Conyers Sees No Point in Members Reading 1,000-Page Health Care Bill--Unless They Have 2 Lawyers to Interpret It for Them
Monday, July 27, 2009
By Nicholas Ballasy, Video Reporter



(CNSNews.com) - During his speech at a National Press Club luncheon, House Judiciary Chairman John Conyers (D-Mich.), questioned the point of lawmakers reading the health care bill.


“I love these members, they get up and say, ‘Read the bill,’” said Conyers.


“What good is reading the bill if it’s a thousand pages and you don’t have two days and two lawyers to find out what it means after you read the bill?”

http://www.cnsnews.com/public/content/article.aspx?RsrcID=51610


This just blows my mind. More just push it through, it doesn't matter what's in it.

Didn't they learn with the "recovery/stimulas" plan. Oh wait that's right they don't want us to know what's in the bill because then we would probably see their real agenda.

I suspect it would be rather lengthy, to which I would say Mr.Conyers should get busy reading it. Did he expect it to be a couple of pages? Sounds like he has some excuse for not reading it. It's his job to read it, is it not? I believe they do have lawyers up there to help him with parts he might not understand, right?

I would hope the majority of them would understand it. Most of them are or were lawyers.

Geez, never thought of that, TNJ. I just can't believe that's a good enough excuse not to read it. I'd love to read it, though I don't have a lawyer handy for all those technical words you have to know are in the dang thing.

Thats the whole thing. They put in all the legal mumbo jumbo words that some of us don't understand. Most of it I'm sure is not needed.
There is no excuse for them nor the president to not read it, and fully understand it.
And these are the people we voted to represent us

wouldn't it be like signing something...read what you sign. I'd rather read it myself than have someone tell me what it says and trust their interpretation. But what do I know (now I'm sounding like adj )

I agree, have you read your mortgage papers lately, all 80 of them.. grin! Don't know why we ever thought we needed a seperate special language for legal papers, that they use words people just plain don't use in every day life. Makes me crazy to read legal stuff.

I also agree they have the absolute responsibility to read these things, it's frankly amazing to me he would even say what he did.

That's why I question what's in it. Why do they want to get it passed so fast?

What's in it that they don't want to find out about until it's to late?

Kinda hypocritical to me. Many people in Washington DC blamed the housing collapse on people that took loans without reading the mortgage papers, yet they are constantly passing spending bills without reading them.

I think they know what is in it, but don't want to support it. It's not just the Republicans trying to stop this in it's tracks.

The republicans keep referring to the Lewin group to support their belief that this won't be good for us. But do you know who the Lewin group is? The republicans are going to spend millions to get this thing shut down, period, and they will do the work for those on the democratic side that don't want it either. Who's doing all the pressuring to stop it? The insurance companies as always.

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The political battle over health-care reform is waged largely with numbers, and few number-crunchers have shaped the debate as much as the Lewin Group, a consulting firm whose research has been widely cited by opponents of a public insurance option.

To Rep. Eric Cantor of Virginia, the House Republican whip, it is “the nonpartisan Lewin Group.” To Republicans on the House Ways and Means Committee, it is an “independent research firm.” To Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah, the second-ranking Republican on the pivotal Finance Committee, it is “well known as one of the most nonpartisan groups in the country.”

Generally left unsaid amid all the citations is that the Lewin Group is wholly owned by UnitedHealth Group, one of the nation’s largest insurers.

More specifically, the Lewin Group is part of Ingenix, a UnitedHealth subsidiary that was accused by the New York attorney general and the American Medical Association, a physician’s group, of helping insurers shift medical expenses to consumers by distributing skewed data. Ingenix supplied its parent company and other insurers with data that allegedly understated the “usual and customary” doctor fees that insurers use to determine how much they will reimburse consumers for out-of-network care.
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As for the fast thing, what is fast, we have been trying to get health care for all americans for 30 years now.

I want to know if this is going to be put out for the public to read.

I don't know if I would say trying for 30 years. But they just started working on the bill a couple months ago. They want to totally change healthcare. Why not take time to make sure it's something that will work instead of things they just want to do.
Nothing rushed can ever produce good.
Why don't they look at what parts of our current program is not working and work on changing that instead of just thinking we need a whole new system.

Is this about the bill to make HBO show his birth certificate?

Bills can be repealed.

After a few of the theives are replaced.

no. Health Care

Personally I think there is so much wrong with out current system, starting from scratch seems better. From what I have read others have tried to fix health care for 30 years but non of them succeeded. We can keep saying slow down or we can get started and get something done, and not let another 30 years go by.

I agree that going to fast on projects isn't always good, if ever, but it's a stall tactic by those that prefer to do little to nothing to change how corporations and insurers do business.

Why would those against it not come up with their own solution, rather than spend millions to stop this one? Because they don't want it to change what already works for those who benefit financially.

Yes they can!!! So I would ask the Republican party who had control of congress 6 years of Clinton and 6 years of Bush "WHAT HAPPENED?" You had the opportunity to Change things. Seems abortion is a big issue with republicans and IT WAS NEVER ADDRESSED when they had a chance to....They blame Clinten for opening up the credit market but failed to address that. They went against conservative principle on fiscal responsibility!!!!! So I ask you IS THERE REALLY ANY DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE TWO PARTIES????????

Signed a PROUD Independent!!!!!

Indeed

And, lets not forget that recently a bill requiring congress to read the entire document before signing just got voted down. Thanks to our democratically controlled senate... Hmmm... Seems niether party is our friend.

Cheers to the independents!

NAFTA, Failer to recind the Patriot Act, Failer to bring home the troops or have a set plan to do so, Cap and trade, the healthcare fiasco, a stimulas that %10 is spent but calling it a success with unemployment rising, Welfare reform is NOT CUTTING BENIFITS but adressing the problem!!!!!! THERE is PLENTY of blame for the Dems too!!!!!

Well I believe that because there are those on both sides that like it fine just the way it is. But it should be embarrassing to both sides that they would need to have a law made that forces them to read the dang thing.

I believe that law was an attempt to force them to delay a vote on the long winded rip off bill... So they would have time to read it.

But I could be wrong.

Fact of the matter is that WE have placed the fox in position of guarding the chicken coop.

Time to get rid of some theives...

Vote em all out!

Stead of a Tea Party... Time to put some politicians in the river.