Letters to the Editor 12/14

Senator distorts facts on bill amendment

I am appalled at the gall of Senator Nelson. In his letter to the editor, published on December 11th, Nelson continually misrepresents himself and his amendment. Nelson says his amendment would merely uphold the status quo.

To understand this falsehood, background from the House Of Representatives abortion debate is needed. The amendment that had been offered in the house that would have upheld the Hyde amendment (the status quo that Nelson mentioned in his article) was rejected and offered by Rep. Brad Ellsworth. This amendment would allow health care plans that cover abortion to be bought using federal subsidies, however, would have mandated that none of the subsidies be used for abortion. The Stupak amendment, however, went a step beyond what is currently law. This amendment bars anyone receiving federal subsidies from buying plans that would cover abortion, even if federal funds were not used for the abortion procedure itself.

Essentially, if someone wants a plan that would cover abortion privately, they would not be able to get federal subsidies to help pay for anything else, from heart problems to doctors visits for their children. This is the eventual amendment that passed and was also the amendment that Nelson chose to take word for word and bring to the Senate. It is important to realize that this amendment is not at all the status quo that Nelson claims it is. It goes much further by cutting off access to abortion completely by anyone who is not in the upper class of society that can either afford a much more expensive plan or (afford) to pay out of pocket for the procedure.

I can be respectful of the senator's views as he asks, but I cannot respect a man who would bold face lie about his actions, and that is what Senator Nelson is doing.

Michael Dunn

Co-Chair of the Progressive Student Coalition