Geoff Schumacher

I just wanted to post a short blog item to commemorate passage by the House of Representatives of the health care reform bill. The vote was 219-212.

This is a historic moment. I strongly supported passage of this legislation. I believe it will be a significant advance. I think it’s a great achievement for President Obama, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada.

I was disgusted by the antics of the conservative protesters outside the Capitol over the past two days. There were racial slurs, homophobic slurs, spitting on people and other acts of disrespect to elected officials. An anti-abortion Democrat who decided to support the bill was called a “baby killer” by a Republican lawmaker. Rep. Devin Nunes of California, amazingly, defended the actions of these nutjobs. Then there was House Minority Leader John Boehner equating the bill’s passage to “Armageddon.” “This health care bill will ruin our country,” Boehner said. These are all cases of a step too far.

Now the hard work begins of implementing the reforms. It will be complicated and tumultuous, but it will be worth the effort.