Spending

Thirteen House Dems Vote With GOP To Defund Obama 'Czars'

Brian Beutler | February 17, 2011, 7:46PM

President Barack Obama

Thirteen Democrats bolstered the GOP's frame that several of President Obama's unconfirmed advisers are "czars" by voting for an amendment to the House spending bill that would defund their offices.

They are Reps. Dan Boren (D-OK), Ben Chandler (D-KY), Jerry Costello (D-IL), Henry Cuellar (D-TX), Pete DeFazio (D-OR), Gene Green (D-TX), Larry Kissell (D-NC), Jim Matheson (D-UT), Mike McIntyre (D-NC), Ed Pastor (D-AZ), Nick Rahall (D-WV), Mike Ross (D-AR), and Heath Shuler (D-NC).

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Ben Chandler

Recount Possible In Key Kentucky House Race

Brian Beutler | November 2, 2010, 8:49PM

Rep. Ben Chandler (D-KY)

A quick update from DNC headquarters.

With over 80 percent of precincts reporting, incumbent Dem Ben Chandler in Kentucky's sixth congressional district is holding on to a razor thin lead over his Republican opponent Andy Barr. With over 80 percent of districts reporting, Chandler enjoys a 500 vote margin. This is a seat Dems regard as a bellwether, and at least one Dem source suggests it will likely end in the recount.

Ben Chandler

Flashback: Blue Dog Ben Chandler Spoke Of 'Chickens For Checkups' Last November!

Eric Kleefeld | July 27, 2010, 3:51PM

Rep. Ben Chandler (D-KY)

It turns out that former Nevada Senate Republican candidate Sue Lowden, who lost her primary June 8 after a phenomenal self-destruction known as "Chickens For Checkups," was not the first politician to voice a nostalgic approval for the days when people would pay a doctor by bartering live poultry. As it turns out, that "honor" goes to Rep. Ben Chandler (D-KY), a Blue Dog who voted against health care reform, in some newly-revealed video from November 2009.

As Greg Sargent reports, the video shows a woman who opposed the bill, speaking positively about how her family would pay for their own health care when she was younger. "They didn't have any kind of health insurance, they went to the doctor, and we paid for the call," the woman told Chandler.

Chandler then responded positively: "When you didn't have money, you gave him a chicken. You could barter if you didn't have enough money."

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