Stupak Picks Politics Over Principle, Loses Both
When Rep. Bart Stupak announced that he’d be voting for Obamacare because President Obama was signing an executive order banning the spending of federal tax dollars on abortion, he essentially said that he was accepting political cover in exchange for his alleged principles.
Based on the fact that an executive order can’t negate established U.S. law, Rep. Stupak sold his vote and his alleged principles for political cover. Because he abandoned his principles, Rep. Stupak now needs to learn that there’s a political price to pay for abandoning those principles.
I can’t argue that all Republicans are principled conservatives. What I’m confident of is that there aren’t any principled Democrats left. We should remind Michigan Republicans that they need to pick a conservative so he/she can defeat Rep. Stupak and repeal Obamacare ASAP. If that isn’t the goal, then that candidate shouldn’t be picked. PERIOD.
This winter, Republicans found out that the difference between Ben Nelson or Evan Bayh and Bernie Sanders is that Evan Bayh and Ben Nelson won’t show their true (liberal) colors unless their votes are needed. Rep. Stupak’s caving on abortion, like Bayh’s and Nelson’s caving on Obamacare, won’t be forgotten this November. It’s more likely that Stupak’s, Bayh’s and Nelson’s votes will become rallying cries for TEA Party activists nationwide this summer.
Rep. Stupak’s decision essentially means that, economically speaking, he’s an idiot. I won’t pretend to be diplomatic about this. Contrary to their public talking points, the reality is that the Democrats’ health care legislation will explode the deficit. That, in turn, will cause more borrowing for debt service, leaving less money for expanding private businesses.
Last week, during a blogger conference call I participated in, Rep. Parker Griffith said that it’s easy to create a “U.S. health care card” but that doesn’t guarantee patients getting treated. Griffith said that there’s a doctor shortage looming if Obamacare passed.
Phyllis Schlafly has it right:
“Any formerly pro-life Democrat who casts a ‘Yes’ vote for this Senate health care bill tonight will be forever remembered as being among the deciding votes which facilitated the largest expansion of abortion services since Roe v. Wade.”
“Mr. Stupak and his Democrat followers have now clarified that you cannot be pro-life and be a Democrat. If abortion was truly their biggest issue, they wouldn’t willfully align themselves with the Party of Death.”
“This vote will expose the myth of the ‘pro-life Democrat.’ With this single vote, the Democratic Party will divide our nation into the Party of Death and the Party of Life, and future elections will never be the same.”
You can’t be pro-life if you vote for a bill that funds taxpayer funding of abortions, which this bill does. When the Senate first passed its bill, Stupak said that the “Nelson language” wasn’t sufficient. He was right then. Unfortunately, he lost his way and settled for less than the Nelson language.
This vote clarifies things for voters. This vote exposes the Democrats’ PR myths. They can’t say anymore that they’re moderate or pro-life. When push comes to shove, they cave because they’re spineless.
That, BTW, is what voters are looking for most this year.
Technorati Tags: Moderates, Bart Stupak, Ben Nelson, Evan Bayh, Corruption, Speaker Pelosi, President Obama, Democrats, Economy, Health Care, Parker Griffith, Doctor Shortage, Republicans, Pro-Life, Phyllis Schlafly, Election 2010
Cross-posted at LetFreedomRingBlog