Nancy Pelosi must be in a frenzy coming up with ways to buy off Stupak.
Politico reported:
An aide to Rep. Bart Stupak (D. Mich.) coordinated opposition to the Senate health bill’s abortion compromise this morning with the Republican Senate leadership according to a chain of frantic emails obtained this morning by POLITICO.
Stupak, in an interview with POLITICO, called the Senate’s bill’s abortion position “unacceptable” – but disavowed his staffer’s collaboration with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.
“I never talked to McConnell about the health care bill,” said Stupak, adding that that “I did not authorize the email [which] “was sent without my knowledge.”
[...]
The Senate language represented “a dramatic shift in federal policy,” said Stupak, adding that he remained hopeful that the differences could be resolved in conference. Nelson, though, said earlier Saturday that his support for the legislation was contingent on the abortion compromise remaining in it.
The emails suggest a previously unseen degree of coordination between the offices of Stupak and McConnell. Stupak is the leader of a group of pro-life Democrats who say they’ll oppose the sweeping legislation if it uses government money to pay for abortion, while McConnell is firmly committed to killing the legislation.
The fact that their offices have made common cause against the Senates health care compromise will likely further infuriate Stupak’s Democratic colleagues in the House, and demonstrates his willingness to stop any bill that doesn’t pass his test.
“Guys – when will we see your letters of opposition to the managers amendment?? We need them ASAP!” wrote Erika Smith, the Stupak aide, at 9:23 this morning, less than an hour after the amendment had become available.
The email’s recipients included key staffers for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, National Right to Life, the Family Research Council, as well as Autumn Fredericks Christensen, aide to top pro-life Republican Joe Pitts, and Lanier Swann, a McConnell aide.
A minute after Smith sent out her plea, Lanier reiterated it to the list.
“Nelson is telling people in the building he will vote yes. If there was any time to weigh in against this deal —- THIS IS IT,” Swann wrote at 9:24 a.m.
Response to the bill has been negative from groups on all sides of the abortion divide.
[...]
I’m not going to get my hopes up that any “moderate” democrat can kill this bill. There will be some new compromise, another pay off, and whatever else they have to throw in to jam this through.
The leadership will promise him $1 billion for a library in his district and everything will be ok
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