Saying "No" to Your Right
to Know
By Newt Gingrich and Nancy Desmond "I'm
going to have all the negotiations around a big table. We'll have the negotiations televised on C-SPAN, so that people
can see who is making arguments on behalf of their constituents and who are making arguments on behalf of the drug companies
or the insurance companies."
— Barack Obama, August, 2008
As we write, a small group of White House officials and three senators are huddled in Senate Majority Leader Harry
Reid's (D-Nev.) office deciding what kind of health care you and your family will be allowed to have.
Major
policy decisions, such as whether or not there will be a government run "public" option, are being made. Backroom
deals are being cut – all in secret. No C-SPAN cameras allowed.
If you think you should have a voice in
this process, there is a place to make your voice heard. Just visit
healthtransformation.net.
What Did Liberals Learn From the Townhalls?
Shut Out the Troublemakers
It's not like Americans have
been apathetic about the future of our health care. Since this process began, we've demanded to know what is happening.
Last summer, Americans filled townhall meetings, many armed with copies of the 1000+ page bill that had been filed
in the House – a bill that most lawmakers had never read.
And the more we learned, the less we supported
the Pelosi Plan.
But what did Speaker Pelosi and the other supporters of liberal health care reform learn? How
did they decide to use this input from the American people?
After August, Liberals Were More Determined Than
Ever to
Ram Through a Bill
Some began cancelling town hall meetings. Others actually carded people in the audience to make sure
they lived in their district. Still others began verbally chastising the citizens who asked questions.
Upon their
return to Washington, it was clear that they had discounted what they heard at the town hall meetings. It was as if their
meetings with the American people had never happened.
They were more determined than ever to ram through legislation.
Democrats
Blocked an Attempt to Require That
Bills Be Posted Online
In the Senate, the Finance Committee decided to pass
a vague proposal – containing no legislative details or cost analysis – and allow no opportunity for the American
people or their elected representatives to know what was being considered until after it was done.
During the
process, Sen. Jim Bunning (R-Ky.) introduced an amendment to require that all bills be publicly available for 72 hours with
legislative text and an official budget analysis from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) prior to being considered.
The Democrats blocked the amendment, never allowing it to get fair and full consideration by the Senate, even though
eight Senate Democrats supported the requirement. Senators Bayh (Ind.), Lincoln (Ark.), Pryor (Ark.), McCaskill (Mo.), Landrieu
(La.), Nelson (Neb.), Lieberman (Conn.) and Webb (Va.), should be commended for later contacting the leadership urging them
to support the change.
"When
We Come Back In September, I Will be Available to
Answer Any Question That Members of Congress Have"
It
appears clear that the decision has been made to ignore the promise President Obama made to worried Americans in the summer
of 2008 and again last July when he declared:
"So I just want everybody to know, Congress will have time
to read the bill. They will have time to debate the bill. They will have all of August to review the various legislative proposals.
When we come back in September, I will be available to answer any question that members of Congress have. If they want to
come over to the White House and go over line by line what's going on, I will be happy to do that."
It
is unfortunate that the Democratic leadership has decided it would be easier to rush their legislation through rather than
honoring the people's right to know.
Then again, maybe that choice is all Americans need to know when judging
the Democrats' healthcare bill.
President Obama has failed to deliver on his repeated promises of transparency and openness.
But that doesn't mean that we have to silently accept a government health care bill that was negotiated in secret
and paid for with deals cut with special interests using our tax dollars.
Please sign the Center for Health Transformation's
(CHT) petition at
click here, to tell Washington that We The People demand that all bills be publicly available, including legislative language and accurate
budget analysis, at least 72 hours prior to any vote by Congress or committees in Congress.
There's still
time to make your voice heard.
