The "dirty dozen" Democrats who blocked Dick Durbin's bankruptcy "cramdown" legislation will, no doubt, rear their ugly heads again when healthcare reform comes up for debate in the Senate. Chief among the bad guys, besides Benedict Arlen Specter, who let's face it, can't be counted on by either party, is Nebraska Sen. Ben Nelson, who not only has no use for homeowners when he can get so much money from big banks, he also has no interest in reforming healthcare if it involves the option of a public plan. Per ThinkProgress:
Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE), whose biggest campaign donor is the insurance industry, said he’s not interested in a public option. HuffPost reports why: Nelson’s problem, he told CQ, is that the public plan would be too attractive and would hurt the private insurance plans. “At the end of the day, the public plan wins the game,” Nelson said. Including a public option in a health plan, he said, was a “deal breaker.”
Why so hard hearted, Ben? Could it be that your biggest contributors include insurance companies? Per OpenSecrets.org, we find that over the years, Nelson's campaign kitty has been significantly fattened by the industries he's protecting now:
Sen. Ben Nelson:
| Contributor | Total | Indivs | PACs |
|---|
| Berkshire Hathaway | $65,800 | $57,800 | $8,000 | | Level 3 Communications | $56,000 | $47,000 | $9,000 | | Nelnet Inc | $49,100 | $34,100 | $15,000 | | Omaha Steaks | $36,100 | $36,100 | $0 | | Blue Cross/Blue Shield | $31,400 | $16,400 | $15,000 |
| Industry | Total | Indivs | PACs |
|---|
| Insurance | $608,709 | $217,145 | $391,564 | | Lawyers/Law Firms | $515,785 | $366,518 | $149,267 | | Lobbyists | $283,395 | $277,510 | $5,885 | | Securities & Investment | $278,799 | $187,199 | $91,600 | | Health Professionals | $233,426 | $78,326 | $155,100 |
Nelson, who was first elected in 2000, raised more money for his 2006 re-election campaign than he ever has, before or since, and he out-fundraised the average Senate member two-to-one:
When you buy Ben Nelson, apparently you get what you pay for. Other potential Democratic opponents to real healthcare reform have similar fundraising profiles. Max Baucus of Montana is also heavy on insurance and financial services companies, and his top five industry contributors include insurance, financial services, health professionals and pharmaceutical companies. Not surprisingly, he too opposes a public plan that would compete with private insurers. And whither Evan Bayh, for whom insurers are only number five on his Big Industries list...Labels: Ben Nelson, Evan Bayh, healthcare, healthcare reform, insurance companies, Max Baucus, moderate Democrats, money and politics, politicians for sale |
