“I opposed Judge Hamilton’s confirmation because I find some of his decisions to be extreme, including those on public prayer.”

November 19th, 2009 – WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), chairman of the Senate Republican Conference, today issued the following statement on the Senate Democratic health care bill:

“Considering last night’s election results in Virginia and New Jersey, I’m not surprised that Rep. Gordon has changed his position,” said Devaney. “He is obviously running scared. It is difficult to take Rep. Gordon seriously considering he already voted for an earlier version of a government takeover of health care that would have raised taxes and slashed Seniors’ Medicare benefits.”

“Last night’s results are even more proof that Americans are rejecting the liberal policies being pushed by Democrats across the country,” said Devaney. “Here in Tennessee we saw first-hand a shift to the right when Republican Pat Marsh swept a State House seat out from under generations of Democrat control and did it by a wide 15-point margin. Now we’ve seen it in Virginia and New Jersey. Of course Democrats are going to do everything they can to downplay these significant victories, but the fact remains that as we move closer to 2010, voters are consistently signaling their discontent with Democrats and are looking for more conservative candidates that want to limit government and protect taxpayer dollars. I’d like to congratulate Governors-elect McDonnell and Christie on their victories last night and I know both will serve their states well.”

“The introduction of this 2,000 page legislation is a perfect example of President Obama and Speaker Pelosi turning their backs on the majority of Americans that continue to say ‘NO’ to a government takeover of health care,” said Devaney. “Not only are Democrats opening the door to government-run health care, but they’re paying for it by cutting Medicare benefits for seniors, raising taxes and forcing states to pick up the tab for a massive expansion of Medicaid. The question is whether Tennessee Democrats are going to fall in line behind the Speaker and vote in favor of this irresponsible legislation.”

According to a vote database provided by the Washington
Post, Tennessee Democrats have consistently voted with Speaker Pelosi and her liberal allies during this Congress. According to the Post’s database, during the 111th Congress:

• Steve Cohen (TN-9) has voted with the majority of his Democrat colleagues 98.4 percent of the time;

• Jim Cooper (TN-5) has voted with the majority of his Democrat colleagues 88.1 percent of the time;

• Lincoln Davis (TN-4) has voted with the majority of his Democrat colleagues 94.8 percent of the time;

• Bart Gordon (TN-6) has voted with the majority of his Democrat colleagues 96.7 percent of the time; And

• John Tanner (TN-8) has voted with the majority of his Democrat colleagues 94.4 percent of the time.

“What is most disturbing about these numbers is that it proves the Tennessee Democrats who always tout their Blue Dog conservative values are, in the end, just lap dogs for their liberal Speaker,” continued Devaney. “I’ll be interested to see if they roll over for the Speaker next week or if they finally decide to stand up on behalf of the majority of Tennesseans that don’t want to see their health care in the hands of the government.”

A recent report from the Associated Press outlined a few notable items in House Democrats’ legislation introduced today:

“The legislation would be financed by a combination of cuts in planned Medicare spending and an income tax surcharge of 5.4 percent on individuals making at least $500,000 annually and couples making at least $1 million.

“The bill would require nearly everyone by 2013 to sign up for health coverage either through their employer, a government program or the new exchange…”

“The plan also calls for a significant expansion of Medicaid, the federal-state health program for low-income people. And it would impose a requirement on employers to offer insurance to their workers or face penalties."

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“I’d like to congratulate Pat and his family on this momentous occasion,” said Devaney. “This is a really good day for his district and the State of Tennessee. Pat won this seat because he is a true conservative who will use his business experience to strengthen our economy by reigning in wasteful government spending and supporting pro-growth policies that will fuel job creation across the state. There is no question that Pat is the right man for this job and it was great to see him officially sworn in to represent District 62.”

Pat Marsh was elected on October 13, 2009 in a special election against Democrat Ty Cobb whose brother, Curt Cobb, had resigned the District 62 House seat to take another job. Despite the seat being a Democrat stronghold for generations, Pat defeated Cobb by a 15-point margin of 56-41 percent.