Lincoln Fails to Represent Arkansans - Again

Curtis Coleman, Candidate for U.S. Senate:* Senator Blanche Lincoln has once again failed to represent the values of Arkansans by voting against two key amendments to the Senate Finance Committee’s “Baucus Bill” yesterday.

“Arkansans should know that I will not support a health care plan that would require insurance companies to cover abortion, require physicians to perform abortions, or allow federal dollars to fund abortions,” Lincoln said. But in clear contradiction of this statement, she voted (by proxy) against two amendments submitted by Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah).

Sen. Hatch proposed an amendment that would have ensured that taxpayers’ dollars would not be used to fund abortions through the new programs or subsidies created in the current health bill. Senator Lincoln voted against the amendment. According to Americans United for Life, the Baucus bill allows qualified health plans to provide coverage for all abortions and mandates that at least one plan in each state exchange provide coverage of all abortions. Senator Hatch proposed his amendment “because this bill both authorizes and provides the funding for the premium subsidies, [and] no future appropriations bill would be necessary in regards to this specific funding.”

The second amendment offered by Sen. Hatch would have prohibited the federal government, state governments and local governments from forcing health providers, such as hospitals and physicians, to provide abortions. His amendment also would have prohibited governmental bodies from receiving federal dollars if they take action against any health care provider because the provider does not cover, provide or make references for abortions; in short, from discriminating against those who do not want to perform, cover or make references for abortions. Senator Lincoln voted against this amendment also.

It is clearly time for Arkansas to recover its voice and vote for life in the U.S. Senate.

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*Editor's Comment: ARRA News Service has not endorsed any Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate against Sen. Blanche Lincoln. However, we oppose Lincoln's re-election and therefore reserve the right to share any opinion or position expressed by a candidate concerning Lincoln's performance or actions.

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