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March 17, 2010

Protesters ask Carney to oppose health care bill

By Don McGlynn dmcglynn@theabingtonjournal.com
Reporter / Photographer

Northeastern Pennsylvania Tea Party members held a protest in front of U.S. Rep. Chris Carney’s Clarks Summit office Thursday afternoon, March 11, in effort to convince him to vote against a proposed heath care bill now in Congress.

“I’m a republican but I agree with the Tea Party’s movement,” said John Newman, 67, of Dallas.

“I believe with this bill there’s no restriction on abortion funding, it hurts Medicare, it hurts the future of medical care for seniors, and it’s just a lousy bill that he will not commit on whether he supports it or doesn’t support it. So I’m here to say to him, please do not support the bill.”

Carney, who was not at his Clarks Summit office during the time of this protest, emailed a statement explaining what he thought of the matter.

“I appreciate input on all sides of this important issue, having received letters, phone calls and visits from both supporters and opponents of the health care proposal.

I will judge every plan based on whether it increases affordability, denies insurers the option of rejecting people with preexisting conditions and enables people to take their insurance with them when they change jobs. We must also protect coverage for our seniors and ensure that federal funds can’t go to pay for abortions.

It is time to give families the choices that they have been badly lacking and bring affordability into a system that has run out of control.”

Protesters began their demonstration in front of Carney’s office located at 223 Northern Blvd., Suite 4, Clarks Summit until neighboring businesses requested they move.

Clarks Summit Police stopped traffic so the protestors could move safely to the other side of Northern Blvd.

Tea Party member Bob Orbin, 47, South Abington Township, said there will be more protests like this in the future, though no dates have been set.

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