the goal by the end the year passing this bill? The answer is yes,”he told reporters. Reid also said the debate on the floor will continue, but only until he thinks he can pass the bill off the floor. Asked when he would file cloture on the bill, and start the process to end debate, he said, “When will you file cloture?”a reporter asked. “Soon as I can,”he said. Reid was asked about his comparison of people who are filibustering the health reform bill (modern-day Republicans) with people who slowed efforts to end slavery, give women the right to vote, and pass the Civil Rights Act (from both parties). “Well, I think the point is quite clear by this point that at pivotal points in American history, the tactics of distortion, delay have certainly been present,”said Reid. “They’ve been use to stop progress. That’s what we’re talking about here. That’s what’s happening here. It’s very clear. That’s a point I made — no more, no less. Anyone who willingly distorts my comments is only proving my point.” Reid also quoted Henry Clay, the 19th Century Kentucky Whig Senator, and one of the Senate’s great debaters, in urging compromise among Democrats on the health reform bill. “The purpose of legislation is to build consensus,”Reid said. “Henry Clay said it best, that’s what legislation is all about, is arriving at a consensus, and that’s what we’re doing. Clay opposed slavery, but is perhaps most famous for, as Speaker of the House, engineering the 1820 Missouri Compromise, which brought one free and one slave state to the union, and banned slavery North of Arkansas in the Louisiana Purchase territory. Republicans, emerging from their party meeting, said Reid’s historical perspective shows he is desperate to create support for Democrats’ bill. ”It appears as if the strongest argument the Democrats are making on this health care bill is that they need to make history — they need to make history,”said Sen. Mitch McConnell, who holds Clay’s Kentucky Senate seat and is Senate Minority Leader. “That’s the comment — kind of comment you make when all the poll data indicates that the American people don’t want us to pass this bill.” Democrats are still ironing out what exactly will be in their final Senate bill – the will likely file a large, substitute amendment, known as a managers amendment, when 10 Democrats, moderates and progressives, find accord on how to deal with the creation of a public insurance option. The current proposal to replace the public option in a health reform bill with access to a national insurance pool like the one used by federal workers and members of Congress has breathed new life into Democrats’ quest for all 60 of their members to support health. It has also robbed Republicans of one of their main talking points on health reform – opposing the public option, which they have called a bid by Democrats at a government takeover. Republicans were asked by reporters about the proposal, the details of which remain behind closed doors with Democrats. Well, it’s just another new idea that’s popped up here in an effort to try to get all the — as one wag used to say — all the frogs in the wheelbarrow,”said McConnell of the proposal, which has not yet been made public. Republicans largely agree with the idea of offering a national insurance pool and plans like those they get to people who don’t currently have insurance. But they will likely oppose Democrats proposal because it seeks to mollify liberal Democrats who wanted a public option by expanding eligibility for Medicare. The deal could also perhaps include an expansion of Medicaid beyond what is already in Democrats bills. The Medicaid expansion would be particularly “Many Republicans have already supported the idea of giving all Americans the same choices that federal employees now have in health insurance,”said Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn. But that is only one element of Democrats’ negotiations. “What we are seeing proposed, as I understand it, is a huge expansion of Medicare which is riddled with fraud, which in my state, 42 percent of patients can’t find a doctor to treat them at Medicare low payment rates. And then we see this huge suggestion of expansion of Medicaid, which in my state alone will result in a $24 billion unfunded mandate,”said Sen. John Cornyn, R-Tex.
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Rather weird viewpoint, and there is a strong possibility the health care plan will fail to pass, entirely.
Posted by: Rick McDaniel | December 8, 2009, 5:16 pm 5:16 pm
Reid needs to check his history. Democrats by far were in favor of keeping slavery. They were instrumental in delaying the civil rights legeslation. Harry and Nancy have problems with the truth.
Posted by: Willie | December 8, 2009, 5:17 pm 5:17 pm
The same racist mindset that kept blacks dependent on the plantation long after slavery was no longer legal, now seeks to keep Americans dependent on the government for health care, and nearly everything else.
The simple fact is that health insurance is expensive because of government overregulation and high tax rates.
Roll back the uneven regulations and sweetheart deals and lower the taxes so that people who get to keep more of their own money can afford what they need for their families — including health insurance.
Posted by: Joe White | December 8, 2009, 5:25 pm 5:25 pm
The Republican party of 1860 bears no resemblance to the the party of 2009. Today, at Gettysburg, Lincoln would have to end his speech with, “a country of the corporations, by the corpations, and for the corporations.” Willie is correct in the 1960′s Dems opposed civil rights legislation. He just left out the fact that, following Strom Thurmond, they all became Republicans.
Posted by: B. Bear | December 8, 2009, 5:28 pm 5:28 pm
I guess Reid does not remember that
Lincoln was a republican and risked
his presidency and life for the issue of
slavery. I guess he also does not remember
some of the most prejudice against the
blacks were the Democrats. He does not
have to go that far back in history
to see that. He should think before he
opens his mouth, unless Obama put him
up to that argument when he went to
Capital Hill to give them a pep talk.
You know, throw the race card out there.
Yeah, thats the ticket.
Posted by: wis134 | December 8, 2009, 5:39 pm 5:39 pm
Reid is an idiot. He is the epitomy of what is wrong with the democrats.
Posted by: jonny | December 8, 2009, 5:47 pm 5:47 pm
B.Bear writes “Today, at Gettysburg, Lincoln would have to end his speech with, “a country of the corporations, by the corpations, and for the corporations.” If B. Bear were not a Democrat and thus capable of doing some research, B.Bear would find that in the last election cycle, Big Corporations contributed most of thier money to Democrats. Ever hear of Goldman Sachs. You don’t think they got those billions of taxpayer dollars because they were good corporate citizens now do you? Nope, they contributed heavily to Democratic candidates. The party of Big Corporations is no longer Republican it’s Democratic.
Posted by: j0112 | December 8, 2009, 6:13 pm 6:13 pm
Willie, I do not think that Reid was specifically speaking to any party. I think he is simply stating the distortion, and delay tactics which run rampant in politics today.
And Lincoln freed the slaves not because he was such a loving person, but because he was doing whatever was necessary to preserve the union. Correct me if i’m wrong, but freeing the slaves wasn’t the ultimate goal of the Civil War, nor Lincoln.
Posted by: John | December 8, 2009, 6:29 pm 6:29 pm
You can be mad at big business but guess
who employees lots of people???? A
big business.
Posted by: wis134 | December 8, 2009, 6:30 pm 6:30 pm
Insurance companies really need money. According to a New York Times article, last July, they are spending $ 1.4 million dollars a day to destroy Obama’s medical reforms. They need to pay off CEO, investors, lobbyists, and politicians on Capitol. Name the major opponents to Obama’s proposals – Mitch McConnel, Orrin Hatch, Chuck Grassley, Jim DeMint, Joe Wilson. All of them get hefty political contributions from health insurance companies. I might also add, that we have no way of knowing how much money politicians taking from Medicare Advantage. We need to stamp out waste in Medicare now. And since 2010 is an election year, health insurance companies across the country will raise rates because they need to make record political campaign contributions. This is already happening.
According to an article by Arthur Delaney on the Huffington Post (October 5, 2009 Anthem Blue Cross is using the state of Maine because Blue Cross wants to raise rates by 18.5 %. According to an article by James Oliphant and Kim Geiger in the Los Angeles Times (October 17,2009), Blue Cross in Massachusetts is going to raise its rates by 10%, and older people will pay more. Such are the joys of Mittcare.
The health insurance is bankrupting the country. 700,000 people a year are filing for bankruptcy because of medical bills. Most of these people had health insurance. At a Move-On rally, a small businessmen spoke. He said that he could not hire employees for his expanding business because of insurance costs.
According to a report filed by the Harvard Medical school, 44,000 people are dying each year because of inadequate medical care – Many of these people had health insurance.
This is the reason for a public option. The American people deserve a choice.
If you want to continue to give away your salary to Wall Street, K Street and Capitol. Fine. That’s your choice. If you want to try a “non-profit” cooperative – with the understanding that all of the people I named will get their cut before you get your medical care. Fine. That should be your choice.
But you should also have a public option, like buying your insurance through Medicare. By cracking down on Medicare fraud, which Obama proposes, Medicare should also an option.
That way we can have something for everybody.
Posted by: William Joseph Miller | December 8, 2009, 6:39 pm 6:39 pm
Our news coverage of this event is very one sided. If the tables had been turned and a Republican would have made a slighted comment like this, he would have been immediatly torn apart by the media feeding frenzy. It really shows that we really dont have a free and unbiased press anymore.
Posted by: Dane Dahle | December 8, 2009, 7:45 pm 7:45 pm
Reid was talking about opponents of progress. That has little to do with historical designations of “Democrat” or “Republican”. By 1960, there were two basic types of Democrats: Southern, conservative and Northern/liberal who held the most power in Congress. To lump them all into the category of “all Democrats” shows ignorance of history. Similar situations occured after 1964 with the GOP: the Eastern “moderate” GOP was marginalized by the insurgent Goldwater wing, to which many southern former-Democrats flocked.
Posted by: Chuck | December 8, 2009, 9:41 pm 9:41 pm
This country has prospered as a capitalist society. Reid and all his fellow idiot liberals need to be shipped off shore with the jobs they are causing us to lose.
Posted by: Chris | December 8, 2009, 10:19 pm 10:19 pm
It’s obvious the Liberals continue to twist and bend the truth to meet their own needs(ie Dems favoring slavery); make mistakes at someone else expense and only after they’re challenged on the TRUTH do they offer some lame apology just to make a ppoint in their own favor…it’s broken record; broken record; broken record; broken record;broken….just like the (unsubstantiated)sensationalism of the media the Dems will say anything to make their point
Posted by: Al | December 9, 2009, 10:38 am 10:38 am
he will say anything to gte his point across
Posted by: kimc | December 9, 2009, 10:51 am 10:51 am
What I find odd about the republicans taking offense at Mr. Reid’s remarks is that they defend Rush Limbaugh and say he can say whatever he wants as it is freedom of speech…however, Mr. Reid is not entitled to the same? He did not mean they were in favor of slavery just in favor of stalling whatever is necessary for change just like those who did the same on slavery. Double standards here from what I see.
Posted by: talmag | December 9, 2009, 11:20 am 11:20 am
John: You are correct about Lincoln….he freed the slaves because he felt it was necessary to save the union. Mr. Reid is not accusing anyone of being for slavery….just trying to impede President Obama from having progress at any cost and on every issue. Mr. Stelle said yesterday that he is doing everything to get rid of Mr. Reid in the future…maybe he should be worried about those of us who are not happy with him.
Posted by: talmag | December 9, 2009, 11:40 am 11:40 am
I would like to pose this question to any Senator worth their salt (assuming the senator is not a attorney). Why is TORT REFORM not a major component of this bill? Studies performed by http://www.BenefitsManager.net and http://www.DentalInsuranceUtah.net that liability insurance costs are approaching nearly one third of the operating expenses for specialty care physicians, units and facilities. Aside from medical provider costs, insurance carriers such as Humana Health Plans state that their costs of medical liability and defensive medicine accounts for nearly 10 cents out of every premium dollar collected (verified). Compare that to Humana’s reported pharmaceutical claims of 15 cents out of every premium dollar collected. Or better yet, 21 cents out of every premium dollar collected is paid back to physicians for physician treatments. Without TORT REFORM, medical provider costs will never drop.
Posted by: Mike | December 10, 2009, 10:46 am 10:46 am