| Politico has an interesting story up about how some congressmen seem to be undecided about the health care bill just for the sake of being undecided about the health care bill. And one name caught my eye: As for [PA Rep. Jason] Altmire and Kucinich, few have gotten more attention for publicly wrestling with how to vote on health care reform.
There was a picture of Altmire talking on the phone in his office splashed across the front page of The Washington Post on Thursday, above a story that began by recounting how many times this month he had been personally wooed by Obama (two meetings and one phone call from Air Force One).
Cracked a reporter from the freshman’s hometown Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: “The photo shows him on the phone in his office — tossup whether it’s with President Obama or yet another reporter.”
In the Capitol’s corridors, Altmire now finds himself in the position usually afforded only to members of the leadership and key committee chairs: Every day, he’s swarmed by reporters as he arrives at or leaves votes.
Altmire. Undecided. Hmmmm, where have I heard that before? With Pennsylvania’s April 22 primary the next big contest for Democratic presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, undecided voters in the Pennsylvania 4th Congressional District are hearing directly from the candidates and their campaign representatives.
Both candidates are especially eager to win over one undecided Pennsylvania 4th voter -- the district's congressional representative, Jason Altmire.
...
Both candidates have pursued Altmire for a year. Both had hoped an Altmire endorsement before the Pennsylvania primary would help their campaign in that state. Both still are awaiting Altmire's decision.
They ended up waiting a long time. Altimire stayed uncommitted until after Obama had won the nomination. And even then, he was wishy-washy, never actually endorsing Obama: "A formal endorsement is no longer necessary," Mr. Altmire said. "The Democratic primary is over, and I am going to support the nominee who was chosen by people who voted across all 50 states over the past five months. I expect the vote at the convention to be uncontested, and that our party will be fully united behind Senator Obama."
And the local press were not impressed. A day earlier: And while Obama has won enough delegates to clinch the Democratic nomination, Holden and fellow congressmen and superdelegates Mike Doyle and Jason Altmire sat on the sidelines. Instead of making a tough decision on their own, they waited until it didn't matter any longer.
They'll likely say that they are now supporting Obama, the presumed Democratic nominee just as fellow Rep. Bob Brady, D-Philadelphia, did on Tuesday. But their votes don't matter anymore.
I bet Altmire is doing the same thing again. Delaying as long as possible until his vote doesn't matter anymore. A Congressman to be proud of. Update: Altmire is off the fence. He's a No. |
