Blue Dog McIntyre Flip-Flops on SCHIP! UPDATED
It looks like pressure paid off. Mike McIntyre announced this afternoon that he has changed his stand on SCHIP. More from the release...
Congressman McIntyre stated, "As a long-time advocate for children for over 25 years, and as one who has consistently supported family health issues, I will not support President Bush's veto of the SCHIP bill, and I will vote to override his veto. My objection to the method of funding for this bill and my support of North Carolina's farmers and the economic well-being of our communities are well-known, but I have always supported the SCHIP program and will do what is necessary to preserve it for the sake of children and families in need. As Chairman of the Agriculture Subcommittee that oversees tobacco, I will also continue to do all that I can to support our farmers and our region's economy. That commitment has not changed with this vote for our children."
This flip-flop comes in the wake of national pressure, local pressure from Wilmington, NC MoveOn members, and bad publicity in the Wilmington, NC StarNews newspaper.
The Bush Dogs are feeling the pressure, as Jane says, two down and three to go...keep up those calls and letters.
UPDATE: Please donate here so we can keep the pressure up with our Blue America ad campaign.
First!!
The hounds of change are barking - and they will not be ignored!
I'm glad he's changed his mind but I don't think it helps us to call him a flip flopper when he's actually making the right decision even if it is due to well deserved political pressure. We still have more representatives that we have to work on. Calling one who came to our side on the issue a flip flopper doesn't send a good message to the last few holdouts IMO.
Wow, that's quite the "kids first" statement. The cynic in me wants to say he probably choked on the words, but I want to applaud and reward pols who find this vote particularly difficult and finally do the right thing.
I hope all these "yes" on Schip folks show up to cast that vote.
"…keep up those calls and letters."
Indeed, it's high time W started eating some dog food!
Flip-flop is a derogatory term. Maybe when people come around to our way of thinking, we should thank them instead of throwing more mud at them. He's being rewarded for his change of heart by having his name forever associated with "flip-flop" on every internet search engine.
Instead of "we beat you, you caved," maybe we could try, "welcome to our side, let's talk to your colleagues about their votes; let's talk about these other issues."
Um, yeah, what nonbeliever said. I need to learn to type faster. :-)
Glad to see another brick in the wall fall. Although I'm a single, white male addicted smoker in the lower income bracket who will be shelling out an extra $365 a year for this, it's the right thing to do. I'm willing to give up my next doctor visit if it will help the kids. Any of you rich folks willing to chip in too?
He has that typical southern conservative closeted homosexual look doesn't he.
Jane says two down, three to go ...
They need more votes than that to overturn a Bush veto, no?
The part that drives me wild is that all the experts I've heard say that the program was completely insufficient, a crappy program to begin with, and this is the issue everyone picks to finally pull out all the stops and WORK for it. Just think how much better EVERYTHING would be if we were working this hard on, say, impeachment....
jgr4 @ 7:
LOL, if you only knew how slow I actually type. Your post was well said. :-)
I just checked out Firedoglake and the diary on Kos and they're both calling McIntyre a flip flopper. Not the way to reward good behavior.
Snowball @ 8:
I'll do my part but maybe you're barking up the wrong tree? The crooks and liars are the ones with dollars to spare (i.e. are "rich")
Yeah, I know C&L poster aren't the elite. It was merely rhetorical, not directed at anyone here specifically.
I feel pretty elite. Not rich. Just elite.
Just maybe, when someone makes a sane decision and changes their bullheaded mind we could call it something other than "filp-flopping" and maybe with a little positive feed back we could train the bullheaded to be a little bit more flexible in their thinking and maybe they might do it a little more willingly in the future.
Or, maybe not, flip flop or not, well done citizens and you too Congressman.
but its a good flip-flop.
We must also thanks to the assholes like Malkin and Rush Limpballs for the generous backfiring.
I'll settle for special.
Snowball @ 18:
Like short bus special?
C'mon people - this is a no-brainer.
*
No, no, no that's just not PC. I mean in a cute and cuddly sort of way.
OK just kidding.
Looks like the internet pressure worked.
No longer are their constituents silent or put off by direct response. The internet has helped like-minded people to change the tide. It's the people's way. It's not just our community, it's our world.
It use to be in the US, right/wrong, truth/lie, sane/insane, honest/cheats etc.
Not chimpy's bullshit and that's the end of it.
nonbeliever @ 3:
Flip-flopping can be a good thing. Case in point.
22
curtilingus Says:
OK just kidding.
Me too. ;D
can we get a new thread going this horse is kinda beaten itself to death.
I'm in his district, and I emailed him politely after reading about his no vote on C & L. Hooray! How many more votes does the SCHIP need to override?
uhm, it's a good thing that he changed his vote, right?
we want that, right?
so, uhm, why use the republican's favorite catch phrase to attack him for it?
Although I am kind of serious about having to give up that next doctor visit. I do think that I have been targeted because I belong to a group that is currently fashionable to treat as social pariahs in an increasingly puritanical society. And anybody who thinks its easy to quit, you can't speak for how it affects someone else. Everybody reacts differently. I've quit 8 or 9 times but I'm allergic to patches, high strung and have bouts of severe depression. All it takes is a stressful situation (which is more often than not) and I'm back on it. I think there are a lot of people like me. I don't smoke around children or in public buildings or throw my butts in the street. That said, I support SCHIP and will take one on the chin for the kids. All I want is a little recognition of that fact.
99 @ 11:
Healthaid should be extended for everyone. It seems things speed up when one mentions children. Where's the money coming from to fund chimpy's war?
I agree to call him a flip-flopper attaches a less than subtle negative connotation. He deserves any negative comments regarding his first vote. But I despise the culture that attacks those who change their minds for the better. Lets not turn into Fox & Friends. Oh wait ... too late ... I shouldn't forget the last post about Hillary on this site.
jgr4 @ 6:
Maybe if he'd behaved as progressive Democrat instead of a lickspittle of a Bush Dog he'd not be taking all that flack. Maybe if politicians got their heads out we citizens would not have to go ape-shit on them to do the right, the progressive thing in the first place. This was an easy issue to flip folks on, whoops bad word, let's see what he does on FISA and withdrawal before we get too sympathetic.
tHeGaMeOfLiFe @ 30:
Simple, from the universal not-for-profit healthcare you are not getting. And I totally agree with the quoted commenter. This is a bullshit issue that flipped Bush Dogs, Bitches and Rethugs are going to campaign on. I mean really...
4m kids get some help....
What about the 47 m other Americans who get...
Nada.
They know that if had not have been for the ground swell effort from groups like Moveon that raised money for their election bid they wouldn't be there. And since these same organizations are now threatening to campaign against them when they come up for re-election in 2008, they know they might not get re-elected. And they will be shown up for the republicans pretending to be democrats that they are.
Basically, what I'm saying is that I'll pitch in my $365 a year for the kids and I can barely afford it, fine. If everyone else were willing to do the same, we could all get good health care. SCHIP is as good of a start as we're going to get, but it would be nice to see Democrats get really bold about health care for everyone and stop kowtowing to the insurance industry and Big Pharma.
Just make sure you folks are donating to Moveon.org so we can continue to pressure these guys into following their constituents wishes rather than what the corporate world wants. Lot easier to give money now for democracy than blood later.
i want to add my ditto to the ones pointing out how mean it is to call the guy a flip flopper.
we don't fix the problem by becoming it.
Ruthless People @ 9:
----------------
i thought so too. i couldn't help it, the moment i saw his pic my gaydar beeped.
Leave 'flip-flop' for the wingnuts. This Bush watercarrier is only worried about self preservation, he felt the winds change direction and he smartly followed suit.
Lieberman Democrats.
Blue America's doing amazing things. I hope everyone can donate
I love SCHIP, and appreciate greatly what it does. But it stops there.
I supported a veto of THIS writing of the bill.
ONLY because I don't think you can fund it properly on tobacco alone.
The same sin tax needs to be applied to soft drink vendors, trans fat snack pushers
and sugar loaded cereal makers.
Spread the tax load around, and you'll get much broader support.
So McIntyre "flipped." Big deal. The Republicans say they have enough votes to sustain the veto, so what's he risking?
“As a long-time advocate for children for over 25 years, and as one who has consistently supported family health issues, I will not support President Bush’s veto of the SCHIP bill, and I will vote to override his veto. "
Meaningless drivel. So dedicated to children and families that he voted against them. This piece of excrement is saying this now so that he can appear to be compassionate. He knows his feet will never be held to the fire. This is a well calculated but very transparent bluff. I'm quite sure he will fold if he is ever called on it.
Those of you praising this monster, this two faced turd, should be spending your time and money on getting rid of him and reapers of death like him.
I agree with Dan @ 41. Taxing smokers is possibly the most regressive tax there is. Why can't rich people pay same taxes too? Also, I realize children are cute and cuddly (and priceless if they're your own), but what about the forty million uninsured people that SCHIP doesn't help at all. This is feel-good, band-aid legislation that doesn't even attempt to address the major need - universal, single-payer health care.
fiver @ 44:
So taxing smokes, an unnecessary health hazard, is more regressive than taxing food, toilet paper and tampons? Gasoline? Telecommunications access?
I don't think so. It's not really regressive at all. Booze is taxed, people who want pot legalised always point out the tax benefit as well.
What makes a tax regressive is when it is levied at the same rate to everyone, for necessities, regardless of income level.
Regressive taxes reduce the tax incidence of people with higher incomes, as they shift the incidence disproportionately to those with smaller incomes.
Smokes are a luxury. Tobacco tax is a luxury tax.
this is great news.
-wilmington, nc native
Was it come to his senses or did he check the local polls on his re election prospects?
Which ever, its good to see him make the right vote for what ever reason.
miss_kitty @ 45: ,
I have to disagree. What makes a tax regressive is when the burden falls disproportionately on the poor - which is exactly the result of cigarette taxation today. Cigarette addiction is directly attributable to government policies - from including cigarettes in ration packs during WWI, to decades of subsidies, to Surgeons General who've misstated known risks, to legal restrictions and misinformation imposed on individuals suing tobacco companies, and on and on.
Tobacco is possibly the most difficult addiction to quit with success rates less than half that of heroin addiction. The poor are far less likely to be able to quit due, in part, to less access to health programs provided by health insurance.
Also, as far as the "tax the smokers 'cause it's unhealthy and costs us all more money" argument, the numbers simply don't add up. Smokers live the productive part of their lives paying into the system (health insurance, social security, pensions, etc.) and then, on average, die younger before they have collected the benefits most non-smokers will collect. Their deaths from smoking related illnesses tend to be relatively quick and inexpensive in comparison with the long term expense from treating, for example, the obese (diabetes, heart disease, etc.).
But most of all, what does insuring children have to do with taxing smokers? Other that a generic "Smokers are bad and we should be free to pick on them" argument, how does it relate at all? This is a coward's way out. The Democrats get to pretend they're doing something (and their pretensions appear to be all they have had since gaining power) without addressing the problem - single-payer universal health coverage. My doG! SCHIP helps insurance companies make even more $$$.
It can be very self satisfying for some (and, Most Wise and Assuredly Beautiful Feline :) , I know that it is not you) to blame the blue collar stiff for not quitting smoking, but the fact of the matter is, when you've gotta make rent, the credit card bills, the car repairs, clothes for the kids' new school year, $3.50/gallon gas, and an endless list you can never keep up with - somebody telling you you've got to shoulder more to just have a f&(%!^& cigarette is a little out of hand.
Smokers didn't create uninsured kids, why should they have to bail them out? Why can't the rich pay taxes too?
His seat needs to be challenged. If he has to be baby sat in order to assure that he acts and votes as a Democrat, he is unworthy of the trust. Same for all the bluedog traitors.
I'll believe it when he votes to override the veto and not one minute before.
One of Bush's arguments that this plan would take children off private insurance and place them on the CHIP program isn't logical. Who in their right mind would take their children off a private health insurance policy to get them on a government program? The only reason for doing so if if they can't continue to afford the private health insurance. But most employer-provided health insurance policies are pretty good deal, especially for families. I'd like to see one example of someone who has affordable health insurance through their employer that would prefer to put their children on a government funded insurance plan.
Snowball @ 29:
And the tobacco companies are adding more nicotine to the cigarettes to keep you addicted.
DOES ANYBODY HAVE ANY INFORMATION TO COUNTER WHAT REP. MANZULLO (r-il) SAYS IN THE FOLLOWING RELEASE:
Manzullo Opposes Outrageous Bill that Cuts Health Care Benefits for Seniors
Washington, Aug 1 -
Congressman Don Manzullo (R-Egan) will vote later today against a Democrat leadership bill that increases taxes on Americans and cuts senior Medicare programs to provide government-run health care to the children of upper middle-income families, many of whom already carry health insurance.
The so-called Children’s Health and Medicare Protection Act, which the House will consider early this evening, would create a new tax on all health care premiums in America, increase the tobacco tax, and cut $193 billion in Medicare benefits to seniors over the next 10 years. The revenue would be used to dramatically expand the government to provide taxpayer-funded government health care to the children of families earning more than $80,000. Nearly 90 percent of families in that income bracket already carry private health insurance. In addition, the State of Illinois already provides government health benefits to uninsured children through its All Kids program.
The bill would virtually eliminate the Medicare Advantage plan that provides benefits to 13,756 seniors in the Northern Illinois congressional district Manzullo represents. The bill would also cut:
· Payments to hospitals for inpatient care ($2.7 billion cut).
· Payments for inpatient rehabilitation services ($6.6 billion cut).
· Payments for skilled nursing facilities ($6.5 billion cut).
· Payments for certain drugs ($1.9 billion cut).
· Payments for home health care services ($7.2 billion cut).
· Benefits for those with End Stage Renal Disease ($3.6 billion cut).
The bill would also reduce the amount of time government rents oxygen for seniors from 36 to 13 months, and it would require seniors to wait a month before they could get a needed motorized wheelchair.
“I am not surprised by the Democrats’ attempts to provide a low-quality, government-run health care system for Americans. But I am shocked by the cruelty they heap upon our seniors to accomplish this goal,” Manzullo said. “This bill would eliminate Medicare plans for more than 13,000 northern Illinois seniors and drastically cut benefits for those needing hospital care, rehabilitation services, and oxygen tanks to get through the day. We should do everything we can to help our most vulnerable seniors, not hurt them like this bill does.”
I live in this SOB's district. He is a disgrace to the Democratic Party. The problem is: he gets 73% of the vote every time he runs, so no one will challenge him in a primary. Matt Stoller has also "outed" him on OpenLeft. I know of a State Senator who would make a wonderful replacement for McIntyre, but don't have the wherewithal to get that ball rolling.
fiver @ 48:
Hey we have to bail out uninsured smokers who become ill due to the habit. And the non smokers they sicken. As someone who stopped smoking years ago, I still wake up with the craving, so I am not unfamiliar with siren's sweet sweet song of tobacco. Since I did stop I haven't even had a drag off of a cigarette.
Still cigarettes are NOT a necessity. No one, no matter how addicted, NEEDS a tobacco product to sustain life, although I can testify, it can feel that way.
The necessities are water, food, housing and clothing, heat in the winter and cooling in the summer in extreme climates. Not cigs.
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