I know that some think it is wrong to call out our own Senators over health care. The argument is that it makes them mad and thus they are less likely to support health care reform. Well, if they are so petty as to decide against health care reform because a few constituents who are progressive bloggers call them out publicly, they do not deserve their office. I am angered by the level of vitriol and blame directed at the President when the problem is not President Obama it is the Democrats in Congress who cannot get their act together. Some of them, as you will see below the fold, have even joined the blame game. So here is my letter to the two Senators from Virginia. I voted for both of them, I worked for them and gave them money. I have as much a right to tell them off publicly as others have to tell President Obama off publicly. Congress is the branch of government with the constitutional authority to make laws. Somehow, the fact that they can’t get together to do what we elected them to do is now President Obama’s fault. I disagree. I don’t see many Democratic Senators coming out to frame the message or support a realistic health care reform agenda. It is high time they did so.
Dear Senators Webb and Warner,
I’m confused. I thought you said would work for me when you got to the Senate. I believed you when you said you would work with our new President. I believed you when you said that you were concerned with my needs and not the interest of the big business lobbyists. I made calls for your campaign. I debated my friends and acquaintances, I canvassed, I gave you money that I could have used for other needs. Was I deluded or what?
Our President asked the House and the Senate to come up with a health care reform plan that would cover all Americans and provide affordable health care. Was that too much to ask? You told me you had the backbone and the expertise to make good decisions.
Recently, Senator Webb, you sent me an e-mail from which I quote:
I have stated on several occasions my concerns that the Obama administration should have begun the process with a clear proposal that could have been the starting point for the work of the five separate congressional committees charged with responsibility for this issue. Without such a specific format, Congress has had difficulty crafting a bill of such challenging scope and complexity. I am hopeful that the President will remedy this problem in the coming weeks.
What, are you kidding? Did you forget, that it is the responsibility of the Congress and not the President to draft and pass legislation? Both of you told me you were leaders who could make a difference. What happened? Did all the perks form the industry lobbyists dilute your leadership capabilities? Are you admitting that you and the other congressional Democrats are incapable of doing what we sent you to Washington to do? What is it about hope and change that you did not understand? Does the fact that an overwhelming majority of Americans want a government insurance plan to compete with the unscrupulous and greedy insurance industry not impress you? Or are you cowed by right wing talk show hosts like Glen Beck, Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity? Do you fear a bunch of loudmouth racist haters, who are so willfully ignorant that they believe in death panels and do the bidding of the multi-millionaire lobbyists and insurance industry honchos for free? Do you think that they would have voted for you anyway? Or perhaps there was some truth to the rumors, Senator Warner, that those yard signs and bumper stickers that said Warner and McCain really were condoned by your campaign?
Do you not realize that you are playing to the Republican playbook? It is up to you, not President Obama, to come up with a comprehensive health care plan that provides Americans a choice of using a private health care provider of enrolling in a government plan. And I for one, don’t appreciate your criticism of the President.
Perhaps neither one of you have ever had to fear that you or members of your family would not be able to obtain life-saving care because you did not have health insurance or because an insurance company tried to run you off by charging so much for coverage that it was unaffordable. Well I have. As a mother, I cannot describe to you the anguish that I endured as we lost our home, delayed medical care for our other children and fed them peanut butter and jelly sandwiches twice a day so that we could keep the coverage necessary to cover life saving heart surgery for our oldest child. And if you think that private insurers are not capable of this, just check the multitude of stories that your constituents like me have sent to you. Perhaps you should read them while you are on vacation rather than shunting the job off to members of your staff. My family’s story is there.
The most relevant part of my story for the current debate is the fact that our small group was sold to a national insurance company who had tens of thousands of people in the pool. Do you know what happened? The $1,800 per month cost of premiums for a family of five in 1989 in our small group, actually increased to $2,000.00 per month in 1990 after our pool was sold to the big national company. Now, you tell me-- what, other than greed would cause that to happen?
And that’s not all--when my husband got a job with a government agency, the premium for the five of us that included coverage for the pre-existing condition went down to $250.00 per month. Why do you think that was? Perhaps it was because the government had the ability to negotiate reasonable rates for employees. Lest you think that the insurance company that managed the program suffered, you should also know that the company is alive and well today—United Healthcare. They are even financing some of the anti-reform hater groups.
So I ask you, what are you doing about this situation?
Senator Warner, I hear that you are on the fence about it. As a matter of fact, the letter I received from your office was pretty much indecipherable. I hear that you don’t think making insurance companies compete with a government plan is a good idea. I thought you believed in free markets—am I wrong? Do you really think that giving insurance companies a mandated monopoly complies with principles of capitalism? Are you confused about that? Do you really think that private business can’t compete with the government? I know that you are really, really concerned with fiscal responsibility so why don’t you consider asking your wealthy friends to pay their fair share of the load and increase their taxes. And the next time that they act like they got to where they are because of their own incentive and creativity, why don’t you remind them of the numerous tax credits, corporate subsidies, and infrastructure without which they could not be successful.
And Senator Webb, really, stop blaming the President. You are a persuasive guy. You fought hard and well for the Veterans Bill of Rights. You can use those skills to pass health care reform. A lot of people respect you. Why not demonstrate your leadership and come out more forcefully in favor of health care reform that permits people to choose between staying with their private insurers or joining a government plan? Why not come to Virginia and use your considerable oratory skills to help your constituents.
You know, I really don’t like calling you out publicly. But the fact is, I feel like you don’t listen to most of us. We are not lobbyists. We don’t have any "connections" on the hill. We weren’t large dollar donors but we did work for you by canvassing, phone banking, and talking you up to our friends. You ran on the Democratic Party platform which included a provision for a public health care plan. You were asked about your support for this on the campaign trail and you didn’t denounce it. So what are you waiting for? Both of you are competent and capable—at least that is what you led us to believe. Stop blaming the President and take some responsibility for your own actions, or lack thereof.