Keith Ellison Takes Over the Dems' Universal Healthcare Bill

Deputy DNC Chair Congressman Keith Ellison (D-MN) has replaced former Congressman John Conyers as the sponsor of the Expanded & Improved Medicare For All Act, which had come to be known as the “Conyers Bill.” Early Wednesday afternoon, Ellison asked for and received unanimous consent to take over the single-payer health bill that has become a focus of left-wing energy and is supported by most of the Democratic Caucus. However, it has little chance of going anywhere in the Republican-controlled Congress. “We are taking ideas and suggestions to make the bill better, but we won’t do that until after the next election,” he said. Part of Ellison’s plea to colleagues to lead the cause was that he could and would lead a campaign for the legislation, separate from his DNC role but building on the success he’d had as a far-traveled advocate for the party. “Until the platform committee of the DNC adopts this, it’s really more of a congressional effort and a community effort, so we respect the difference,” Ellison said. “But I am going to talk about it as a member of Congress. We’re going to be working on this thing as a team. One of the consistent applause lines we’re all hearing is: We need Medicare for all. There’s a lot of folks who feel that it’s time for us to organize around that. It’s a better policy, at a better price. People in labor, people all over the country, they’re going to be driving the public conversation, raising the dialogue about this.” More here.