HR 676 supporters jailed

Supporters of HR676 beware, some of our fearless leaders do not wish to hear you:

http://www.laborforsinglepayer.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=94:exclusion-of-single-payer-advocates-leads-to-arrests


Exclusion of Single Payer
Advocates Leads to Arrests

LCS-P National Coordinator Mark Dudzic was among 8 protesters arrested for disrupting the Senate Finance Committee hearing yesterday as they challenged the Committee Chair's refusal to include any testimony from advocates of Single-Payer healthcare reform.
A short video is available of one of the protesters being removed by police:
A number of members of organizations supporting Single Payer Universal Health Care were in attendance at the hearing along with Mark Dudzic. Here is a note sent by Mark late last evening after being released by authorities:

“I got arrested today with 7 other activists as we disrupted the Senate Finance Committee hearing. Bauchus [Senate Finance Committee Chair Max Bauchus, D MT] has been the most arrogant and disrespectful of the committee chairs. I've been encouraging people to draw the line on him and couldn't resist the urge to join them. The other protesters belonged to the Physicians for a National Health Program and the Healthcare Now Coalition.

“I think it was exactly the right thing to do. We got more mileage out of it than if Bauchus had actually scheduled a token single payer witness and we hijacked the theme of the hearing. The associated press piece said something like "The protesters called for putting single payer on the table. Senator Bauchus called for more police."”

(the following from Workers Independent Network Radio) -http://www.laborradio.org/node/11053---(alas, only the text when I tried)

Single Payer Universal Health Care Advocates Denied A Voice At Senate Hearing - 05/06/09
The Obama Administration and the Democratic Congress have pledged to move forward with establishing a new healthcare system for the country, but not everyone has a seat at the table deciding what the best system should be. Jesse Russell has more:

Tuesday morning the Senate Finance Committee held a hearing regarding the future of healthcare in the United States featuring 15 witnesses, however, not a single witness was a supporter of single payer healthcare. Wanting their voices to be heard a number of doctors and advocates stood up at the start of the session and demanded a seat at the table and as they spoke they were immediately escorted out of the room and arrested by Capitol police.
[advocate]: “It's only when the people living in the park and the people living on Park Avenue have the same healthcare that everyone will have high quality healthcare.”

The speakers who stood up were from the organizations Physicians for a National Health Program, Health Care Now, and Single Payer Action. Senator Max Baucus of Montana is the head of the Finance Committee and he is also the leading Democrat in the Senate to receive donations from health insurance companies. Baucus has received more than $400,000 from the companies and their employees. As the head of the committee it was up to Baucus to bring order to the hearing.

[Baucus]: The whole point of this hearing and other hearings is to try and determine the best route and the best option for reforming our country's healthcare system.

Although Baucus said he respected the position of single payer advocates he didn't offer any of the physicians in the audience a seat at the table. President Barack Obama included supporters of single payer healthcare during his hearing in March.

mailto:organizers@laborforsinglepayer.org">organizers@laborforsinglepayer.org
or call Jerry Tucker at 314-968-5534

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Good Baucus "respects" HR676 supporters position. Anyone know how much loot he has recieved from Drug and Insurance companies?

"Baucus's campaigns have been health professionals and pharmaceuticals. The health sector has given Baucus at least $2.8 million during his career, more than any other sector with the exception of finance, insurance and real estate companies, which have given him $4.6 million."
from: http://www.opensecrets.org/news/2009/01/power-players-with-health-sect.html
which has a lot, lot more on Baucus the fearless leader

Amazing someone whom gets such gifts has such an open mind on the subject. Taking money from strangers and conducting public work with an open mind, so rare these days. Give me a couple million and we would be buddies, but then again I am not a senator.

Cash is prefered.
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By the way, more of the supporter of HR676 are waking up to the idea that some of our ideas are not welcome and folks that supported flipped positions overnight. I suspect more HR676 troublemakers will be seen and heard.

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