MoveOn Targets Dems Who Voted Against Reform

In the wake of Saturday night's historic health care vote, the main lines of attack have been extremely partisan -- Republicans insist that politically vulnerable Democrats who voted for the bill will subsequently lose their seats and vice versa.

Now, however, Democrats are being targeted from inside their own camp. The progressive advocacy group MoveOn.org released a new set of television ads on Monday hitting several of those lawmakers who bucked the party and voted against the bill. The list includes Reps. Mike Ross (Ark.), Jason Altmire (Penn.), Glenn Nye (Va.), Rick Boucher (Va.), Larry Kissell (N.C.), Heath Schuler (N.C.), and Lee Terry (Neb.)

"A courageous group of Representatives stood tall, and voted to help lower costs and ensure access to affordable health care for millions," the MoveOn spot says of those who voted yes. "Our representative, Mike Ross, stood small... and voted no. Call and tell him how little you think of his vote."

This is, of course, a wholly different tact than that taken by other groups, notably Health Care for American Now -- which has released spots thanking vulnerable Democrats for passing reform. And MoveOn must be calculating that some of these representatives are more responsive to electoral fear than encouragement. As the spotlight of the health care debate moves to the Senate, it's going to be quite interesting to see what kind of pressures those Democrats in the House who voted no on the first go-round will now face.

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Comments

[Jason Keedy]

MoveOn should do exactly that... MoveOn! The bill passed in the House was nothing more than the pale, skeletal remains of what should have been. Kucinich, as usual, was the only member of the "Progressives" that had the balls to stand up against this bill – and to have MoveOn try to shame him is utterly absurd. Kucinich's amendment that would have allowed states to pursue true universal care without fear of lawsuits from the insurance giants got stripped out; the Stupak amendment severely restricts women's rights; we'll hand over almost $400 million in subsidies to insurance companies AND provide them with millions of new customers...
To top this all off, insurance will be mandatory – with an $1100 penalty for those fail to comply...
Read this article for on the Physicians for a National Health Program website, and decide for yourself if this is really such a leap forward:
www.pnhp.org/news/2009/november/statement_by_cnanno.php

[raker]

Are these congresspeople from districts that would otherwise be represented by Republicans? Are the Democrats better off just for having the extra Democrats, numberswise, even if they don't get the votes, progressivewise? Let's not cut off our noses to spite our faces.

[Ameriki]

Mike votes however USA Drugs tells him too. Progressive Arkansans should tboycott USA Drugs until Mike changes his vote. I took my business elsewhere sometime ago.

[sueinmn]

Also the AFL-CIO pledged NOT to endorse these politicans. KEEP YOUR PROMISES!

[Saloontendwsd]

screw Moveon.org -

[Ameriki]

It may be okay with you to be screwed by the GOP but many of us are tired of supporting non-competive cartels.

[Wojo12]

I support MoveOn or any group going after any elected official that is voting against their constituents. What is funny to me is that almost nobody voted for the views of their districts. Polls continue to show support for a strong public option, which is NOT in the bill. So Kucinich and others are actually on the correct side. President Clinton is right in saying that something is better than nothing. Yet the current bill is in the end going to be more of the same. Liberal reform is the obvious solution. So obvious that it will likely never happen. Much like Senator Sanders' Too Big To Fail Bill it simply is too sensible to have a chance. The message of hope from the Obama campaign was great rhetoric but let's be honest, there is really no hope on the horizon from the president or anybody else.

[Solandraguy]

This bill as constructed . total Bull*sh*t. Don't tell me about the Exchanges in two years opened to a few million. What is their (Dems) Plan? To increase their numbers in 2010 or 2012 andTHEN put in a full Robust PO? Or is it to get bs thru and crow they "got it done" and be good going into the 2010 elections.

[pyewackett]

Clinton is dead wrong. They passed a bill like this in Massachusetts and everyone's insurance was jacked up. Now it's a mess. How is something that mandates that all individuals buy health insurance or face a penalty and it doesn't offer a fair affordable option or an opt out better than nothing? Nothing would better than the horrible mess this will make. There are quite a lot of people in this country who work hard and make enough money to be fined but not enough to afford the premium for a health insurance policy. They will face a fine that they also can't afford for not being covered.

If we settle for this, it's all we get. Nothing would be better. It means going back and doing it right which is what they should have done in the first place. I support every member of congress who voted against this bill for the right reasons. It isn't that it's not a good enough bill that it shouldn't be passed. It shouldn't be passed because it is a bad bill.

[Imzadi]

I loved the photo on the Main page!

[Sensiblebg]

I think MoveOn needs to move on.. These congressmen and women represent their constituents.. If their constituents didnt want it, they didnt vote for it.. Get lost moveon

[brt929]

Except that isn't true. Take for instance Mike Ross's district. Support for Health Care Reform is in the 60s %. He voted against his constituents interest. .

So did the representatives from VA and PA

[sarabono]

So Move On is going to run adds against Dennis Kucinich ?

[research]

really, I got all this email wanting me to attack those who didn't vote for this terrible bill, that take the right to abortion away from millions of women, forces everyone to buy corrupt insurance, and has a pathetic public option.

Sign the Petition Establishing Health Care as a Civil Right

http://kucinich.us/

Why He Voted No

http://www.clevelandleader.com/node/11927

[Chad Krossber]

Hillarious. Unlike republicans and conservatives, Progressives will throw the representative they voted for under the bus if they feel that their representative is not following progressive standards. Where was this under the Bush Administration by any conservati­ve/republi­can? Goes to show you who the real cowards are when it comes to politics huh? One side stands up to their politicians. The other side shamefully gets in line. Keep them honest libs, no matter the cost.

[brt929]

Oh really? You mean like what happened in NY district 23? Or what you are doing to Olympia Snowe? Or what you did do to Senator Specter?

I think the pot is calling the kettle black.

Whose Party has threated the Louisiana Representative that voted yes on the bill?

Whose Party, preaches a platform of small government voted lock-step with the Bush administration for 8 years? Under what Republican administration did we see the largest expansion of the Federal Government?

Rethugs don't live in reality, do they?

[RJII]

turncoats

[RightisRight111]

Ha!!! Liberals DO eat their own~

[GwenWare]

Wow, you must have loved seeing Palin, Pawlenty and the rest of the Stepford Wives support a 3rd party against their own Republican candidate in New York last week.

[soisay]

This is not about running a party splitting opposition candidate in an election (or even a primary yet), This is issues politics, motivating constituents to contact their reps and get them to rejoin the Dems; to quit fearing the right and radical right.

[pyewackett]

Has it ever occurred to anyone that these people have a good reason to vote against the bill as written. The bill mandates that all individuals buy health insurance or face a penalty and it doesn't offer a fair affordable option or an opt out. That is obscene. It is shameful. I also believe that it is extortion. How is that in our best interest? It certainly doesn't benefit me or anyone I know who works for living but doesn't have much disposable income or any at all. This benefits the insurance companies and the politicians their lobbyists paid to push it on us.

[GlennInVenice]

I left moveon.org about a year ago when the stopped being about issues and started chasing people.

They stood behind Obama, even as he voted on the FISA bill to give the telecoms immunity.

Now, as both wars rage on, instead of fighting to shut them down they are bagging on those that voted against what is a TERRIBLE health care reform bill.

There is no vigorous public option.

The public option that remains in the bill is not accesible to most Americans.

Addressing a woman's right to choose within the bill was incendiary.

FInally, the bill requires you to buy health care insurance without ensuring that an affordable useful insurance policy will be available to you.

Sure the insurance companies can no longer deny you because of preexisting conditions but they are free to price the policy as they wish and for most Americans, there is no public option to reach for in this case.

IT IS A BAD BILL.

Use your time and money to push for a good bill rather than punitively punishing those who, regardless of their real motives, did the right thing.

[IDIOTA]

MoveOn might be making the wrong move this time. A month or so ago I would have agreed with them. But this is all a charade.

I would not call myself a Progressive, but I find myself to the left of people on this site who support the current health care legislation while also claiming to be progressive; in fact, they are going out of their way to don the progressive mantle while bashing Kucinich.

I think that MoveOn is acting in good faith, but it needs to readjust its focus.

[sarabono]

Kucinich voted against the House Health Care Bill.

[huff-fan]

https://pol.moveon.org/donate/house_ads.html?bg_id=hpc1&id=17884-17242073-xbsTQgx&t=1