Nelson Speech Punctuated with Security
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Three Omaha police cars parked less than 100 yards away and signs warning “Absolutely No Firearms allowed!” greeted Nebraska Senator Ben Nelson (D) as he showed up for a speech in Millard on Tuesday.
The speech was one of Nelson’s first public question and answer sessions in Omaha since last December, when Nelson cast the controversial and critical 60th vote for President Barack Obama’s health care plan.
A spokesman for the Millard Business Association (MBA) which sponsored the event tells Nebraska Watchdog that Nelson’s office was concerned about security. But the spokesperson added it was the MBA and not Nelson’s team which made the last minute “no firearms” addition to the sign which was posted on the door. The original sign did state that police would be called if anyone was being “disruptive.”
From the time Nelson arrived until he left there were no security problems among the crowd of about 75 people.
Nelson began his talk by making some brief remarks and then took nearly a dozen questions. The questions ranged from Israel’s deadly raid on ships taking humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip to the Wall Street bail-out and health care.
Nelson was not asked specifically about the so-called “Cornhusker Kickback” but while answering a question on health care Nelson took time to defend his role on what has clearly become a touchy subject. During the health care debate last winter Nelson secured a deal for the federal government to pick up Nebraska’s share of new Medicaid costs associated with the legislation, estimated between $45 million and $100 million. Eventually all states got the same deal. Nelson who has always insisted the Medicaid agreement “was not a bribe” stood by his vote again on Tuesday.
Some in the audience clearly disagreed with Nelson’s support for the health care package as well as his decision to back the Wall Street bail-out in the fall of 2008.
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Reported by Joe Jordan, joe@nebraskawatchdog.org
Posted under News, State Politics.
Tags: Ben Nelson, Cornhusker Kickback, Joe Jordan, Millard Business Association, Nebraska Watchdog
8:17 pm on June 1st, 2010
If every State got the same deal, the deal is just more borrowed money. The taxpayers must remember this money is borrowed and must be paid back someday. The politicians talk like it is just money laying around Washington and they can just give it away as they please.
8:32 am on June 3rd, 2010
He needs to retire and think about all the damage he did to the morality of this country and damage to taxpayers of not only Nebraska, but the country.
10:25 am on June 3rd, 2010
The money isn’t “borrowed”………it’s TAKEN from TAXPAYERS! And it never gets paid back, the politians just take more.
Who will decide who’s disruptive and what that is? Is it someone who has a different point of view? Is someone who doesn’t agree with another government entitlement program – Obamacare?
4:57 pm on June 3rd, 2010
Huh, he is concerned about gun threats from peaceful demostrators. Nelson’s pro abortion vote holds a gun to little babies in the womb. The sick indivdual.
5:14 pm on June 3rd, 2010
Sen. Nelson is stuck on stubborn. He is another big taxing and spending Demo. who talks like a conservative at election time. He says he is pro-life but doesn’t vote that way when the chips are down and he supports very pro-abortion senators monitarily, as well as Obama. The jig is up for Nelson, and a real conservative Republican can defeat him, including Gov. Heineman or Jon Bruning..
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