Admittedly, I don't like/respect Tom Coburn's mindset or actions ~ but I would never ever ever wish a serious illness on anyone ~ having said that, I confess my first thought on reading this was "maybe now he'll recognize how important it is for everyone to have good health insurance" ~ ~ Sooz

TPM LIVEWIRE
Coburn May Cut Senate Term Short As He Battles Cancer
Catherine Thompson – January 9, 2014, 9:08 AM EST

Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK), who announced in November that he was undergoing treatment for a recurrence of prostate cancer, is weighing how treatment will affect his ability to serve out his term.

The Republican firebrand told Politico in an interview published Thursday that he believes he's “plenty healthy enough” to complete his term.

But he'll receive the results of medical tests in February that are expected to give a clearer picture of whether he'll need treatment that may interfere with his legislative work, according to Politico.

"The decision I make will be made in conjunction with my family as to how I can best implement and impact things," Coburn told the publication. "And if I don’t think I can, I won’t.”

The Oklahoma senator is in good spirits, however, saying the chemotherapy he's undergoing now isn't as bad as the treatment he went through previously -- Coburn' has also battled melanoma and colon cancer.

“I’ll be around probably when you’re not," Coburn told a reporter, according to Politico. "That means I got a good prognosis.”

Coburn's term is up in 2017.

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/tom_coburn_cancer_senate_term

Sorry sooz, you'll be disappointed. First of all, he's focused on himself and his health, as he should be. Secondly, if he has sufficient coverage, it won't cross his mind due to that focus. I wouldn't think about it either, to be honest. When you life could be at stake, it can't be easy to worry about others (except family) or national issues.

I'm not sorry to see him go, but the timing seems ... strange ~ I'm thinking there's more to this story ~ Sooz

Sen. Tom Coburn To Retire Before Term Ends
Daniel Strauss – January 16, 2014, 10:56 PM EST

Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) will retire at the end of the current session of Congress.

Coburn, who has been in Congress for a total of 15 years, announced his decision on Thursday evening.

"I've had a lot of changes in my life," Coburn said in an interview with The Oklahoman, which first reported the news. "This is another one."

Coburn's office confirmed the statement to TPM shortly after.

Coburn's decision means he's ending his time in Congress two years before his term ends.

His decision came a few months after he announced that he would undergo treatment for a recurrence of prostate cancer.

Read Coburn's full statement below:


http://talkingpointsmemo.com/dc/sen-tom-coburn-to-retire

Here's a sampling of why I won't miss Tom Coburn ~ ~ Sooz

Sen. Tom Coburn's Greatest Hits: Viagra, Schindler's List And The Death Penalty For Abortion
Sahil Kapur – January 21, 2014, 6:00 AM EST

The race is on to replace Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK), who recently shocked the political world by announcing he'll leave Congress after 2014 -- two years before his term is up. The Oklahoman, a staunch conservative and unwavering fiscal hawk, has been a thorn in the side of both Republicans and Democrats, with his pioneering brand of obstructionism earning him the moniker "Dr. No."

Replacing Coburn with an equally colorful or caustic personality would be a tall order, for he is truly one of a kind. Here are some highlights from his 15-year career in Congress (nine years in the Senate and, before that, six years in the House).

-- In 1997, Coburn was the subject of an amusing headline: "GOP Lawmaker Blasts NBC For Airing 'Schindler's List.'" As the Chicago Tribune reported at the time, the then-congressman fumed that the network had sunk "to an all-time low, with full-frontal nudity, violence and profanity" by airing the graphic and emotional film about the Holocaust during a family hour. He declared that parents and "decent-minded individuals everywhere" should be outraged.

-- In 2004, while running for Senate, Dr. Coburn, as the physician still prefers to be called, said he supported the death penalty for "abortionists and other people who take life," according to the Washington Post. His campaign tried to soften his inflammatory comments but didn't disavow them. As it turns out, they didn't really hurt him in the socially conservative state of Oklahoma, and he easily won the election.

-- In July 2009, Coburn told Sonia Sotomayor, who would soon become the first ever Hispanic Supreme Court justice, that "you have lots of 'splainin to do."

-- In October 2009, Coburn compared federal funding of political science research to waterboarding his grandchildren. "We're going to waterboard them," he said on the Senate floor. "We're going to flood them with debt."

-- In October 2009, Coburn sought to turn the gay community against the emerging health care reform law. In an online op-ed for the LGBT magazine The Advocate, he cited the rationing of AIDS treatment by the government as an example of why a public insurance option would be a bad idea. "These bureaucratic inefficiencies and mismanagement have literally cost lives," wrote Coburn and co-writer Christopher Barron, the founder of GOProud, a group that represents gay conservatives.

-- In March 2010, as part of his relentless efforts to prevent passage of Obamacare, he proposed a series of politically-charged amendments, one of which prohibited child molesters, rapists and sex offenders from obtaining Viagra through the insurance exchanges. It was called the "No Erectile Dysfunction Drugs To Sex Offenders" amendment, and also prevented coverage for abortion drugs. Democrats rejected it, and Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT) accused Coburn of making "a mockery of the Senate."

-- In January 2013, Coburn mused that it might be a "wonderful experiment" to breach the debt ceiling, risking the first-ever default on the country's obligations, because it means the U.S. would "not have to borrow against the future of our children." Economists say a default on the national debt could spur a global economic meltdown, and leaders of both parties insist it must never happen.

-- In October 2013, Coburn called Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid an "absolute asshole" at a fundraiser in New York City. He later walked it back -- sort of. "My words weren't appropriate," he said, "but my frustrations are real."

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/dc/tom-coburn-greatest-hits