Now that the health care reform fight has moved to the U.S. Senate, North Carolina’s Sen. Kay Hagan is seen as a key figure in determining what kind of reform comes out of Congress. Hagan supports reform, but has made noises about being “flexible” on the public option part of a reform bill. Our view is that not including a public option would be disastrous, with little to keep the health insurance companies honest in terms of premiums and coverage. You can be sure that Hagan is going to have her ear bent every which way by health industry lobbyists — including the galling folks who run Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina – who are urging her to oppose a public option. It’s up to supporters of real health care reform to contact Hagan and tell her to stand up to the insurance interests. This is how real politics works, folks, so go beyond your vote for Obama, and make some calls if you want to help move a progressive agenda forward.

Here are phone numbers for Sen. Hagan: Toll Free, 1-877-852-9462; D.C. office, 202-224-6342; and the Charlotte office, 704-334-2448.

Hey, how's it going -- call me!

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It’s easy enough to criticize politicians when they do something you don’t like, and we’ve given Sen. Kay Hagan grief about her, er, fluid positions on health care reform. So it’s only fair to give the pols a shout-out when they follow through on a promise.

During her campaign for the U.S. Senate, Hagan emphasized the need to expand broadband access for people and businesses in rural areas. Yesterday, Sen. Hagan announced that North Carolina will receive a bit more than $2 million to bring broadband to “under-served” areas of the state. The money comes from the Commerce Department and is part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act stimulus package. Two million bucks isn’t enough to complete the job — in fact, according to BlueNC, it’s only enough to map out the areas where broadband is needed and begin planning the full expansion. But hey, it’s a very good start, and considering Congress’ normally sluggish pace, it’s pretty quick work by the rookie senator.

Hey, y'all! How's 'at broadband workin' for ya?

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Hell yeah. Tell ‘em senator. Now, get back up to the podium and demand the public option your supporters are begging for.

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This morning’s news that U.S. Sen. Kay Hagan has signed on to Sen. Richard Burr’s bill to lift beach closures at Cape Hatteras National Seashore comes as a rude surprise to North Carolinians who value Hatteras’ special status as a beautiful, natural place. Some beaches there are closed to off-road vehicles by the National Park Service from April to early August in order to protect the habitats and/or nesting areas of sea turtles, plovers, nesting terns and other wildlife.

If you’ve been to Hatteras, you know how expansive the beaches are — and how much beach-area fishers can still reach in their ORVs despite the closures. The restrictions, which have been in place for two years, have helped increase the number of protected wildlife in the park, but local business owners say the closures hurt their bottom line.

Hagan’s spokeswoman, Stephanie Allen, told Observer reporter Barbara Barrett that “a lot of the local community has talked to the senator about how their business is suffering.” To which this lover of the Outer Banks’ natural wildness (or what’s left of it), says, “Join the club.” Perhaps the Hatteras business owners haven’t noticed, but, as they said during the Great Depression, “things are tough all over”; you hate to say it, but it is doubtful that opening up the restricted areas of Hatteras to ORVs will help that situation very much.

Allen also called Hagan’s support of opening up the closed areas “an effort to balance the needs of both the wildlife and the local tourism economy.” Well, no it’s not. It’s an effort to un-balance the needs of wildlife and business. The decision to close certain beaches to ORV traffic during four months is what balanced wildlife and business, and even then, just barely enough to keep from killing off creatures that make Hatteras such an exceptional place. Burr’s bill got nowhere during the last session of Congress. It’s not clear whether having a Democrat signed on to the bill will make a difference this time around.

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No to funding the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

No to funding the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).

No to Sonia Sotomayor’s nomination.

No to extending “Cash for Clunkers.”

Yes to being a cheerleader for “The Party of No.”

The same party that’s so busy saying “no” that they can’t bother to come up with any ideas for solutions to our country’s problems. It’s one thing to disagree; it’s another thing to be a crowd of obstinate children stomping their feet because they’re still sore about their party losing (and losing big) in the last election.

Sen. Kay Hagan, a Democrat, voted “Yes” on all of the same bills. See for yourself:

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Sen. Kay Hagan, a member of a crucial committee in the health care reform debate, has a problem. She was elected to the U.S. Senate largely by the massive efforts of progressives in North Carolina, riding into office on Obama’s coattails. Those progressives want serious health care reform that will include a strong public option. Hagan, though, has also received a ton of money from the health care industry, as documented in a report from Durham’s Institute for Southern Studies. According to the report, in 2009 alone — which isn’t even an election year — “health-related companies have contributed $17,000 to Sen. Hagan’s leading PAC — all coming during or after March, when the health care reform debate intensified.” In addition, “nearly 60 percent of the corporate contributors to Hagan’s Hagan’s Political Action Committee come from the health industry,” and 52 percent of all contributions “have come from health care interests, including associations representing doctors, insurance, pharmacists and pharmaceutical corporations.”

With those two competing groups of supporters, no wonder Hagan has been a political pendulum, one day opposing a “public option” for health care reform and the next day saying she supports it. Guess which side she eventually came down on? (Clue: they have lots of money.) In her op-ed piece in yesterday’s Observer, Hagan tried to come across as Ms. Liberal Populist, a caring politician who is in tune with NC citizens’ health care cost problems. But toward the end of her column, Hagan let the cat — and her true colors — out of the bag by describing the watered down “public option” her committee recommended. Her description of what she calls “a backstop option for people without access to affordable health care” reads, in actuality, like a laundry list of “suggestions” from the health care industry.

The bottom line of Hagan’s double-dealing is that if her committee’s version of health care reform passes, people who currently do not have access to health care will not have an inexpensive path to getting the care they need. Which, of course, was a major part of what health care reform was supposed to do in the first place.

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This bright crew of students has drafted their own health care reform legislation. But, they’re not stopping there. They hope to get the bill introduced to Congress.

North Mecklenburg High students will take their call for healthcare reform to Washington.

Several members of Student Advocates for Hopeful Politics have been invited to meet with Sen. Kay Hagan on August 5 as part of her Carolina Coffee meetings. Last month, the group met with Rep Mel Watt, D-N.C., to discuss their proposal to provide universal healthcare.

More from Charlotte.com.

Why do we need health care reform?

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Yesterday, Sen. Kay Hagan announced her support of the health care reform package proposed by the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, of which she is a member. Hagan’s announcement means that, after contradictory statements by the senator triggered a huge grassroots campaign to push her toward support of a public option as part of the health care plan, she has given her supporters what they wanted.

Probably.

There’s still some confusion about Hagan’s position, as her descriptions of the public option plan appear to contradict the actual words of the proposed law. Sigh. Whatever. Sometimes the best you can do with a politician is to get her to vote for your position whether she’s on top of the issue or not. Come what may, Hagan will vote for committee’s health care reform plan, which includes a public option, which is the reason NC progressives contacted her office in droves over the past couple of weeks. Although Hagan is generally more conservative than many of her supporters, she’s also a bright rookie senator who realizes that she’s in Washington due to a huge wave of progressive support. In other words, sometimes this democracy thing — as in, calling your representatives — actually works.

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Friday, the U.S. House of Representatives approved a bill that will change the way we produce and consume energy in our nation. New jobs will be created, every American will be expected to pitch it and, with any luck, we’ll beat the Chinese to the punch in manufacturing.

But, the struggle isn’t over until the Senate votes.

Share your views on the climate change bill with North Carolina’s senators, Richard Burr (R) and Kay Hagan (D). Sen. Burr’s Washington office number is (202) 224-3154 and Sen. Kay Hagan’s office number is (202) 224-6342.

No need to get complicated, just call and say something like, “I’m calling from North Carolina and I would like to encourage Senator (Burr or Hagan) to vote for the upcoming climate change bill.”

Their office staff will ask you for a little information, like your name and zip code. If you want to receive a written response, be sure to ask for one.

President Obama immediately praised the passage of the bill on Friday night, and called on the Senate to follow suit.

“Today the House of Representatives took historic action with the passage of the American Clean Energy and Security Act,” said Obama. “It’s a bold and necessary step that holds the promise of creating new industries and millions of new jobs, decreasing our dangerous dependence on foreign oil.”

“Now it’s up to the Senate to take the next step,” he continued.

…

Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), chair of the Environment and Public Works Committee, issued a statement congratulating House leaders for the landmark passage. Boxer has pledged to have her own climate bill, likely based on Waxman-Markey, passed out of committee in August.

“There are very few bills that we pass that trigger so many benefits for the American people—energy efficiency, new jobs, cleaner air, healthier families, and energy independence,” said Boxer. “This bill gives us the momentum we need in the Senate, and signals that when we promised change for the better in America, we meant it.”

More from Grist.org.

Further reading: N.C. energy plan gets approval, from The Charlotte Business Journal

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Without quick action by voters who want universal health care, U.S. Sen. Kay Hagan of North Carolina could be one of those who wrecks the whole deal. The main bone of contention, as you know if you’ve been following this issue, is whether Congress will include a “public option” in its new plan. That means that if you can’t get affordable insurance from your employer’s plan or another private plan, you’d be able to opt into a government-subsidized health insurance plan, similar to what members of Congress enjoy. Reports from healthcare reform activists are saying that Hagan is one of two Democrats on the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee who are balking at including a public option in whatever plan is presented to the full Senate. The latest from the progressive Web site DailyKos reports that negotiations are underway to convince Hagan and fellow Dem Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico to support the public option. If you support having a public option as part of the reformed health care system now being hammered out in Congress — and let’s face it, expecting health insurance companies to give citizens a break without our having a public option to turn to would be like stepping up to the plate against Roger Clemens with a wiffle bat — then consider calling Sen. Hagan’s office, like, right now, at (202) 224-6342.

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