Hulshof: “Open to compromise” on SCHIP
October 7, 2007 18 Comments
U.S. Rep. Kenny Hulshof, R-Columbia, addresses the Republican faithful at the Boone County GOP Chili Supper last week. Hulshof voted against legislative reauthorizing and expanding the State Children’s Health Care program, but added he is willing to compromise. (PHOTO: Jason Rosenbaum)
U.S. Rep. Kenny Hulshof, R-Columbia, would consider voting for legislation to reauthorize and expand the SCHIP program that went beyond President George W. Bush’s desired price tag of $5 billion.
But to do that, he said, the Democratic majority in Congress would have to alter a number of elements inside the bill.
“I’m open to compromise as well on some expansion. But I think the original intent of the program was for children and not for adult,” Hulshof said last Friday at the Boone County GOP Chili Supper. “That needs to be one of the measures that’s tweaked. I think this 400 percent of the poverty level… having a family in New York that’s looking at the Alternative Minimum Tax and getting subsidized health care for kids is not the way we want to go.”
Hulshof joined Reps. Sam Graves, R-Tarkio, Todd Akin, R-Town and Country, and Roy Blunt, R-Springfield, in voting against a $35 billion expansion of the program targeted at children in families that earn too much to qualify for Medicaid and not enough to afford private health insurance. Bush vetoed the legislation last week.
Sens. Kit Bond, R-Missouri, and Claire McCaskill, D-Missouri, supported the legislation. But the six-term lawmaker – and other Republicans – have decried numerous aspects of the legislation, including the ability for adults to qualify,funding through a 61-cent hike in cigarette taxes and the ability for children of illegal immigrants to get on the program.
If those aforementioned issues were rectified, Hulshof said, there would be a huge bipartisan majority to support the legislation.
“First of all we did the extension,” Hulshof said, referring to a supplemental funding bill that keeps the program alive through mid-November. “And hopefully we’ll continue to do that – another clean extension – if we can’t get there. I’m disappointed when I heard the comments today by Sen. Harry Reid that said, ‘We’ve already compromised. We’re not going to move any further.’ And that’s a tough position when you’re truly trying to build consensus in the opposite of consensus. So I hope for compromise. I think just on a few issues on the income level, on childless adults, on the immigration issue – if we could just tweak a couple of those issues, we could have a huge bipartisan vote.”
“One of the things in New Jersey, the White House said that you have to make sure 90 percent of the enrollees are, in fact, children,” Hulshof added. “And [Gov. John Corzine] said, ‘I don’t care what you say, we’re going to do what we’re going to do.’ I can’t in good conscience on behalf of Missourians… let that happen in New Jersey. But I think there’s room for negotiation.”
Although there are enough votes in the U.S. Senate to override Bush’s veto, chances in the House are considerably dicier.
About jrosenbaum
J.A.R. 
The 5 billion that President Bush is proposing would actually insure less children than the current program. The insurance is not free for children with parents that make more money. There is a premium. One of the most vulnerable times for people to be uncovered by insurance is their transition from student to working person. It is extremely common for someone not to have insurance during college, looking for a job after college, and while working before someone finds a good job. This problem has been growing and will continue to grow if it is not addressed.
It is not up to the taxpayers and government to protect you from craddle to grave.
People need to make choices. You have those who claim they cannot afford to insure themselves or their children yet they are driving around in a car, with 3 cell phones living in houses with 3 or 4 tvs, game system, etc.
Sometimes in life you have to make choices…they are not fun but children and your own health should come before the I-Phone and playstation 3.
It is not up to the taxpayers and government to protect you from craddle to grave.
People need to make choices. You have those who claim they cannot afford to insure themselves or their children yet they are driving around in a car, with 3 cell phones living in houses with 3 or 4 tvs, game system, etc.
Sometimes in life you have to make choices…they are not fun but children and your own health should come before the I-Phone and playstation 3.
You are correct life is about choices. But children can’t choose the insurance policies for themselves. We have a responsibility as a community to raise our children morally and provide a healthy environment. Our health system in this country has fallen short. It is certainly too expensive for poor people and especially poor children. It is too expensive for the middle class as well. People are dropping out of the middle class because of the expensive ineffective health care system. You may think that we have a great system but I know poor people who just can’t make it because of it and I also know people in the middle class that can just barely make it. I think the community should come together and help children have health insurance. It is about choices. If we can come up with a better system that is cheaper, fairer, and better. Why not? Look at the other countries and I think they have done a better job. Better life expectancy, better outcomes, less cost. If you look at the raw data you can’t argue against that. I’m making a choice and if the politician says everything is great now and we need to keep it the same, well I’m going to vote for someone else who wants to reform. Because the medical system is broken.
You are right is it our obligation to help the children….the obligation of their parents and family not through the power of prison by the federal government. The government has no business forcibly taking my tax dollars to help those who are so-called too poor to afford health insurance.
Wal-Mart offer health insurance for under $50 a month. Most employers offer health insurance for a very reasonable rate.
But in the end it is about life choices. If you cannot afford to insure your child and make their health paramount in your life…whacky idea spend $5 on a box of condoms instead of having kids.
If you do have kids and your choice is between the new sneakers, the gaming system, nicer car, 3 tvs, 2 dvd players, computer, and cell phones for the whole family with the whole package and making sure your children at least have health insurance…well that seems like an easy choice.
But instead we as Americans have become the “gimme gimme” country. In which life isn’t about what you make it and how you choose to live. It is about doing whatever you want and letting someone else or the government take care of you from craddle to grave.
So yeah maybe the easier fix to health care is, if you cannot adequately insure your children and provide them basi healthcare…then maybe they should be taken for neglect and put up for adoption.
“I ask your continued participation and confidence in the American economy.”
George W. Bush, September 20, 2001
“I ask your continued participation and confidence in the American economy.”
George W. Bush, September 20, 2001
You know families that are barely making it. Middle-class and the poor. Yet you want to tax them (and me!) more to pay for health insurance by a big government that really could care less about the poor than toting their a*? around the state/country to get reelected to a position that they hardly have any duties (and don’t give voice to their constituents they represent), are lobbied off to some exotic vacation, and are paid on average $180,000. Why don’t they try to take a cut in pay and help out the poor if they really care? I know my paycheck isn’t even close to $180,000. You put too much confidence in a bunch of men that promise things they never deliver. Systems work best with checks and balances….and competition. Well, and let us not forget morality. You have been lied to and are still being lied to that they can make it work. When the government can actually show me that it works…..I will hesitantly begin to open my mind. Of course, my forefathers who invented this country never put trust in big government. I have yet to see big government work with an amazing amount of taxpayer dollars. It won’t work. Plain and simple. I know the poor need help, but trust me on this….this is NOT about the poor. This is about POWER. And the power needs to go to the states, local governments, and by all means…..get the charities and faith based organizations involved. They usually know their people best and are more apt to cut off the money when abuse is present. I wonder when all this is going to have to come down to America standing up again and throwing some tea (maybe oil?) into the harbor……
I’m tired of all the lies. And haven’t you seen enough with the education system and how “more money” and “regulations” by the government ruined the system? You want the same result then by all means, try it again and call it something else. I think they call that insanity.
You are right, a Lot of people do not trust government because it has let us down lately. The Republicans run on the premise “government isn’t a solution it is the problem”. If you have that attitude, and you have such disdain for government, how can you also be a good steward to government? It has been a self-fulfilling prophecy for the Republicans. They have got elected by basically promising bad government and then basically delivering bad government. The war in Iraq has cost us $556 billion which we had to borrow from our children, Katrina speaks for itself, personal scandals of the Republicans, porkbarrel spending and the list goes on. I understand your hesitancy to trust government. The Republicans have won elections by promising tax cuts which is fine if you have a balanced budget. The problem is that they have financed the tax cuts by borrowing. We owe $10 trillion because of it. Everyone in this country owes $30,000 in debt and it’s still growing. President Bush said “it’s your money and were again and again it back” well, it’s also your debt too. We have to work a substantial part of the year to just pay the interest payments.
How do we get out of this mess? I would say give the Democrats a chance. We have been following a Republican agenda for the last 25 years. Even during the Clinton administration, it has been Republican light. Of course Democrats are not perfect but by and large they do not make this mess. They do not have a disdain for government and have not vandalized it.
I also know I do not trust my medical insurance company. Private insurance rates are going up to 18% a year. The company share that pays for the employees is $830 a month. The deductibles are growing while at the same time they are paying for less. Healthcare is costing more to corporations, small businesses and individuals. We have been unleashing market forces for 40 years and it hasn’t been working. Do you really believe that health care is getting better? Not for me or anyone that I know. I think most people agree on this. We spend the most but this generation that is born now is expected to have a lower life expectancy than we do. We don’t have to reinvent the wheel. Other countries are doing better than us with less. If they could do it, I know that we can. This is a great country and I wanted to continue to be a great country.
Well, would you call our forefathers good stewards of government? They had to fight a war against their government. I’m not against government, it serves a purpose. But what I ask is…for what purpose? The power to govern should be to the people. It’s not anymore. That is what I speak against. I speak against government taking over our lives. The rights belong to the people of this country not just an elect few in office. I think they have forgotten this concept. And I think we should remind them. I’m not speaking for Republicans….or against Democrats. They both have let us down. And my concern is not only for healthcare and my pocketbook but social issues as well. I do not want my children living in an America where wrong is called right. I would not vote for the Democrats running simply because they refuse to stand up and call abortion, homosexuality, pornography, and on and on…..for what it is and that is wrong. I again state that morality is a necessity to this republic and an answer to some of the huge problems of greed and power. We have the power,the people, to fix this. I am simply stating that I do not want the government in my life mandating what I will and will not do. Creativity and the amazing things we have done as a country is because we were given the right to and the freedom to be. I am simply asking you to rethink giving the government this much control of your life….your health. They already control much of your children’s education. It is not going so well in that department. And thank God we have other options than public (as of yet…). I am imploring that everyone take a hard look at when a government takes control of everyday decisions and lives of people….and how that goes. History shows not so well. I guess you can always move to Canada and put your name on a waiting list there to be seen by a physician. That’s always an option.
Well, would you call our forefathers good stewards of government? They had to fight a war against their government. I’m not against government, it serves a purpose. But what I ask is…for what purpose? The power to govern should be to the people. It’s not anymore. That is what I speak against. I speak against government taking over our lives. The rights belong to the people of this country not just an elect few in office. I think they have forgotten this concept. And I think we should remind them. I’m not speaking for Republicans….or against Democrats. They both have let us down. And my concern is not only for healthcare and my pocketbook but social issues as well. I do not want my children living in an America where wrong is called right. I would not vote for the Democrats running simply because they refuse to stand up and call abortion, homosexuality, pornography, and on and on…..for what it is and that is wrong. I again state that morality is a necessity to this republic and an answer to some of the huge problems of greed and power. We have the power,the people, to fix this. I am simply stating that I do not want the government in my life mandating what I will and will not do. Creativity and the amazing things we have done as a country is because we were given the right to and the freedom to be. I am simply asking you to rethink giving the government this much control of your life….your health. They already control much of your children’s education. It is not going so well in that department. And thank God we have other options than public (as of yet…). I am imploring that everyone take a hard look at when a government takes control of everyday decisions and lives of people….and how that goes. History shows not so well. I guess you can always move to Canada and put your name on a waiting list there to be seen by a physician. That’s always an option.
I have to post this because you are in denial if you think the Democrats have not vandalized the government. I’m all for conservative Democrats. Zell Miller would get my vote any day.
I esteem your devotion to your party, but open your eyes and realize that it is BOTH parties pulling a veil over your eyes. Don’t vote party, vote for the man whose ideals, values, and views uphold America and will sustain her.
I used to be an Independent until the Republicans went far to the right, run up huge deficits, ignored real problems of Americans, and became demagogues with a “wide stance”.
Wow, lots to go on here…
First off, Isabelle, homosexuality is NOT wrong. We have now absolute 100% proof that it is NOT just a chosen “lifestyle,” one must simply be hiding from reality to continue to treat it as such. It’s not a moral issue, because it’s not a choice. A 1940s knowledge and attitude towards this issue and the bigoted and discrimatory legislation it leads to helps nobody. Not one person. It never made any of us better off. But it has destroyed thousands of lives, made thousands of innocent people much, much worse off.
If you think abortion is wrong, don’t have one. Forcing your “right and wrong” on others is a big problem. I think using cusswords is wrong. I don’t think it should be illegal.
Also, the claim that money “ruined the system” in education is absolutely absurd. The system isn’t ruined, the system is fine except that it’s desperately underfunded. Yeah, things changed, test scores went down. You know why? Because we stopped taking all the disabled kids and hiding them away in the “LD Trailer” and pretending they didn’t exist. IDEA has drastically increased costs, and yeah, our test scores will be lower than nations which kick disabled kids out of regular schools when they’re 7. It’s still the right thing to do. The system is fine, just underfunded.
Shane, if you think everyone without health insurance has plenty of money for it but wasted it all on i-phones and video games you have, like so many people on the right, a deep delusional misunderstanding of what life is like for poor people. And it’s chosen. YOu have to WORK at it to be so far from reality, to think there’s NOBODY who couldn’t afford all the neccessities of life easily if they just did without luxuries. It ain’t true. There’s plenty of people without i-phones who are in poverty. Saying “life is about choices” is horsecrap, blaming people instead of helping them doesn’t fix the problem, telling poor people and sick people and children in poverty “it’s all your fault” is not only not solving the problem it’s morally wrong. Dead wrong. Jesus didn’t tell us “feed my children, if you think they deserve it.” We aren’t given that option. EVERYONE is His child.
To talk about Canada with this is ridiculous, none of the candidates, not even Kusinich is calling for single payer (and the situation in Canada isn’t nearly as bad as people claim) You WILL be allowed to choose your doctor and you WILL be allowed to have your insurance. You talk about choices, yet NOW for all of us, and I do mean ALL of us we don’t make decisions, the insurance company does. If you want a procedure, your doctor thinks you need it, the insurance company won’t pay for it, it ain’t happening. If you think the government’s worse…if you think having it decided by the government which is responsible to the PEOPLE is worse than having an HMO with only one job…profit…you must not be able to add.
And Zell Miller is not a conservative Democrat. He’s a Republican, and he’s a sleazy liar, to boot. There are plenty of conservative Democrats, we have some good ones in Missouri like Ike Skelton, we had Harold Volkmer. If you look at the issues instead of image and cheap attacks from right wing hate radio you’ll see that Hillary Clinton’s real darn close to the center everyone claims they want to be at. Cares about the poor but responsible fiscal management, strong on defense and security, cut the deficit, get access to health care without it just all going to the government, you say you want the center, she’s as close to it as they come.
One final thing, you say “don’t vote party…vote for ideals, values.” I do. I vote for a Democrat very nearly every time BECAUSE of my ideals and values. My ideals and values match those of the Democratic Party. People who switch back and forth aren’t voting on ideals, they’re voting on who has the best TV ads or who their neighbors like. If you have ideals, if you look at the issues and have strongly held beliefs, you’re going to be in one party or the other most of the time. And there’s not a darn thing wrong with that. The state never should have taken away the straight party vote, there was no good reason for it at all except the Republicans knew more Democrats used it, and they were trying to trick a few of them into not voting for all the Democrats, a really cheap stunt. Vote all Democrat, vote all Republican, there’s nothing wrong with that if it’s what you believe in. If beliefs and issues are more important that fluff and image, you’ll vote pretty close to straight ticket most likely. I’ve voted Republican a time or two, sadly the Democrats have put people up that are so far to the left AND simply incompetent against Hulshof a time or two, but for the most part I’m straight ticket. And proud of it.
Wow, lots to go on here…
First off, Isabelle, homosexuality is NOT wrong. We have now absolute 100% proof that it is NOT just a chosen “lifestyle,” one must simply be hiding from reality to continue to treat it as such. It’s not a moral issue, because it’s not a choice. A 1940s knowledge and attitude towards this issue and the bigoted and discrimatory legislation it leads to helps nobody. Not one person. It never made any of us better off. But it has destroyed thousands of lives, made thousands of innocent people much, much worse off.
If you think abortion is wrong, don’t have one. Forcing your “right and wrong” on others is a big problem. I think using cusswords is wrong. I don’t think it should be illegal.
Also, the claim that money “ruined the system” in education is absolutely absurd. The system isn’t ruined, the system is fine except that it’s desperately underfunded. Yeah, things changed, test scores went down. You know why? Because we stopped taking all the disabled kids and hiding them away in the “LD Trailer” and pretending they didn’t exist. IDEA has drastically increased costs, and yeah, our test scores will be lower than nations which kick disabled kids out of regular schools when they’re 7. It’s still the right thing to do. The system is fine, just underfunded.
Shane, if you think everyone without health insurance has plenty of money for it but wasted it all on i-phones and video games you have, like so many people on the right, a deep delusional misunderstanding of what life is like for poor people. And it’s chosen. YOu have to WORK at it to be so far from reality, to think there’s NOBODY who couldn’t afford all the neccessities of life easily if they just did without luxuries. It ain’t true. There’s plenty of people without i-phones who are in poverty. Saying “life is about choices” is horsecrap, blaming people instead of helping them doesn’t fix the problem, telling poor people and sick people and children in poverty “it’s all your fault” is not only not solving the problem it’s morally wrong. Dead wrong. Jesus didn’t tell us “feed my children, if you think they deserve it.” We aren’t given that option. EVERYONE is His child.
To talk about Canada with this is ridiculous, none of the candidates, not even Kusinich is calling for single payer (and the situation in Canada isn’t nearly as bad as people claim) You WILL be allowed to choose your doctor and you WILL be allowed to have your insurance. You talk about choices, yet NOW for all of us, and I do mean ALL of us we don’t make decisions, the insurance company does. If you want a procedure, your doctor thinks you need it, the insurance company won’t pay for it, it ain’t happening. If you think the government’s worse…if you think having it decided by the government which is responsible to the PEOPLE is worse than having an HMO with only one job…profit…you must not be able to add.
And Zell Miller is not a conservative Democrat. He’s a Republican, and he’s a sleazy liar, to boot. There are plenty of conservative Democrats, we have some good ones in Missouri like Ike Skelton, we had Harold Volkmer. If you look at the issues instead of image and cheap attacks from right wing hate radio you’ll see that Hillary Clinton’s real darn close to the center everyone claims they want to be at. Cares about the poor but responsible fiscal management, strong on defense and security, cut the deficit, get access to health care without it just all going to the government, you say you want the center, she’s as close to it as they come.
One final thing, you say “don’t vote party…vote for ideals, values.” I do. I vote for a Democrat very nearly every time BECAUSE of my ideals and values. My ideals and values match those of the Democratic Party. People who switch back and forth aren’t voting on ideals, they’re voting on who has the best TV ads or who their neighbors like. If you have ideals, if you look at the issues and have strongly held beliefs, you’re going to be in one party or the other most of the time. And there’s not a darn thing wrong with that. The state never should have taken away the straight party vote, there was no good reason for it at all except the Republicans knew more Democrats used it, and they were trying to trick a few of them into not voting for all the Democrats, a really cheap stunt. Vote all Democrat, vote all Republican, there’s nothing wrong with that if it’s what you believe in. If beliefs and issues are more important that fluff and image, you’ll vote pretty close to straight ticket most likely. I’ve voted Republican a time or two, sadly the Democrats have put people up that are so far to the left AND simply incompetent against Hulshof a time or two, but for the most part I’m straight ticket. And proud of it.
Yee Haw Cowboy…..calm down.
I first want to address that schools are not underfunded. The NEA is the problem. There is no competition. And if your school sucks….your child is stuck going there (Unless you can afford private….or can homeschool;which a lot of parents are considering). There is also the problem of bad teachers not being able to be fired because of the union. Parents should have a lot more options open to them…thus the beginning of charter schools. Teachers that are not teaching or whose students are performing poorly on a consistent basis, should be fired; and the principals should have the right to do so. The system is not underfunded; it’s overly lobbied. I taught my children for WAY under what the government gives for the teaching of one child in public school. And I have to say, my children can read at least.
Hillary is a socialist in disguise. And a liar…but I guess that runs in the family tree.
As far as homosexuality, I know not one culture that has fared well with it in place as a welcomed attribute to society. We are all HIS children….and children that need to obey His word. I am not saying I am perfect, but to change social structure is a very, very unwise decision.
And by the way……cuss words don’t kill. But abortion has killed 45 million people. And just think, that’s a whole generation of people that could have funded precious Medicaid…..and maybe the sacred national healthcare system.
And I am so sick of Democrats telling Republicans that they don’t care about the poor or the sick simply because they don’t hold the same view of how those people should be cared for and how the system should be funded. I care about the poor and the sick, but I think Washington Don’t.Care. should not be funding these programs for the sick and poor. We both care. We just both hold a different view about how to best go about caring for these people. I tend to think mine is best……
And one more thing cowboy, I know how to add. Maybe you should hit a few websites (or even better…some books!) about where your precious government money is going (aka…YOUR tax money). If that’s not pure profit (and waste), then I don’t know what is.
I too think that the government wastes money. And I think it has the wrong priorities. We aren’t getting ou money’s worth. I asked that you think about a few things carefully. As a general rule, the Republicans generally say it is your money and we are going to give it back to you in a tax cut in every election cycle and it seems to get them elected. They then give a tax cut but the tax cut is not free. We have a $10 trillion debt which means we must pay interest to the people that we borrow from. We borrow money from our kids, foreign investors like China and people in the Middle East. In 2006, the taxpayers paid $406 billion in interest payments. Compare that to the $35 billion over 5 years for the SChip program that would have provided insurance to children in the US. So far we have spent $556 billion on a losing war in Iraq. Our military budget for 2007 was $553 billion which is about as much as the rest of the world combined. I believe we have the wrong priorities which is costing us dearly. We are paying now for our mistakes and our kids are to pick up the final bill.
I too think that the government wastes money. And I think it has the wrong priorities. We aren’t getting ou money’s worth. I asked that you think about a few things carefully. As a general rule, the Republicans generally say it is your money and we are going to give it back to you in a tax cut in every election cycle and it seems to get them elected. They then give a tax cut but the tax cut is not free. We have a $10 trillion debt which means we must pay interest to the people that we borrow from. We borrow money from our kids, foreign investors like China and people in the Middle East. In 2006, the taxpayers paid $406 billion in interest payments. Compare that to the $35 billion over 5 years for the SChip program that would have provided insurance to children in the US. So far we have spent $556 billion on a losing war in Iraq. Our military budget for 2007 was $553 billion which is about as much as the rest of the world combined. I believe we have the wrong priorities which is costing us dearly. We are paying now for our mistakes and our kids are to pick up the final bill.