After Her Pivotal 'Yes' on Budget, Now the Fallout

[HeraldSquare212]

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F0CE6D9123DF932A2575BC0A965958260&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=2

This is an article about Congresswoman Margolies-Mezvinsky, who cast the deciding vote in favor of Bill Clinton's stimulus package in 1993. This was the package that had been rejected several times, and pared back by the White House repeatedly in an effort to get the votes to pass. She was opposed to some aspects of the bill, but agreed to support it if hers was the deciding vote. It turns out it was; she cast the final vote that put the bill over the top. She lost her re-election campaign because of that. T

his is why the strategy on a bill sometimes includes letting people vote no or present - if they don't need the votes, why put someone at risk needlessly? There may come a time when they really need that persons vote. Bill Clinton understood that, and tried to avoid having to have her vote for his stimulus package. It's more than a bit disingenuous for him and Hillary to take issue with the strategy when it was used in the Illinois legislature.

from the NY Times:

After Her Pivotal 'Yes' on Budget, Now the Fallout

By MICHAEL JANOFSKY,
Published: August 11, 1993

-snip-


It was quite a story. Ms. Margolies-Mezvinsky had widely proclaimed her opposition to the bill for not going far enough to cut spending and deal with the costs of social programs, and that is what she told anyone who asked: Richard A. Gephardt, the House majority leader who inquired the day before; party whips, as they leaned on House members all day Thursday; even Deputy Treasury Secretary Roger C. Altman, who called about an hour before the vote.

But as she had in voting for the House version of the bill in May, she waited until the end of the balloting in case her vote was crucial. This is not uncommon for undecided members or those from difficult districts. Routinely, party leaders ask them to delay voting, as they had of Pat Williams of Montana, Ray Thornton of Arkansas and David Minge of Minnesota. If their votes are then not needed, they are free to vote as they choose. If the votes are necessary, they are asked to consider the party first.

-snip-