There are so many serious issues that this committee could be grappling with today. Issues that could impact families across this country, issues that could draw inspiration from the Pope’s address to Congress just last Thursday. No, today, we are seemingly taking the next step after the Speaker’s announcement on Friday to appease the right-wing of the Republican Conference.
Want to avoid a government shutdown? Force the Speaker out.
Want to avoid a government shutdown? Attempt to repeal the Affordable Care Act.
Want to avoid a government shutdown? Find a new vehicle to defund women’s health care.
Today’s markup is not a serious exercise in legislating. Everyone knows the President won’t sign this reconciliation bill. That may be one of the motivations for this bill - pure politics to send a bill to the President that he is sure to veto and be upheld.
You know how this could all be avoided? Pass a CR with a combination of Democratic votes. Work with Democrats. Work with the Administration on a bipartisan basis to actually get something done. Do away with the majority of the Majority rule that strangulates bipartisan efforts.
This is a waste of time for Members of Congress, particularly as we close in on the end of another fiscal year without a responsible approach to the appropriations needed to keep our government functioning. These budget proposals are a blatant attempt to appeal to the far right, while the majority postpones having to actually govern until December. We ought to be focusing on things that matter to hard working Americans under the jurisdiction of this committee, including financing a long-term highway bill, impacting the TPP negotiations, and reforming our tax system to address income inequality and create good paying jobs in the U.S.
Rather than working to keep the government open for a full year and provide security for our economy, Republicans are focused on pushing through these bills that effectively gut the Affordable Care Act and the protections that it provides to workers and families.
The Affordable Care Act is working. Since enrollment began in 2013:
* The uninsured rate in this country has dropped to historic lows - currently just over 11 percent.
* Millions more have gained critical protections - no more lifetime or annual coverage limits, no more pre-existing condition exclusions.
* Health care prices are rising at a slower pace than at any time in the past 50 years - benefiting taxpayers and consumers.
* Tens of thousands of lives, and billions of dollars, have been saved due to a reduction in hospital-acquired conditions, such as infections.
* Since the passage of the law, the private sector has added 13 million jobs, and we have not seen the rise of a part-time economy as predicted by opponents.
The effect of just one provision in this legislation today - repeal of the individual mandate - would increase premiums in the individual market by 20 percent. Fourteen million would lose insurance coverage. The individual mandate ensures there is a balanced risk pool and allows consumers to obtain affordable coverage without being discriminated against because of a preexisting condition, their profession, or their gender.
I will stop myself from quoting too much from the Pope’s address to Congress, but there is one line that is apropos for today: “A good political leader always opts to initiate processes rather than possessing spaces." Today, the Majority is simply possessing space. This Committee, this Congress, the American people deserve better.
