News Jun 25, 2009 at 4:00 am

The Senator, Bafflingly, Doesn't Support Real Health-Care Reform

Comments

1
I thought that 'public option' was a several-pronged attack on the health care situation as seen in 2009:
more people would pay if it were more affordable,
give more people access to health care beyond the ER
check artifically inflated costs due to the uninsured,
check record profits of the insurance industry (gouging) Keeping health care $ in the pockets of the insured AND their insurance companies at levels that keep people and business healthy and happy without any 'side' drained dry.
Perhaps Ms Cantwell sees being on the 'wrong' side of any issue too politically risky. Perhaps she is just seing the 'reality' of it all from inside the fishbowl.
We are all mortal, and are bound to die regardless of the outcome of this issue. Death as tragic as it might seem, is a part of life.
As a health care worker I would prefer to see my industry fade into the background and living well and happy come to the foreground. Life doesn't need to be any more stressful than it already is.
Reducing the angstof financial ruin or beaurocratic steeple-chases to recieve care are probably in the best interest of the people, as well as the pursuit of happiness.
Exercise your rights, call your elected officials. Make and keep your annual physical appointments. Be good to yourselves and others. Relax, don't worry, have a homebrew.
3
@ 2:

Democrats voted for Cantwell because her "authentic democrat" primary opponent was manifestly unqualified to be a United States Senator.

Next?
4
What's the point of having 60 democrats in the Senate if they can't even pass a half-way decent health care bill? Bill Maher was right. Republicans are the crazy party, and Democrats are the new Republicans. Where's the party that cares about something other than corporations?
5
What's the point of having 60 democrats in the Senate if they can't even pass a half-way decent health care bill? Bill Maher was right. Republicans are the crazy party, and Democrats are the new Republicans. Where's the party that cares about something other than corporations?
6
I am a Democrat, and I was please when she beat Gorton, however, Senator Cantwell is routinely inaccessible to meet with constiutients. She has demonstrated time and time again that she has a deaf ear when it comes to issues that adversely impact Washington families. Getting through to her is just about impossible. I don't know why she gets elected
7
We need to find a way to get Inslee into the Senate.
8
My experience with Maria Cantwell is exactly as this article implies: she is in bed with big business and the rich. I wrote the Senator a letter to express my perplexity at her position on the federal estate tax. She favors massive reduction (actually prefers repeal, though that won't happen) of the estate tax. This when she was last elected the same year that Washingtonians overwhelmingly rejected the repeal of our own state estate tax. The letter I received in response was essentially a list of GOP talking points about small businesses and family farms suffering under the tax. The only thing she left out was the term "Death Tax" that those goons love to use so much. The NYT has thoroughly debunked the lie that small businesses and family farms suffer under the estate tax, noting that lass than 1% would qualify for the tax. Cantwell couldn't explain why the heirs of Bill Gates and Paul Allen should be exempted from tax also, rather than just write an exemption for family farms/businesses.

This issue seems to be another where she prefers protecting moneyed interests over the greater good. We don't need lower taxes on the Paris Hilton set, and we don't need to prop up the for-profit health insurance industry. We also don't need Senators who don't see this.
9
"As President Obama — who Cantwell endorsed"

I wouldn't call Cantwell's endorsement a real endorsement. She was a Hilary supporter who wanted Hillary to keep fighting and wasting money right up until the end. She only endorsed Obama when the writing was on the wall. Who was she supposed to endorse at that time, McCain?
10
Cantwell Didn't endorse Obama because she didn't think he could win either.

Cantwell is not a leader. She is a follower (and not a very good one at that).
11
Eli, this confuses me:

"A person active in the local health-policy-reform community added that compared to Murray, Cantwell doesn't seem to care. "Senator Murray has been very responsive," he said. "

Did you not get a name? Was Jody Hall this person (and a male?) Was it an editing mistake?

Great article otherwise, and yeah, Cantwell needs to get her shit together. I was one of the die-hard single payer advocates, and had to settle for this Public Option. I get really pissy when I see people won't even support the public option.

13
Maria Cantwell has no convictions and no credibility with regard to people's issues. She doesn't even support net neutrality, supposedly her industry. I am surprised that she reversed herself on health care because once she did claim support for a public option; usually she doesn't even bother to articulate a position. I don't think she's persuadable; however, we would be fighting more fronts with a Senator Gorton. This is not to defend her: generating a strategy to engage ourselves for "healthcare like Congress has" must be our priority.
14
She's nothing but a self-serving opportunist who's nose is buried in pigboy's ass as deep as any Republican's. Look for her to become a sleazy lobbyist when she's finally been run out of the Senate. She's lost my vote.
15
So, I'll just reiterate Jay Inslee needs to be our Senator and Maria can get lost. She does not represent us anymore. I worked hard knocking on doors for that woman in 2006 and I will surely not support her again.

16
Ok. Did anyone read in the news article that if Obamas plan for health care reform is passed, it will become illegal if you do not have health care? If you dont have it you will be fined a large sum, putting you even farther in debt. People!! Dont you see that the neuse is getting tighter around our neck? Why dont we have time for family, why dont we have time to travel, why dont we have time to live our lives? Because we have become a slave to the system. Working so hard just to get by, while missing out on your daughters softball game. THINK about it. I will use car insurance as an example, how much is your car insurance, 200-400 dollars a month. What has is given you? Car insurance is not necessary, what has happened is we have given our control over to the government to make our desicions for us, to decide what is best for us. I understand accidents happen but what we decide to do at that time is our choice, it would be much easier to cut the insurance scam out. Same goes for this plan of health care reform that the OH great Obama is trying so hard to get past the senate. Its is detrimental that you do not fall for the lies. We create and are resposible for every action we make, please dont give any more of our power to the govt. I am for a localized free health care plan where we get to excerise our free will, not mandated by the government. If people would wake up, people would realize that our being is able to heal itself and all these cancers and dis-eases are caused by pollutants in our food air and water. Eat, drink, live, think clean and you will be clean. WE ARE CREATORS AND ITS TIME TO SLOW DOWN AND TAKE OUR POWER BACK. Please consider this. Remember who you are, listen to your self. Peace

17
Cantwell supports China:
http://www.examiner.com/x-15615-Asia-Hea…
18
I felt far less than confident with her position on the public option when we spoke on Friday.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=M0KFTRd1fv4

19
Miss Cantwell should forever have her feet held to the fire for voting yea for the war in Iraq. www.costofwar.com will should any low scoring math person what portion she has cost this country. If we are Patriotic to this country, we need to remove ourselves from Iraq, and stop lying about the weapons of mass destruction, long range missles, and chemical weapons hidden in Iraq. She continues to hide in DC, and avoid this issue. It certainly cancels out everything she is doing in the senate, as you can not ever justify the causualties of 100,000 of dead military boys, and women, childern, and men in the communities of Bagdad. God help us all!!!
20
This is a well written article on Cantwell logic. I really supported her when she ran against Slate. She has turned out to be the biggest mistake in support of my life. She has become a "Wind Sock" blowing with the prevailing breeze. Our US National Debit is $13 billion as I write this, or $42,6006.46 per person. The war In Iraq, and Afghanistan is $1 billion {costofwar.com} She took up with Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, and Warkawitz and voted for the war, and this past may voted for 5/27/10 On the Amendment S.Amdt. 4204 to H.R. 4899 (Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2010)
To require a plan for the safe, orderly, and expeditious redeployment of the United States Armed Forces from Afghanistan. She is a deadly Viper, and is bankrupting our country. She is not a critcal thinker

Please wait...

Comments are closed.

Commenting on this item is available only to members of the site. You can sign in here or create an account here.


Add a comment
Preview

By posting this comment, you are agreeing to our Terms of Use.