Following Months of Dramatic Debate in U.S. House, Healthcare Bill Could Meet Demise in Senate

60 Votes Needed To Advance Groundbreaking Redesign of Healthcare Industry, Leaving Little Room For Error

As U.S. House members assess the political gains and losses associated with their votes on the multi-trillion dollar H.R. 3962 (the ironically named Affordable Healthcare for America Act), the U.S. Senate prepares to debate similar legislation in what Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) promises to be a much quicker battle. Initial voting could take place as early as Tuesday of next week. Activists on both sides, not having the official “Blue Dog” designation to guide them, have been working feverishly to identify the few perceived fence sitters that might be swayed by grassroots pressure. With successes swaying “Blue Dog” Congressmen throughout the south and elsewhere, the attention of Tea Party groups has turned to centrist, southern Democrats like Kay Hagan (D-NC). While Senator Hagan is not up for re-election until 2014, her vote on this piece of legislation will likely be a key factor in her re-election bid. Judging by the votes ultimately taken by North Carolina’s house delegation, including the last minute decision by Rep. Heath Shuler (D-NC) to oppose the bill, it has been made clear that a plurality of the people who will decide Hagan’s political fate do not support the type of reforms currently on the table.

Vince Kreul, a representative of Huntsville Tea Party, feels the tide is turning in favor of conservatives that want to see a more common sense approach to healthcare reform. “While the arm twisting of house leadership and the Whitehouse was enough to get 2 cushion votes on Saturday, the deep rift in the Democrat party was pushed into the spotlight. In the senate, Democrats don’t have 39 irrelevant votes to sacrifice in conservative districts. They must win every member of their party or the bill will never see the light of the senate floor. What this means is they will be asking red state Democrat senators to fall on their swords for an unpopular piece of legislation. While the leadership might be okay with that, those individual senators will be much more difficult to convince. Senators like Kay Hagan will likely be faced with choosing between re-election or voting for this healthcare plan.”

“Middle America has been a sleeping giant for years. The daily use of words like ‘deficit’ and ‘trillion’ have created a stir that doesn’t appear to be slowing down. Elected officials in both parties need to take heed, as an energized grassroots force with no centralized loyalties stands ready to hold them accountable. Heroes and villains will be made on the senate floor with this healthcare debate, and we pray that unlike Saturday’s vote, the heroes will rule the day and stop this unfunded, tax filled, life restricting mandate,” said Kreul.

Obama calls for “informants” to report anyone that is subversive to the healthcare takeover…

In a Whitehouse.gov blog post, the Obama Whitehouse calls for supporters to email information to them about anyone that is saying negative things about the healthcare takeover. This Gestapo like tactic pits citizens against citizens in an effort to shut out the growing opposition to the healthcare takeover. This should raise hairs on the back of any liberty-minded American and generate screams of opposition.

Using tax-dollars and union thugs to stump for a bad piece of legislation is bad, but calling on Americans to report their fellow citizens for opposing said legislation exceeds the bounds of anything most of us could even fathom happening in our “free country.”

Please join with us in rising up against this usurpation of all things American, call your legislators, call the Whitehouse (from a disposable phone), and let Obama know that this is NOT acceptable behavior, now matter how much his legacy might ride on accomplishing the takeover.

Rep. Griffith figures out that he lives in a Republican district, channels conservative ideology in healthcare meeting in the Shoals

Rep. Griffith figures out that he lives in a Republican district, channels conservative ideology in healthcare meeting in the Shoals

FLORENCE–Rep. Parker Griffith (D-AL) visited the Shoals area on Monday to discuss the healthcare reform effort being prodded through congress by the Obama administration. He visited with healthcare professionals that echoed the increasing hesitance of Americans to support a government run public option. Times Daily (Florence)

Huntsville Tea Party Movement organizers on Tuesday commended Griffith for taking the right stand on what has become the most hotly contested policy debate in several decades. “We were nervous about Griffith at the beginning of this debate. I honestly think the people of North Alabama made their voices heard, and Griffith simply couldn’t deny that we don’t want this government takeover,” said Vince Kreul, one of the organizers of the popular Tea Party events.

“This is a perfect example of the importance of calling your congressmen and making your opinion known. They may not change their mind with one call, but with 1,000 or 10,000 calls they are hard pressed to ignore the people. We urge each and every constituent out there to call Griffith, and encourage him to rally his fellow Blue Dogs to unify in opposition to a public option takeover,” Kreul said. Blue Dogs that have come out in opposition to the public option include Bobby Bright (AL-2), Travis Childers (MS-1), and Parker Griffith (AL-5).

Bart Gordon votes to exclude abortion, then changes vote, calling is pro-life vote a “mistake.”

Pro-life group blasts Bart Gordon for vote to
allow tax-funded abortions in health care bill

Tennessee Democrat first voted for ban, then against

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — A statewide family values group Friday blasted Rep. Bart Gordon, D-Tenn., for casting the deciding vote late Thursday to kill an amendment to the U.S. House of Representatives’ health care reform legislation that would have prohibited the use of tax dollars to pay for abortions.

Full text of amendment: http://energycommerce.house.gov/Press_111/20090730/hr3200_pitts_1.pdf

Ron Shank, Savannah, director of the Family Policy Network of Tennessee — http://familypolicy.net/tn — said Gordon “betrayed every Tennessean who believes prenatal children have an inalienable Right to Life, and he added insult to injury by casting the deciding vote to force us to pay for abortions, including horrific late-term abortions that brutally terminate those children’s lives.”

“We hope every pro-life Tennessean will join us in demanding that Congressman Gordon tell us which pro-abortion group or lobbyist threatened him, cut a deal, or promised him a campaign contribution sufficient to change his vote from opposing taxpayer-funded abortions to supporting them,” Shank said. “We hope every Tennessean will join us in urging Gordon to vote against Nancy Pelosi’s trillion-dollar socialized medicine, rationed healthcare, and abortion-funding scheme altogether.”

Shank pointed to official House Energy and Commerce Committee records available online, which indicate that Gordon was one of eight committee Democrats who earlier Thursday evening had joined all 23 committee Republicans in voting in favor of the pro-life amendment when it was initially approved by a vote of 31 to 27. (Roll call: http://energycommerce.house.gov/Press_111/20090730/hr3200_pitts_1_rc.pdf )

Committee records indicate that two hours later, however, Chairman Henry Waxman, D-Ca., used a parliamentary maneuver to bring the pro-life amendment back up for reconsideration. This time, it failed by a vote of 30 to 29, with Gordon flip-flopping to cast the deciding vote against the amendment. (Roll call: http://energycommerce.house.gov/Press_111/20090730/hr3200_pitts_1_rc2.pdf )

The Associated Press reported late Thursday night regarding Gordon’s flip-flop:

“There was late-night drama in Waxman’s committee as an anti-abortion amendment passed when conservative Democrats joined Republicans to support it — then failed less than two hours later when Waxman used a procedural maneuver to bring it up for a second vote. In the intervening time, one conservative Democrat — Rep. Bart Gordon of Tennessee — changed his vote from ‘yes’ to ‘no.’ And a second conservative Democrat who hadn’t voted the first time — Rep. Zack Space of Ohio — voted ‘no.’ It was enough to take the amendment down on a vote of 29 to 30. The measure would have specified that health care legislation moving through Congress may not impose requirements for coverage of abortion, except in limited cases.”
http://www.modbee.com/local/pmupdates/story/799671.html

Important Legislation You Can Help Us Fight

RIGHT NOW, there are two enormous, and enormously dangerous, bills that are moving through our Congress! The Cap & Trade bill (HR 2454) is on its way to the Senate for final passage – a bill that would regulate the temperature of your home, raise your electricity bill ~90%, raise the cost of virtually everything you buy, cause thousands of job losses during our country’s recession, etc. http://blog.heritage.org/2009/06/22/cbo-grossly-underestimates-costs-of-cap-and-trade/ And the House of Representatives is busy deciding which Nationalized Health Insurance bill (primarily the Kennedy bill) to vote on by the end of the summer! – a bill that would end competition and force private insurers out of business, put bureaucrats in charge of deciding your health care coverage, and lead to nationalized health care and its reliable traits of: long waiting periods, inaccessible treatments based on age/health/etc., lack of innovation for disease-curing drugs, and general low quality due to the lack of tax payer money to fund an endeavor that would take over almost 20% of our free market economy. http://blog.heritage.org/2009/06/24/cbos-health-estimates-the-high-cost-of-spending-other-peoples-money

CALL CONGRESS NOW!  202-224-3121.  Contact your Senators and Congressman repeatedly, as often as it takes, and tell them to vote NO to these two bills. We must work as hard as we can to keep them from becoming law! They would both strip Americans of individual liberties like we have never seen before in America – and like we should never, ever see!”

Parker Griffith’s direct number is 202-225-4801

Huntsville Independence Day Tea Party

The Huntsville Independence Day Tea Party started at 7:00pm on Saturday, July 4th, and ended after the fireworks! An estimated crowd of 5,000 attended!! We had 7 speakers including myself, Roger Richardson (ran in primaries for State Senate in District 7), Mary Scott Hunter (ran in primaries for State Senate in District 7), Les Phillip (running for Congress in District 5 in 2010), Rachel Gray (19 year old concerned college student), Sergiy Braylyan (shared his experience of living under socialized medicine in Russia for many years), and Linda Lawrence (with huntsvillecommunityrights.com, which focuses on holding the Huntsville Housing Authority accountable.) Mo Brooks (running for Congress in District 5 in 2010) was our event emcee. We also had a band play at the beginning, and had food vendors.

We’ve also had 2 special elections in North Alabama, and have elected two men who agree with our Tea Party goals (individual liberties, limited government, fiscal responsibility, and the free market system) and recognize that the Constitution is the law of the land: Paul Sanford (State Senate District 7) and Phil Williams (State House District 6!)

Now, We the People must stay politically active on all levels and continue work to restore our country to the Republic it was created to be.  We have a lot of work ahead of us, but we know what is at stake and we know our families and futures are worth it! We must make sure our elected officials hear from us often, and must hold them accountable with our vote. We must be sure to vote out the deficit spenders and  advocates of big government and socialism, and replace them with people that will adhere to the Constitution.

Health Care Tea Party Friday, July 17th

“This Friday, July 17th, is the “Nationwide Health Care Freedom Protest” where we will be meeting at congressional offices around the country to protest and keep the Nationalized Health Insurance bill and Cap & Trade bills from passing.  Right before this email, I sent out one that goes into detail about the health care bill and how we can fight it.  It includes lists of who to call in which committee as this bill moves forth – and it is moving forth towards passage now.  Please be sure to read that important email!

It’s time to act!!  If you stand for individual liberty and limited government, if the Tea Parties are truly more than just talk for you, meet us this Friday, July 17th, from 12:00pm – 1:00pm at the location of the Tax Day Tea Party (the vacant lot across the street from the Post Office on Clinton Ave.)  Bring SIGNS and LETTERS to Parker Griffith.  He voted against Cap & Trade when it passed the House and says he is against the Kennedy bill “as it is”, but has also said he believes health care is a right and that he is for comprehensive government reform of our health care industry.  Bring letters from your family, friends, and co-workers who can’t make it!  If you are unable stay for the full hour, simply drive into the parking lot, hand your letters to Jan Nolin (will have a name tag and be visible), and be on your way!  If you cannot attend, please phone/fax/email Parker Griffith.  We will be delivering the letters to Parker Griffith at 1:00pm – his local office is only a few blocks from this site.  We want LARGE numbers at this event, like always, but the Huntsville Police Department has required that, for safety reasons, only 70 walk together to Griffith’s office to deliver them.  Please come and stand with us from 12:00pm – 1:00pm!

Remember to park on Lot K (the back entrance will be open.)  Please remember to contact Senators Sessions and Shelby via phone/fax/email about these issues, as well.  All of our federal elected officials need to know what we want.

It’s time to keep the pressure on!! We will not go away, we are here to stay and restore our country to the great Republic it was intended to be.”

Instant Tea Party, 12 pm July 17, Clinton Ave post office

There will be an “instant tea party” on July 17 across from the post office in downtown Huntsville. Bring letters to Parker Griffith, and signs protesting Obama-care. 70 of us (most allowed by the police), will be walking over to Parker Griffith’s office to hand deliver the letters. Please join us for part or all of this event as we try to stop Nancy Pelosi for the first time in this congressional session!

This bill is 1/5 of our GDP and will completely devastate the US economy and the quality of our health care system. Now is the time to say ENOUGH!!!

Mini-Tea Party

Hi, Guys,

Let’s concentrate our efforts next Thursday on May 21st by visiting the office of our elected official, Parker Griffith, in person to let him know what we as his constituents want face to face.  There are many hot issues that are on the table now, including Nationalized Health Care, Amnesty, Cap & Trade, the Hate Crimes bill, and FCC actions that would result in silencing talk radio and freedom of speech.  Let’s tell him how we want him to vote for us!  Parker Griffith’s offices are:

Washington, DC Office
417 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
Phone: (202) 225-4801
Fax: (202) 225-4392

Huntsville District Office
2101 Clinton Ave. W.     Suite 302
Huntsvile, AL  35805
Phone: (256) 551-0190
Fax: (256) 551-0194

Decatur District Office
302 Lee St. P.O. Box 668
Decatur, AL  35602
Phone: 256-355-9400
Fax: 256-355-9406

Shoals District Office
1011 George Wallace Blvd
Tuscumbia, AL  35674
Phone: 256-381-3450
Fax: 256-381-7659

Please visit the one that will be closest to you on Thursday!  Even though he will not be at the offices, our presence will be powerful.  If you are unable to physically go to an office, please call and fax.  If you are on this email list and your elected official is not Parker Griffith, please go to that person’s office.  I am working on contacting other Tea Party organizers in Alabama to see if we can all do this together.

And don’t forget, these concerted efforts are important, but we need to be calling our elected officials and putting pressure on them every day about these issues for as long as it takes!

Find out who your elected officials are here: http://www.votesmart.org/

Have a great day,

Christie Carden

The Huntsville Tea Party Movement, Inc. (non profit organization) – Founder

Huntsville Independence Day Tea Party – Event Coordinator

www.huntsvilleteaparty.com

Nationalized Healthcare

Hi, Guys!
Hope you’re all well.  I just wanted to bring your attention to an issue that we all need to act on..
Nationalized health care is on its way, folks.  Obama campaigned on it, provisions for it made their way into his budget, and now today President Obama and House Democratic leaders have pledged to pass a bill by July 31st.
We have got to work hard to stop this bill, and start now.  Obviously, nationalized health care goes against everything the Tea Party Movement stands for: it is fiscally irresponsible, it will grow the government tremendously beyond its intended role and take away more states’ rights, it will take away the individual’s liberty to choose their own health care, and it will completely destroy the industry’s free market system which will in turn affect other aspects of the free market in our economy.
We can look around the world and history to see that nationalized health care does not work, but leads to a lack of quality and available options in health care as well as bankruptcy (something especially unwanted in a time when our country is already trillions of dollars in debt.)  As Americans we need to make our voices known loud and clear..  Please contact your representatives, put the pressure on (for them to not only vote against it but speak up and oppose it), and keep the pressure on for as long as it takes.  Amnesty was stopped a few years ago by Americans speaking up.  Let’s do it with nationalized health care.
There are a few Democrats that have voiced oppostition to nationalized health care, at least nationalized health care at this time.  Chuck Schumer (NY) has said, “Healthcare I feel strongly about, but I am not sure that we’re ready for a major national healthcare plan.”  And Kendrick Meek (FL) has said, “The money is not necessarily there right now to enact the plans.”  Please put pressure on these representatives to oppose nationalized health care.  If you know of any others who are wishy-washy, please let me know so we can put pressure on them, too.  I’m sure there are more.
Thank you and keep up the good work!  If you have anything similar you wish to share, ideas or news, please post them on our Tea Party Forums at www.huntsvilleteaparty.com.  Let’s get working together and keep working together.
Also, a quick note about the Tea Party: we are currently working on setting up our tax status so we will be able to take donations to cover the cost of things such as the website, location permit, event liability insurance, marketing, etc.  Will keep you updated!  Visit the Contact Us tab on our website to volunteer.
Christie Carden
The Huntsville Tea Party Movement, Inc. (non-profit organization), Founder
Huntsville Independence Day Tea Party – Event Coordinator