While Rep. Dave Reichert worked hard to appear more moderate in response to a tough challenge from Darcy Burner, he’s been veering hard back to the right ever since, culminating in his vote against the House healthcare bill, and his bizarre attacks on the AARP for endorsing it.
Of course, all the polling shows that substantive healthcare reform, including a robust public option, remains popular in Reichert’s district, even amongst seniors, which makes the three-term Republican a prime target for a new round of DNC sponsored radio ads aimed at vulnerable Republicans nationwide.
[audio:http://s3.amazonaws.com/apache.3cdn.net/e625269003db69779a_b6m6va813.mp3]In last year’s historic election, voters in Washington’s 8th Congressional District supported President Obama and his call for change.
But when it came to fixing our broken health insurance system, Congressman Dave Reichert voted for more of the same.
When the U.S. House passed health insurance reform that would provide Americans quality, affordable care, Congressman Reichert stood with the insurance industry, not the people he was elected to represent.
Congressman Reichert voted against ending discrimination based on pre-existing conditions, against reining in skyrocketing premiums, and against expanding health coverage to more Americans.
Congressman Reichert joined Republicans in Washington and voted against real reform. He stood with the health insurance industry instead of us.
Call Congressman Dave Reichert at (202) 225-3121 and tell him it’s time to stand up for reform, not insurance companies.
Reichert is simply out of step with WA-08 voters on this and many other issues. Perhaps when the reconciled bill comes back to the House floor for one final vote, Reichert might “moderate” his stance one more time if constituents remind him that it could him their vote in 2010?
This is Reichert’s appearance on KCTS Connects, which I mentioned in an earlier thread:
http://www.kcts9.org/video/dav.....are-reform
reichert is useless and needs to go away. otoh, suzan delbene has not voted in numerous elections and this fact will be featured in the reichert media blitz next fall. so who is going to run? it’s now or maybe never.
The irony here, which the nitwits running the Republican party may have clearly in mind, is that Sen. Warren Magnuson from our state was largely responsible for the legislation which created the National Institutes of Health. This turned institutions like the University of Washington into the engines of medical research that for a time did make America’s health care system “the greatest in the world”.
To right-wing idealogues, this is of course a crime that must not go unpunished.
(1) Reichart voted against health-care reform, even though passage was a foregone conclusion. In the past, was exactly the type of legislation which Reichart would try to kill in proceedural or committee votes, then switch to vote in their favor when his vote wouldn’t make any difference. In the past he did this with the permission of the Republican Whip so he could proclaim his “independence” from the party at re-election time (he even admitted as much when he had to explain his votes to wingnuts questioning his loyalty).
Now he’s also going after the AARP, which seems like a suicidal position for a Congressmen who has needed every dollar and every vote he could get to win re-election the past two times.
The fact that he isn’t even trying to position himself as a moderate now means one of three things:
(a) either that he thinks he has a comfortable hold on his seat (which would show him to be utterly foolish and too dumb to keep in Congress); or
(b) that his party masters have decided that keeping Republicans in line with ideological purity is more important than them being re-elected; or
(c) Now that Reichart qualifies for a nice pension and benefits from Congress, in addition to those he took with him from the King County Sheriff’s department, he figures he doesn’t want to face another nail-biting general election battle, and he can now retire and go into the consulting/lobbying business as a spokesman for health insurance companies.
I’m leaning toward Option “C”, because that would explain him being willing to take on the AARP.
Besides, he may have already been told by the national party that as a two-term Congressman, he isn’t going to get any financial support next time around, and he will be expected to rally financial support for other Republican candidates (as two-term Congressmen are expected to do for their parties).
Hey Libtardos
If health care reform is soooooooooooo great and popular, why rush the process? Wait until September 2010, pass it then, and then tell the US Populace how great you pragmatic progressives are. Since you all claim it’s sooooooooooo great and popular you’ll win the 2010 congressional races in a “land slide”.
Dave Reichert will be “toast” per your commentary.
# 5: Why wait to 2010? For starters, because a person who is uninsured and is treated in an emergency room is twice as likely to die as someone who is insured.
Uninsured ER patients twice as likely to die
So I guess if you have health insurance and you really don’t care if people die, it’s not of much concern to you. But for those of us who DO care, every week without health care reform means more people who die.
Secondly, your argument is like the gambler who keeps offering to go again “double or nothing”. Of course, anyone who agrees to that is a fool, because the person who offers it will keep asking for it over and over again, being more insistent each time, until he finally wins, at which point he suddenly doesn’t want to play anymore.
If we agreed to put off health care reform until 2010, then Republicans would be arguing that it needs to be put off until 2012, then 2014, then 2016, etc., etc., etc.
So Puddy – which of the three options in # 4 do you think applies to Reichart?
Reichert looked like a bit of a tool on Inside Olympia this week, too. Completely blew the question on “If auto insurance is mandatory, then why not health insurance?”
Puddy already covered this last week Ryan. You can choose not to drive Ryan. You can choose not to own a car Ryan. Therefor you don’t HAVE to buy car insurance. Can you choose not to breathe and live Ryan?
Man you are one stupid tool!
In your case Ryan, you can choose not to breathe. Please choose that option because you are as dumb as the HA arschloch ylb arschloch. Remember if you don’t drive or own a car you won’t have to buy insurance. Butt if you choose to breathe you will be “forced” to buy insurance per Nancy Pelosi. If you choose not to buy, per Pelosi, in her bill they can send you to jail. Your choice. You still support being sent to jail?
So bottom line Ryan, you can bike all over WA state and not own a car. You don’t have to buy car insurance.
rhp6033,
None of them.
(D) He has courage to stand up to Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm vs. giving in to the anxiety being ginned up by guvmint peeps. Gallup poll is now showing new numbers on health care.
If bullshit had wings, Puddwaxx would a jet powered turd.
…a ‘Conturdo’?
Of course headless can’t attack the facts so it attacks Puddy.