Reaction to Nelson's decision

(Ben Nelson) had a chance to be a hero for taxpayers and the unborn, and instead it turns out he's nothing but a huckster whose vote was for sale.

— Mark Fahleson, chairman, Nebraska Republican Party

Health care reform will help families who have had to watch their children suffer for lack of care, Nebraskans who struggle to pay their premiums yet often get little value or access to care in return, small-business owners who can't afford coverage for themselves or their employees, and Nebraskans who have gone bankrupt with medical debt. Reform will begin to relieve the serious economic effects of our broken system, which discourages entrepreneurship and burdens our farmers and rural towns and families in particular.

— Rebecca Gould, executive director, Nebraska Appleseed Center for Law in the Public Interest

The deal struck is tragically insufficient. ... We've been handed a watered-down accounting gimmick that leads to Nebraska taxpayers subsidizing abortions in other states. This is a very bad deal for Nebraskans, and I am stunned and incredibly disappointed. If you are pro-life you cannot vote to end debate on this bill. This could very well be our last chance to stop taxpayer-funded abortions. (Objecting to a provision to provide extra Medicaid payments to Nebraska): “I could not feel more strongly about my vote on this terrible, awful piece of legislation. And it has only gotten worse today. This is the wrong course for our country. I find it personally heartbreaking … to think that this is what it took to get the final vote necessary to carry this bill to the finish line.”

— U.S. Sen. Mike Johanns, R-Neb.

It will provide more health insurance choices and specifically, improve access to care for children and vulnerable populations and further our prevention efforts. Perhaps most importantly, the unveiling of this amendment signals one of the last remaining hurdles to passing health reform this year. With just a few more procedural votes, the Senate will pass this historic legislation, making the promise of reform a reality.

— U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa

Unfortunately for Nebraska, it appears that the health care bill will now pass the Senate. This bill is bad for seniors because it cuts a huge amount of money from Medicare, which will weaken the program. It includes a massive and costly Medicaid mandate. Even if Sen. Ben Nelson was able to receive some Medicaid dollars for the state, it will only delay the financial impact to Nebraska taxpayers (and) which will force future cuts and property tax increases.

— U.S. Rep. Lee Terry, R-Neb.

We are pleased that Sen. Nelson helped advance this legislation to make quality insurance with affordable premiums available to working and self-employed families. If it ultimately becomes law, it will be the most important new legislation in 40 years to secure the American dream for ordinary families and stop the erosion of the middle class.

— Chuck Hassebrook, executive director, Center for Rural Affairs

I'm disappointed in today's news. A vote of this magnitude should be a bipartisan effort, not negotiated in order to meet an arbitrary deadline. Rushing this measure … is not good for our nation and is not good for Nebraska.

— U.S. Rep. Adrian Smith, R-Neb.

There is no pro-life Nebraskan more devastated by Sen. Nelson's actions than myself. I have defended his record to Nebraskans and believed that he would stand on pro-life principles as he has on numerous occasions in the past. ... Sen. Nelson obliterated the hope of pro-life Americans who saw him as the last man standing between expansion of government funding of abortion and the Hyde Amendment.

— Julie Schmit-Albin, executive director, Nebraska Right to Life

Sen. Nelson has said he wanted a bipartisan bill to reform health care, and that is not what he has agreed to vote for today. The changes to the bill don't change the fact that the middle class will still be forced to pay billions in taxes; it still threatens employer-sponsored health care; and it will cost jobs in Nebraska. Sen. Nelson, we are disappointed that you have chosen to stand with Sen. Reid instead of with the majority of Nebraskans who don't support this bill and want to “start over” on health reform.

— Barry Kennedy, president, Nebraska Chamber of Commerce and Industry

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