By John Lyon
Arkansas News Bureau

LITTLE ROCK — Two days after winning the Democratic nomination for her U.S. Senate seat, Blanche Lincoln irked Republicans when she was quoted in a news report as saying she was not the deciding vote on health care reform.

During the primary campaign, when Lincoln was facing criticism from supporters of Lt. Gov. Bill Halter for not going far enough to support health care reform, Lincoln said in a television ad, “I cast the deciding vote to pass health care reform because fixing the problem was more important than politics.”

In a statement today, state Republican Party Executive Director Chase Dugger said Lincoln’s remark after the election that she did not cast the deciding vote on health care “demonstrates another failed attempt to mislead Arkansas voters.”

“Lincoln made it very clear on the campaign trail that she will say or do anything to get elected. Lincoln’s attempt to distance herself from Barack Obama after embracing him during the runoff proves that Lincoln puts her political aspirations above the people of Arkansas,” Dugger said.

Asked today for a response, Lincoln campaign spokeswoman Katie Laning Niebaum issued the following written statement:

“Sen. Lincoln voted for the health care bill that became law because while shaping the final bill she was able to keep government-controlled health care out and was able to add important provisions that add to Medicare’s solvency and specifically benefit Arkansas patients, providers and particularly small businesses.

“She has no regrets working hard to produce the best bill for Arkansas and being the deciding vote as part of a handful of Senators who sought improvements.”

Niebaum did not explain why Lincoln said in an ad that she cast the deciding vote on the health care bill but told a reporter she did not cast the deciding vote.

The Republican nominee for Lincoln’s Senate seat, U.S. Rep. John Boozman, opposed the health care reform package that Obama signed into law in March.