[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 20]
[Senate]
[Page 27581]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        HOUSE-PASSED HEALTH CARE

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, last Saturday evening, Democratic 
leaders in the House passed by the narrowest of margins a massive bill 
with a simple goal: to vastly expand the Federal Government's role in 
the health care decisions of every American. This bill is strongly 
opposed by most Americans, which is why one out of seven Democrats 
voted against it. These Democrats have gotten the message that 
Americans are fed up with all the spending and all the debt and that 
they do not support a so-called health care reform that raises 
premiums, raises taxes, and slashes Medicare. Americans don't want a 
2,000-page, trillion-dollar government experiment in health care. They 
want commonsense reforms that increase access and lower costs.
  Soon, Senate Democrats will propose their version of a health care 
bill. We don't yet know all the details, but we do know that at its 
core, this bill would also lead to higher premiums, higher taxes, and 
massive cuts to Medicare to fund new government programs. This is not 
the reform the American people were looking for. This is not the reform 
they were told they could expect.
  Americans feel as though they have been taken for a ride in this 
debate. I don't blame them. It is time we listen to the American 
people. At a time of double-digit unemployment and record deficits and 
debt, the views of ordinary Americans should not be cast aside.

                          ____________________