Louisiana congressman says his lone GOP vote for health reform a "decision of conscience"
The House of Representatives approved a landmark health care reform bill late Saturday night by a close vote of 220 to 215.
Of the 39 Democrats who joined most Republicans in voting against the measure, 24 were members of the conservative Blue Dog Coalition and 21 were from Southern states. A New York Times analysis found that 31 of the 39 Democrats who opposed the bill represent districts won by Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) in the 2008 presidential election, and a third of them were freshmen.
Only one Republican voted in favor of the bill -- and he also happens to be a freshman but from a Democratic district in the South: Rep. Anh "Joseph" Cao of Louisiana's 2nd congressional district, which encompasses almost all of New Orleans and some of its suburbs.
In an interview after the vote with CNN's Betty Nguyen, Cao said he had concerns about what he called the original bill's "pro-abortion language." Cao and other anti-abortion lawmakers did not want the measure to allow federal funding to subsidize any insurance plans that covered legal abortion services.
But after an amendment offered by Reps. Bart Stupak (D-Mich.) and Joe Pitts (R-Pa.) barring coverage for abortion under insurance plans that use federal subsidies was approved by a vote of 240 to 194 -- a move that has enraged reproductive choice advocates -- Cao called the White House to say he could support the legislation. As he told Nguyen:
A former Jesuit seminarian, Cao and his wife, pharmacist Hieu "Kate" Hoang, are members of Mary Queen of Vietnam Catholic church in the Vietnamese immigrant community in New Orleans East. Cao served on the board of the church's Community Development Corp., which assists Vietnamese-Americans with hurricane relief, and he's also a member of the National Advisory Council of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, which lobbied heavily to strike any provisions from the House health reform bill supporting abortion rights.
But at the same time, it's also not altogether surprising that Cao -- the first Republican to represent Louisiana's 2nd congressional district since 1890 -- would cast a bipartisan vote for health care reform once his abortion concerns were satisfied.
For one thing, as Cao pointed out in his CNN interview, his district has high numbers of residents who are uninsured. According to a recent study by the Urban Institute, 28.8% of non-elderly adult residents of Cao's district lack health insurance coverage, and an analysis by Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.) found that without reform 98 people could be expected to die in the district next year due to a lack of insurance.
As Cao said in a statement he released following the vote:
Cao has a personal history of advocating for the needs of the disadvantaged. After earning his law degree from New Orleans' Loyola University, Cao -- an immigrant from Vietnam and the first Vietnamese-American member of Congress -- volunteered at Boat People SOS helping Vietnamese immigrants. He worked for a time at the Gulf Coast law firm Waltzer & Associates and later opened his own practice specializing in immigration law. He was also a leader in the successful grassroots battle to shut down an unlined landfill for Hurricane Katrina debris that threatened New Orleans' Vietnamese-American community with toxic contamination.
The troubled government response to Katrina inspired Cao to enter politics. Two years after the storm, he ran unsuccessfully for the Louisiana House as an independent before switching to the Republican Party to defeat Democratic Congressman William Jefferson, the first African-American to represent Louisiana in Congress since Reconstruction. Earlier this year, Jefferson was convicted of 11 counts of corruption.
But even with the ethical cloud hanging over Jefferson, it was a close race. In fact, while Cao won by an overall margin of 49.6% to 46.8%, he actually lost to Jefferson in majority-black Orleans Parish by almost 3,000 votes.
In his CNN interview, Cao said his vote on health reform was not driven by concerns about his political future, pointing out that he has cast unpopular votes before such as voting against President Obama's economic stimulus bill -- a move that resulted in a recall petition effort against him. But Cao did say that he obtained a commitment from President Obama to address the specific health care problems faced by Louisiana.
Nevertheless, it's likely that Cao's vote on health care reform -- whatever the motive -- has made his political future a little brighter.
Of the 39 Democrats who joined most Republicans in voting against the measure, 24 were members of the conservative Blue Dog Coalition and 21 were from Southern states. A New York Times analysis found that 31 of the 39 Democrats who opposed the bill represent districts won by Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) in the 2008 presidential election, and a third of them were freshmen.
Only one Republican voted in favor of the bill -- and he also happens to be a freshman but from a Democratic district in the South: Rep. Anh "Joseph" Cao of Louisiana's 2nd congressional district, which encompasses almost all of New Orleans and some of its suburbs.
In an interview after the vote with CNN's Betty Nguyen, Cao said he had concerns about what he called the original bill's "pro-abortion language." Cao and other anti-abortion lawmakers did not want the measure to allow federal funding to subsidize any insurance plans that covered legal abortion services.
But after an amendment offered by Reps. Bart Stupak (D-Mich.) and Joe Pitts (R-Pa.) barring coverage for abortion under insurance plans that use federal subsidies was approved by a vote of 240 to 194 -- a move that has enraged reproductive choice advocates -- Cao called the White House to say he could support the legislation. As he told Nguyen:
I had to make a decision of conscience based on the needs of the people of my district. So I made the vote to support the health care reform bill because a lot of my constituents are uninsured, a lot of them are poor, and it was the right decision for the people of my district.That Cao would have concerns about the bill's language on abortion is not surprising given that he represents the staunchly Roman Catholic New Orleans area -- and given his own religious beliefs.
A former Jesuit seminarian, Cao and his wife, pharmacist Hieu "Kate" Hoang, are members of Mary Queen of Vietnam Catholic church in the Vietnamese immigrant community in New Orleans East. Cao served on the board of the church's Community Development Corp., which assists Vietnamese-Americans with hurricane relief, and he's also a member of the National Advisory Council of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, which lobbied heavily to strike any provisions from the House health reform bill supporting abortion rights.
But at the same time, it's also not altogether surprising that Cao -- the first Republican to represent Louisiana's 2nd congressional district since 1890 -- would cast a bipartisan vote for health care reform once his abortion concerns were satisfied.
For one thing, as Cao pointed out in his CNN interview, his district has high numbers of residents who are uninsured. According to a recent study by the Urban Institute, 28.8% of non-elderly adult residents of Cao's district lack health insurance coverage, and an analysis by Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.) found that without reform 98 people could be expected to die in the district next year due to a lack of insurance.
As Cao said in a statement he released following the vote:
I listened to thecountless stories of Orleans and Jefferson Parish citizens whose healthcare costs are exploding -- if they are able to obtain health care atall. Louisianans needs real options for primary care, for mentalhealth care, and for expanded health care for seniors and children.Cao's district -- including his own neighborhood of Venetian Isles -- also has high numbers of people struggling economically. According to figures from the Greater New Orleans Community Data Center, the percent of total households with annual income less than $10,000 is 9.5% in the U.S., 15.7% in Louisiana, 21% in Orleans Parish -- and a whopping 36.1% in the Viavant/Venetian Isles community.
Cao has a personal history of advocating for the needs of the disadvantaged. After earning his law degree from New Orleans' Loyola University, Cao -- an immigrant from Vietnam and the first Vietnamese-American member of Congress -- volunteered at Boat People SOS helping Vietnamese immigrants. He worked for a time at the Gulf Coast law firm Waltzer & Associates and later opened his own practice specializing in immigration law. He was also a leader in the successful grassroots battle to shut down an unlined landfill for Hurricane Katrina debris that threatened New Orleans' Vietnamese-American community with toxic contamination.
The troubled government response to Katrina inspired Cao to enter politics. Two years after the storm, he ran unsuccessfully for the Louisiana House as an independent before switching to the Republican Party to defeat Democratic Congressman William Jefferson, the first African-American to represent Louisiana in Congress since Reconstruction. Earlier this year, Jefferson was convicted of 11 counts of corruption.
But even with the ethical cloud hanging over Jefferson, it was a close race. In fact, while Cao won by an overall margin of 49.6% to 46.8%, he actually lost to Jefferson in majority-black Orleans Parish by almost 3,000 votes.
In his CNN interview, Cao said his vote on health reform was not driven by concerns about his political future, pointing out that he has cast unpopular votes before such as voting against President Obama's economic stimulus bill -- a move that resulted in a recall petition effort against him. But Cao did say that he obtained a commitment from President Obama to address the specific health care problems faced by Louisiana.
Nevertheless, it's likely that Cao's vote on health care reform -- whatever the motive -- has made his political future a little brighter.
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Sue Sturgis
Sue is the editorial director of Facing South and the Institute for Southern Studies.