Rockefeller Explains Why He Fights

It is nice to see that there are at least a few Democratic senators who can sometimes remember why they chose to become members of Congress. There was a reason why Rockefeller became a Democrat. It was to fight for people in need. The video is long, but it's worth watching. It is an emotional appeal to protect the S-CHIP program. Rockefeller begins:

I’ve heard a lot of talk about old people, disabled people, you know, vulnerable populations, pregnant women, the elderly, et cetera, but again, you just don’t hear people talking, public officials or people about Medicaid, because it’s something they’d rather not hear about; something they’d rather not have in their communities.

Now, my experience was different because I was reborn (in a secular sense) by becoming a VISTA volunteer, when I went to West Virginia, not expecting to stay, and then finding after one year of living with people, none of whom had work, none of whom had health insurance, none of whom went to school because there was no school bus - and you have heard this speech before – and I could not leave. And, it was because I became so devoted to those people and the unfairness.

I will tell you the story of Eddie...

Eddie was an 18 year-old boy that Rockefeller tried to help get a job while a VISTA volunteer. At the job interview, Eddie was so humiliated by the fact that he did not know how to work the office's venetian blinds, something that he had never seen before, that he flunked the interview. Rockefeller was visibly upset telling the story because he was with Eddie, but unable help him. He concludes with:

But he had Medicaid. He had me by his side and it didn’t work. He had Medicaid by his side and it did work.

Full Transcript below

Senator ROCKEFELLER: Over the last two weeks [pause] Senator Nelson, do I have your full attention? [lengthy pause]

I’ve heard a lot of talk about old people, disabled people, you know, vulnerable populations, pregnant women, the elderly, et cetera, but again, you just don’t hear people talking, public officials or people about Medicaid, because it’s something they’d rather not hear about; something they’d rather not have in their communities.

Now, my experience was different because I was reborn (in a secular sense) by becoming a VISTA volunteer, when I went to West Virginia, not expecting to stay, and then finding after one year of living with people, none of whom had work, none of whom had health insurance, none of whom went to school because there was no school bus - and you have heard this speech before – and I could not leave. And, it was because I became so devoted to those people and the unfairness…

I will tell you the story of Eddie. The story of Eddie is of an 18 year-old boy, fully-capable and prepared to work, terrific physical/mental specimen, great attitude, leader in our youth movement, in our VISTA community. I had lined up a job at Union Carbide, not… I’m sorry, not a job, but a job interview for him. I took him with me in my Land Rover or whatever it was, and we went down to Union Carbide. Well, that meant that we had to go to Charleston. He’d never been to Charleston which is only 45 minutes away. And, he’d never crossed a street; he’d never seen a red light, so he was confused by that, but I was with him. And, we went into the Union Carbide building, it’s a big company; had a lot of elevators - he’d never been in an elevator. A lot of people get claustrophobic; he got claustrophobic in the elevator, but I was with him and he was steady.

So, we come out on the third floor and we walk into the interviewer’s office, (and he was a very nice man) but the room was set up so that Eddie and I, sitting side-by-side, were facing a big window with sunlight streaming directly into our eyes, which didn’t bother me but made Eddie understandably nervous. So, the plant manager…the plant interview, who was sensitive to Eddie, said “Why don’t you let the blinds down, Son? And the sun won’t be in your eyes.” Well, it happened that the blinds were venetian blinds. Two ropes that don’t meet on one side and one rope which does on the other. There are no blinds in that VISTA community. He fiddled with that for a while, but he was humiliated and embarrassed, and so what he did was, he reached up and he took the bottom 7 or 8 slats on the blind, and [voice breaking] he just hung his full weight on those slats – which didn’t move…I’m sorry…and um, so then he sat down and we proceeded with the interview…but…he couldn’t give his name. He’d been stripped of all self worth…what I’d done to him was substantially [voice breaking] damaging to him…and a year later he was gone from Emmons and I have no idea where he is today.

But he had Medicaid. He had me by his side and it didn’t work. He had Medicaid by his side and it did work.

So, I like to keep poor people where they have healthcare benefits. I don’t wish to see them handed over to the tender mercies of a private exchange or whatever. And I think you will understand the spirit in which I tell this story.

It’s interesting: I took 500…remember in those days, back in ’64 ’65, the big rage was Olivetti typewriters? They were slim. They were modern. They were chic. You could say ‘dude’ about them. They were cool. And I had one of those. And every night I would sit down and I would write pages and pages and pages of what went on during that day. Psychologically…to me…when things went well…when things didn’t go well…the individual parts of our community. There were only 356 people in this whole community, but it was a huge community in terms of the implications of people. And, um, I have that in my office at home, and in the 43 years since I’ve left Emmons, I’ve never opened that diary to read it…[voice breaking]…can’t do it…and now I’m embarrassed…

[Turning to Senator Baucus] Have I talked enough Mr. Chairman, I was trying to cover for you…[Turning to room] This is all at the request of the Chairman. I just had to talk so he could work some things out. [laughter]

It was a little bit more painful for me and, I hope not for him, but I don’t care about that because I feel the way that I feel and I am who I am. This endeth the reading of the evening lecture. [laughter followed by prolonged applause]

Senator BAUCUS: I think the applause is a testament as is often said of the passion…I don’t know of a Senator with a deeper sense of purpose and conviction and passion for his state, and especially for lower-income people than you.