Kyle Bell

Last night the United States came one step closer to real healthcare reform when the House passed its version of the bill. The only thing standing between the American people and reform is the U.S. Senate. Since the Republican Party has promised to obstruct the President’s agenda at every corner, it will take every single Democrat (as well as independent senators that caucus with the Democrats) in the Senate to pass this bill.

The primary obstacle is Senator Joseph Lieberman of Connecticut. He has stated publicly on multiple occasions throughout the past couple weeks that he will join Republicans in filibustering the bill in the Senate if a public option is not removed. His opposition is not acceptable. Having received over $1 million from the insurance industry, Senator Lieberman is siding with Aetna and Blue Cross Blue Shield over his real constituents – who support the public option by over 60%.

Lieberman is showing his true ideological colors. Having voted for the Iraq War and publicly condemning Democrats that opposed it, he was an ally of the Bush administration when Democrats needed him most. In 2006, having pledged to respect the wishes of the voters, he ran as a Democrat and lost the primary to Ned Lamont. He broke his word and created his own party called the “Connecticut for Lieberman” party (as comedian Colbert pointed out, it’s Connecticut for Lieberman, not Lieberman for Connecticut).

Having managed to split the Democratic vote in the 2006 general election, Lieberman returned to Washington as an independent, but continued to caucus with the Democrats. As a result, he retained his seniority and became the chairman of the Homeland Security Committee as Democrats gained a majority in the Senate.

It became clear that Lieberman was not going to support the Democratic nominee for president in 2008 as he began campaigning with John McCain. If that was not enough, he couldn’t definitively say whether Barack Obama was a Marxist – he would only “hesitate to say” it. Of course Barack Obama resoundingly thumped John McCain by nearly 10 million votes and the were swept into a 60 seat majority (by the time that Al Franken was finally seated in 2009). Yet there was no punishment for his betrayal of the party and its nominee. The President actually went out of his way to defend Lieberman, calling on the Senate leadership to keep him in the fold and let him keep his chairmanship.

Apparently being a thorn in the side of the Democrats is too much joy for Senator Lieberman to avoid for very long. His opposition to a healthcare bill that included a public option – that just a few years ago he said that he supported – is his latest traitorous act. Joining a Republican filibuster on the most important legislation in our generation is not acceptable. Lieberman and any other Democrats that prevent an up-or-down vote on healthcare should be stripped of their committee chairmanships and face a primary challenge from someone that will support the will of the people.

If you live in the state of Connecticut and support the public option, you should either call, e-mail or show up at the office of Senator Lieberman. Tell him that if he does not support the people of Connecticut over the big insurance giants that you will vote him out of office in 2012. Below is how you can reach him:

Washington, DC Office

706 Hart Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
(202) 224-4041 Voice

Connecticut Office

One Constitution Plaza
7th Floor
Hartford, CT 06103
(860) 549-8463 Voice
(800) 225-5605 In CT

While Senator Lieberman is the only member of our caucus that has said he would join a Republican filibuster of healthcare, there are other conservative senators that need to be reminded of why they were elected. Senator Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas is one of them.

355 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
(202) 224-4843

912 West Fourth Street
Little Rock, AR 72201
(501) 375-2993
Fax (501) 375-7064
Toll Free 1-800-352-9364

Senator Ben Nelson of Nebraska

Washington, D.C.
720 Hart Senate Office Building
United States Senate
Washington, DC 20510
Tel: 1-202-224-6551

Omaha
7602 Pacific St.
Suite 205
Omaha, NE 68114
Tel: (402) 391-3411