Perdue asks attorney general to review health care bill
‘I hereby urge you to invest considerable time and resources into investigating federal legislation that hasn’t even been passed yet!’
Gov. Sonny Perdue today asked state Attorney General Thurbert Baker to join legal eagles in seven other states and review the constitutionality of the federal health care bill — and whether exemptions allegedly promised by Senate Leadership to two Democratic senators meet the letter of the law.
The bill, which supporters say would help approximately 30 million Americans obtain health insurance, is scheduled for an 8 a.m. vote tomorrow in the U.S. Senate.
Perdue writes in a letter to Baker :
The leadership of Congress, particularly Senate leadership, understands the financial devastation that is looming for states, which is clearly evidenced by the special deals that have been cut for states that have Democratic Senators with wavering support of the reform. In order to calm the concerns, Senate leadership has granted special exemptions with additional federal dollars to cover the substantial increases in Medicaid costs for a few states while leaving the rest of us to foot the entire bill.
The governor references reports that Senate leadership struck a deal with Sens. Ben “Great Hair” Nelson of Nebraska and Mary “Can’t Stop the Silver Fox” Landrieu of Louisiana, two Democratic lawmakers whose votes were crucial for its passage. After the chamber’s bigwigs allegedly offered language that would permanently exempt Nelson’s state from Medicaid costs and offer additional benefits to Louisiana, the two lawmakers supported the measure.
Sam Olens, a Republican attorney general candidate, has also urged Baker to investigate the matter.
The attorney general — who’s also a Democratic gubernatorial candidate — could not be reached for comment. We’ve put in a call with Perdue’s office to ask why the governor is asking the state to investigate federal legislation before it’s even been enacted. We’ll update when we hear word.
UPDATE 12/24, 10:43 a.m.: Well, our cell phone carrier decides to notify us late at night that we received a voicemail from Perdue spokesman Bert Brantley. Considering it’s Christmas Eve, we’re not gonna harangue the guy. Brantley and Baker spoke with the AJC yesterday about Perdue’s request. Those comments and the governor’s full letter are after the jump. And, oh yeah, the Senate passed the bill this morning.