How I Spent My August Recess: Rep. Dent Edition

Rep. Charlie Dent, R-Penn., is considered by the White House to be vulnerable for defeat in 2008 [1].

He's only in his second term, representing a swing district -- both Al Gore and John Kerry won there by 1%. Dent won re-election with less support (53%) than in his initial election, even though he vastly outspent [2] his poorly funded opponent. [3] And his expected challenger in '08 is raising money at a faster clip. [4]

How does Dent handle this precarious political situation?

Vote against kids' health insurance, and write about it in his hometown paper [5], the Allentown Morning Call. Genius!

Or, not so much. His attempt at defending his vote with misinformation appear to have backfired.

Today, the Morning Call published a rebuttal op-ed by Rev. Dr. David Brown [6], chairperson of Congregations United for Neighborhood Action. And he ever so politely slaps Dent for stabbing his faith-based coalition in the back:

Last spring, CUNA leaders from Allentown and Bethlehem joined 400 others from across the nation in Washington, D.C., to plead for investing in children's health care. Indeed, as informed by our various faith traditions, we believe it's a moral imperative.

Our congressman, Rep. Charlie Dent, joined us at the event and pledged to work with us to find the $50 billion needed to reach millions of uninsured children. So, we were especially disappointed that when SCHIP came up for renewal in the House earlier this month, Rep. Dent voted against the bill

...

CUNA has worked closely with Rep. Dent in the past, and we know he is willing to support what is right for our community. As a Pennsylvania state legislator, Rep. Dent was a strong supporter of children's health care. In September, he will have another opportunity to vote up or down on compromise children's health legislation now being negotiated between the House and the Senate.

Families and faith communities in the Lehigh Valley are counting on Congressman Dent to vote "yes" for a strong reauthorization of the SCHIP program. More than 250,000 children in Pennsylvania are depending on it.

Translation: Dent, you have been warned.

Also today, the Morning Call received a letter to the editor, succinctly debunking Dent's misinformation: [7]

He said the current bill has "more than $190 billion in cuts to Medicare benefits" and cites some alarming examples. My understanding is that it's not benefits to persons that are cut, but rather payments to insurance companies under Medicare Advantage. Going through these private companies already costs taxpayers 12 percent more than direct services would cost (e.g., from the Veterans Administration). Why not cut into the large profits being made by private insurers?

Next, he implies the bill would look the other way while illegal immigrants are being covered. Not so. The bill merely restores the original SCHIP rule allowing the states to determine how to verify citizenship. To require birth certificates was found to be eliminating too many legitimate citizens who lacked access to such documents.

Dent's not getting away with very much.

Though he appeared to have an inkling that he isn't very stable political ground, suggesting in his op-ed that he could support the final bill that comes out of the House-Senate conference.

We'll see soon enough who has the firmer grip on Dent -- the people he claims to represent, or Washington conservatives dedicated to obstructing the people's will.