In the e-mail message: Currently, most of the families served by SCHIP in Virginia have annual incomes of $20,000 to $27,000, [Gov.]Kaine said.
If you are represented by one of the five who voted against healthcare, call or email him/her with a simple message:"I'm a constituent of yours. I care about kids and I want you to do the right thing and vote to override the President's veto."
How to contact them:
Representative Eric Cantor (R-7th), 202-225-2815 or 804-358-6160, http://www.cantorfor...
Representative Thelma Drake (R-2nd), 202-225-4215 or 757-497-2222, http://thelmadrake.c...
Representative Randy Forbes (R-4th), 202-225-6365 or 757-547-1000 http://www.randyforb...
Representative Virgil Goode (R-5th), 202-225-4711 or 540-483-9030, http://www.virgilgoo...
Representative Robert Goodlatte (R-6th), 202-225-5431or 540.389.1170, http://www.bobgoodla...
If you can call, here are some facts compiled by NOW to help you make your point clear to the Congressmen.
Facts
1. The majority of both houses of Congress voted FOR SCHIP.
2. The Senate passed SCHIP with 67 votes, enough to override the President's veto. The House voted overwhelmingly - 265 to 159 - to pass SCHIP, but it needs about 25 more votes to override the President's veto.
3. Two Northern Virginia Republicans-Frank Wolf and Tom Davis-and Democrats Jim Moran, Bobby Scott and Rick Boucher all voted for healthcare coverage.
4. Virginia receives $91 million annually to administer SCHIP to 83,000 children. About 850 pregnant women also receive SCHIP benefits.
5. Under the vetoed bill, Virginia would have been able to cover an additional 18,000 children, according to Gov. Tim Kaine.
6. If the veto stands, Virginia would have no choice but to drop thousands of families from the program, Kaine said.
7. In a statement last week, Drake said she opposed the legislation because Democrats are trying to "move this country one step closer to the vision of government care." Drake said middle-class families would be given the incentive to drop their private insurance to participate in SCHIP if the program were expanded.
8. Kaine disputed suggestions that expanding SCHIP would benefit families who can afford insurance. Currently, most of the families served by SCHIP in Virginia have annual incomes of $20,000 to $27,000, Kaine said.
Tell them that voting NO to SCHIP is not a Virginia family value.
Virgil is listed as a Republican.
But I do expect him to change to an Independant some time in the future, just because the Democrats are in power.
He got my email last week. I can never get his office on the phone. He is like Watkins Abbitt right now, HIDING.
Kelly Shields is Congressman Virgil Goode's Senior Legislative Assistant
kelly.shields@mail.house.gov
I urge you to support America's children and vote to override bush's veto of SCHIP. You and I both know that bush-cheney have thrown away tens of billions of dollars through no-bid contracts to such as Blackwater and Halliburton. Even the bush administration admits that it flew billions of dollars to Iraq in the beginning of the war and no one knows what happened to it as there was NO accountability. I know that politics is cold but it is an outrage that you Republicans have NOT complained about spending until now. It is time to do the decent and right thing and vote to override the veto for the sake of American children. After all the cost per year of this program is less than that of 1 month in Iraq!