The New $300 Million Louisiana Purchase on the Backs of Tax Payers … How Senator Mary Landrieu (D-La.) Vote was Bought for Obamacare

The $300 million new Louisiana Purchase at the cost to tax payers.

Hopefully most of you remember the real Louisiana Purchase when the US purchased from France land encompassing all or part of 14 current U.S. states and two Canadian provinces.

Harry Reid, it will cost you $300 million for Mary Landrieu’s vote

However, sadly on Saturday night once again we were witness to a government payoff to Democrat Louisiana Senator Mary Landrieu to secure her vote so that Harry Reid could get 60 votes and begin the debate on Obamacare in the Senate. $300 million payoff for her vote! Hell, the original Louisiana Purchase only cost $15 million. Can you say quit pro quo, payoff!

In the end the Senate vote was 60–39 to further the debate on the governemnt take over of healthcare.

On the eve of Saturday’s showdown in the Senate over health-care reform, Democratic leaders still hadn’t secured the support of Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.), one of the 60 votes needed to keep the legislation alive. The wavering lawmaker was offered a sweetener: at least $100 million in extra federal money for her home state.

And so it came to pass that Landrieu walked onto the Senate floor midafternoon Saturday to announce her aye vote — and to trumpet the financial “fix” she had arranged for Louisiana. “I am not going to be defensive,” she declared. “And it’s not a $100 million fix. It’s a $300 million fix.”

It was an awkward moment (not least because her figure is 20 times the original Louisiana Purchase price). But it was fairly representative of a Senate debate that seems to be scripted in the Southern Gothic style. The plot was gripping — the bill survived Saturday’s procedural test without a single vote to spare — and it brought out the rank partisanship, the self-absorption and all the other pathologies of modern politics. If that wasn’t enough of a Tennessee Williams story line, the debate even had, playing the lead role, a Southerner named Blanche with a flair for the dramatic.

Stop the ACLU brings up a point that I have pondered myself with regards to the Democrats praise of Obamacare. If this bill is met with such wide spread support as they claim, then why is it so difficult for Democrats to even begin the debate? Arms had to be twisted, back room deals made and Senators paid off with pork. If moderate Democrats like Lincoln, Landrieu, and Nelson and Independents like Lieberman are sincere in their comments against a government run option plan, federal paid for abortion and increases in taxes … how can this bill get 60 votes to end the debate and move to a final vote?

“If the bill remains where it is now, I will not be able to support a cloture motion before final passage,” Sen. Joseph Lieberman said. “I’m prepared to vote against moving to the next stage of consideration as long as a government-run public option is included,” said Sen. Blanche Lincoln. “My vote to move forward on this important debate should in no way be construed by the supporters of this current framework as an indication of how I might vote as this debate comes to an end,” said Sen. Mary Landrieu. And Sen. Ben Nelson said he will “oppose the second cloture motion — needing 60 votes — to end debate, and oppose the final bill” if major changes are not made.

MSM liberal bias alert courtesy of the Washington Post … “With all 40 Republicans in lockstep opposition, …” Excuse me WAPO, why is the 60 Democrats in favor of the government take over of healthcare not also considered “lock step”? Hmm?

However, supposedly Sen. Mary Landrieu told Reid no triggers, no public option. Oh really, Senator beholden Landrieu. Are we really supposed to believe that you are going to say good bye to the $300 million you just fleeced America out of for Louisiana? Hardly! Most likely, Reid will have to up the ante to $600 million for your next vote of “yea” for a public option.

“I believe it’s going to be very clear at some point very soon that there are not 60 votes for the current provision in the bill, and that the leader and the leadership are going to have to make a decision and I trust that they will figure out how to do that,” Landrieu told reporters.

How much will it cost to buy Senators off to get them to vote for a Reid bill with the public option? The fact of the matter is that the single most important part of Obamacare is the public option. That is what ultimately enslaves Americans to a government run, single payer system.