Editorial March 17th 2010 from Editorial Director Betsy Cooke.

    Regardless of our differing positions on health care and taxpayer funding for abortions, we can all admire Congressman Stupak’s insistence that, before a vote occurs, Members have 72 hours to study actual legislative language and the Congressional Budget Office assessment of its financial impact and that the bill make clear whether it is overturning the existing ban on abortion funding.

    It is refreshing to see him remain steadfast on these points despite unrelenting pressure from others in the Democrat leadership of the House. Many other Members of the House and Senate have abandoned their principles for a stunning array of corrupt legislative and other bribes. One Member only agreed to vote for the bill after the President nominated a relative to a life-time position on theU. S. Court of Appeals.

    In an extensive television interview Monday night, Congressman Stupak acknowledged that his position on abortion funding is unpopular among fellow Democrats. His position on the other two points is equally unpopular with Speaker Pelosi who has argued that Members should vote for health care so they can find out what is in the bill. He cogently explained some of the legislative shenanigans being orchestrated by the Speaker. He directly challenged her insistence that the unprecedented maneuvering is simply business as usual. Congressman Stupak candidly explained that actual legislative language does not yet exist because the Speaker is still cutting deals for votes and does not want to reveal any of the language until the last deal has been done.

    If the Speaker cannot get Members to vote for the bill on the merits, she wants them to vote for a procedure that “deems “ the bill passed. She apparently believes that House Members unwilling to vote for the bill on its merits, can get by with voting to “deem” the bill passed and come back to their constituents and argue that they did not vote for this hugely unpopular bill. Good luck with that!! Unlike theSpeaker, we continue to believe voters are not dim witted.

    A year ago, we and others urged that Members of Congress at least attempt to understand legislation before voting on it. We commend Congressman Stupak for his firm commitment to not voting in favor of the health care bill unless he has the promised 72 hours to study actual legislative language and the CBO report. This hardly seems unreasonable since the purported benefits of the bill do not kickin for four to six years. The only immediately effective provisions are the hundreds of billions of dollars in new taxes. Presumably, those can be delayed for 72 hours without bankrupting the country.

    We invite your comments on this and all of our editorials. Our web site, www.kxcountry.net  includes the text of this editorial and an e-mail link for comments. Or you may call us at (906) 786 - 6144 and ask for the editorial response line.