President Bush Vetoes SCHIP

10/3/07

Washington- President Bush, in a sharp confrontation with Congress, today vetoed a bipartisan bill that would have dramatically expanded children's health insurance. It was only the fourth veto of Bush's presidency, and one that some Republicans feared could carry steep risks for their party in next year's elections. The Senate approved the bill with enough votes to override the veto, but the margin in the House fell short of the required number.

Democrats unleashed a stream of harsh rhetoric, as they geared up for a battle to both improve their chances of winning a veto override and score political points against Republicans who oppose the expansion.

I'm very disappointed with Bush, but not surprised. The S-CHIP plan that seeks to help millions of children with their health care needs and heartless Bush denies them! I mean think about it, do we really want a bunch of sick children in this country. I understand that billions have been given to the program over the last five years, but this bi-partisan bill was to cover more than 10 million of our little ones in the United States. These are parents that have decent paying jobs who don't qualify for Medicaid. I could see if we were talking about lazy no good parents that are taking care of their children by using the government. It kills me how we'll support and pacify millions of people on welfare, but won't help many who are just trying to make ends meet. The cost of living is higher, the gas prices have gone up, even food is more expensive. When are we going to stop being so ignorant, these children are innocent human beings that deserve to be treated equally. We're still in Iraq fighting a war that shouldn't have happened at all. A new report just came out about Federal employees in Washington that have spent more than $146 million just on outside luxuries, such as travel and other big perks, but Bush can't help innocent children. It's just absolutely absurd and ridiculous that this man doesn't have the capacity to do good. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a child advocate, but a single mother that works hard for the money everyday and even I struggle. Fortunately for me, my employers give excellent benefits and that's the upside of working at a medical school. The children of this country are the future, these are the individuals that will pay taxes when they get older and fund our Social Security! It's really great to see all parties come together on this, not all Republicans agree, but there's a general consensus that they want some kind of health care for these children. This crosses all color lines and it's more of a socioeconomic issue than anything. I hope that Congress can bring forth a revised resolution that President Bush will adhere too!

Update: Bush is willing to spend more on the program, although he hasn't specified how much of an increase in funds there will be. That a boy! He probably felt the heat from both parties, because this veto had some serious consequences for the Republican party in next year's election.