The following content between the x’s is from Eric Erickson at RedState and Tea Party Patriots. They present the latest facts, key explanations, consequences and urgent needs regarding the politics of Obamacare far better than we could hope to summarize or embellish. We believe that there is nothing more important you can do at this time as an American, as an informed citizen, as a Republican then understand the gravity of what is at stake, the implications for country and party, and act as requested in their posts. The text is theirs but the bold emphasis is ours as is any editors notation in red.
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From RedState July 25th:
1. Defund Or Be Challenged
Moderate Democrats are retreating from Obamacare, according to the Washington Post. Hospitals are retreating from Obamacare. Americans broadly doubt Obamacare will help them. Consumers in most states won’t see reductions in premiums for their healthcare, contrary to what the Democrats claimed. In fact, there are twenty-seven ways in which Obamacare will increase the costs of your healthcare. In the meantime, Obamacare is costing jobs in Ohio and elsewhere. The restaurant industry is reducing hours of employees and cutting full time workers.
Why would Republicans keep funding a law that hurts so many people and is so unpopular? Why would they do that?
Republicans in Congress have a choice this fall with the latest continuing resolution. They can choose to not include funding for the implementation of Obamacare. Negotiate everything, but make that their line in the sand. If the Democrats choose to shut down the government over an unpopular law that hurts people, it is their choice. Republicans should not fund Obamacare.
Any Republican who chooses to fund Obamacare should be primaried. The advertisements write themselves. Republicans, by voting to fund Obamacare, are putting people out of work, driving up healthcare costs, and hurting families. Republicans are not listening to voters who hate the law if they fund Obamacare.
Right now in the Senate there are fifteen twelve Republicans who have signed a letter saying they will not vote for any continuing resolution that funds Obamacare. They would rather the Democrats shut down the government than destroy lives by funding this legislation. Call these Senators today and tell them thank you and tell them to hold strong.
Latest from Tea Party Patriots
Yesterday afternoon, Tea Party Patriots reported on Senator Mike Lee’s (R-UT) letter demanding the defunding of Obamacare. Last evening, Huffington Post noted that three signers of the letter had removed their names, and two other original supporters had backed off on their support before the letter went out:
Lee’s letter on Obamacare funding has just 12 Republican signatures, Stephen Hayes of The Weekly Standard tweeted. Some of his original supporters dropped off, including Cornyn, Kirk, Wicker, and Sens. Kelly Ayotte (N.H.) and John Boozman (R-Ark.).
These five aren’t the only Republican Senators of questionable courage to get rid of Obamacare. Other Senate Republicans are publicly opposing the effort:
“I think it’s the dumbest idea I’ve ever heard of,” Burr said. “Listen, as long as Barack Obama is president, the Affordable Care Act is going to be law.”
The North Carolina senator pointed out that he was around when Republicans were held accountable for shutting down the government in 1995.
“I think some of these guys need to understand that if you shut down the federal government, you better have a specific reason to do it that’s achievable,” he said. “Defunding the Affordable Care Act is not achievable through shutting down the federal government. At some point you’re going to open the federal government back up, and Barack Obama’s going to be president, and he won’t have signed this illusion of the Affordable Care Act.”
Burr isn’t the only Republican to reject his colleagues’ approach. Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) refused to support the idea, while Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) warned that the American people won’t allow for another round of GOP-led debt ceiling and government shutdown “shenanigans.”
….Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) also chimed in on the matter, telling reporters on Capitol Hill “it’s foolish” not to fund the government.
By abandoning Senator Lee in such a public way, and undermining his effort, these Republican Senators are playing into the hands of President Obama and his allies in the Senate. The fact is, Republicans aren’t the ones refusing to fund the government. As Mark Levin pointed out on Thursday, Republicans can easily support funding for every other part of the federal government. Thus, strategically and in reality, it will be Democrats who are shutting down the government over their ideological dedication to a high-spending, high-taxing, unworkable law.
Furthermore, it is Democrats who have held up the funding process thus far. Since both the Senate and House passed their respective budgets in March, Senate Democrats have refused to pass a single appropriations bill through their chamber, while the House has passed four. The media has refused to cover this, preferring to treat Republicans as the sole villains in this story of government malfeasance and incompetence. Senator Lee’s efforts would reverse some of this, the capitulation of the aforementioned nine Republican Senators significantly undermine his work.
We urge you to call all Republican Senators – especially the five who abandoned Senator Lee, and the four above who are publicly undermining his great work for the Constitution and America. Thank those who have signed the letter. Tell the rest you will be holding them accountable in August and beyond. This is our last chance to fully repeal or defund Obamacare, and their names will be remembered as either enablers of irresponsible government or supporters of the American people and our Constitution. The phone numbers for all GOP Senators are below.
Senators to thank:
Marco Rubio, FL: (202) 224-3041
Chuck Grassley, IA: (202) 224-3744
James Risch, ID: (202) 224-2752
Rand Paul, KY: (202) 224-4343
David Vitter, LA: (202) 224-4623
Deb Fischer, NE: (202) 224-6551
Jeff Chiesa, NJ: (202) 224-3224
Jim Inhofe, OK: (202) 224-4721
John Thune, SD: (202) 224-2321
Ted Cruz, TX: (202) 224-5922
Mike Lee, UT: (202) 224-5444
Mike Enzi, WY: (202) 224-3424
Have Not Signed on to Senator Lee’s Letter: (Encourage these Senators)
Lisa Murkowski, AK: (202) 224-6665
Jeff Sessions, AL: (202) 224-4124
Richard Shelby, AL: (202) 224-5744
John Boozman, AR: (202) 224-4843
Jeff Flake, AZ: (202) 224-4521
John McCain, AZ: (202) 224-2235
Saxby Chambliss, GA: (202) 224-3521
Johnny Isakson, GA: (202) 224-3643
Mike Crapo, ID: (202) 224-6142
Dan Coats, IN: (202) 224-5623
Jerry Moran, KS: (202) 224-6521
Pat Roberts, KS: (202) 224-4774
Mitch McConnell, KY: (202) 224-2541
Susan Collins, ME: (202) 224-2523
Roy Blunt, MO: (202) 224-5721
Thad Cochran, MS: (202) 224-5054
Richard Burr, NC: (202) 224-3154
John Hoeven, ND: (202) 224-2551
Mike Johanns, NE: (202) 224-4224
Kelly Ayotte, NH: (202) 224-3324
Dean Heller, NV: (202) 224-6244
Rob Portman, OH: (202) 224-3353
Tom Coburn, OK: (202) 224-5754
Pat Toomey, PA: (202) 224-4254
Lindsey Graham, SC: (202) 224-5972
Tim Scott, SC: (202) 224-6121
Lamar Alexander, TN: (202) 224-4944
Bob Corker, TN: (202) 224-3344
Orrin Hatch, UT: (202) 224-5251
Ron Johnson, WI: (202) 224-5323
Roger Wicker, MS: (202) 224-6253
John Barrasso, WY: (202) 224-6441
John Cornyn, TX: (202) 224-2934
Mark Kirk, IL: (202) 224-2854
Note: Senators whose names are in bold have cosponsored Senator Cruz’s (R-TX) latest iteration of a bill to defund Obamacare, but have not signed Senator Lee’s letter. These are Senators who should be first-tier targets.
Text of Senator Lee’s Letter:
Dear Leader Reid:
We view the Obama Administration’s recent decision to delay Obamacare’s employer mandate and eligibility verification for the individual exchanges as further proof the law is a failure that will inevitably hurt businesses, American families, and the economy.
In light of this admission, we believe the only way to avert disaster is to fully repeal Obamacare and start over with a more sensible, practical approach to reforming our healthcare system.
However, if Democrats will not agree with Republicans that Obamacare must be repealed, perhaps they can at least agree with the president that the law cannot be implemented as written. If the administration will not enforce the law as written, then the American people should not be forced to fund it.
This is a matter not only of fiscal prudence, but of fundamental fairness as well. The president cannot seriously expect to waive Obamacare’s onerous mandates on large businesses, while simultaneously forcing individuals and families to pay to implement an individual mandate the public has opposed since before the law was even passed.
For these reasons, we will not support any continuing resolution or appropriations legislation that funds further implementation or enforcement of Obamacare.
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