The HCR Shit List

This is a list of 74 members of the House of Representatives who will get no support from me in whatever race they're running this year thanks to their votes in the recent health care reform effort: (methodology after the list)

• John Adler NJ-03
• Jason Altmire PA-04
• Mike Arcuri NY-24
• Joe Baca CA-43
• John Barrow GA-12
• Marion Berry AR-01
• Sanford Bishop GA-02
• John Boccieri OH-16
• Dan Boren OK-02
• Rick Boucher VA-09
• Bobby Bright AL-02
• Dennis Cardoza CA-18
• Christopher Carney PA-10
• Ben Chandler KY-06
• Travis Childers MS-01
• Jim Cooper TN-05
• Jim Costa CA-20
• Jerry Costello IL-12
• Henry Cuellar TX-28
• Kathy Dahlkemper PA-03
• Artur Davis AL-07
• Lincoln Davis TN-04
• Joe Donnelly IN-02
• Michael Doyle PA-14
• Steve Driehaus OH-01
• Chet Edwards TX-17
• Brad Ellsworth IN-08
• Bob Etheridge NC-02
• Bart Gordon TN-06
• Stephanie Herseth Sandlin SD-AL
• Baron Hill IN-09
• Tim Holden PA-17
• Paul Kanjorski PA-11
• Marcy Kaptur OH-09
• Dale Kildee MI-05
• Larry Kissell NC-08
• Frank Kratovil MD-01
• Jim Langevin RI-02
• Dan Lipinski IL-03
• Stephen Lynch MA-09
• Jim Marshall GA-08
• Jim Matheson UT-02
• Mike McIntyre NC-07
• Mike McMahon NY-13
• Charlie Melancon LA-03
• Michael Michaud ME-02
• Walt Minnick ID-01
• Alan Mollohan WV-01
• Richard Neal MA-02
• Glenn Nye VA-02
• Jim Oberstar MN-08
• David Obey WI-07
• Solomon Ortiz TX-27
• Tom Perriello VA-05
• Collin Peterson MN-07
• Earl Pomeroy ND-AL
• Nick Rahall WV-03
• Silvestre Reyes TX-16
• Ciro Rodriguez TX-23
• Mike Ross AR-04
• Tim Ryan OH-17
• John Salazar CO-03
• Heath Shuler NC-11
• Ike Skelton MO-04
• Vic Snyder AR-02
• Zack Space OH-18
• John Spratt SC-05
• Bart Stupak MI-01
• John Tanner TN-08
• Gene Taylor MS-04
• Harry Teague NM-02
• Charlie Wilson OH-06

I put this together more for myself than anything else, to refer back to as we approach the election and I get more and more fundraising appeals. Anyone on this list will get a polite reply explaining exactly why I won't be supporting them this year. Some of these people I gave money to in 2008. Some of these people are running for Senate seats, or running for Governor of their state, rather than running for reelection in the House. The best outcome in every case would be for them to lose a primary to a real Democrat.

I don't buy blue dog excuses about "voting their districts" and how "at least they're better than a Republican." How are they better than a Republican? Being a Democrat is about more than just voting for Nancy Pelosi as Speaker. Health care reform was the Democrats' signature domestic issue of 2009-2010, and on that issue, these people were exactly as bad as Republicans. You either vote Aye or you vote Nay, and they stood athwart history and voted Nay. Good riddance.

There were seven total health care votes I looked at, four from November and three from March. They are:

• 2009 House Roll Call 884, Passage of the odious Stupak-Pitts coathanger amendment.
• 2009 House Roll Call 885, Passage of John Boehner's amendment to scrap the entire bill and replace it with a resolution in support of the color orange, or something.
• 2009 House Roll Call 886, Motion to Recommit and send the bill back to committee.
• 2009 House Roll Call 887, Final passage of the House health care bill.
• 2010 House Roll Call 165, Passage of the health care bill the Senate had passed last Christmas.
• 2010 House Roll Call 166, Motion to Recommit on the reconciliation bill of amendments to (somewhat) fix the Senate bill.
• 2010 House Roll Call 167, Passage of the reconciliation bill.

I did not look at the roll call vote of passage of the revised reconciliation bill after the Senate parliamentarian edited it down, as that passed rather perfunctorily and everyone who voted against it had also voted against the bill when it originally passed the House. Indeed, even out of these seven, I eliminated three from consideration: Roll Call 885 on a "substitute amendment" offered by Orange Julius, got zero Democratic votes. I decided to throw out the votes on passing the bill in November, 886 Motion to Recommit and 887 final passage, because anyone who voted against that bill got a second chance to do the right thing when the Senate bill was voted on in March. There are six people who benefit from this second chance: Brian Baird WA-03, Allen Boyd FL-02, Suzanne Kosmas FL-24, Dennis Kucinich OH-10, Betsy Markey CO-04, and Scott Murphy NY-20.

There are also three people who would be on this list if they were still House Democrats: Eric Massa NY-29 voted against the bill in November and has since resigned in disgrace. Parker Griffith AL-05 hit the trifecta of voting for Stupak, for the motion to recommit, and against passing the bill, and has since gone ahead and switched parties. Anyone else on this list is welcome to emulate one of these two. Jack Murtha PA-12 voted for Stupak, and sadly he passed away in early February.