Due to continuing debates between the Senate
and House of Representatives, the United States government may shut down on
Tuesday. The main contention between the Democratic controlled Senate and the
Republican controlled House revolves around the Affordable Care Act, also known
as Obamacare. The House passed a measure on Saturday that would suspend funding
for the Affordable Care Act for another year while funding the government to
prevent a shutdown on Tuesday. The majority of the House voted along party
lines with two members of each party voting with the other. (TheHill) It is
unlikely that the Senate will approve this, causing some to presume that the
government is heading towards a shutdown, including Representative John Lewis, "I
think we are on our way to a shutdown. We're closer now than ever before."
(Rappler)
John Lewis voted against both
House Resolutions regarding defunding the Affordable Care Act, while
maintaining funding for the U.S. government to prevent a shutdown. While it may
seem that Lewis simply voted along party lines for this vote, I believe there
are several other reasons why he voted against defunding the Affordable Care
Act. First, Representative Lewis receives a large proportion of his campaign
donations from the health care and insurance industries, which will be affected
by the Affordable Care Act legislation. Following donations from lawyers, the
health care and insurance industries contribute the most to Mr. Lewis’
campaign. During the 2012 Congressional election, Mr. Lewis received nearly
$300,000.00 from these industries, which accounted for approximately one-third
of his donations. In terms of specific donors, Aflac contributed $10,000.00
which was the fifth most among Democratic House candidates. (OpenSecrets) Therefore,
with elections revolving more and more around money each year, one could
suggest that Mr. Lewis was voting in support of some of his biggest donors.
Another reason to suggest why
Representative Lewis voted against the House Resolutions is because of the makeup
of his constituency. The 5th Congressional district of Georgia is
mainly comprised of sections of Atlanta and some surrounding areas. According
to research done by Proximity One, the majority of the district earns less than
$45,000.00 a year. (ProximityOne) The Affordable Care Act is geared towards
helping citizens with low income, “The law makes
preventive care—including family planning and related services—more accessible
and affordable for many Americans”. (U.S.
Department of Health & Human Services) Therefore, Mr. Lewis is most likely considering
the importance of the Affordable Care Act on his constituents. It is important
to note that members of Congress, especially the House of Representatives, are
always campaigning because they face elections every two years. With this vote,
Mr. Lewis might be hoping to show his constituents that he has their best
interest in mind after his opponent in the 2012 Democratic primary for the 5th
district said that Mr. Lewis did not care about his constituents and was
resting on his laurels to continue to being reelected. (RollCall) Therefore,
the increase in pressure from recent elections might have affected Lewis in
voting against the House Resolutions.
While these reasons may
suggest why Representative Lewis voted against the House Resolutions, it is
also important to note that Mr. Lewis is a member of the United
States House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Human Resources. This subcommittee
includes issues pertaining to public assistance provisions. (Ways and Means)
Mr. Lewis’ position on this subcommittee also gives him a significant reason
not only to reject the House Resolution, but also to try and gather support for
the issue. In a speech that he delivered on the floor of the House of
Representatives, Mr. Lewis stated, “With so much to be done, so much good that
we could do, this Republican Congress wants to stop the country, to deny the
people a chance to see a doctor. How many times are we going to do this? What
is next? Medicare? Medicaid? Social Security? This is not right; it is not
fair; it is not just.” (VoteSmart) Therefore, Mr. Lewis’ position on the House
Ways and Means Subcommittee on Human Resources gives him the responsibility to
try and gather support for the Affordable Care Act, as it includes public
assistance provisions such as Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, as well as
the Affordable Care Act.
It will be interesting to see
how the Senate responds to the House Resolutions and whether an agreement can
be made before Tuesday. I wonder if the game of politics will get in the way of
actual legislation in the coming weeks.
Sources
1.
The Hill: http://thehill.com/homenews/house/325331-house-sends-stopgap-back-before-senate-48-hours-to-shutdown
2.
Rappler: http://www.rappler.com/world/regions/us-canada/40115-us-shutdown-house-republicans-amend-budget-bill
5.
U.S. Department of Health & Human
Services: http://www.hhs.gov/opa/affordable-care-act/index.html
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