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| Ex-preacher and blog editor, J Smtihson |
You voted with the minority within the GOP (you and 115 other Republicans in both houses) while Ted Cruz voted with the majority of the parties congressional membership, all 162 of them Turns out that YOU, sir, are the one out of step as you continue to claim that Ted Cruz stands alone and is THE problem facing the GOP.
And now, since October 1, those of us who stood united against this piece of socialism, get to say "We told you so." You have no such opportunity. To think - as you must - that times will not change, that public opinion will never be on the side of those who stood against this piece of legislative garbage, is startling, to me.
I voted for you in 2008, but began a deeply felt penance for that childish and compromising position, about two years ago . . . . . about the time you came out of the closet, fully exposing yourself as the pretend "conservative" you have always been.
I do not regard you as a hero, but a traitor to traditional America. I put you in the same "GOP camp" as Michael Bloomberg during his time as an impostor Republican, Arnold and Charlie Crist. "Feckless and disgusting" does not begin to express my contempt for you.
Like I tell my friends, "Let these RINO's try winning another national election without the conservatives who won the 2010 elections." If, for example, you or Chris Cristie run against Hillary, there will be more than 7 million conservatives who simply stay at home or vote for all on the ticket except the presidential offering. I am an independent patriot, and care nothing for those who participate in the continuing compromise that has been the GOP party politic for the last 3 decades.
Pastor Smithson
________________________
November 1, 2013
Pastor John Smithson
20 Fairbanks Ave.
Sanger, CA 93657-2019
Dear Pastor Smithson:
Thank you for contacting me with your views on the health reform legislation passed by Congress in 2010.
Three years after its passage, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) remains one of the most controversial bills ever considered in Congress. While I support improving our health care delivery system to bring down costs and increase access to affordable health insurance, and have put forth several detailed proposals, the PPACA is not the answer. As written, this legislation would lead to higher health care costs, increased taxes, trillions of dollars in new federal spending, $715 billion in cuts to Medicare, and more expensive health insurance.
Despite the President’s repeated claims to the contrary, the new unsustainable entitlement created by PPACA will add to the deficit, undermine America’s global leadership in health care innovation and quality of care, and put the federal government in charge of writing the health insurance policies that individuals and employers are mandated to purchase.
I believe we need to repeal the new health care law and replace it with common sense reforms that will drive down the cost of care while improving accessibility to affordable health insurance coverage.
This can be achieved by increasing choice and competition by allowing individuals to purchase insurance policies across state lines, enacting medical malpractice reform, focusing on prevention and incentivizing wellness programs, and establishing affordable coverage mechanisms for individuals with high-risk and preexisting conditions.
I oppose the PPACA. I always have and I always will. I have done, and will continue to do, everything I can to see that it is repealed and replaced. Which is why on September 27, 2013, I voted to invoke cloture and end debate on the House-passed H. J. Res. 59, the Continuing Resolution for Fiscal Year 2014 (C.R.), which would defund PPACA. On that same day, I voted against Reid Amendment #1974 that removed the PPACA provisions from the C.R. Because of the passage of this amendment, I voted against final passage of the C.R. Ultimately, H. J. Res. 59 passed in the Senate, 54-44. While I will continue to work to prevent the implementation of PPACA, I do not believe a government shutdown is the proper course of action because it risks disrupting key government functions on which millions of Americans rely.
The fact is that the votes do not exist in the Senate to defund the PPACA at this time, nor the 67 votes needed to overcome a Presidential veto, which is a certainty. The fight against the PPCA is one I’ve fought for years. I’ll take seat second to no one in my efforts to oppose that law but pursuing a tactic that would trigger a government shutdown is unacceptable.
I will continue my efforts to replace the unsustainable health reform law that was forced through Congress with reforms based on competition and freedom rather than the expansion of the federal bureaucracy.
Thank you again for writing to me. Please feel free to contact me if you have any other comments or questions.
Sincerely,
John McCain
United States Senator
JM/js
