Texas Congressman: I Shouted 'Baby Killer'

(March 22) -- The mysterious congressional heckler who cried "baby killer" during Rep. Bart Stupak's climactic floor speech in favor of health care reform has come forward: Rep. Randy Neugebauer, a third-term Texas Republican.

Neugebauer identified himself this afternoon as the heckler, according to his statement posted on The Dallas Morning News and Talking Points Memo Web sites.

Neugebauer's statement said he "exclaimed the phrase 'it's a baby killer' in reference to the agreement reached by the Democratic leadership."

"I have apologized to Mr. Stupak and also apologize to my colleagues for the manner in which I expressed my disappointment about the bill," Neugebauer's statement said. "The House Chamber is a place of decorum and respect. The timing and tone of my comment last night was inappropriate."

The outburst happened late Sunday, in the final moments of the historic night that saw the overhaul approved by a 219-212 vote. The comment was shouted as Stupak, D-Mich., forsook his proposed amendment that would have barred federal funds for abortion.

On the morning after the vote, everyone wanted to know who was behind the Joe Wilson-like outburst.

Gawker led the charge. "Who is the American hero who yelled 'baby killer!' during the health care debate?" its headline read late Sunday. "Fess up, Baby Killer Guy, so we can get your face tattooed on our back!"

Some reporters covering the vote from the House floor thought it was Rep. Joe Campbell of California, but he denied this to Politico. "I don't think it's appropriate at all," he said.

Campbell didn't mind turning the spotlight on some of his peers. "Some people know who it is but won't say," he said.

Campbell told reporters that the voice sounded Southern and that the congressman to blame was likely a Texan. "The people who know won't give it up," he told reporters, adding, "I'm not casting aspersions on that state."

Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, told The Washington Post that the "baby killer" comment did indeed come from either the California or Texas delegations. But he wasn't naming names either. "I can make a guess," he said.

In the hours after the cry, Twitter was aflame with speculation. About 0.4 percent of all tweets on the global microblogging site between 11 p.m. and midnight EDT included the words "baby killer," Mashable reported. And this morning, theories about who uttered the damning phrase continued to be floated, in 140 characters or less.

Within a half-hour of his confession this afternoon, the words "Randy Neugebauer" joined "baby killer" and "Bart Stupak" as some of Twitter's top 10 "trending topics." Roll Call also notes that Neugebauer made an update to his own Twitter account on Sunday night before Stupak's speech that foreshadowed the slam, writing: "Bart Stupak sold out to Nancy Pelosi and will now support the Senate version that allows gov't funded abortions."

For his part, Neugebauer represents "one of the most conservative districts in America," the 19th of Texas, reports Politico. The Web site also notes that before his recent infamous cry, "Neugebauer was a co-sponsor to a March 2009 House resolution that would've required presidential candidates to provide a copy of their birth certificate."