Well now it's official, Bush actually carried through with a pledge to keep health care away from children. Through no fault of their own, millions of young kids will go without the benefits of health insurance. SCHIP is already a successful program but that didn't matter to our benevolent President today.
From The Huffington Post:
WASHINGTON — President Bush, in a confrontation with Congress, on Wednesday vetoed a bipartisan bill that would have dramatically expanded children's health insurance.
It was only the fourth veto of Bush's presidency, and one that some Republicans feared could carry steep risks for their party in next year's elections. The Senate approved the bill with enough votes to override the veto, but the margin in the House fell short of the required number.
The White House sought as little attention as possible, with the president wielding his veto behind closed doors without any fanfare or news coverage.
There may not have been a party at the White House for this, but the champagne is surely flowing at places like Blue Cross/Blue Shield and HMOs across the country. At least the Senate has enough members to override the veto, but House Republicans should be ashamed that their caucus cannot agree to protect children over the President's faithfulness to his friends in the health insurance business. How they can ever look children in the eye again is besides me. I hope the GOP pays a high price for this cruel act during next year's elections.
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