Cassidy Shut Down Government, Voted For Default In Order To Delay Same Health Care Reforms He Tried To Pass At State Level in ’07

Polling Shows Cassidy’s Government Shutdown Could Be Devastating For His 2014 Chances

New Orleans, Louisiana – On the same day Bill Cassidy voted to continue his indefinite government shutdown and send the U.S. economy into default, Cassidy’s buddy Congressman John Fleming came clean with a stunning admission while declaring his intent to join Cassidy in opposing the bipartisan compromise that ended the shutdown last week: “I’ll vote against it. But that will get us into Round 2. See, we’re going to start this all over again.”

Both Cassidy and Fleming are members of the House Republican Shutdown Caucus. They sent a letter to Speaker Boehner in August urging Boehner to threaten a government shutdown in order to delay the Affordable Care Act, which contains the same exact health care reforms that Cassidy tried to pass at the state level in 2007.

“We’re going to start this all over again” seems to be their official mantra.

Now, with just a few months to go until Cassidy is presented with another opportunity to shut down the government and send the U.S. economy plummeting into default, he owes it to the people of Louisiana to answer the following question:

Bill Cassidy, do you agree with John Fleming, and will you again shut down the government and send the U.S. economy into default in order to delay the same health care reforms you tried to pass into law back when President Obama was Candidate Obama?

“In order to delay the same health care reforms he tried to pass at the state level only six years ago, Bill Cassidy shut down the government and voted for the U.S. to default on its debt for the first time in history,” said Campaign for Louisiana Communications Director Andrew Zucker. “Now Bill Cassidy owes it to the people of Louisiana to state whether or not he intends to shut down the government and try to send the U.S. economy plummeting into default – again – when another funding bill must be passed in January. Bill Cassidy’s government shutdown and support for default is concrete proof that he can’t be counted on to fight for Louisiana families.”

Bill Cassidy’s government shutdown cost the economy at least $24 billion and shaved 0.6 percent off our economic growth. It cut funding for crucial programs that feed pregnant women, young children and seniors. It forced up to 320,000 veterans in Louisiana to plan for the likely possibility that their VA benefits, disability compensation or GI Bill stipends might not arrive as scheduled. It hurt small businesses, forced thousands of workers across the state to go to work without receiving paychecks and closed national parks vital to Louisiana’s tourism industry. And his support for default would have risked the full faith and credit of the U.S. while crippling our economy and causing ripple effects that hurt all Louisiana families.

A poll last week showed Louisianians overwhelmingly opposed Bill Cassidy’s government shutdown by a monstrous 60 to 30 percent margin. Mary Landrieu led Bill Cassidy by 7 percentage points, and when voters were informed about Cassidy’s decision to shut down the government, he trailed by double digits. Worse for Bill Cassidy, Louisianians were polled before his latest vote to continue the government shutdown and send the U.S. economy into default, indicating Cassidy’s support has surely eroded further since then.

BACKGROUND

Five Times, Cassidy Voted For Extreme House Republican Plans That Would Shut Down Government. [Vote #478, 9/20/13; CNN, 9/20/13; CNN, 9/29/13; Vote #498, 9/29/13; Vote 502, 9/30/13; Vote 504, 9/30/13; Vote 505, 10/1/13]

Cassidy Signed A Letter Asking GOP House Leadership Not To Support Any Spending Bill Unless The Affordable Care Act Is Defunded. “U.S. Rep. Bill Cassidy joined more than one-third of U.S. House Republicans in urging the leadership to threaten to force a government shutdown unless Obamacare is defunded… The letter that Cassidy signed onto includes 80 of the House’s 233 Republicans and asks the GOP House leadership not to support any spending bill — including a needed continuing resolution to avoid a partial government shutdown after Sept. 30 — unless the Affordable Care Act health care law is defunded.” [The Advocate, 8/25/13]

Cassidy and House Republicans Voted Sixteen Times Against Efforts to Re-Open the Government. Daines and House Republicans voted sixteen times against efforts to vote on a clean government funding resolution by allowing consideration of the Senate-passed continuing resolution. [H Res 370, Vote #509, 10/02/13; HJ Res 70, Vote #512, 10/02/13; HR 3230, Vote #515, 10/03/13; HJ Res 72, Vote #517, 10/03/13; H Res 371, Vote #519, 10/04/13; HJ Res 85, Vote #521, 10/04/13; HJ Res 75, Vote #523, 10/04/13; H J Res 77,  Vote #527, 10/7/13; HJ Res 84, Vote #529, 10/08/13; H Res 373, Vote #531, 10/08/13; HR 3273, Vote #533, 10/08/13; HJ Res 90, Vote #536, 10/09/13; HJ Res 79, Vote #539, 10/10/13; HJ Res 76, Vote #541, 10/11/13; HJ Res 80, Vote #547, 10/14/13; HJ Res 80, Vote #549, 10/14/13]

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