Ben Nelson Will Filibuster Senate Health Care Bill if Abortion Funding Remains
by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
December 3, 2009
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) — Senator Ben Nelson, a pro-life Nebraska Democrat, confirmed again today that he will filibuster the Senate government-run health care bill if it contains abortion funding. Nelson is sponsoring an amendment along with Sen. Orrin Hatch, that would remove the funding from the bill.
Nelson and Hatch, a Utah Republican, have an amendment that would be similar to the Stupak amendment the House adopted to revoke abortion funding.
Nelson told reporters today he will not vote for cloture, the motion that could be presented later this month to end debate.
"I will not vote to take it off the floor," said Nelson.
The lawmaker cautioned that he doesn’t know how the vote on his Stupak-type amendment will play out, though most political observers suggest it will not get the 60 votes needed for passage.
"Now I don’t know that it’s going to come down to that, because I don’t know that Stupak’s not going to pass, number one," he said.
"Number two I don’t know what kind of alternative legislation may be offered as an alternative bill. I don’t know what the next steps are, but I’ve made it clear that whatever is finally considered has to have that language in it," Nelson explained.
That would have him joining the Senate’s Republicans and could prevent Senate leader Harry Reid from getting the 60 votes he needs to end debate and approve the bill and its pro-abortion, pro-rationing components.
Nelson said yesterday that he plans on proposing his amendment shortly and LifeNews.com learned today that he is sending out drafts of the amendment today.
“My Senate amendment would ban any public funds from paying for abortions under a new health care reform bill,” he said Wednesday.
Nelson’s comments come on a day in which news that Sen. Bob Casey would not commit to opposing the bill made its way throughout the Internet.
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