Last night, on the 11 o'clock Cincinnati News, the reporter said he'd just gotten done talking with Rep. Driehaus and that he was willing to vote YES if he could be more comfortable about the language not allowing federally funded abortion. Driehaus said that his aide had been mistaken earlierabout his intent to vote no.
Call Rep. Driehaus (202) 225-2216 and ask him, plead with him to vote YES.
Ask him to vote his conscience for this "life affirming" legislation (the nun's phrase) regardless of any effect on November. Ask him to read Marjorie Margolies's Op Ed in WaPo, today, in which she speaks from experience and offers encouragement.
Because, I think that late announcement on the news may have came from a man confronting the fact that he will probably lose in November, and we need to give him support and encouragement to do the right thing.
UPDATED! Rally on Friday at 2:30. details below h/t to Lynwaz :)
UPDATE Information: Rally on Friday at 2:30 at Cincinnati Office
Link for more info and to tell them you are coming.
WHAT: Health Care Reform Rally
WHEN: Friday, March 19, 2010, 2:30pm
WHERE: Office of Congressman Driehaus, 441 Vine Street, Cincinnati, Ohio, 45202
Margolies who has become something of a verb on The Hill, having lost in Montgomery County Pa in 1990's in part due to her YES vote for the Clinton Budget, wrote that voting yes is the right thing because:
The moral of my brief political story is not that casting a tough and decisive vote necessarily predicts a bad electoral outcome for you, nor that the majority of your constituents is always wrong or always right.
It's that there are times in all our careers when we must ask ourselves why we're here. I decided that my desire for public service at that moment was greater than my desire to guarantee continued service. Yes, there are few jobs as rewarding (mostly) as being a member of Congress, and I was let down after I lost. But I believed then and now that being able to point to something tangible that changed our country for the better was a more powerful motivator than the possible electoral repercussions.
And this IS the right thing for Steve Driehaus to do in order to give his constituents the following:
In Rep. Driehaus’s district, the health care reform bill will:
1. Improve coverage for 394,000 residents with health insurance.
2. Give tax credits and other assistance to up to 156,000 families
3. and 13,800 small businesses to help them afford coverage.
4. Improve Medicare for 93,000 beneficiaries, including closing the donut hole.
5. Extend coverage to 44,000 uninsured residents.
6. Guarantee that 10,300 residents with pre-existing conditions can obtain coverage.
7. Protect 1,300 families from bankruptcy due to unaffordable health care costs.
8. Allow 49,000 young adults to obtain coverage on their parents’ insurance plans.
9. Provide millions of dollars in new funding for 39 community health centers.
10. Reduce the cost of uncompensated care for hospitals and other health care providers by $52 million annually.
So, please, call Rep. Driehaus (202) 225-2216. Call him if you donated. Call him if you went to Cincinnati to canvas and campaign there.
Watching the Rethug leadership on MSNBC a few minutes ago, McConnell trotted out that it's not popular with waivering Democratic constituencies. Well, Margorie Margolies has some more common sense wisdom to offer.
Your constituents are always right. Usually.
Is it possible that, while 55 percent of my reliably Republican district opposed the Clinton budget, a vote in favor of that budget was, in fact, in the best interest of my district? ... Is it possible that a majority of your constituents could be -- dare I say it? -- wrong?
Of course -- and that's why you're there. Otherwise, we'd vote everything by referendum.
My constituents in Montgomery County, Pa. -- the ones so adamantly opposed to the legislation for which I became a cautionary tale -- reaped some of the greatest benefits during the years immediately after passage.
So, I encourage you to encourage Steve Driehaus to vote his conscience. (202) 225-2216 or email if you are in his district.
And if you need that super nifty linky for getting specific information on what the HCR bill will do by Congressional District like I listed above, go here:
HCR Fact Sheets by Congressional District