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Health Care: “This fight ain’t over”

By: Congressman Mike Pence (Diary)  |  January 14th, 2010 at 05:00 PM  | 

RESIZE: AAA

When Harry Reid passed a government-run health care bill two weeks ago, he believed the long battle was done. He was wrong. After months of speaking out against a government takeover of health care — via phone calls, letters, town halls, protests and online activism — the American people will not quietly accept this fate. Now, the roughly 2,000 page bill is being negotiated behind closed doors — even after the president promised at least eight times that this process would be televised.

C-SPAN has offered to broadcast the negotiations anytime, anywhere. This failure to respond to C-SPAN’s broadcast request is appalling. While transparency was once the “touchstone” of Obama’s campaign, it’s clear that promise was mere campaign rhetoric.

The health care bill is the business of the American people. They should be consulted in negotiations, as every citizen will be gravely affected by the outcome. Elected officials have rushed this massive government takeover of health care through Congress to accommodate a fear-filled political agenda. Democrats have disrespected and mislead the very people they were elected to represent.

House Republicans will fight for the public’s right to know until the very end. This isn’t about policy or politics. This is about preserving freedom and limited government. This health care bill violates the essence of the American system: democracy, transparency and accountability to the people. President Obama, Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi, and a majority of Democrats, have turned a deaf ear to the people.

They are about to find out this fight ain’t over yet.

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  • Third Street
    • Marcus_Traianus

      With desperation, comes an increasing proclivity to fight and deal to save ones own skin. Democrats can be counted on to pull every devious legislative move to save this dog.

      I suspect overtures to some Republicans will be somewhere in that bag of tricks.

      Let’s hope all have your conviction.

      • AceInTX

        I suspect overtures to some Republicans will be somewhere in that bag of tricks.

        Obama to address House GOP

        Let’s hope the Republican whips are ready…because there are sure to be a couple RMSPers who’ll walk out swooning at the mastery of “The One!”

        • Marcus_Traianus

          Decline the invitation and Dem’s will ride the obstructionist horse with their MSM friends.

          Accept, and the man who ensured that not one Republican was involved in the entire health care legislation process get to talk at them. Again. Then Obama get’s to day “I tried” and tempt weaker members into some type of support.

          Personally, I would opt to decline, which may seem illogical at first. Nonetheless, given the history and Democrat’s proclivities it is the smart move, if done correctly.

          It buys the Republican’s some press and an opportunity to highlight;
          - They have not been involved in the entire bill construction
          - Most of it has been done in secret
          - Mr. Obama and his liege are the least transparent, participative administration in decades
          - The bill is an egregious assault on our liberty, which will greatly increase cost and limit availability of care
          - Republicans have alternatives, which are …. (highlight the individual bills and proposals, regaining the mantra that we are a party of ideas)

          One problem, they don’t have the stones. Remember, all the hand wringing, deal making, weak kneed politicians, advisors, consultants and pollsters are running our party.

          • AceInTX
      • nessa
        • graciegirl

          it does not seem to matter if we call, write or show up, noone in the leadership cares or listens. And people say the Republicans have no plan! When in fact you do but the leadership will not listen to you and the mainstream media will not publish it. Then we have to seriously worry about fraudulent elections on top of everything else!

          We appreciate you more than you know. Thanks for coming here please keep on fighting and try to get the Repubs especially in the Senate to use ALL the tools available.

          And run for Senate!

          • izoneguy

            Well they won’t – Americans are angry – I see it and feel it everyday.
            No amount of law writing will help those that seek insulation from the slings & arrows that are coming.

  • http://barnettlaw.org Frozen_Man

    I greatly appreciate how you and a few other conservative members of Congress have stood up and strongly condemned and battled against this legislation. It saddens me however, that the Republican party has done very little to actually hinder the bill becoming law. I know he is the Republican leader in the Senate but I heard McConnell complain (rightly so) about how horrible the bill was but saw little done to actually impede the progress of it becoming law. Congressman Boehner has been better but again I see very little that is actually being done. Many Americans are sending in money they can’t really spare and spending time fighting the bill but I see little actual resistance from the Republican party in Congress. It is wonderful that no Republican member in either house voted for the actual bill but I would like to see every procedural step taken to insure that the bill dies. I was thrilled when Senator Coburn asked that the Sanders amendment be read in its entirety but where is the leadership battling like that? If this bill is as horrible as Republicans keep saying it is ( and I think it is) then they should use every procedure in the

  • http://vbushmills.blogtownhall.com/ vassar

    …with a little luck, it’s won.

    If Scott Brown wins, hell, if he comes within 3 points, hell, 6, you can still feel pretty confident in telling your Dem colleagues…all of them…not some of them, all of them…that a man on a pale horse is coming for them this fall, if they stay on this health care dead horse.

    They know inside politics so even if Brown loses, and it’s close, and it’s stolen, if only just maybe…they’ll know to watch what happens to the facilitators.

    There’s all kinds of lessons here.
    Cordially

    • ocleverone
  • http://www.neoavatara.com/blog neoavatara

    I know it is uphill, and thankless…but the majority of Americans are with you. Keep up the good fight.

    www.neoavatara.com/blog

  • Mayhem

    Mike, we love you around here. As a Hoosier concerned about our prospects against Bayh, I am going to shamelessly use this thread to urge you to run against him. Bayh will be so vulnerable this November, if you run against him. Indiana will back you, and you can take your message to the Senate, where you will have an even louder megaphone.

    Do it Mike! Take down Bayh.

  • silvernana

    The government of this country is at war with its citizens, and for the first time in my life I am afraid of my government. I don’t know if we will survive this administration. I don’t believe we will ever have honest and fair elections again, what with ACORN, the SEIU, and the Black Panthers in charge. Democrats steal any close election. I see a handful of you fighting for us, but not many. If ever the Republicans get the majority again, I don’t ever want to hear anything from any of you about reaching across the aisle and working with the Dems after the way they have handled everything. I personally don’t think they ever intend to give up power though.
    Thank you for everything you are doing. I hope you know they are intentionally doing all this to destroy this country. We feel powerless to stop it!

  • medamorphus

    Thank You, for all that you do in this fight against tyranny. We are all behind you 100% I know it hasn’t been easy, but you’ve been doing a great job and we are all very grateful. The majority of America is behind you, and we will not quit, and we will not give up, and frankly, we are mad as hell.

  • olddog

    our congressmen are not realizing, this is a street brawl against a repressive government takeover, or they are part of it, R’s and D’s alike. Where is the people’s real representation, There are a few voices in the wilderness of D.C. but they need to be louder, follow history and you will find parallels, just prior to dictatorships taking power. Out government has a recent history of treating American citizens as if they are the enemy, giving more help outside our country than within, and they get away with it by dumbing down each generation, so the newer generations do not have any idea how precious freedom is. I’ve seen where they are taking us and I don’t want that for my grandchildren. Teach the kids to vote for substance of character, not personality
    Support our Troops
    One Old Dog

  • gailmarie

    they wont let Cspan see the negotiations because people like Andy Stearns are closing the deal… no one behind those closed door for us….. America needs to see the crooks and criminals running the hill..OPEN YOUR EYES do alll you can do.. talk to your friends we can’t HOPE this will CHANGE. WE the People will stand and take our country back. We must your freedom is now at the stake and the fire is lit. Headed toward your feet.

  • sammyc

    Every morning I get up and I am afraid to read the latest insult heaped on the American People by this administration. Each time I say “they can’t do that it isn’t legal” I have to eat my words. I want to get excited about the election on Tuesday but I am so fearful (after seeing the suit concerning voter intimidation by the Black Panthers dismissed) that the voter fraud and intimidation will be even more blatant this coming Tuesday. It seems as if we have no one who is in our corner as they ram all this crap down our throats even though each event is such a travesty. I know we need to vote and get them out, but in the meantime the damage they are doing is horrific. The daily loss of jobs, either through bankruptcy or being sent overseas makes it less and less possible that we can recover. The looting and crime that is going to happen in Haiti as time marches on will be nothing compared to what will happen here if things keep going like they are. It all just gives me a lump in my throat.

  • ihateliberals

    Everyone seems to forget that we are dealing with a bunch of Slim Balls that don’t care about the constitution or constituents at all. Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi and Hussein Obama are traitors of the USA. They should be tried as traitors. they will do whatever it takes to pass Health Care Reform. It doesn’t matter what anyone does to stop them it will be countered .

  • ihateliberals

    I meant Slime Balls. tis must have been a Freudian slip! ;-)

  • ihateliberals

    Once they pass health Care Reform the next move will be to stifle the media. Once that is accomplished repeal of the 22nd amendment will be a breeze for them. The ability to setup a dictatorship is very close to happening and most people are asleep to the fact.

  • wendy

    …So after Labor Day, the GOP is leaning toward releasing a document ? ?a 21st-century blueprint,? Cantor calls it ? that would echo the party?s successful ?Contract With America? of 1994.

    Cantor says it would start with jobs, then go on to promising a level playing field for investments. Aides say it would be more general than the bill-by-bill roster of the ?Contract,? instead focusing on vaguer principles. Tax cuts will be included, too.

    It?s not clear how they will handle health care in the document, but Cantor says the party is not so dense as to call for a complete repeal of anything Obama signs into law. They don?t want to defend taking away the popular parts, such as portability.

    ?We never said that we don?t want to effect reform,? Cantor said. ?We?ve said we?ve got ways that we believe you can bring down health care costs.?

    http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0110/31481_Page2.html

    This is the most incoherent, vacuous, and contradictory action plan I have seen from you guys yet. What does it mean to “start with jobs?” Is this a Keynesian concept? What does it mean by “level playing field for investments?” You just mentioned freedom and limited government, so can we take it you are against interference in the capital markets? Or is interference only something Democrats are forbidden to do? Why is GOP leadership so against repealing Obamacare if it passes? If you get power back, why can’t you replace it in toto with your own health reform plan? And why does the GOP’s health care plan include mandatory coverage for pre-existing conditions and reinsurance, when you as a Republican are supposed to be opposing the welfare state?

    Frankly, this sounds like a redux of the same garbage that you guys pushed on us during the Bush years, i.e., tax cuts with more social spending, Sarbanes-Oxley, and Medicare Part D. There is talk about freedom and limited government in your post, but from what I am seeing here, there is no walk by the GOP. I think you are just using buzz words while talking from both sides of your collective mouth to placate the base, because you think we are all stupid, but as soon as you return back to power, you plan to return to business as usual. How did that work out for you last time?

    I have had it up to my eyeballs with the things you guys have done these past few years. The things you have done affect individual lives in a very negative way, including my own. Do you even understand that? We are not going to take it anymore. You lost power because you delivered bad results, and all the gamesmanship in the world will not protect you from being held accountable by voters for bad results, and this is true even if they don’t understand all the details of what happened. They do understand that you were in charge and you screwed up. Freedom and limited government are the only things that can deliver positive results, and therefore the only things that can secure the GOP’s long-term fortunes. What are you doing that shows you are taking these things seriously? Are you thinking about what 2014 will look like? You had better!

  • wyllyness

    Wow, we so appreciate you and your service, for sticking by your principles, and for listening to the people, your constituents.

    Please continue to fight against the health care bill, and never stop fighting until it’s dead and trampled underfoot. And by fight, I mean it. Down and dirty, like the Dems, but not immorally, unethically, or against your own belief system.

    Thank you so much for what you have to put up with every day. I don’t envy you, but I do admire you.

  • hogflight

    the on-gong battle is slated for Jan 19th up North and the one thing we need your full attention on is to ensure the election process is protected from the left wing mob. I am still wondering what ever happened to the voter intimidation case against the Panthers in Philly? I would think this Massachusetts election will bring out every black bag trick imaginable to sustain the socialist agenda now underway. I am paranoid when the mob (unions, ACORN, Prava-US, et al) converge in symphonic unity and direction to a singular objective in order to save their strategic plans.
    I believe, utlimately, the war will be won in getting back to our founding fathers original conception of governance, but I hate to think we lose some battles because due dilligence was not adhered to .

  • Maggie_in_Indiana

    You have been out in front of this from day one. I’m doing my part like millions of other Americans,but it gets frustrating to say the least to know that washington has turned a deaf ear on the people. Nov.will be our redemption.

  • redpens

    We’re not giving up either. I hope you run for Senate in 2010 and beat the phony moderate Evan Bayh.

    • sarge324

      obama has lost he mind giving his buddy andy stern and the unions excemptions.the supreme court will through all them deals out.you cant give to one class of people not another.the democrates in office must see that put they dont care.its the party first.2010 is a big year vote for america not the obama thugs.

  • davidstone

    Hang in there and do not give up the fight until this monstrosity is dead.

  • Mary Beth

    The American people are behind you all the way.

  • AceInTX

    Can we expect to be calling you Senator this time next year?

  • itrytobenice

    If they had any idea how mad many of us over this idea, they would be hiding behind our skirts and throwing rocks at the Ds all day long.

    And for a little sugar with that pill, they did all vote against it, for which I was very proud. Now tell them to *throw rocks*.

    And thanks for fighting for us. And thanks for keeping us twitterers updated. It’s kinda like a live feed to the inside information and I appreciate it.

  • cary

    For standing up for our country and listening to citizen voices! Keep getting your voice heard through all forms of media!!

    We pray our Constitution will stand strong against this intended government takeover. Do Obama, Pelosi, Reid, et al, really think we are that stupid? . . it seems they do.

    Not only do they present a 2000+ page bill but how many pages will be filled with exceptions for the payment of this madness?? Are they trying to force seniors into living in one or two states? Everyone to join a union or ACORN? register as a Democrat? Change their faith to Amish?? This is madness!

  • earlgrey

    It’s time to say buh-bye Bayh.

  • Spartan4Life

    According to everything I am hearing, Union contracts will be exempt from the so called “Cadillac tax”(funny they should name it after a Government Motors vehicle, but I digress) until 2018. Another slush fund for Unions who represent, what, about 8% of working Americans. This to go with the $57B payoff to the UAW and the $787B payoff to the SEIU(porkulus). What kind of America is it when some people have to pay taxes and others don’t?

    We now have institutionalized corruption in this country.

  • fpete13527

    I especially thank you for your courage and willingness to fight for conservative principles, beginning with stopping the DemCare Bill.

    Please pass on to your fellow Congressman (especially in the Senate) that the one request that I have of them ….is to fight…..now.

  • rcyclist

    I believe you when you say it ain’t over. When Mitch McConnell says it, not so much.

  • jmimac351

    Where are the Republicans? Why are the Republicans not on every TV station every night?

    I can only hope that Rep Pence is asking for us to read between the lines at what portends to be some great surprise in mind to upset this bill. I hope the big idea isn’t just to blog on a conservative website and preach to the already pizzed off choir.

    Ah, what the heck. Why stand in front of the tank? Just go get a beer at the Capitol Grill and congratulate your worth adversaries on a hard fought victory. “Those darn Democrats sure got us this time, didn’t they?”

    Pitiful.

  • jmimac351

    This is a street fight and the Republicans are saying “Excuse me, Sir. This is a bad idea.”

    They are not playing the same game.

  • chabsentia

    What are you people whining about? There is transparency. It is transparent that Landrieu of La, isnt a cheap date and got 300 million for her vote. It is transparent that Ben Nelson got a free pass for an expansion of Medicaid for his vote and that other States will have to pay for it and themselves. It is transparent that the Unions will not have to pay a tax on their Health care plan for five years but non union members will be required to pay it.

    What is not so transparent is that Harry Reid inserted an amendment into the Health care Bill that future Congresses will not be able to repeal the Federal Panel board for Health care. What is not so transparent is that they needed the vote of Ben Nelson for cloiture. He can refute the aid for Nebraska as naseum. Now it is possible that they can pass the Health care bill with just 51 votes in the Senate via Reconciliation.

    This is what you get after twenty years of Apathy by returning 90% of the Incumbents. Even now with 256 Democrats and 178 Republicans in the House where there are 435 members 10% of the House is 44 votes and 44 new Republicans means the Democrats will then have 212 votes and the Republicans will have 222 votes and 218 is needed for a Majority so a 10%
    swing is all that is needed while keeping 90% of the Incumbents just like the majority of the voters have done in a State of Apathy for twenty years because of Ideology instead of the issues. Why would anybody be amazed that members of Congress do not respond to your E mails and Phone calls etc when you have re-elected 90% of the Incumbents for twenty years, I have even heard some of them on television state that “the voters will have forgot by November”.They are probably correct. It has been that way for twenty years. It is most likely too late. They are not scared and will ram it down or throats and wahtever else by November even if the Majority swings. People get the Govenment they deserve.