I really wish the Democrats would have pushed the frame of healthcare as a cut to the tax everyone pays with coverage for those that get treatment without. People who have healthcare don't necessarily care about people who don't as we've seen throughout this debate. But they definitely care about paying less for the healthcare they have and cutting the uninsured tax which is built into everyone's premiums would be a great start. Rob Andrews alludes to the issue at the end of a recent interview with Salon:
The political issue is not simply the uninsured. It's how the cost of the uninsured affects those with insurance. The 95 percent of voters or whatever it is who have health insurance are paying much higher premiums because they are already paying for the uninsured in their premiums, their taxes. So this is really all about how to reduce the premiums of insured people.
CUTTING THE UNINSURED TAX. I don't understand why we always cede the tax cut frame. The question is what taxes do you cut and for whom. Whether they know or not, those Americans with insurance are already paying for those without it in a hidden tax. The cold hearted are short-sighted.
The ongoing saga of the Delaware River dredging project will continue this week as there will be a press conference tomorrow and further movement later in the week:
With a Delaware River deepening project set to start next week, some of the project's top critics -- including Gov. Chris Christie -- have scheduled a press conference on Gloucester County's waterfront on Monday.
Christie and U.S. Rep. Rob Andrews, D-Haddon Heights, are among officials expected at the 12:15 p.m. event at Red Bank Battlefield in National Park.
The players: President Obama, Vice-President Obama, and members of the House & Senate from both parties, including Rep. Rob Andrews, who chairs the House Education and Labor subcommittee on health.
The Location: Blair House, across the street from the White House, significantly at the President's end of the national Mall.
Interesting analysis of what the President's after today, from Marc Ambinder at The Atlantic.
Donor information for all the speakers is at Sunlight Foundation (info changes depending on who's at the microphone - turn off the sound at their site, if you're listening to our stream here).
Meeting started 10am, but I just grabbed the feed. Click the arrow to go LIVE.
Andrews, chairman of a health subcommittee of the Education and Labor Committee, is not a fan of the excise tax that's included in the Senate version of the bill and in President Obama's plan he outlined yesterday.
Information about the meeting, and the President's proposal, is at WhiteHouse.gov. The discussion might be interesting and I will try to watch it live Thursday 10AM. It will be streamed online.
As a practical matter, here are the possibilities Democrats face that don't involve completely craven surrender, and you should keep them in mind as the pundits and politicians talk:
A. Pass a comprehensive bill through the House (217 votes) and Senate (51 votes, but 60 to beat the filibuster first), whether starting over or by modifying the existing bills after conference committee.
B. The House passes last December's Senate bill with 217 votes. Not one word could be changed.
C. Pass health reforms that are budget-related through reconciliation, meaning 51 Senate votes (no filibuster) plus 217 House votes.
D. The House and Senate pass a series of smaller bills, each with 217 + 60/51 votes and lots of time used up in the Senate.
Option A seems highly unlikely, since 2009 was already wasted looking for Snowe's vote and a Democrat vote was lost, so we're into Options B+C. Pass the Senate bill (B), and "fix" it (excise tax, cough, cough) via reconciliation (C.) Some elements of Option D may also happen, for example, we're supposed to see a House vote on repealing the health insurance industry's anti-trust exemption.
Congressman Rob Andrews appeared On the Record with Greta Van Susteren last night on Fox to talk about what's next in the healthcare debate.
Andrews seemed to take the election result in Massachusetts as a statement on the healthcare bill, but it does seem like there were additional factors at play including the fact they already have healthcare in Massachusetts.
The Congressman said he thought there were going to be changes in the bill. He specifically called out "the Nebraska provision" saying it should go and he can't support a bill that includes it. He also called out the "Louisiana purchase" as something else that should come out of the bill.
He also talked about the poor job that has been done in explaining what is actually in the bill. He says if they do a better job of explaining, they can find that consensus point, but you have to wonder how all of a sudden they will turn things around and better explain the benefits of the bill.
3rd district GOP Assembly candidate Lee Lucas, whose "survival of the fittest" letters to local newspapers made him controversial in Republican circles to begin with, and whose alleged use of a racial slur to a neighbor during a dispute, quoted in a 2006 police report, made him persona-non-grata and forced party leaders to publicly renounce him, said in a phone interview that he plans to run for office again, starting with seeking the party's nomination against U.S. Rep. Andrews in 2010.
"I'm running for congress, running for assembly. I'm running for something every year. I'll never stop," said Lucas, who denied the police report's quote of his racial slur but said that it did not hurt his candidacy.
I'm sure there are Democrats who wish he never stops running either.
President Obama took a trip to Capitol Hill on Saturday afternoon before the healthcare vote to rally hesitant House democrats to support the bill and according to Congressman Andrews, it worked:
Many in the room credited Obama with swaying the last of the fence sitters. "A few members that were leaning no told me afterward that they'd been moved to vote yes," Representative Rob Andrews, a New Jersey Democrat, told reporters after the meeting.
With how close the vote was, they needed every pep talk they could get. If those few that were leaning no remained in opposition, we would have had a completely different story. The President may want to pencil in time to motivate and hold hands when the reconciled bill comes back to the House eventually.
Congressman Andrews, Senator Sweeney and the head of the Postal Workers Union held a press conference late last week to call for more information into the proposed closure of the Swedesboro Priority Mail facility that employs nearly 600 employees. They said that the USPS alleges that the closure is necessary for cost-savings purposes, but that they don't give a specific, detailed breakdown of the findings and that the Postal Service is withholding information from the public:
In a letter sent today to Postmaster General John E. Potter, Congressman Andrews insisted that the United States Postal Service fulfill its duty to provide detailed information justifying their decision to close a Swedesboro Priority Mail facility. Under the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act (PAEA), the Postal Service must disclose any information relating to cost savings that result from closing a logistics facility like the Philadelphia Logistics & Distribution Center (L&DC). Furthermore, Congressman Andrews indicated that the USPS is obligated under its collective bargaining agreement to publically disclose information that directly relates to the "wages, hours or working conditions" of Union employees. Yet, to date, the Postal Service has provided only baseless claims that the closure will save money, failing to provide the required factual basis for their conclusions.
Here's what the Congressman had to say:
"The hundreds of displaced workers deserve a clear and detailed explanation behind the post office's decision to close the plant. Simply asserting that our economic crisis is the reason behind the cutbacks is not enough," said Congressman Andrews. "If the Postal Service has a legitimate reason to close the facility, they should prove it. We are saying prove it and if the USPS is confident in their rationale then what's the harm?"
And Senator Sweeney took his turn:
"The arrogance of the Postal Service to close the facility without even notifying the public at the outset of their plan is just unacceptable," said Senator Sweeney. "The Postal Service is supposed to be accountable to the public, so we challenge them to show us that their math is correct and that this plan will actually save money."
It remains to be seen whether they can get the information they are seeking.
Let me preface this conversation by stating that I supported Senator Frank Lautenberg's re-election campaign during both the primary and general elections last year, but...
1) ...after seeing him speak in public numerous times at a dramatically reduced level of performance than in the past...
...and...
2) ...after last week's gubernatorial election results...
...and...
3) ...assuming that the aspiring Governors that are currently serving in the State Senate and State Assembly are not going to be willing to rescind the power that the Governor currently has to fill vacated U.S. Senate seats, I think that Democratic Party leaders, electeds, and rank-and-file members should reach out en masse to Senator Frank Lautenberg and ask him to resign his seat.
Fox news host Shepard Smith wasn't happy with the fact that there wasn't someone ready to counter the comments of Chris Christie and apologized for the 'Lack of Balance' In their New Jersey Governor's Race Story. Have a look:Maybe he should talk to their host who got offended when Congressman Andrews asked for some fair and balanced reporting the other day.
Congressman Andrews appeared on Fox News to discuss the healthcare bill in Congress. As the conversation devolved, the Congressman gave tthis response:
"Could we have just a minute of fair and balanced just as an exception here?"
Well that line didn't sit well with the host, Gregg Jarrett. Here's the video of the exchange:
I've asked a few times in posts about the impact that the pending Senate President contest between Sweeney and Codey will have on the race. Congressman Rob Andrews was asked the other day at the press conference for the Port of Paulsboro and he had this to say:
Regarding the intra-party Trenton scuff-up between Senate President Richard Codey (D-Roseland) and Andrews's South Jersey colleague, Senate Majority Leader Steve Sweeney and the possibility of that spat spilling with negative consequences into the gubernatorial contest, Andrews said, "That doesn't affect the governor's race at all. There are about 100 people engaged in that fight and they are all capable of walking and chewing gum at the same time."
I hope the Congressman is right, because sometimes it feels like they are having trouble just handling one or the other, not both at the same time.
MSNBC's first read had this exchange with Congressman Andrews trying to get some details about how co-ops would work if they were in place of the public option with healthcare reform:
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, in her opening remarks, vowed that health reform would provide choices and noted, "I believe a public option is the best way to do that."
Others pressed further, trying to take down the proposed alternatives.
Democrat Rob Andrews (D-NJ) prodded Yale professor Jacob Hacker, a proponent of reform, on ways in which co-ops would not be effective.
Hacker said it's difficult to create a large enough provider network with co-ops and declared they have "little chance of success." He said the public option is better because there's a "presumption of participation." In other words, there would likely be more people who participate; it would guarantee a larger pool.
But Baucus, in what appears to be a doomed attempt to achieve bipartisanship, favors a system of regional, consumer-run insurance cooperatives over a public option.
Health care co-ops have been tried, and most have failed. And it's doubtful any could recruit enough members to compete aggressively with the insurance companies in negotiating cost savings with pharmaceutical companies, hospitals and physician groups. Only a single public option would have that clout.
Representative Rob Andrews, D - 1st Dist, of Haddon Heights, will be bringing the heated debate on health care reform to the Gloucester County Times' own round table Citizens Forum on Thursday, Sept. 3, at 12:30 p.m. and South Jersey Online will be broadcasting the event live, as it happens.
In real-time, our readers will be able to communicate online with other residents as the congressman addresses a dozen representatives from the county - real people with varying opinions - about their concerns.
We'll have live video and a chat room up and running during the event, so be sure to join us and check out this exclusive one-on-one between Andrews and the residents of Gloucester County. Readers from anywhere and everywhere are encouraged to join us online for live talk and real-time feedback.
Please note: This is a closed session meeting. The public is welcome and encouraged to join us online and submit their questions for discussion and presentation, but a physical presence at the meeting is impossible in the space available. Members of the community will not be able to participate in person at this event and will be turned away.
If you want to see what the Congressman has to say, you can watch live now and then submit a question, to follow along at 12:30.
One of the best things about spending the last four years following politicians around with a video camera is the tons of file footage I've acquired. It's an especially useful tool for expressing one's self when words are hard to find. Like now.
Location: Rowan University - Wilson Hall, Glassboro, New Jersey 08028
(Wilson Hall is located off of Bowe Blvd. across from Glassboro High School)
I think it will be well attended. Yesterday I was in Mullica Hill -- close to Glassboro -- and some old man was waving a "Stop Obama Care" sign to passing motorists.
Jack Rice conducted an interview with Congressman Andrews where they talked about the healthcare debate going on in Congress. Towards the end however, they also talked about corruption in NJ politics and the Congressman had this take:
Without being too much of a political scientist, here's why NJ is different. First of all there are too many tiny little governments that have alot of power. You might have a town like Hoboken that is a square mile, but there are billions of dollars of investment, zoning permits and things like that. So you have alot of power at these tiny levels of government. Second thing is that there's not alot of political competition in alot of these places. If you win the Democratic nomination, or the Republican nomination, you win. We have a state that is divided county by county, town by town on partisanship. And then the 3rd reason is because we're sandwiched in between the Philadelphia and New York media markets, there's not the same journalistic watch dog presence that exists in other states. In NJ, politics can operate under the radar screen and unfortunately too often it does. And you get embarrassments like this, you get disgraces like this.
Here is the complete interview for you to listen. They talk about the Senate Finance committee and the public option, the Blue Dog Dog Democrats and more:
As members of Congress headed home for break, the House Energy and Commerce Committee passed out their version of the healthcare bill. They wanted to arm members of Congress with the facts, so they put out district by district breakdowns:
The Committee has prepared, for each member, a district-level analysis of the impact of the legislation. This analysis includes information on the impact of the legislation on small businesses, seniors in Medicare, health care providers, and the uninsured. It also includes an estimate of the impacts of the surtax that is used to pay for the legislation.
America's Affordable Health Choices Act would provide significant benefits in the 7th Congressional District of New Jersey: up to 18,200 small businesses could receive tax credits to provide coverage to their employees; 8,100 seniors would avoid the donut hole in Medicare Part D; 800 families could escape bankruptcy each year due to unaffordable health care costs; health care providers would receive payment for $30 million in uncompensated care each year; and 21,000 uninsured individuals would gain access to high-quality, affordable health insurance.
You can see the benefits by district for each member of Congress:
You can see the full bill text and a summary put out by the committee as well. If you support this bill, your member of Congress needs to know about it. If you call, get your member of Congress to take the pledge. Our representatives are being inundated with phone calls and emails opposing healthcare. We need people who support the healthcare overhaul to start putting some action behind the talk, otherwise we'll be counting the time until the next chance to do something about healthcare.
A new obstacle emerged yesterday in the epic battle over whether to dredge the Delaware River shipping channel, deepening it to 45 feet from 40, even as the project seems about to begin.
Delaware environmental officials denied a permit the Army Corps of Engineers was seeking. It had applied for permission in 2001.
With the news that Delaware is planning to fight, Congressman Andrews said it's time for the NJDEP to step up as they try to slow federal funds. Here is the video:
Congressman Andrews joined Nicole Sandler to talk about healthcare on Air America Radio. She got a bit of a shock before the interview, which shaped the discussion that ensued. From her post previewing the interview with the Congressman:
I had him scheduled for an interview, and he called in for the taping at the tail end of a long-drawn out phone call with my daughter's (now former) health insurance company, during which I was informed that her policy had been canceled in December!
As I told you, I got a bit emotional while explaining what happened to him, but decided to leave the interview as it happened because it's real. What happened to us is happening to families all over the country, and it must stop.
We're hearing real, human stories like this... and we need to keep hearing them to put faces to the problems inherent in the sham of a system we have today, in order to effect the change we need!
