Categorized | Healthcare, Page2, Politics
Stupak Threatens Dems
by kellygrrrl
Posted on 13 November 2009 | 9:47 am 
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Bart Stupak, author of the controversial anti-choice amendment shoved into the House health bill at the urging of the Catholic Bishops, is feeling quite proud and powerful today. The C-Street Family man told LifeNews that the Democrats are “playing with fire” and there will be “Hell to pay” if they attempt to remove God’s word his amendment from the final bill.
Rep. Bart Stupak (D-Mich.) is warning fellow Democrats not to mess with his restrictive anti-abortion amendment.
Pro-choice outrage was sparked by the inclusion of a provision in the House health care bill making it harder for private insurers to cover abortion. President Obama himself suggested that the language disrupted the status quo and should be taken out of the final legislation. Abortion rights supporters in Congress requested a meeting with the president next week to discuss the issue.
Now Stupak is saying he won’t go easily.
“We won because [the Democrats] need us,” Stupak said. “If they are going to summarily dismiss us by taking the pen to that language, there will be hell to pay. I don’t say it as a threat, but if they double-cross us, there will be 40 people who won’t vote with them the next time they need us — and that could be the final version of this bill.”
While Stupak claims to have control of 40 conservative Democratic votes in the House, there appears to be apporximately 40 votes vowing to kill the bill if the anti-choice language remains in its present form as authored by Stupak.
Although House liberals voted for the bill with the amendment to keep the process moving forward, Rep. Diana DeGette (Colo.) said she has collected more than 40 signatures from House Democrats vowing to oppose any final bill that includes the amendment — enough to block passage.
“There’s going to be a firestorm here,” DeGette said. “Women are going to realize that a Democratic-controlled House has passed legislation that would prohibit women paying for abortions with their own funds. . . . We’re not going to let this into law.”
Yesterday I received a reply from Senator Dianne Feinstein to my signature on a petition, a portion of which is as follows:
The Chairman’s Mark would not preempt state laws that ban private insurance coverage of abortion or require it. Abortion cannot be mandated as a required service. However, it could be covered with non-federal funds. Federal funds continue to be prohibited from being used to pay for abortions unless the pregnancy is due to rape or incest, or if the life of the mother is in danger. The Secretary will ensure that in each Exchange, one plan does not cover abortion, and one plan does cover abortion. Plans cannot discriminate against any provider or facility because of their willingness or unwillingness to provide, pay for, or refer for abortion.
I support preventative reproductive care because I believe that services such as family planning are very valuable. While the compromise on these issues in the Chairman’s Mark may not be perfect, I am pleased that women will continue to have access to private health insurance coverage for all their reproductive health needs. Please know that I will keep your comments in mind as I continue to review health care reform legislation in the 111th Congress.
It’s time to demand some answers, and insist that our elected officials fight back negotiate compromise. My response to her will include the following questions:
1. “What do you intend to do to ensure access to preventative birth control and make it unlawful for any insurer, private or federal, to deny coverage of contraceptives?”
2. “What will you do to ensure that any woman who purchases supplemental private insurance which includes all reproductive services will still have the option to participate in a public option plan?”
3. “What will you do to ensure that any facility which provides abortion services will still qualify to collect federal funds from a public option plan?”
4. “Will you vow to fight to ensure that my tax dollars will no longer pay for erectily-dysfunction medications?”
Pro-choice Americans must prepare to handle this situation calmly and logically. It is time to draw serious expert opinions outlining the societal disaster down the road, as we prepare to inundate our educational and other systems with countless unwanted, neglected, poverty-striken children.
Jeff Sharlet, author of “The Family,” discusses Stupak’s C-Street connection with Rachel Maddow.
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213,279 Comments Since March 2009 
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Credo Petition “Send a Coat Hanger”
http://act.credoaction.com/campaign/send_a_coathanger/
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Planned Parenthood petition
http://www.ppaction.org/campaign/hcr09foc_pporg?qp_source=hcr09foc%5fa fc3
November 13th, 2009 at 5:27 pm
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Thanks for the links, kelly.
November 13th, 2009 at 10:14 pm
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ugh. it had all my info? scary! thanks, Montana. I changed the link.
November 13th, 2009 at 5:31 pm
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Link had your name on there and I couldn’t erase it!
Here’s a fresh link: http://plannedparenthoodaction.org/healthreform/
Thanks again – I had signed the Credo but not this one.
November 13th, 2009 at 5:32 pm
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Dang. That won’t work either. OK, need to fiddle around with it…. I’m going to sign the damn thing!!
November 13th, 2009 at 5:33 pm
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That’s really weird – your name is still coming up – even on a fresh link.
November 13th, 2009 at 10:16 pm
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I think I got it to come up blank. will you click on it and make sure? thanks
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Great post kel, we’ve been sidelined here. Hope the women in congress have their hammers in hand.
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As to listening to the “concerns” of C Street and the Bishops
November 13th, 2009 at 11:38 am
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November 13th, 2009 at 12:07 pm
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That’s a good one.
November 13th, 2009 at 12:23 pm
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Bookmarked and stolen! clutch your pearls!
November 13th, 2009 at 12:28 pm
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Ha ha… Knew you would want that one. It can be your standard comment reply.
November 13th, 2009 at 12:37 pm
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how to embed images????
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Opinion in NYT:
“Mad Men,’ Maddening Times by Judith Warner
An amendment to the health bill is a throwback to an era when women’s rights were seen as expendable.”
http://warner.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/11/12/mad-men-maddening-times/?hp
November 13th, 2009 at 11:21 am
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and all the men who are writing op eds about how it’s okay to throw women under the bus need to STFU!!!
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/11/AR2009 111122256.html
November 13th, 2009 at 12:08 pm
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Yeah, they do.
November 13th, 2009 at 1:53 pm
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If you don’t have a uterus, put a sock in it.
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in July 09 Rachel Maddow discussed Stupak’s “Hypocri-C”
November 13th, 2009 at 10:49 am
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What the hell goes on in that house? Does anyone know?
November 13th, 2009 at 11:10 am
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Have you read “The Family” ?
November 13th, 2009 at 11:13 am
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No, I haven’t. Just excerpts. Are the C-Streeters The Family?
November 13th, 2009 at 11:18 am
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yes
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Fellowship_%28Christian_organization% 29
http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2009/07/21/c_street/
http://www.articlesbase.com/politics-articles/c-street-the-family-1047 398.html
November 13th, 2009 at 11:23 am
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I highly recommend you read it. Doug Coe is the leader of The Family, you know, the guy Hillary said is her “spiritual advisor”
They own and operate the C Street House, as well as several other properties that house and host many political and world leaders.
Jeff Sharlet infiltrated the group and lived at the C Street House, and then wrote “The Family” — it’s an excellent read
November 13th, 2009 at 12:24 pm
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I remember reading Ehrenreich’s article on the book. Never got around to reading it. Reading about religious nuts is depressing and scary.
November 13th, 2009 at 12:25 pm
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So is this!
http://www.adl.org/learn/ext_us/default.asp?LEARN_Cat=Extremism&LEARN_ SubCat=Extremism_in_America&xpicked=1&item=0
November 13th, 2009 at 1:24 pm
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Gee, thanks, Babs, one more thing to worry about. I clicked down the page and “Extremism in Florida” popped out like a sore thumb. Ocala and the Ocala National Forest were mentioned.
November 13th, 2009 at 1:54 pm
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November 13th, 2009 at 2:36 pm
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As far as I know all is quiet here for now. We had a few teabaggers back in August, They protested in front of the city hall complex over by the library. Truly, I was amazed to see the mention, although the National Forest has a bad rep from as far back as Prohibition. An interesting bit of history, the lake where we went swimming is near where Ma Barker was killed.
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Being a woman under the control of politicians and the health care insures is a pre-existing condition…ENOUGH!
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I knew this would become a huge deal.
In my September piece on “Saving The Public Option” I wrote about the abortion issue and an article the Times ran back then.
“The New York Times ran a piece detailing how abortion could become an issue in proposed healthcare reform. Abortion opponents are seeking for a way to block women from receiving federal subsidies for private plans that already cover abortion.”
November 13th, 2009 at 3:42 pm
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I suspected it would be the Dog Whistle issue, as well. So many have argued that “abortion is not the big deal anymore” — it is … and it probably always be
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He looks like a mean man, wonder if he has any skeletons in the closet?
November 13th, 2009 at 10:10 am
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he’s lived in the C Street House since 2002 (a fact he refuses to admit) Seems pretty safe to assume he’s got some ugly frat boy dirt
November 13th, 2009 at 10:27 am
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Those C Streeters need to be really exposed. How can he be a Dem? This is what’s wrong with the Democratic party. Politicians that don’t belong in it with outdated views.
November 13th, 2009 at 10:30 am
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The only problem is, BGE, if we go after them for being Blue Dogs, they can (& will) accuse us of being no better than the neo-cons who want to purge the Repubs.
November 13th, 2009 at 10:36 am
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I don’t care.
November 13th, 2009 at 10:40 am
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I agree. However, unfortunately the Blue Dog districts are more conservative than most, and we run the risk of losing them entirely.
Reality is a hard thing sometimes.
November 13th, 2009 at 10:43 am
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this is what happens when we focus on Quantity over Quality
November 13th, 2009 at 10:48 am
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I’d rather have less but really liberal candidates, otherwise they act the same as Republicans, they may as well be Republicans.
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this attack on one of the weakest groups in our society, poor and middle-class women, is unacceptable.
Time to fight Fire and Brimstone with FIRE
November 13th, 2009 at 9:57 am
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It’s going to affect most women who already have coverage in their insurance plans and if this amendment goes through, now they won’t.
November 13th, 2009 at 10:10 am
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Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned
November 13th, 2009 at 10:26 am
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Nothing like discriminating against 2/3rds of the population