It was not surprising to see the Republican side of the joint session of Congress sit in their chairs like scolded school children wearing universally constipated expressions of disdain as President Barack Obama presented a powerful and effective consensus healthcare plan to unite the Democrats.
It was also not surprising to hear a member of the Republican side scream out "lie" during a presidential address, one of the most shameful acts ever witnessed, when Obama slapped down one GOP lie after another that he correctly stated were driven by politics rather than care for the American people.
Obama's healthcare concensus plan is plain and simple. And while the Republicans will not loosen their grips on their "bogus claims," as Obama put it, Obama outlined a vision that can help put to rest the most egregious lies even if Republicans, like GOP spokesman US Rep. Charles Boustany (R-LA), refuse to let up on the "scary stories."
Obama spelled out in English what Republicans will certainly seek to distort in their familiar language of demagoguery. In the first part, Obama said:
In the second part, Obama said that over the next four years:
Obama spoke to the "demagoguery" and the "bogus claims" forcefully, adding even more to the constipated Republican expressions int he audience. Obama drove a stake into the vampire heart of the Republican narrative when he stressed:
In ending his speech, the 15th Presidential address to a joint session of congresss since 1952 (according to retiring ABC Anchor Chalres Gibson), not one dollar of the "sacred trust" called Medicare will be used to fund the healthcare reforms.
"Don't pay attention to those scary stories that your medicare will be cut ... I will protect medicare."
Obama made some final points addressing the scare tactics that his plan is "socialism" or that this is a "government takeover of healthcare, after paying a powerful tribute to the late Sen Ted Kennedy, paraphrasing Kennedy's powerful repeated public tragedy that many families face: "There is something that will make you better, but I can't afford it."
The President reminded the Republicans -- and it was clear the first part of his speech outlining the consensus health care plan to unite the Democrats and the second part was to slam down the GOP demagoguery -- that Social Security was also denounced as "Socialism" when it was first proposed in the 1930s, and Medicare was also denounced as a government takeover when it was proposed in the 1960s.
The President's speech was so powerful it probably sent many of the nation's health insurance industry robber barons into economic cardiac arrest.
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Robert L. Borosage: The President's Speech
The President gives a great speech. He offers reason against hysteria. He summons us to our better angels. He challenges politicians and Americans to do "great things," because that is "who we are." He claims the center by defining himself against left and right, even as he acknowledges merit in both. It is time now for action, but Barack Obama is ill-served by the petty corruption and ideological venom of the right, and the docility of the left.
Be very careful about saying that the Republicans are dead or ranting, they may be weakened but they also have vast money from the major corporations supporting them. Do not say the Rush is their leader, he is just a mad dog being allowed to howl to keep you off guard. Watch instead if there is a slow takeover of the party. Because and when this happens, they may be called Republican but they will be in fact strongly middleamerican. Because this is where the true power lies, in that large middleamerican population that is for America.
middleamerican2010
Casey
http://www.joewilson.house.gov/
I'm a web developer and can tell you that site is not "down for maintenance" all this time. It's 2009 and we just don't let a site go down and stay down that long. We fix it, and we fix it fast.
I'm tired of watching such disrespectful outbursts that show little regard for the office of the Presidency. I wasn't a big fan of W.'s policies, but I can tell you that I never showed public disrespect for him. What makes it worse is that much of this is coming from people who call themselves followers of Jesus. I'm a follower of Jesus who reads and knows my Bible, and I can tell you it instructs us to respect our leaders, telling us clearly that no one is placed in leadership except that God has made it so.
For some reason, today's crop of evangelists seems to conveniently forget that verse and tailor the Bible to match their current political views.
Just so you know, not all Christians are going along with that, and some of us are starting to call them on the carpet.
The public option which is so touted by some is like having the US Postal Service compete with FedEx and UPS and a myriad of other competitors. I read they are shuting down over 400 post offices nationwide due to not being able to contain costs and operate with existing revenue. The answer is not to tax any entity more to make the post office work. The same goes for a public option. It is a pandora's box awaiting the hand of the government to unleash it's fury upon the common citizen. It will be known as Medicant.
My point is giddy does not mean correct when deciding what course of action to take for the sake of all Americans. Calm down, use data, look at costs, and make judgements based on the big picture. Policy created to win votes never helped America prosper. My wallet is in cardiac arrest.
"It was also not surprising to hear a member of the Republican side scream out "lie" during a presidential address, one of the most shameful acts ever witnessed"
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But you forgot to mention the signs held by the elected republicans which read "What Bill?", and the papers which supposedly had their version of a healthcare bill (quite THIN).
It was as if the rethugs thought they were going to an incited mob town hall, with their signs, and their hate speech, rather than attending an event where the President was addressing a joint session of congress.
YET THEY WANT TO BE RESPECTED AS ELECTED OFFICIALS .............. GO FIGURE.
$900 billion over the next 10 years for Healthcare = BAD,
$500 billion EACH YEAR for Military = GOOD?
How about $400 Billion a year for the military and $100m a year so people at home don't die from being uninsured? Doesn't that sound like a more reasonable use of finite resources?
Oh wait, now I get it. If all of those poor boys get free healthcare, they won't need to join the US military to get it anymore! Who will die for "freedom" then?
I'm willing to help ALL the less fortunate people in this country have access to health care. It is too bad so many right-wing "christians" don't feel the same way.