Congresswoman Edwards Tells Young Dems Democrats Must Pass Health Care Reform

Congresswoman Donna Edwards addressed the Prince George’s County Young Democrats tonight about the topic that is making all the news today…health care. First off the on behalf of the entire PGCYD Executive Board and membership, I want to personally thank her for visiting with us. Tonight’s meeting was very important towards explaining why this bill was so important and needed to be passed now.

In speaking to young democrats tonight Rep. Edwards showed that not only had she’d read the entire bill, all of the amendments, watched most of the hearings on C-SPAN, but understood what was before the House of Representatives. Not only does she understand the bill but she also shared stories and stats about why the residents in Prince George’s County needed this reform to pass this year.

I think we all can agree that Democrats and President Obama lost the summer on this battle to reform our health care system. After listening to Rep. Edwards I personally doubt that we will lose the fall. Why? Because leaders in Congress and maybe even President Obama now understand that if we are going to pass health care reform, then it is democrats that will have to do it. Tonight in her comments Rep. Edwards applauded the president and even leaders in her own chamber for their attempts at reaching out to members of the opposition party, however she strongly noted that it is democrats that will have to pass this bill. It is democrats that will be held to account for if this bill failed. It is democrats that will be to blame if the bill is not as successful as we promised it would be. I agree with her and so since it is our party that is on the line for this bill, it is our party that must pass it.

President Obama ran for the White House promising to bridge the partisan divide in Washington. He tried by reaching out to them to pass the Economic Recovery Act, he held back to back meetings with leading republicans all the way to those who sat on the back benches about passage of a new climate change bill. Same story on the budget blueprint. Time after time without failure almost everyone of them bucked his offers and voted a party line. It was democrats who passed medicare, social security, and S-CHIP. If the American people are to be given the option to truly reform a system that everyone knows is broken, it will get done when democrats work together to do it. Tonight Donna Edwards showed that members of Congress seemed to be getting that message.

Joseph Kitchen

Executive Vice President- PGCYD

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Rep. Donna Edwards will be hosting her own health care Town Hall next week in Montgomery County on August 25, 2009 at 6:30PM - 8:00PM. The address is:

Plum Gar Community Center (Gymnasium)

19561 Scenery Drive Germantown, MD 20874

For more information visit www.donnaedwards.house.gov.