(CNN) – Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, is asking residents of Arkansas, Colorado, Nebraska and North Dakota to pressure their senators to support a legislative move that would effectively end Senate Democrats' efforts to pass a health care reform bill this year.
McCain began making the plea Wednesday in a taped message that was sent to home telephones in each state. When a person picks up the telephone, McCain is heard asking the listener to support an amendment that would send the health care reform legislation back to the Finance Committee.
The calls specifically target five Democratic senators: Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas, Michael Bennet of Colorado, Kent Conrad and Byron Dorgan of North Dakota and Ben Nelson of Nebraska. Lincoln, Bennet and Dorgan are all facing re-election in 2010.
Lincoln and Dorgan are facing re-election in 2010. Bennet, who was appointed to his seat, is running for his own six-year term next year.
Listen: McCain's call to Arkansas voters
Amber Marchand, a spokeswoman for the National Republican Senatorial Committee, said the calls are specifically "targeting independent voters" and that they "will run for a few days." The NRSC is paying for this telephone campaign.
Full transcript of Arkansas call below:
Hi.
This is Sen. John McCain. On Monday, I introduced the first Republican amendment to the massive health care bill, which would send the bill back to the Finance Committee and stop the Democrats from cutting $500 billion of vital Medicare coverage for our seniors.
I need Sen. Blanche Lincoln to join me in this effort. If you want to keep Medicare from getting cut, please go to our website at: http://www.healthcaretaskforce.org and sign a petition to Sen. Lincoln urging her to join my effort to fight a Washington D.C. government takeover of your health care.
Thank you for your time.
Follow Mark Preston on Twitter: @prestoncnn
From CNN Politics
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Unbelieveable!
And what was the reason???
John, just retire to one of your 8, 10 or 15 houses already (I lost track just like you did.) Do us all a favor.
Our health system has failed. We have failed to provide adequate car to tens of millions of Americans. We rank 37th in the world according to the World Health Organization. Private only solutions have not worked. Yet politicians like Senator McCain refuse to open their minds to alternatives. Perhaps he needs a reminder that President Obama campaigned on this issue and was elected. We need healthcare reform now!
either get a socialized system or do nothing at all.
Good for McCain. The bill is garbage. It costs $2.5T more than the $1T that they claim and it will bog down the system. EVERYONE has experienced the inconvenience of the DMV, Post Office and Court Systems, why do we think this will be any better. Plus, all that money won't even cover everyone. It's a joke.
Obama isn't for reform. He's just a misguided utopian fool.
McCain blocked stimulous checks for Veterans so what more could one expect from him. I could respect McCain if he supported Veterans but he has never stepped up for them so there is no way he deserves respect or support for anything he does. He is where he is because he climbed upon the backs of many veterans. He can protest a war but where is his support for Veterans? He's the biggest fraud in Washington.
We need health care reform with a public option.
What a sore looser!
Time for the old guy to step down.
What a pathetic obstructionist John McCain has turned out to be. Talk about talking out of both sides of the mouth...he is a perfect model.
Isn't it interesting that AARP and other senior organizations support the health care reform WITHOUT any meddling by John McCain? Speaks volumes about the dishonesty in his message. A tried and true typical Republican....can't speak the truth.
Come on John. You got your overextended military quagmire. Now give Barack his health care package.
Pkm if john macaine was president there would no problem he would of droped the a h bomb on iRan iraq af pakastan then the whole world would blow each other up remember bomb bomb bomb iran