Reid showered with Drug money. Hamsher cites his opposition to Dorgan amendment (Drug reimportation)

[Lionheart23]

Jane Hamsher links to a Washington Examiner piece (7-7-2010):

"Right after Tauzin’s July 22, 2009, West Wing visit, for instance, drug industry political action committees began pumping cash into Reid’s endangered campaign.

Tauzin visited the West Wing on a Wednesday, and Eli Lilly’s $5,000 PAC check reached Reid on Friday. The following Monday, Reid got two $5,000 PAC checks: one from PhRMA and another from the nation’s largest drug maker, Pfizer. Within a week, drug giants Merck and Astra-Zeneca had ponied up, too. That’s at least $23,000 in pharmaceutical PAC money in 10 days.

When the bill became law in March, PhRMA, Pfizer, Lilly, the Biotechnology Industry Organization and other drug PACs all ponied up again.

Reid has received $154,000 from Pharma PACs as of May 30, making him the No. 2 recipient behind Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., whose base is in the Research Triangle. Reid is the only politician to get the maximum $10,000 contribution from PhRMA as of the end of May. He’s also the only senator to get the max from Eli Lilly’s PAC. The health sector is Reid’s prime source of PAC funds: half a million dollars already — and that doesn’t count the TV buys."

Hamsher explains why Big Drug is giving Reid so much money:

Campaign cash from the drug companies for Reid and others was always part of the deal. Tom Carper openly acknowledged in a Senate Finance Committee hearing that the Democrats were obligated to honor the deal that the White House made with PhRMA, because after all PhRMA was paying for it with “support through an advertising campaign." See the video here.

How did Reid personally step up? Well, most notably he helpfully kept Byron Dorgan’s drug reimportation amendment off the floor for 7 days, despite the fact that Dorgan had the 60 votes he needed for cloture. Senate Democrats effectively had to filibuster their own health care bill for a week to do so, something they could not have done without Reid’s coordination.

During that time, the White House got HHS to write a letter behind Dorgan’s back saying that reimported drugs were unsafe. Many members in the Senate wanted cover for voting against the amendment, which the letter provided. Kay Hagan, Frank Lautenberg and others took to the floor and read from the letter in order to help kill the amendment. Minority Whip Dick Durbin actively whipped Joe Lieberman’s vote against it. By the time Reid allowed the Dorgan amendment on to the floor, PhRMA had successfully peeled off the votes to kill it.

[JHB]

1. 5...4...3...2...1...

:popcorn:

[Bluebear]

7. KABOOM! Just read the replies below yours :)

[sharp_stick]

2. For all I care right now Harry Reid could

drag a dozen kittens behind his car around DC and I'll still support him in the GE against that psychotic nutjob he's up against.

[tkmorris]

4. But therein lies the problem does it not?

On the one side you have the bought and paid for company man, and on the other you have the batshit insane. A Faustian choice if ever there was one. We have to support Reid of course, but I cannot be alone in thinking that we need better options than this.

[truedelphi]

10. We really need to take the process back.

The devil is in the details. How do we do this?

[Better Believe It]

5. How many will now die because of Reid's conduct?

Be serious.

This isn't a laughing matter and your "cute" remark about torturing kittens doesn't make it so.

[Scurrilous]

3. Thanks for your concern.

:thumbsup:

[Mimosa]

6. Does the HCR bill outlaw us being able to buy Rxs from Canada? n/t

[Better Believe It]

8. Here's how.

As a presidential candidate, Barack Obama said that the United States should be able to import prescription drugs (PDF) from other countries, where they are sold at significantly cheaper prices. He even co-sponsored a Senate bill proposing such an idea.

Now, however, his administration is warning against this idea. And a divide among Democrats on the issue is holding up the health care debate in the Senate.

Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-N.D., at left) on Tuesday introduced an amendment to the Senate health care bill that would enable the importation of cheaper prescription drugs into the U.S. The plan, Dorgan says, would save the federal government $19 billion over 10 years and save the American people about four times that much.

Nineteen other senators, including four Republicans, immediately offered their support to the plan.


"There's no safety issue here at all," Dorgan said. "This is the pharmaceutical industry trying in every way that it knows how to keep its ability to charge the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs to the American people."


(AP)Drug wholesalers purchase pharmaceuticals from drug manufacturers at higher prices in the United States because, unlike in many other countries, the government does not negotiate a set rate for drug prices.

Under Dorgan's plan, U.S. wholesalers would buy drugs from wholesalers in countries like Canada. The drugs would in all likelihood still be more expensive than if the United States were to directly negotiate with the pharmaceutical industry, but it would at least result in cheaper prices than Americans currently pay.

"How about giving the American people the freedom that others have to access those prescription drugs -- FDA approved drugs -- that are sold at a fraction of the price in other countries," Dorgan said. "And it'll force the pharmaceutical industry to re-price those drugs in this country."

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-5967799-503544.html

[Mimosa]

9. Thanks

There have been prescriptions I simply could not afford here, at any pharmacy. But I was able to buy them from Canadian pharmacies.

[CreekDog]

11. I have an issue with calling it "drug money" since that's a dishonest way to get attention

pharma lobbying money, pharmaceutical money, drug lobby money, etc. don't mislead the way your post does.

but "drug money" is explicitly illegal, and it's designed to get people to pay attention the article by making them think Reid is working with some folks in South America or something.

[Bluebear]

12. I'll just be honest, I didn't even think illicit drug money...

because why would Reid be involved in that. And the OP mentions drug reimportation so it's kind of implied. Just sayin'.