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	<title>The Substratum &#187; strategic voting</title>
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	<description>Obama.  No Clue, No Leadership, No Way</description>
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		<title>Stupak, The GOP, and Pro-Life Groups &#8211; The President&#8217;s Useful Idiots?</title>
		<link>http://www.thesubstratum.com/general-politics/health-care-general-politics/stupak-the-gop-and-pro-life-groups-the-presidents-useful-idiots/</link>
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		<pubDate>Tue, 09 Mar 2010 15:18:50 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>G.J. Merits</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Health Care]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[abortion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[american conference]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[catholic bishops]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[healthcare]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Hosue]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Hoyer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[obamacare]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[pro-life]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[senate]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[strategic voting]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[stupak]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.thesubstratum.com/?p=419</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The following quoted piece below is from Dr. Hunter, CEO of the Social Security Institute. If Republicans refuse to vote strategically as indicated in the referenced post, say goodbye to electoral gains for the GOP in November. A vote for any Stupak language effectively ushers in the end of any budding alliance between Tea Parties [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>The following quoted piece below is from Dr. Hunter, CEO of the <a href="http://socialsecurityinstitute.com/blog_post/show/479" target="_blank">Social Security Institute</a>.  If Republicans refuse to vote strategically as indicated in the referenced post, say goodbye to  electoral gains for the GOP in November.  A vote for any Stupak language effectively ushers in the end of any budding  alliance between Tea Parties and the GOP.  In  short, <strong>lean</strong> and <strong>lean hard</strong> on the GOP to think carefully about any vote that expedites the passage of  ObamaCare.  Any vote for strengthening anti-abortion language in the  healthcare bill is a vote <strong>for</strong> ObamaCare.  To the point, anything that assists in the passage of ObamaCare is a tacit approval of ObamaCare.   Excuses will not extricate the GOP from a blatant strategical failure and the subsequent loss of any goodwill by the electorate.  There are  many of us who will not rest until the public is completely aware of any  betrayal of the Republican party concerning this matter.  Obstruction and strategic voting is the only way to ensure the GOP maintains electoral gains.  If the GOP had voted present in the first House vote, ObamaCare would be dead today.  You can blame political expediency and the pro-life advocacy groups for this.  I personally am pro-life, but do not appreciate the pro-life movement hijacking the fight against ObamaCare and pushing for votes that made it easier to pass this liberty stealing behemoth of a bill, knowing full well the language for federally funded abortion will make it into government run healthcare at some point in the future.  The only solution is to kill the bill and they know it.  If ObamaCare passes, they will be as much to blame as the Democrats.</p>
<p>As for Senator Stupak and those who claim to strongly resist federal funding of abortions, the game is up.  Insult our intelligence and look for another job.  It does not take a PhD to understand that once government controls healthcare, federal funding of abortions is a soon-to-be foregone conclusion.  Just a little legislative fix down the road and say hello to your tax dollars being used to kill the unborn.  Stupak knows it, the GOP knows it, and the pro-life groups know it.  <strong>To use the combination of a social issue and the powder keg that is healthcare reform as a fundraiser knowing full well protection for the unborn is only temporary is pathetic</strong>.  I hope the Tea Parties and other concerned citizens will inform pro-life groups that if they support ObamaCare in any way, they are supporting the use of federal funds for abortion regardless of what the language says or will soon say regarding this issue.  They will pay and pay dearly for their worship of the dollar over the lives of the innocent.  </p>
<p>If the tactic is to hang one&#8217;s hat on the Senate reconciliation process, Stupak knows better unless he is a complete idiot.  Once the House bill is passed, ObamaCare is law, and the Democrats will pivot to jobs and off the issue in an effort to save their collective electoral butts.  In either case neither Stupak or any who claim to be in his camp that subsequently votes for ObamaCare with the sorry excuse it now prohibits federal funding of abortion would expose themselves in all their glorious hypocrisy and contempt.  A Representative who is disingenuous or a half-wit is no choice at all &#8211; unless the choice is to shove them out the door.</p>
<p>The following two posts, dated last year, still apply to the degree that strategic voting is discussed.  It is shameful we must include the likes of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops as <strong>opponents to the public will but also as opponents to the protection of the unborn</strong>.  This left-wing organization&#8217;s only issue with ObamaCare is federally funded abortion.  Fix that in the legislative language and they are quite happy with ObamaCare, even with the knowledge that <strong>federally funded abortion is all but guaranteed if ObamaCare passes</strong>.  Hypocrisy, political expediency, and just plain stupidity are on the lunch menu today.  We have met the enemy and he is us.  The time of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory is nigh.</p>
<p>Although the following posts are dated, much of the information is pertinent to the current situation:<br />
<a href="http://tinyurl.com/yjtrmse" target="_blank">Killing ObamaCare In The Senate – The Need For Strategic Voting</a> and <a href="http://tinyurl.com/y9445dv" target="_blank">The Endgame Strategy To Kill ObamaCare – Lessons From The House Bill</a></p>
<p>From Dr. Hunter (italicized emphasis mine):</p>
<blockquote><p>The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops already has instant messaged  their <a href="http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0310/33962.html" target="_blank">willingness</a> not just to acquiesce in such  shenanigans but also to actually mobilize the faithful to oppose any  point of order in the Senate in order to lubricate passage of ObamaCare  through the Senate:</p>
<blockquote><p>The Roman Catholic bishops signaled Thursday that if  agreement is reached with House leaders on anti-abortion language, the  church would work to get the votes needed to protect the provisions in  the Senate — and thereby advance the shared goal with Democrats of  health care reform.</p></blockquote>
<p>Now is the time for opponents of ObamaCare to focus, focus, focus on  preventing Hoyer from maneuvering them into this corner. The only way for opponents of a government takeover of healthcare to prevent getting  mouse trapped by a Separate Stupak is to recognize that the Stupak language and all Stupak lookalikes are a snare and a delusion.</p>
<p>NO legislative language will prevent ObamaCare once enacted into law from transforming very quickly into a federal abortion mill that provides abortion on demand. Given the obscure language inserted into the Senate Bill by Senator Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), which is being  totally ignored by anti-abortion groups, even the strongest Stupak-like  language will fail to stem a tide of transformative interpretations of bureaucrats and judges, which are sure to produce federally subsidized abortion on demand.</p>
<p>The Mikulski language gives plenary authority to the Secretary of  Health and Human Services to require every public and private healthcare  plan in the nation to include “preventative services,” which is defined  to include “abortion care.” Even without the Mikulski provision, both  the House and Senate bills are shot through with provisions that will  lead inevitably to federally subsidized abortion on demand.</p>
<p>There is simply no way cleanse the final bill of this authority  without starting over. Hence, what anti-abortion Members of Congress and  the pro-life groups must understand is <strong>that the only route to  protecting the unborn from the effects of this bill is to defeat the entire bill</strong>. <em><strong>As long as Members of Congress and pro-life groups labor under the delusion that they can make ObamaCare safe for the unborn, they will actually serve as the President’s useful idiots and facilitate federal abortion on demand.</strong></em></p>
<p>The political problem is there are many libertarians and moderate Republicans who oppose anti-abortion laws. This fact unnerves many Republican Members of Congress who therefore attempt to straddle the abortion issue so as not to offend moderate Republicans who agree with their libertarian constituents on abortion.</p>
<p>Stupak is a perfect straddle, which has the unfortunate by product of  removing the last remaining block preventing enactment of ObamaCare  into law. Unless Republicans refuse to take a pass on Stupak-like  language, i.e., vote present on any Stupak vehicle however it is presented to them in the parliamentary chaos likely to ensue once the  legislative bum’s rush begins—they will actually set the stage for  enactment of ObamaCare into law.</p>
<p>The reluctance of Republican Members of Congress to help defeat Stupak language on strategic grounds is a huge political miscalculation.  This miscalculation results from failing to comprehend the coincidence  of interests on ObamaCare among libertarians/moderate Republicans and  anti-abortion conservatives. Because of this blind spot, Senate  Republicans are poised to make the same fatal mistake they made the  first time around when they failed to comprehend the necessity of <a href="http://socialsecurityinstitute.com/blog_post/show/370" target="_blank">strategic voting</a> on abortion language.</p></blockquote>
<p>Read the whole thing.</p>
<p>Call pro-life groups, your Representative and Senator now.  Tell them to resist strengthening ObamaCare and facilitating its passage.  Let them know you are aware that if ObamaCare passes it is only a matter of time before federally funded abortion is a reality and that you will hold them personally responsible.</p>
<p>Michelle Malkin provides Stupak&#8217;s contact information:</p>
<p>Stupak’s contact info:</p>
<p>2268 Rayburn House Office Building<br />
Washington, DC 20515<br />
(202) 225 4735<br />
(202) 225 4744 – Fax</p>
<p><strong>Related:</strong></p>
<p><a href="http://michellemalkin.com/2010/03/09/will-stupak-be-bought-on-demcare/" target="_blank">Will Stupak be bought on Demcare?</a></p>
<p><a href="http://hotair.com/archives/2010/03/08/ap-stupak-more-optimistic-on-obamacare-deal/" target="_blank">AP: Stupak “more optimistic” on ObamaCare deal</a></p>
<p><a href="http://spectator.org/blog/2010/03/09/is-stupak-preparing-to-cave" target="_blank">Is Stupak Preparing to Cave?</a></p>
<p><a href="http://hotair.com/archives/2010/03/14/catholic-bishops-send-message-to-faithful-we-oppose-obamacare/" target="_blank">Catholic bishops send message to faithful: We oppose ObamaCare</a></p>
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