Government shutdown: Pennsylvania congressional delegates weigh in on their votes

Source: The Patriot-News, Harrisburg, Pa.存倉Oct. 02--Day 1 of the government shutdown generated a veritable blame game as members of Congress, unable to agree on a spending bill that would have staved off a partial government shutdown, scrambled to do damage control.Rep. Lou Barletta, a Republican from the 11th congressional district, said he had received hundreds of calls from constituents on the issue. He said a majority supported House Republican efforts and were in favor of defunding and striking the Affordable Care Act, which was the sticking point for the GOP House members.Barletta said he had voted for a "fair compromise" -- legislation that would have kept the federal government running and eliminate federal subsidies for health care coverage for Congress and the president.The House package would also have delayed the individual mandate in Obamacare for one year.Barletta said his vote was about fairness."If the president and his allies in the Senate are insistent that all Americans fall under the Obamacare law, then the lawmakers should have to live under it as well," he said. "If it's good enough for the people of my 11th District, it should be good enough for Congress and the White House."Barletta was joined by 12 other Pennsylvania Republicans in Congress in voting down Democrats' efforts that would have funded the government through mid-November.Rep. Jim Gerlach, of the 6th congressional district, echoed GOP sentiments placing blame on Senate Majority leadership for their unwillingness to protect Americans from what he called poorly conceived portions of the health care law."We cannot create one set of laws for Washington and another for the rest of our country," Gerlach said. "I voted for this bill to keep the government open and offer the same one-year delay to all citizens that President saw fit to hand big businesses."Rep. Rep. Charlie Dent, of the 15th congressional district, was the only Republican to break the GOP rank to vote in favor of a funding bill that would have staved off the government shutdown while keeping intact for the time being the new healthcare law. Pennsylvania's six Democrats in Congress all supported their party's legislation."Pennsylvanians have a right to be angry that a reckless minority in one faction of one party in one house of Congress has forced the government to shut down for the first time in 17 years and I share their outrage," Sen. Bob Casey, (D-Pa.), said.Casey said that in a matter of 20 minutes on Tuesday, House Speaker John Boehner could have open government for business by allowing a vote on the Senate's funding bill."To prevent a vote is reckless and irresponsible and the consequences for Pennsylvania and our nation are grave," Casey said.Such finger pointing was not only rampant in Washington on Tuesday, but to be expected."Everybody is doing their full court press to exhonorate themselves and label the opposition as the culprits in this mess," said Chris Borick, a Muhlenberg College political science analyst. "That's as expected as can be."And while polls show that most Americans blame the GOP -- albeit by a slim margin -- the more key question, Borick said, was how many members of Congress were really worried about the fallout of the deadlock and shutdown?The answer, he said, few. Most of the key individuals -- from the president on down -- in this conflict are safe in their positions, he said. What's more, with no major election in site fo儲存 some time and districts secured after a redistricting process, the Pennsylvania delegation is as secure in its seats."That's problematic if we are hoping that the will of the people as a whole might lead to a quick settlement," Borick said. "They feel secure in their seats and believe that they are doing the work they were sent to do. There seems to be very little willingness to want to make any movements away from their position. I have no doubt public will become more frustrated and angry but where do they take it out? Where do the frustrations end up?"Rep. Tom Marino, of the 10th congressional district, said he and fellow House members who were most recently elected had been elected as a direct result of public opposition to the healthcare law and Obama spending policies."Every day I continue to hear the same thing from more of my constituents: do what it takes to repeal or defund the president's job-killing healthcare law," he said.Dent's office said the volume of calls from constituents had increased significantly leading to Monday's deadline with an even split. A spokesman for Dent said half the callers were opposed to shutting down the government; the other half wanted to delay the new healthcare law.Republican Scott Perry, of the 4th congressional district in York County, also saw a substantial increase of calls from constituents.A Perry spokesman said constituents were concerned about the government shutdown -- but a significant portion of callers were also concerned "that we are doing nothing to find solutions to the unsustainable $17 trillion debt crisis we face."Dent may have earned high-fives from the likes of Casey, but he swiftly came under attack from the extreme right.The Tea Party Express, for instance, included Dent among its list ofRepublicans "that sure are starting to look and sound like Democrats.""Have these Republicans not listened to the American people?," the Tea Party Express said in a press release. "Have they not listened to the financial analysts, doctors, and businesses that emphatically tell us this is a bad deal for our country that we cannot turn back from it once (the healthcare law) is implemented?"The group said Dent and other Republicans who broke part rank with their votes needed to be "reminded of the power of "We The People," who they are supposed to be representing."Marino urged his GOP colleagues to prepare to listen to their constituents -- even though, he said, Obama and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid have made it clear that they will not support a full repeal of the Affordable Care Act."House Republicans stand ready to work with the president and Senator Reid to reach a compromise for the American people," Marino said. "Again, we will wait for the Senate to act."Resolution for the stalemate seems no where in sight. Entrenched ideological positions were seen in the mid '90s, the last time there was a federal government shutdown, but said Borick, no where near to the degree seen today."The public is as about as sick as can be with everything that is going on in Washington," Borick said. "Polls show disapproval for Congress, record low approval rates for GOP leadership and the party. You would think that would shake up the members of the House into wanting to look for a quick settlement"Copyright: ___ (c)2013 The Patriot-News (Harrisburg, Pa.) Visit The Patriot-News (Harrisburg, Pa.) at .pennlive.com Distributed by MCT Information Servicesself storage