On Sunday, Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and Senator Specter were shouted down at a Philadelphia town hall meeting. Senator Specter sought to console one constituent by assuring him that, between the Senator and his staff, the whole bill would be read. When the crowd reacted negatively to the thought of anyone but the Senator reading the whole bill, Senator Specter proceeded to justify his words with an even more evocative statement: "We have to make judgments very fast."
Senator Specter, that is false. There is no justifiable reason to rush health care reform without reading the bill in its totality. When most of the legislation isn’t implemented for several years, refusing to take five days to read the final bill before voting is inexcusable. The American people, like those at the Philadelphia town hall, should have one simple request: “Senator/Congressman, will you promise not to vote for any bill which you have not personally read in its entirety?”