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August 01, 2009 06:42 PM UTC

At Least We've Got DeGette

  • 17 Comments
  • by: Colorado Pols

We’ve spent quite a bit of time talking about how the health care debate has been mishandled lately by a certain Colorado congressional representative. For an example of how to do it right, the AP turns, with help from the Denver Post’s Michael Riley, to the dean of Colorado’s congressional delegation, Rep. Diana DeGette.

In a triumph for President Barack Obama, Democrats narrowly pushed sweeping health care legislation through a key congressional committee Friday night and cleared the way for a September showdown in the House…

As part of a last-minute series of changes, the committee agreed to cap increases in the cost of insurance sold under the bill and also give the federal government authority to negotiate directly with drug companies for lower prices under Medicare.

The provisions were part of a effort Democrats made in recent days to satisfy the conflicting demands of liberals and conservatives on the panel, unity necessary to overcome a solid wall of Republican opposition.

“We have agreed we need to pull together,” said Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., the committee chairman who presided over hours of private negotiations and public committee meetings. Five Democrats opposed the bill.

The deal was brokered in part by Rep. Diana DeGette, the committee’s vice chairwoman. The Denver Democrat spent two days shuttling between liberal and conservative Democrats, hammering out an agreement before the House was scheduled to go into recess Friday. [Pols emphasis]

“We think it will go a long way,” DeGette said. “It was important to everybody on the committee that we move this health care bill along and that we do it before the August recess.”

The New York Times adds:

Democrats on the Energy and Commerce Committee cleared the way for approval of their bill by adopting a package of amendments bridging differences among liberal, moderate and conservative members of the party.

Mr. Waxman said the latest agreement supplemented a deal struck Wednesday with fiscally conservative Blue Dog Democrats on the panel.

To avoid cutting premium subsidies for low-income people, Mr. Waxman said, Democrats found additional savings elsewhere.

Representative Diana DeGette, Democrat of Colorado, said the Blue Dog deal would hold down costs. But, she said, “it was paid for on the backs of people who cannot afford health insurance,” so liberals objected.

Do you notice how you weren’t reading in the paper about DeGette’s work on the health care bill until she accomplished this breakthrough? Do you notice how DeGette’s interest in her powerful committee was getting the thing passed by negotiation and compromise, not making some kind of splashy, counterproductive ‘statement?’ Do you notice how this article uses terms like “triumph” and “unity” instead of “revolt” and “doesn’t help anybody?”

More to the point, did Jared Polis notice?

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17 thoughts on “At Least We’ve Got DeGette”

  1. Moving things through Congress can rarely be done by lobbing a grenade then standing back to see what happens.  Nice to read about Degette’s work.

  2. I am so proud of her efforts, work and leadership on this.  Congresswoman DeGette, you have done great work for this State and our country.  Thank you.

    2. a time or two but no question she’s a solid hard working legislator, not a walking, talking ego who goes for the big splash before thinking things through.  And yes, I mean Polis.  

  3. Diana DeGette is the one politician from our state in DC who has not let us down.

    Representative DeGette truly represents the people and I respect and admire her and her work.  

  4. And it’s amazing she crossed the health care industry on this, considering the $600K+ she’s gotten from them since she’s been in office.

    MAYBE, just MAYBE she’s decided that the way to represent her district is to do what they want on certain issues, instead of ducking and dodging on them.

  5. but I do find two things about this amusing. First that all of this attention has been placed on the House compromise, when that will all become basically irrelevant by Sept. 15th (when Baucus has scheduled the vote for the Finance Committee) since the Senate compromise that comes out of that will most likely be, for all intents and purposes, the final draft of the bill. Whatever comes out of conference committee is going to have to look a lot like the Finance Bill if it has any hope of passing.

    Second, does anyone else find it kind of sad that they’re going through all this work to find a million different ways to cut costs and pay for this to satisfy liberals, to satisfy blue dogs, to satisfy Republicans, when there’s a very simple answer (close the tax break given to employer-sponsored insurance) that would do all of the above in one fell swoop? It makes everyone look like they’re running like chickens with their heads cut off.

    But way to go Degette. Congratulations are most certainly due.

    1. The Finance Committee bill is likely to go down in flames, as neither the House nor the White House believe that the rumored provisions of that bill are sufficient.  It’s not even the entire Finance Committee that’s screwing things up – some of the committee members have been left out and are getting a bit miffed.

      Rep. Degette certainly deserves kudos for getting this thing out of the only other committee that’s been holding this up.  The Congressional Progressive Caucus sounds like they’re geared up to fix any problems that weak compromise bills introduce – or else they withhold support and the whole thing dies.

  6. “First that all of this attention has been placed on the House compromise, when that will all become basically irrelevant by Sept. 15th (when Baucus has scheduled the vote for the Finance Committee) since the Senate compromise that comes out of that will most likely be, for all intents and purposes, the final draft of the bill.”

    Perception is reality and any dissidence on the side of the house gives the finance committee a reason to make up excuses as to why we can’t pass healthcare reform without gutting it. No I think what the house does is very important. Did you read the article about Ben Nelson. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/… Ben Nelson is threatening sponsors of the ads but they aren’t listening. And I am grateful for the expense and foresightedness of these sponsors for putting these ads out there. Politicians are frightened of an informed public.

    “Second, does anyone else find it kind of sad that they’re going through all this work to find a million different ways to cut costs and pay for this to satisfy liberals, to satisfy blue dogs, to satisfy Republicans, when there’s a very simple answer (close the tax break given to employer-sponsored insurance) that would do all of the above in one fell swoop? It makes everyone look like they’re running like chickens with their heads cut off.”

    You truly are clueless to the plight of the middleclass and the financial costs associated with the status quo of healthcare in this country. First off there is so much waste, abuse and fraud in healthcare that I truly believe it exceeds the problems found in the defense spending. I also speak from personal experience here and have ALWAYS had premium healthcare from birth until today and I can guarantee you that I almost died more than once because of our corrupt system of healthcare. I have a political disease and doctors aren’t allowed to treat political diseases like Lyme disease and mold exposure. In addition administration costs alone account for a whopping 31% of our healthcare costs. Add to that their profits of at least 15% and you have a full 46% of healthcare expenditures going to non-patient care.

    Now to your point about taxing health insurance benefits of employee sponsored plans. This would only increase the taxes that are being paid by the middleclass just the way the burden of FICA is placed on the working poor and working middleclass. I ask you, is it fair that hedge fund and private equity managers pay a 15% capital-gains tax rate on the millions in fees they collect instead of the going top income tax rate paid by everyone else?  What do you have against the middleclass and the working poor?  

    1. …she’s the WORST Congressperson in Colorado in terms of working with her constituents. Her staff doesn’t provide any information, just a black hole of voice mail and a “suggestion” to use her website.

      We see the Congresswoman on occasion thru the year – usually just before re-election and occasionally at certain political events. I can’t remember the last time she had a town hall meeting…

      Compare this to working with Perlmutter, Markey or Polis’ office – they provide names of people to email or call on issues, and if you need info they provide it (Perlmutter’s office is outstanding on this) either by snail or e-mail.

      I’ve given up trying to get anything out of DeGette’s office…unless it’s something relating to her Issue Du Jour, she’s not interested in listening (or working) with the people in her district.

          1. I give a crap what my Representative or Senator accomplishes during a legislative session, if it has nothing to do with the priorities and needs of that district.

            If, for example, Rep DeGette’s district repeatedly tells her to cut Iraq War funding, and she instead passes a useless Stem Cell bill that she likes, that is a FAIL.

            Yes, it was a nice piece of legislation with lots of intelligent and useful initiatives, but it was doomed to veto and 99% of her constituents wanted her to work on SOMETHING ELSE.

  8. What kind of job is that for a Congressperson? I’ve never seen her on the teevee! So what good is she?

    And if she’s not actively engaging the other side’s arguments, how could she possibly help get legislation passed? Everybody knows the only way anything gets done in Congress is that some douche writes an angry letter to the Speaker protesting that he’ll vote against the bill unless it promises never to raise his own taxes.

  9. from the YourShow Facebook page:

    “We’re going to talk about health care reform with Rep. Diana DeGette and Rep. Mike Coffman next week. Let us know what we should be asking. Feel free to post here or send me a note at work: Adam.Schrager@9News.com. Have a great Sunday. Adam”

    If nothing else, the show will be interesting as Rep “Industry Bitch” DeGette gets to stick up for the multiple health care bills, while Rep “Green Zone” Coffman can explain why the GOP’s stupid Tax Cut  Credit Health Care bill is so much better.

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