Wednesday, November 18, 2009 - Help Stop Obamacare Now!

Today in Charleston, Joe Manchin, Democrat members of the Legislature, Democrat staffers and Democrat congressional aides will gather to celebrate Senator Byrd becoming the longest serving Congressional member in U.S. history. It is also widely rumored that Senator Byrd himself is planning on attending. But while Democrats party under the dome at the state capitol a defining moment is coming to Washington in this year's health care debate.

Yesterday, Democrat leaders announced they will bring Harry Reid's new health care bill to the Senate floor in an effort to grant the President's Christmas wish for a government takeover of our nation's health care before the end of the year. This is in spite of the fact that no Senator has ever even seen Reid's new bill. It was written in secret behind locked doors by Harry Reid's personal staffers. Reid even hinted he may rush to a vote before the bill's been public for 72 hours, as even some Democrats have demanded.

To begin debate on this new version of Obamacare, Reid will play a shell game. He needs 60 senators to "vote to proceed" to an unrelated piece of legislation, and once he clears that hurdle he will strike that bill's text and insert his new health care bill. But don't be fooled by Democrat senators that say they oppose a government takeover but just wanted to allow debate on health care, they are not being honest.

The simple fact is this: Any senator that votes to proceed to the Reid-Obama bill is voting for a government takeover of your health care.

Call Senators Rockefeller and Byrd's offices right now and demand that they vote against the motion to proceed.

Senator Jay Rockefeller - (202) 224-6472
Senator Robert Byrd - (202) 224-3954

Or show up today at 3 p.m. in front of the Senator Byrd's statue on the second floor Rotunda of the State Capitol and ask Byrd in person not to support Harry Reid's undemocratic parliamentary maneuver "to proceed"

Don't allow Democrats to stick together on the vote to prceed and then allow some vulnerable Democrats to vote against final passage of the bill and claim they tried to stop it. Senators who say they just want to allow for debate are trying to deceive their voters while giving President Obama the crucial votes he needs to pass a government takeover of health care.

Voters should be watching and remember who stands up for their freedom and who stands with the special interests who want to ram through this takeover.

Democrats have now offered 5 different versions of Obamacare (the first House bill, the second House bill, the Senate Finance bill, the Senate HELP bill, and now Reid's bill). And despite the nuances, every Democrat bill we've seen puts Washington in control of health care, slashes Medicare coverage for seniors, raises premiums for families, raises taxes, places bureaucrats between patients and doctors, punishes young adults who choose not to buy coverage, and opens the door to government rationing of care.

We know the Reid plan will be more of the same and cannot be fixed by a few amendments on the Senate floor. The attempt to give Washington control over one-sixth of our economy is rotten to its core. And any improvements made to the bill will be a mirage that will vanish as soon as the bill goes behind closed doors in conference with the Pelosi bill.

Americans have loudly and repeatedly rejected the President's government takeover of health care. It's time to for the Democrats to listen, stop the shell games, and start over with real solutions that will provide every American the opportunity to afford, own and keep a health care plan that best meets their needs. We can have a real debate about common sense solutions, but only if we first stop this government takeover. And we can stop this bill if we let Democrats know they'll be held accountable for their vote next November.

Don't let them vote for a government takeover of health care before they vote against it. The "vote to proceed" to Obamacare may be one of the most important votes any Senator takes.

Make sure that Senator Byrd and Rockefeller both know that we are watching and that we'll remember them partying in Charleston while their colleagues in Washington were enslaving generations of West Virginians in a government run health care system with long lines, rationing and sub-standard care.

(The Preceding is an Action Alert from the WVGOP)