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Democratic Party leaders haven’t...

Democratic Party leaders haven’t lobbied Gene Taylor for his vote on healthcare

By: Magnolia Tribune - November 5, 2009

Democratic Party leaders haven’t lobbied Gene Taylor for his vote on healthcare

House Democratic leaders have not lobbied one centrist, leaving their party’s right flank open on a key piece of legislation according to a statement from Rep. Gene Taylor (Miss.).

Rep. Taylor, a Blue Dog Democrat who has said he will not support Democrats’ health reform bill, said that party leaders have scarcely bothered to win back his vote on the legislation.

“I’ve been fortunate enough to do this for 20 years, and people know when I say I’m going to do something, that’s what I’m going to do,” the conservative Democrat said during an appearance on Fox News. “So I really have not been lobbied with by the House leadership.”

That freedom, Taylor asserted, has left him with an opportunity to try to convince Democratic colleagues in the House to vote against the party’s health bill.

“I’ve been spending a lot of time with my members who are kind of going from pillar to post saying, ‘Look, we don’t need this; we can’t afford this,’ ” Taylor explained. “Let’s think it through. Let’s do some bullets that make the system better rather than this shotgun approach.”

The Hill
11/5/9

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Magnolia Tribune

This article was produced by Magnolia Tribune staff.