I loved Pres. Obama's speech. It rallied dispirited Democrats, reassured disenchanted independents and intimidated Republicans. He called a lie a lie, and pledged to call out the right-wing thugs if (well, when) they continue lying.
The President shone a spotlight on the sin of rescission -- the process by which insurance companies protect their profits by dumping customers when they get sick. This outrage has been under-covered by the media, but congressional hearings revealed that just three insurance companies have kicked 20,000 customers off their plans. They included the woman President Obama referred to tonight, whose aggressive breast cancer was denied treatment because she once had acne. The congressional hearings uncovered documents proving that the insurance companies had saved themselves $300 million by kicking those folks off -- and insurance bureaucrats got bonuses and promotions based on who they dumped. This is an outrage. If Sarah Palin wants to see a real-world death panel, she should look no further than the corporate insurance executives whom she and her fellow Republicans so zealously defend.
He made the case for a strong public option -- but did not threaten to veto any bill that doesn't include one. He plainly wants to maintain maximum flexibility to do as much good for as many people as he can. He paid warm tribute to the patron saint of health care, the late Sen. Edward Kennedy, whose departure has left a black hole in the Senate. And he put the lie to the Republican line that somehow the party that created Medicare is out to destroy it, by pointing out that the GOP has a proposal to end Medicare as we know it, and turn it into a voucher program. (For what problem, by the way, are vouchers not the GOP's answer?)
As good as Obama was, the Republicans may have helped him more than he helped himself. Just as Bill Clinton was blessed by cartoon-character enemies like Ken Starr and Henry Hyde, the face of GOP opposition to Obamacare tonight was not the heroic and patriotic John McCain, but rather some Congressclown named Joe Wilson from South Carolina. Between Mr. Wilson calling our President a liar and the rest of the GOP looking like a cast picture of "Grumpy Old Men," the Republicans were a portait of bitter anger that would be unrecognizable to the sunny and optimistic Ronald Reagan. Mr. Wilson has reportedly called White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel to apologize. Good thing. But Mr. Wilson's rudeness will taint his party for some time.
The harder work will come not under the kleig lights, but behind the scenes. Pres. Obama will need to twist lots of congressional arms to pass his plan. But tonight he fired a shot across the bow of some of the self-professed fiscal conservatives. He decried how the Bush tax cuts, the Bush war in Iraq and the Bush prescription drug plan helped explode the deficit, squandering the Clinton surplus and plunging us deep in debt. No one who voted for that unholy trinity -- and a whole lot of Blue Dogs did -- can credibly oppose Obama's health reforms on fiscal grounds. Let's hope he drives that point home even more powerfully when he meets with moderate Democrats in private.
D. Brad Wright: Po' White South: Another Look At The Uninsured
The po' white south makes up most of the uninsured. Chew on that for a while. Then ask yourself where the strongest opposition to health reform comes from (hint: it's red states).
Mark Green: Beyond Tuesday's Results, Republicans Facing Long-Term Decline
As commentators seem ready to over-interpret tomorrow's election results in three jurisdictions, they should instead consider how four long-term trends show the GOP engaged in political slow-motion suicide.
Each and all combined have excelled at creating the new and fantastic caricature that is now the Republican Party. It is beyond remarkable!
"Second, we’ve estimated that most of this plan can be paid for by finding savings within the existing health care system – a system that is currently full of waste and abuse. Right now, too much of the hard-earned savings and tax dollars we spend on health care doesn’t make us healthier. That’s not my judgment – it’s the judgment of medical professionals across this country. And this is also true when it comes to Medicare and Medicaid."
So it's ok to kill our surplus and create an astronomical deficit to kill and torture people, but it is not OK to spend money on making sure that every American has access to quality health care?
There is something very wrong with this picture.
The long term fiscal and health benefits of making sure that every American has access to quality health care far outweigh what might be spent now setting up the system. If set up correctly, we will actually be saving money rather than increasing our overall health care costs.
REPUBLICAN KING OF IOWA:Rep. King issued a press release WITH MISLEADING NUMBERS, AND INFROMATION
LIE HEADLINED: CBO: 5,600,000 Illegal Aliens May Be Covered under Obamacare.
a. ” King claimed that his press release was base on “what the Congressional Budget Office’s recent analysis of House health care legislation said.
b. King press release said that the 5.6 million would be covered “in large part because the liberal proposal does not include any requirements to verify the citizenship or immigration status of those receiving taxpayer-funded health benefits.
c. King QUOTED THAT “CBO projected that the uninsured would include 14.1 million illegal immigrants in 2019.
H.R. 3200 INCULDES A PROVISION THAT SPECIFIC ALLY SAYS THAT THERE WILL BE NO FEDERAL FUNDS SPENT TO COVER UNAUTHORIZED IMMIGRANTS
a. H.R. 3200 SEC 246: NO FEDERAL PAYMENT FOR UNDOCUMENTED ALIENS
b. Nothing in this subtitle shall allow Federal payments for affordability credits on behalf of individuals who are not lawfully present in the United Statesc.
No federal subsidies for you if you’re in the country illegally. Besides, illegal immigrants aren’t eligible for federal health programs under current law
This is information that all congress members should be aware of
Who is calling the shots for the repubs I congress; they have proven they are incapable of doing anything other than lying
In capitalism,executives ONLY WORK for publicly held companies; and the nuvo-robber baron mentality needs to go. If executives were the owners of companies, then they would not have put themselves on the line like they have because it would have directly effected their livelyhoods. When has it been a sound business practice to knowingly screw your customers and investors by running a company into the ground by irresponsible practices; and then give yourselves bonuses for poor greed driven performance? How can an executive in the healthcare industry be so egregious as to take a hideously large bonus knowing that, that money could have saved their customer's lives? The healthcare industry's actions are then protected via congress barring or inhibiting their customers the ability to sue them. That bonus, the protections given by congress,and Wall Street's expectations of the healthcare industry can only be called machiavellian! WE are a Democracy first and foremost. Our version of Capitalism is the business mode and when someone says we are a capitalistic democracy they are receiving donations from businesses and misleading you on purpose. Where is Democracy when we need it?
However, competition is the best way to keep health premiums in line and promote getting the most bang for the buck. That is why the public option is so important. A public utility would not be competitive. All private insurers would not be competitive (because of the oligopolistic nature of that competition as evidenced by decades of experience).
A strong, competent, honest public option is what will work best for the consumer. In the end, that is what should matter to everyone (except of course the insurance companies that are buying the politicians and fomenting the misled outrage on the right).
There are plenty of business opportunities in the country where people can continue to feed their greed and avarice, health care does not need to be one of them.
Or was is just a bunch of hot air?
What he presented to Congress this past week (and I am sure his office delivered a writen document of his proposal to all members of Congress), is pretty much what he campaigned on--were you not listening? The majority of Ameircan voters were listening and we all already voted for Obama's proposed health care reform on Nov 4th. You and the rest of the repugs try hard to pretend that the Presidential election never happened, or that the majority of Americans aleady spoke loud and clear for a comprehensive health care reform. The hot air is comming from people like you and your gop imbeciles who care nothing about the wellbeing of the American people, or that the majority of American aleady spoke loud and clear.
Tell Mr. Obama not to worry about 2012, it's over. He blew it by not going after the Financial crooks first, which would have brought the whole country behind him. No one believes him any more.
Read Paul Volcker's real reform of Wall Street and other eye-opening stuff on Bloomberg today, or here on HP.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mEJL2Uuv-oQ
what our president presented was his plan as to what he expects to see in a bill that he would sign.
did you also notice that one of the expectations, in fact a requirement, is that the final bill is deficit neutral.
the strained logic of their arguments shows me that they do not have the ability to think rationally or worse they are so cynical that they will use any tactic to win. the implied logic that the ends justify the means is exactly why we need to prosecute the last administration and why the germans did not get away with "i was only following orders" at Neurinberg
the only way to bring costs down is to set reasonable fees for medical procedures pay doctors those rates and let them compete for "customers" this can never happen with insurance paying the bill insurance pays doctor bills and collects it from the insured there is no negotiation just passing of the buck with every one adding on an"expense" laser eye surgery insurance will not pay for it has come down in price dramatically as doctors compete for patients. I for one am most upset with this idea that i will be somehow fined for walking upright with out health insurance . I can take my car off the road it . where do i turn in my body?
God, thank you. Yes. I've been shaking my head over that tired, horse$#it talking point for a while now. According to the CTJ's recent study, the Bush tax cuts in particular will have cost us $2.48 trillion in lost revenue from 2001-2010. Two and a half times the highest projected costs of any of the healthcare bills, without offsets. Oh, yeah, and better still, the tax cuts actually *were* deficit budgeted, no offsets, no plan for making them budget neutral. Oh, but wait, it gets even better. 53% of the benefits of those tax cuts accrue to the richest 5% of taxpayers.
By Grabthar's hammer. What a savings.
http://www.ctj.org/pdf/bushtaxcutsvshealthcare.pdf
Proof. Where is your proof.
If what you propose is true, then Bush and Reagan would not have had such enormous defecits and Bush Jr. especially, would not have left this disastrous economy and crippling debt as his legacy.
out with the german engineers,
immigration has always been a way to add an educated work force ( instant taxpayer) to our society and has been the reason for growth in this country. the word "immigrant" TODAY is a thinly disguised swat at latin americans. ( WHO HAVE THE LOWEST DEFAULT RATE ON HOME LOANS AS A GROUP.)
South Carolina Rep. Joe Wilson wasn’t the first, nor the only republicans to spread a lie in order to anger their low intelligence base supporters
REPUBLICAN KING OF IOWA, King issued a press release WITH MISLEADING NUMBERS, AND INFROMATION
LIE HEADLINED: CBO: 5,600,000 Illegal Aliens May Be Covered under Obamacare.
(King press release said that the 5.6 million would be covered “in large part because the liberal proposal does not include any requirements to verify the citizenship or immigration status of those receiving taxpayer-funded health benefits)
His conduct following Wilson outburst of “you lie” was nothing short of outstanding leadership.
A leader must places dedication and commitment to the nation above HIS/HER personal goal. A leader is honest and truthful, have courage of convictions, and ability to overcome fear. A Leader is duty proficiency, technical and tactical knowledge, sound judgment, setting the example, of mental and physical and toughness.
Thank you, Sir!