Small Business Against Big Government

We’ve worked hard to slow down the passage of the Health Economy Takeover, and we must do more.

(Scroll down for the URGENT ACTION ITEMS.)

US News & World Report is reporting that Democratic Leaders are planning secret health reform deliberations.

Despite their claims to the contrary, the way that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid have handled the healthcare bill has been anything but transparent. And, if the left-wing blogosphere is to be believed, the two congressional leaders intend to keep the deliberations secret as they try to merge the House and Senate versions of the legislation into something that will pass both chambers.

C-SPAN has challenged the President and Congress to open Health Care talks to TV coverage, writing:

President Obama, Senate and House leaders, many of your rank-and-file members, and the nation’s editorial pages have all talked about the value of transparent discussions on reforming the nation’s health care system,” he wrote. “Now that the process moves to the critical stage of reconciliation between the chambers, we respectfully request that you allow the public full access, through television, to legislation that will affect the lives of every single American.

And then C-SPAN reminded the president that he “pledged during the campaign to open up health care talks to C-SPAN’s cameras”.  In fact, what Obama said was:

That’s what I will do in bringing all parties together, not negotiating behind closed doors, but bringing all parties together, and broadcasting those negotiations on C-SPAN so that the American people can see what the choices are.

Today Pelosi responded to C-SPAN’s request that the reconciliation process not be hidden from the American People.  Her reply?

There has never been a more open process for any legislation.

Quite a bold statement.  Never.  Never, ever has any other bill had a more open process than this one that has been totally conducted behind closed doors.  She must have sensed the absurdity of her statement because she then added

We will do what is necessary to pass the bill.

That’s more like it.  A little truth, finally.  And if what is necessary means dissembling, hiding, breaking campaign promises, and shutting out the public, then she’s willing to do it.

We don’t have to stand for it.

Step one is to let everyone we know that this is going on.  If we can inform enough people that this is going on, we can encourage a groundswell of opposition and force the legislative process into the open.  Remember, it was President Obama who promised transparency and televised broadcasts on C-SPAN, and we are demanding that he and they keep this promise.

What can you do?

URGENT ACTION ITEMS:

1. Please go right now and join the Facebook group “We Demand Congress Televise All Health Care Legislation Deliberations” (just click on the link) and then invite all of your Facebook friends to join, too.

2. Then sign the petition at Letthecamerasin.com and encourage your friends to do likewise!

You can also forward this blog post along to them.

If we can get this information to spread quickly, we can force their hand.  But we must act quickly and decisively!