Oh Pullllease! Blanche Lincoln Whines About the Cornhusker Kickback

First of all, this article tarnishes the word “conservative” by using it to describe the bribe-taker Ben Nelson. But it’s laughable that Senator Blanche Lincoln is whining about Ben Nelson’s kickback. If it’s so bad, why did she vote for the bill in the first place?

Arkansas Business:  U.S. Sen. Blanche Lincoln on Tuesday said a political deal that benefits Nebraska and may have clinched a lawmaker’s support for health care legislation should be removed from the bill.

The Democratic senator from Arkansas said she was disappointed about a provision in the Senate’s health care bill that will require the federal government to permanently pay the entire cost of Medicaid expansion in Nebraska, while only paying the costs of expansion in the other 49 states for three years.

Conservative Nebraska Democratic Sen. Ben Nelson lent his crucial support to the bill only after winning the provision for his constituents.

“The people of Arkansas didn’t send me to Washington to be a horse trader,” Lincoln told reporters before speaking at a Kiwanis Club luncheon in downtown Little Rock.

Lincoln did not say whether she would support a final version of the health care legislation if it included the Nebraska agr eement. Lincoln, who voted for the health care legislation on Christmas Eve, faces a tough re-election battle this year and has faced criticism from Republicans over her support for the bill.

And if it’s so bad, why doesn’t she say she’ll vote “no” if the provision remains in the final bill? Lincoln can complain all she wants, but clearly she’s going to vote for whatever they manage to ping pong through the House and Senate.

Via memeorandum