Bush’s SCHIP Veto Among Texan’s Worst Actions As President
By Vince Leibowitz on Oct 3, 2007 in National Politics      
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Some things are just so terrible, they are impossible to justify. Such is the case with President Bush’s veto of the SCHIP reauthorization and expansion bill, (which is so bad it actually got me out of the sick bed today to blog about it).
I can’t say that I am surprised by Bush’s veto, though. We’ve all heard the “horror stories” of Bush’s private, behind-closed-doors bullying of Texas Legislators while he was governor of Texas and the Texas Legislature was enacting its CHIP bill. Bush reportedly threatened a veto time and time again because he was unhappy with almost every poverty-level ceiling considered. The only reason Bush didn’t veto the CHIP Legislation when he was Governor of Texas was because he knew how bad it would look in his future run for president.
Of course, Bush’s veto is amazing in light of not only the fact that SCHIP reauthorization had so much bi-partisan support but because of the nationwide grassroots anger over Bush’s veto. With this single act, Bush has got the U.S. Conference of Mayors, people of the Catholic faith, the National Association of Children’s Hospitals, and a host of others.
In addition, Facing South, the blog of the Institute for Southern Studies points out exactly how hard this veto hits Bush’s allegedly “native” land of the South:
We’ve reported before on how the South would be uniquely impacted by cuts to the successful SCHIP program. More evidence comes from the U.S Census Bureau, which shows which states have the highest number of kids at 200% of the poverty level without health coverage:
STATE AND % KIDS UNINSURED
(1) Texas — 14%
(2) Arizona — 11.6%
(2) New Mexico — 11.6%
(4) Mississippi — 10.8%
(5) Florida — 10.7%
And, lo and behold: the President’s home state is right at the top of that list. And yet he turns his back on us and the Children of Texas.
Perhaps Natalie Maines said it best: “Were embarrassed that the President is from Texas. “
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