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You are here: Home / Open Threads / The Era Of Stupak Exceptionalism

The Era Of Stupak Exceptionalism

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Bart Stupak, still complaining.

Leading a revolt against President Barack Obama’s healthcare legislation over abortion has been a “living hell” for Rep. Bart Stupak (D-Mich.).

The telephone lines in his Washington and district offices have been “jammed” and he’s gotten more than 1,500 faxes and countless e-mails — most of which he says don’t come from his constituents.

Does Bart talk with colleagues in the House? Every Democrat in DC is getting slammed by angry stupid callers from outside their district. Fighting a quisling battle on their behalf apparently doesn’t insulate a guy from wingnut rage as much as Stupak thought.

At any rate, this means that you guys will need to use redial a lot to get through to your Congresspeople. Don’t give up! Do if for the underpaid staffers and volunteers who will be listening to a screaming out-of-district moron if they’re not talking to you. If teabaggers have killed off the phone lines entirely, send a fax or consider writing a Letter to the Editor to your local paper. OFA has useful online tools if you have never done it before.

Here is a list of critical names whom you absolutely need to contact if you live in their district.

Lincoln Davis, Jim Matheson, Harry Teague, Travis Childers, John Barrow, Zack Space, Chris Carney, Brad Ellsworth, Jerry Costello, Henry Cuellar, Nick Rahall, Solomon Ortiz, Earl Pomeroy, Bill Foster, Harry Mitchell, Jason Altmire.

Remember that their concerns about reelection are hardly unwarranted considering their often R-majority districts. You might have much more impact if you promise to put in some volunteer time on their behalf if they come through.

Switchboard: (202) 224-3121

Guide for first-timers here.

Reader Interactions

50Comments

  1. 1.

    elmo

    I have been calling Lincoln Davis’s office every day. I have never gotten anything other than a firm No, and yesterday the staffer told me that it was set in stone.

    So instead of promising volunteer time for him, I promised money and volunteer time for the Republican running against him in November, so that we’ll have a freshman to run a real Democrat against in 2012.

  2. 2.

    ellaesther

    This is neither here nor there, but the name “Lincoln Davis” has got to be one of the best names in America.

    I’m sorry, it’s kind of weird morning here at ellaesther HQ. I’ll go get some more coffee.

  3. 3.

    Punchy

    People still fax? Fo rizzle? Doesn’t that just scream “stay off my lawn, and here’s my fax!”?

    I’ll start to worry when he sweats the tweets and text messages he’s gettting.

  4. 4.

    Sentient Puddle

    Bart Stupak is also whining on MSNBC right now. The tone of the interview is something along the lines of Chuck Todd and Savannah Guthrie acting like they can’t believe he’s spewing this shit.

    I mean seriously, this guy is spinning around in rhetorical circles. It’s pretty absurd.

  6. 6.

    scav

    So, he jumps excitedly onto the national stage, striking a dramatic pose and then complains when the response is nation-wide? Either the response-stats aren’t running exactly they way he wants them for a backdrop to his next great pose or he’s dumber than he thinks.

  7. 7.

    General Egali Tarian Stuck

    On pain of being accused of being a Tim F toady, al la Cole toady, I want to express my admiration for your dogged efforts at pushing us to do what I think is productive activism to communicate our wishes to our representatives. Well done sir!!

  8. 8.

    geg6

    Stupak simply can’t believe he’s being primaried. He’s freaking out because every Democratic, liberal, and progressive organization is going after his woman hating ass. Fuck him. His tears bring me joy.

  9. 9.

    Napoleon

    @Sentient Puddle:

    Tell us more!

    The top 3 reasons I really want to see HCR pass is 1) we get HCR, 2) what Chait has been calling the coming right wing freak out and 3) Stupak is revealed for the fraud he is with all his BS about having 40 votes, then 20, then 12, etc.

  10. 10.

    Sentient Puddle

    @Napoleon: You’re going to have to wait for video. I think there were at least three or four contradictions in the interview, but I can’t fact-check in real time, especially when he’s citing parts of the bill (I’m pretty sure said citations are bogus).

  12. 12.

    shortstop

    People still fax? Fo rizzle? Doesn’t that just scream “stay off my lawn, and here’s my fax!”?

    That’s what I thought, but People in the Know are now telling us that Congressional staffers like ’em because they can stack ’em up real neatly and square the corners and stuff. Apparently the preferred order of format is calls, faxes, emails.

  13. 13.

    gbear

    Do if for the underpaid staffers and volunteers who will be listening to a screaming out-of-district moron if they’re not talking to you.

    Word. I called Betty McCollum’s office yesterday and the staffer implied that it was nice to take pro-HCR calls because it was a break from people swearing at him.

  14. 14.

    Cat Lady

    Stupak appears to be another in a long line of Obama opponents we get to watch self-destruct in real time. That just never gets old.

  15. 15.

    zmulls

    Here’s my nightmare scenario:

    HCR is passed. There is much rejoicing.

    Virginia AG and/or others make good on threat to sue goverment, claiming “you can’t make me buy insurance” cause it’s unconstitutional.

    Several courts throw the case out, but they keep appealing.

    SCOTUS takes the case and in a 5-4 decision, throws out entire HCR package and creates new precedent that the federal government can’t create any kind of nationwide mandate. Federalist society’s wet dream.

    Once they do that, right-wingers start suing the FDA, OSHA, etc. to eliminate all federal oversight of business.

    Don’t tell me that’s far-fetched. After the Citizens United decision, SCOTUS is looking to do as much Federalist Society damage as they can, while they still have the SCOTUS majority.

  16. 16.

    shortstop

    Fuck him. His tears bring me joy.

    I want to see him really cry. Real tears. I want to see him standing friendless on the corner of C Street and hell because The Family will have jettisoned his now-worthless-to-them ass and no Democrat will let their children or dogs come near him.

  17. 17.

    Alex

    Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-Mass.) also a no, but I’m not entirely sure why… I’m following the drama from a safe distance i.e. across the Atlantic.

  18. 18.

    Mike Kay

    @zmulls: on the bright side, Scalia and anthony kennedy, both who are in their 70s, may retire, letting Obama to change the direction of the court for decades.

  19. 19.

    danimal

    Stupak’s been outed. He has been using his abortion plank as a cover to oppose the bill that he thought would die anyway. He probably thought his district (or, alternatively, his financiers) would hail him as a hero for killing HCR.

    Now, it looks like the bill will pass, his abortion language is gone and he’s facing a primary challenge with motivated, national backing. Oopsy.

  20. 20.

    Guster

    This is a pretty powerful piece re. the cost of Ping the DB. (Which I wanna do.) http://www.openleft.com/diary/17882/he-took-my-lunch-money-why-women-need-full-health-care

    Under the Senate system which makes abortion part of the initial purchasing decision, a woman’s employer, male partner or parents can all potentially prevent her getting insurance coverage for it, whereas now, it usually doesn’t come up because most private plans just cover it. Now, of the one in three women likely to need an abortion in her life, millions of women never have to have that conversation. Under the current wording of the health bill, that second check is the federal spousal and parental notification law that never managed to pass.

  22. 22.

    Napoleon

    @zmulls:

    Don’t tell me that’s far-fetched.

    I won’t, because I have the same fear. I don’t think most people have any appreciation of how right wing and radical some of the people on the Supreme Court are.

  23. 23.

    Maude

    @beltane:
    Did you see the AP headline yesterday that the CBO declared that ins. premiums would go up with Obama’s plan?
    This, of course, was stated without having the complete plan in place. Oh, oops.

  24. 24.

    zmulls

    @Mike Kay.

    Yes, one can hope. But Scalia isn’t going out until he keels over. Kennedy conceivably would pull a Souter and just decide he’s had enough of it, but I’ll believe it when I see it.

    Ginsburg and Stevens are going to retire shortly (I’m guessing Ginsburg this year and Stevens the next), giving Obama three slots to shore up the “liberal” (or “sane”) side. I can only imagine the apoplexy of the right if Obama gets to appoint a fourth and fifth seat, basically making it the Obama court.

    And knowing time is short (Roberts knows how old Kennedy and Scalia are), they are apt to do as much damage as possible while they have the chance. More rulings like Citizens United, where they decide to sweep away 100 years of precedent because they can.

  27. 27.

    jibeaux

    @zmulls:

    It’s not far-fetched, and I agree with you that the liberals are getting out before the wingnuts. Only way Scalia is going out during the Obama administration is in a pine box. But if the Democrats had cojones (and, sigh, 60 votes), they would react to said lawsuit at a stage before the Supreme Court with a new comprehensive health care plan, Medicare for all. Much harder to find that unconstitutional.

  28. 28.

    Sentient Puddle

    @The Grand Panjandrum:

    You are incorrect. The reconciliation bill still has to be passed in the Senate and that doesn’t happen until next week.

    Also not quite correct. Obama has to sign the Senate bill into law before reconciliation can be used in the Senate. So reform will be law of the land. It’ll just be missing the rejiggers that will happen soon thereafter.

  30. 30.

    rob!

    Tim-

    Why is my rep, John Adler of NJ, not on the list? He’s still wavering, and he’s a Democrat. My gf and I have called him telling him to vote for the bill, but he should be getting flooded with calls.

  31. 31.

    kay

    @General Egali Tarian Stuck:

    He should stop lying. I’m getting the feeling the real objection from the anti-choice crowd is the community health center piece.
    A federally-subsidized secular non-profit that will serve lower middle class and the poor.
    They want religious to have a monopoly on that federal cash, and that population.

  33. 33.

    Jon H

    via Sullivan:

    “When I’m drafting right to life language, I don’t call up the nuns.” – Bart Stupak, who says he takes instructions from Bishops and Focus On The Family.

  35. 35.

    Jon H

    I suspect Stupak’s motivation is that the Bishops don’t want to see their hospital income cut.

  36. 36.

    Kiril

    Re: faxes.
    I think I read somewhere that to really bug someone, the best thing to do is fax blank, black pages. It uses all their ink and they keep having to go change it so they don’t miss something important. So I read. I hope nobody’s doing that, because it’s really annoying and childish.

  37. 37.

    ellaesther

    @Jon H: Wow. I suddenly wish I were a nun so that I could grab a ruler and go wrap his fucking knuckles til they were bloody.

    Though that might not be very nun-like of me.

  38. 38.

    Duane

    Well I just called the office of my Congressman Zack Space, asked if he had made up his mind now that the CBO score was out….still undecided…..told the staffer that not only do I live in the district but that I have supported the Congressman since they day he announced his candidacy and I have done many trips of door to door for him as well. I asked that he vote yes….we shall see.

  39. 39.

    rob!

    I called John Adler again, and he’s still mostly a no.

    The person I talked to said because it didn’t do enough on medical cost containment, and I pointed out that the CBO score just released said it would do better than expected on that, and it would certainly do better than NOTHING.

    I also said that, for my money, there’s nothing Adler could do after this that I would care about if he votes No on HCR. If hge votes no, he’s not getting my vote, or my girlfriend’s. Period.

    The woman was very nice and said she would tell Adler. We’ll see…

  40. 40.

    Napoleon

    Wow, what a quote from Stupak. Admits from taking direction from a hard right Protestant organization while ignoring the Catholic nuns.

  41. 41.

    geg6

    @ellaesther:

    Though that might not be very nun-like of me.

    Well, I wouldn’t expect you to know this, but from my own real life experience, this is totally nun-like. And the rulers generally were the ones with the metal edge.

  44. 44.

    Ash Can

    Bart Stupak shows his misogynistic colors.

    (ETA: Whoops, I see this was already posted. But I’m leaving my comment because this bears emphasis.)

    Principles, my ass. The guy despises women, period. He’s a tool of the wacko fundies, and an all-around shitheel.

  46. 46.

    Robin G

    @Punchy:

    I’ll start to worry when he sweats the tweets and text messages he’s gettting.

    DUDE. I want cell numbers. I’ve got unlimited texting — wanna bet most of these old white men don’t? Their phone bills will fuckin’ EXPLODE.

  48. 48.

    IndieTarheel

    @Sentient Puddle:

    Bart Stupak is also whining on MSNBC right now. The tone of the interview is something along the lines of Chuck Todd and Savannah Guthrie acting like they can’t believe he’s spewing this shit.

    If he’s actually got that debutante going “WTF” then he’s truly lost it.

  50. 50.

    NovShmozKaPop

    “Leading a revolt against President Barack Obama’s healthcare legislation over abortion has been a “living hell” for Rep. Bart Stupak”

    Great. The more hellish the better.

    I’d like to have him deal with MY “living hell”, which is figuring out how to pay for health care for my family. I just found out that this year my COBRA payments have risen to almost $2000/month – that’s COBRA, fer cryin’ out loud, which is purportedly a good deal compared to buying non-group insurance on my own, and supposedly for people who aren’t working. How the unemployed are supposed to pay $2000/month for health insurance is beyond me…

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