Congressman Ron Barber was one of nine Democrats who joined with Republicans to support a continuing resolution that would have kept the federal government open while delaying for one year the Affordable Care Act’s mandate requiring individuals to buy health insurance and blocking the Obama administration’s effort to help congressional staffers to purchase health insurance on the health-insurance exchanges.
The legislation was rejected by the U.S. Senate, leading to a federal government shutdown about an hour ago.
Barber’s statement:
Tonight I voted to keep the government from shutting down. A government shutdown would hurt the economies of Arizona and our nation. The American people deserve a government that can work together even when they disagree. This was not a perfect bill, but I voted for a reasonable solution to get things done. That’s why the people of Southern Arizona sent me to Congress.
Beginning tomorrow, under the Affordable Care Act, many Americans will begin purchasing health insurance for the first time. Giving them an extra year before charging them penalties is the right thing to do. Tonight my vote to delay the individual mandate for one year did just that.
America deserves better. My wife Nancy and I couldn’t run a small business this way, and it’s no way to run a country. I call on my colleagues to stop this cycle of brinkmanship and come together for common-sense solutions.
This article appears in Sep 26 – Oct 2, 2013.
Good god. It will be excellent to help Barber shuffle on the national political stage in the next election. What a joke! One of nine Democrats siding with the morons in the House.
No Mr. Barber. You did not vote for a reasonable solution. You voter with terrorists!
What? Every law someone doesn’t like, even when it passes both houses of Congress and found by the Supreme Court to be constitutional, they can hold the world economy hostage over it? And you think your action, what? Doesn’t encourage them?!? Are you kidding!?!
And, are you trying to tell us that these terrorists would have done the same if there was a white guy in the White House? As if they care about a law that they, themselves wanted back in the ’90s? What is wrong with you?!?
My wife and I worked our butts off for you to win your post, and now you spineless twerp have basically sided with reactionary traitors.
I will remember this next time you ask for my money and my time. Jerk.
Not only did he vote the wrong way, but he is lying about it on his Facebook page. What a little turncoat prick. He doesn’t care about his constituents or any other Americans, let along his party. He should own up to what he did and switch parties.
No more money for him, he has lost my vote for good! Twerp!
Overjoyed. The libs and progressives are unloading H8 bombs on Barber & Sinema. I don’t think much of Barber and he’s gone anyway, but dear libs … sadly, Sinema has not turned Tea Party as the Dems insist she has. She’s just thinking about her people-something alien to Washington culture. She’s just one of those rare Washington politicians who couldn’t give a rodent’s behind what KStreet thinks, and for that Sinema earns my respect. If only we could get McCain to give KStreet the finger. Don’t hold your breath.
I’m out. My family and I supported Ron Barber to the hilt. No mas.
The people sent you to Congress to be a Democrat, Mr. Barber. If we wanted a Tea Party representative, we could have voted for McSally. This is a giant betrayal, Mr. Barber.
The twerp should be twerked—–by Boehner.
Michael Koullias – Put down the Kool Aid and look up the word “terrorist”. You are emblematic of the reason that Washington and the rest of the country is so dysfunctional. Get a grip.
This is a major disappointment, Rob Barber voting with the Republicans. Gabby Giffords traveled to Washington early during her recovery period to vote “YES” on the Affordable Care Act. Remember the standing ovation shown on TV that she received in Congress? Barber’s vote smacks of betrayal.
Wow, amazing how Mr. Barber has been turned on, all because he put the PEOPLE first. Really! So, am I to assume all those who trashed Congressman Barber believe Obamacare is good for the country? I for one, have read and seen first hand what this law is doing to Americans…higher premiums, lost of jobs, shorter work week, and lets not forget that the Federal Government will penalize anyone who doesn’t buy insurance. Of course the thought of who can and who can’t afford insurance is of no concern to the Government or the IRS thugs that will come after you. It’s an unconstitutional law to begin with which was pushed through when it should have been killed. But that’s nothing new when corruption reigns.
Too bad more Democrats didn’t take a stand for the American people instead of siding with with a man and his crappy law.
Ron Barber’s betrayal was all for nothing. The ACA is open for business:
http://www.healthcare.gov
It is a crappy law, but no one is offering a better one…including a single payer option which you would not have to force anyone into. But until a better law is offered, I’ll stay with the ACA.
The Republicans are right on this though, It is time for Barber to go.
the core assumptions on the right need to be looked at carefully and publicly: is it an infringement of your individual liberty to require you to get health insurance? Sure. is it justifiable? Yeah. No analogy is a perfect match but the requirement to get car insurance is very close. Uninsured drivers and impoverished and uninsured sick and injured people both end up in the ER and cost us money. Sick people cost all of us even if they don’t go to ER. You cost us money we tell you to get some insurance and we’ll make it easy as possible for you, unless you want to go socialist with single payer but you hate that, so we say get some insurance or get off the road, stay out of the ER and stay away from everybody you could infect or influence. You come to the ER with no money you get turned out to die. You get sick you get sent to some island. You get voted off the island, start swimming. You want to be your own person and be totally free and not owe anybody anything? Be our guest just don’t go being your own person on our dime.
Congressman Barber did the right thing for his constituents. He represents a district that is about 50/50 Republican/Democrat and I would venture to guess that the majority of all voters in his district are opposed to the gross over-reach of Obamacare. It appears that members of the Democratic party, particularly in the Senate, believe that Republicans shouldn’t have a voice in how our government is run. They continue to cling to their sacred Obamacare without accepting even reasonable proposals on making the law fair and equitable to all. This is a law that was rammed down our throats through Congress purely on party line votes in the dead of the night using every legislative trick in the book including reconciliation, Cornhusker kickbacks, Louisiana purchase, etc. Next the President has taken the law and amended it many times with waivers, exemptions and delays by executive fiat bypassing the legislative process entirely and ignoring our duly elected Representatives and will of the people. And now the members of the Democratic Party who voted for sustaining the law as is, wonder why we still protest this monstrosity. This fight has nothing to do with racism or denying healthcare for those who need it. This fight has everything to do with protecting the basic freedoms that Americans have enjoyed for over 200 years. We’re tired of Washington D.C. politicians, bureaucrats and lobbyists of both parties controlling our lives and jeopardizing the future of our children while not making a meaningful dent in solving the nation’s problems. This status quo government by gridlock and partisan bickering has got to end. The system of checks and balances was embedded in our Constitution for a reason and was based on the premise that our elected representatives would work together to resolve their differences. THANK YOU CONGRESSMAN BARBER FOR STANDING UP FOR ALL OF YOUR CONSTITUENTS AND NOT JUST HARRY REID!
Ouch Congressman Barber.
That bill to delay the institution of Obamacare was nothing more than a ploy to buy more time to find a way to get rid of it.
You couldn’t possibly be that naive.
Shame on you.
Be careful what you wish for. Getting rid of Barber because of one vote means opening the door for some tea bag idiot like Martha McSally. I have never agreed 100 percent with any congressman who represents me, but Ron is pro union and pro choice. I’m sticking with him, even though I dislike his vote on this particular issue. Ron is in a competitive district. Cutting his legs out from under him isn’t going to advance the causes I hold near and dear.
I voted for you, Mr. Barber, because you were a Democrat and now you are voting with those Republican spoilers. Sir, this vote does not bode well for your future in politics in Arizona. What could you have possibly been thinking? ACA (Obamacare)is the best thing that has happened politically during the last 4+ years. The majority of the public has been waiting impatiently all this time for the final startup of something very good for us all and you want to do is put more roadblocks in the way? Mean-spirited is a very apt description of a Republican in this era, which is why Democrate all over the U.S. have been picling up seats. The state of Arizona does not need a Democrat who votes with the losers. I am now waiting (impariently) for the next election held for your job. I sincerelly hope the next Democrat who runs is a true Democrat and not a waffler/turncoat such as we have experienced with you
MYTH #1: THE TEA PARTY IS ANTI-GOVERNMENT
FACT: THE TEA PARTY IS ONLY OPPOSED TO INEFFICIENT, INEFFECTIVE AND CORRUPT GOVERNMENT, LIKE WHAT WE HAVE NOW – BROUGHT TO US BY THE STATUS QUO RULING ELITE IN BOTH PARTIES. THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TAKES OUR MONEY TO BE FOUGHT OVER BY 537 POLITICIANS WITH THEIR ARMY OF BUREAUCRATS AND LOBBYISTS BUT OUR PROBLEMS JUST KEEP GETTING WORSE. WHAT HAPPENED TO HOPE AND CHANGE?
MYTH #2: THE REPUBLICAN PARTY IS HEADED TO EXTINCTION
FACT: AFTER THE 2012 ELECTION, THE REPUBLICAN PARTY CLAIMS THE FOLLOWING ACHIEVEMENTS –
30 OF 50 STATE GOVERNORS ARE REPUBLICAN
30 OF 50 STATE SENATES ARE CONTROLLED BY REPUBLICANS
28 OF 50 STATE HOUSES ARE CONTROLLED BY REPUBLICANS
THE RISING LEADERS IN THE REPUBLICAN PARTY ARE PRIMARILY YOUNG, VIBRANT AND DIVERSE WHILE THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY IS CONTROLLED BY NANCY PELOSI, HARRY REID AND THE CLINTONS. WHO SAID THE REPUBLICAN PARTY IS THE PARTY OF OLD WHITE PEOPLE? SEEMS LIKE THE DEMS ARE MORE REPRESENTATIVE OF THAT IMAGE THAN THE REPUBLICANS.
MYTH #1: The tea-baggers are a poor deluded bunch of folk doing the dirty work for their corporate funders. “Keep your government hands off my Medicare!” indeed!
MYTH #2: The republican party is doing ANYTHING toward representing, governing or helping average working people. They are the primary tool of the rich and powerful preserving the status-quo hand in hand with their democrat corporate-funded brethren in the Kabuki Theater that passes for politics and governance in this dying Empire…
FACT: don coyote either has a broken keyboard or has learned NOTHING about internet etiquette…
As for Ron Barber, we figured him out when we encountered him as Gabby’s Consigliere. He made sure that we didn’t get close to her with our Single-Payer “propaganda” and our suggestions that the war machine stop draining our resources and destroying any hope for democracy…
He’s a pro-war, pro-death-culture blue dog obscenity — in other words, a PERFECT CongressCritter for the dying Empire…
” Gabby Giffords traveled to Washington early during her recovery period to vote “YES” on the Affordable Care Act. Remember the standing ovation shown on TV that she received in Congress?”
Mr. Small, Ms. Giffords also promised her constituents that she would NOT support Obamacare under any circumstances. What did she do? Exactly what Nancy “We must pass this bill, to know what’s in it” Pelosi told her to. These self serving politicians need to go, and I say that as an independent, as both parties have let down their constituents.
“The tea-baggers are a poor deluded bunch of folk doing the dirty work for their corporate funders”
Seriously Chet? You think those same corporations do not fund the liberal Democrats?
The lawmakers should have their paychecks “Shutdown” until they figure this out. Total Recall, Please.
I have this crazy hope that one day tea party people and liberals can join together in fighting corporate money and influence in politics and policy. only problem is that i’m not sure i see any solutions that don’t involve government regulation in some form. may be a deal breaker.
Ugghhh…when will (most of) you people wake up and realize that our government is not the NFL and that blind loyalty to your “team” is lazy and ignorant. Unlike the Superbowl, we actually have skin in this game and our elected representatives (aka civil servants) and their actions actually impact our lives. Put down the brewski, get off the couch and educate yourselves! I’d add “before it’s too late” but I fear that ship has sailed.
Regarding one of the comments by marcus_jim, I’d like to set the record straight. Representative Gabrielle Giffords voted to pass the Affordable Care Act on March 21, 2010. Two days later it was signed into law by President Barack Obama. I state with confidence that it is false to say: “Ms. Giffords also promised her constituents that she would NOT support Obamacare under any circumstances.” And the vote for which Representative Giffords returned to the Capitol on August 1, 2011 was in favor of the motion to increase the debt ceiling by $2.1 trillion and to reduce federal spending over the next decade by $2.4 trillion. It passed. It was her last vote to date as a Member of Congress. Approve of her actions or not, but please get the facts straight.
After reading all of these posts…I can surely see the influence of the Democrat Party motto of name calling, bashing and the insane use of words like “terrorist” and “economy hostage”. I shouldn’t be surprised but I keep hoping people will think for themselves and open their eyes to the same old MO of the Democrat party and of course their followers suck it all up and spread it around. Of course the “RACE card” is played right on cue, like what Obama and Reid are doing is just fine. I am not a registered Democrat or Republican nor do I plan to be…it’s sicking how people are brainwashed on both sides.
Obama just doesn’t want to accept the fact that the majority of Americans chose divided government and elected representatives from their Congressional Districts in 2010 and 2012 who disagree with his policies, especially on healthcare which was rammed down the throats of the American people because we didn’t have divided government at the time. And even then it needed all sorts of legislative gimmicks and political favors to get it passed. Shouldn’t the people’s representatives have a voice in how the Federal government is run? Or do we have a monarchy?
Don Coyote, Americans are flooding the health care web sites in such numbers that the sites are crashing. That demonstrates how important this law is.
A friend of mine in Hawaii was paying $1,200 per month for health insurance. Now, with the Affordable Care Act, she will pay $451 per month, still too high, but much, much more affordable.
If you think that a handful of rogue politicians, a minority, who shut down the government in a futile attempt to defund … repeal … the Affordable Care Act, if you think that is okay, you are delusional, you are ki yi yi-ing at the moon, like your namesakes.
If the tables were turned and the Democrats were closing the government down until a
Republican President and Senate agreed to single payer health care or agreed to confiscation of all handguns, you would change your tune about minority domination of government.
All three branches of government – the executive, the congress and the judicial – have approved of the Affordable Health Care Act. This law is a vast improvement over the lack of affordable health care before the law passed.
I hope someone with a spine runs in the next Democratic primary
Dear Mr. Coyote, please don’t shout.
I have lived in Tucson and worked in Cochise County for many years. I shudder to think it, but Rep. Barber just might be looking ahead to the next election this time, acting out of fear for his political future rather than standing up against the bullies in Congress, and DA voters like Coyote above.