Conyers Rips Rangel, Waxman for Backing Off Single Payer

via CommonDreams:



Published on Thursday, June 11, 2009 by Single Payer Action

Conyers Rips Rangel, Waxman for Backing Off Single Payer
by Russell Mokhiber


John Conyers (D-Michigan) was not happy last night with his colleagues Charles Rangel (D-New York) and Henry Waxman (D-California).

Conyers is sponsor of the single payer bill (HR 676) in the House.

The bill has 79 co-sponsors.

Rangel and Waxman were co-sponsors last year.

But they are not co-sponsors this year.

Rangel, Waxman and George Miller (D-California) each chair committees that will be hearing health care reform proposals.

Only Miller is cooperating with Conyers - remaining a co-sponsor of HR 676 and holding hearings.

In fact, Miller's committee today held the first ever Congressional hearing on HR 676.

Conyers spoke last night on Capitol Hill at a dinner in honor of outgoing Public Citizen President Joan Claybrook.

"There are three committees that have been designated to work on (health care) on the House side," Conyers said. " three dear buddies of mine - Charlie Rangel, Henry Waxman and George Miller. Guess what? All of them were on single payer (HR 676)." ..........(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.commondreams.org/view/2009/06/11-5

Gotta throw a bone to the loyal constituents.

They are their own worst opposition.

we aren't even going to get that.

And not necessarily in that order.

just following the lead...single-payer and been shut out from the discusions since the beginning of the HC reform debate this year.

:(

option for those who do not want their employer based insurance or need insurance. No universal, no just single payer. He uses the excuse that we just can't start over..BS

He kept saying the biggest single expense is Medicare and Medicaid which made me think that is what we should think so we could not ever want HR676 MEDICARE FOR ALL!!!!!!!!

example of why we need to overhaul our health care system? what happened to that?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yp8w7XtbzkE

Written statement

4 page pdf
http://edlabor.house.gov/documents/111/pdf/testimony/20090610RepConyersTestimony.pdf

my reps, shumer and rangel, are not going to let single payer happen. this is "our" team at work doing what they do best--working for "their" team.

don't mean to overstate the obvious, but that's it.

The rethugs are powerless - and will be even more so once Franken is seated in the Senate. They can scream & holler all they want, but there's no way they could stop us without help from Democratic defectors. Fact is, if we could unite our party, keep everyone in line, there is NOTHING that we couldn't accomplish.