The difference of one
I had a feature with that title on my radio show ‘The Right Questions’. So often, all around the world, one person has made a dramatic difference in the lives of many people. The cases are endless…..from a little-known good samaritan to a Mother Teresa to a Barack Obama……to even the tyrants and terrorists who not only changed countless lives but ended terribly many.
This comes to mind these days as one Bart Stupak virtually single-handedly stopped the House health care reform bill from mandating federal funding for abortion. And conversely, one Ben Nelson gave in his resistence to that funding and gave over his vote for a hefty payoff to his state. One stood for his principles and changed the House legislation, the other caved in and changed the Senate legislation. In recent days, media analysts have been predicting that in the ‘compromise’ process to mediate the two versions, Democratic leadership will force the House to the accept Senate’s terms, and the party 60-seat majority will drive it through so President Obama can hold up a signed bill at his State of othe Union address next week.
What a difference one day makes. And one election.
“A little-known Republican shook up the balance of power in Washington by winning a U.S. Senate seat in Massachusetts, a result that imperils President Barack Obama’s top legislative priorities and points to trouble for his party in this year’s midterm elections…
“Mr. Brown’s come-from-behind victory gives Republicans their 41st senator, costing Democrats their 60-vote Senate majority and ensuring the minority has enough votes to block legislation.
“The White House and congressional leaders now must decide how to salvage their long-sought health-care overhaul. Rushing the bill after losing Massachusetts carries political risks. So does letting it collapse.”
And thanks to the nobility of one Jim Webb in the Senate, (at least the first one to make a public statement on it) the former will not happen.
“In many ways the campaign in Massachusetts became a referendum not only on health care reform but also on the openness and integrity of our government process. It is vital that we restore the respect of the American people in our system of government and in our leaders. To that end, I believe it would only be fair and prudent that we suspend further votes on health care legislation until Senator-elect Brown is seated.”
Fairness and prudence. That’s the change we wanted all along.