Still Not Enough People-Power in the Senate

Okay, I realize people may have overlooked this issue, but it is one that is vitally important: allowing imported pharmaceuticals into this country. Please go to this excellent diary for a rundown of what happened. Basically, Byron Dorgan (D-SD) introduced a bill to allow for the importation of drugs, and then Senator Cochring (R-MS) managed to pass an amendment ensuring the bill's failure.

Here are the good guys:

Akaka (D-HI) Bingaman (D-NM) Boxer (D-CA)
Brown (D-OH) Byrd (D-WV) Cardin (D-MD)
Casey (D-PA) Clinton (D-NY) Collins (R-ME)
Conrad (D-ND) Craig (R-ID) DeMint (R-SC)
Dorgan (D-ND) Durbin (D-IL) Feingold (D-WI)
Feinstein (D-CA) Grassley (R-IA) Harkin (D-IA)
Inouye (D-HI) Klobuchar (D-MN) Kohl (D-WI)
Leahy (D-VT) Levin (D-MI) Lott (R-MS)
McCaskill (D-MO) Nelson (D-FL) Pryor (D-AR)
Reid (D-NV) Sanders (I-VT) Schumer (D-NY)
Sessions (R-AL) Shelby (R-AL) Smith (R-OR)
Snowe (R-ME) Stabenow (D-MI) Thune (R-SD)
Vitter (R-LA) Webb (D-VA) Whitehouse (D-RI)
Wyden (D-OR)

Here are the bad ones:

Alexander (R-TN) Baucus (D-MT) Bayh (D-IN)
Bennett (R-UT) Bond (R-MO) Bunning (R-KY)
Burr (R-NC) Cantwell (D-WA) Carper (D-DE)
Chambliss (R-GA) Coburn (R-OK) Cochran (R-MS)
Coleman (R-MN) Corker (R-TN) Cornyn (R-TX)
Crapo (R-ID) Dole (R-NC) Domenici (R-NM)
Enzi (R-WY) Graham (R-SC) Gregg (R-NH)
Hagel (R-NE) Hatch (R-UT) Hutchison (R-TX)
Isakson (R-GA) Kennedy (D-MA) Kerry (D-MA)
Kyl (R-AZ) Landrieu (D-LA) Lautenberg (D-NJ)
Lieberman (ID-CT) Lincoln (D-AR) Lugar (R-IN)
Martinez (R-FL) McConnell (R-KY) Menendez (D-NJ)
Mikulski (D-MD) Murkowski (R-AK) Murray (D-WA)
Nelson (D-NE) Roberts (R-KS) Rockefeller (D-WV)
Salazar (D-CO) Specter (R-PA) Stevens (R-AK)
Sununu (R-NH) Thomas (R-WY) Voinovich (R-OH)
Warner (R-VA)

So, the first thing to do is give a big THANK YOU to our people-powered candidates: Senators McCaskill, Webb, Whitehouse, Klobuchar, Cardin, Brown --- and the original people-powered candidate RUSS FEINGOLD. They have made us all very proud of our support for them.

Other interesting notes:

1. Kennedy and Kerry, shame on you. You voted with all those honorable folks we always supect might be a little shady, like Stevens, Cornyn, Hutchison, Cantwell, Lieberman, etc.

2. I'll bet dollars to donuts that Senators from states on the Canadian border who voted for this amendment are up to their eyeballs in pharma money: Stevens, Cantwell, Murray, Murkowski, Sununu, Gregg, Coleman, Voinovich, Baucus.

3. If or when Chuck Hagel makes his independent run for President, he ought to be bludgeoned over the head with this vote. We can thus show how "independent" he really is.

4. Thanks to our Senate leadership for their votes: Reid and Schumer

5. Hillary Clinton voted the right way - most other candidates weren't in for the vote.