Sometimes legislative hearings are long and boring. Sometimes they are excruciating. Yet rarely are they embarrassing.
I think yesterday marked a first in terms of a blatant effort at intimidation and retribution against the American Association of Retired People (AARP) for having the temerity to support health care reform.
Subcommittee Chairman Rep. Wally Herger (R-CA) and Committee member Rep. Dave Reichert (R-WA) issued an investigative "report" that was short on facts and long on footnotes. At 243, it was almost an average of ten per page for items that were inconsequential, mostly matters of public record, and beside the point. They proceeded to attempt to discredit AARP since the organization supported the Children's Health Insurance Program since it would be against their financial interests. They then turned around and suggested that AARP supported health care reform because it was in their financial interests. The Republican storyline was that somehow reforming Medicare Advantage was not in the interests of American seniors, when three quarters of American seniors now pay $90 a month extra because of the excesses of an unreformed Medicare Advantage program. Far from representing a downward spiral, the committee has heard evidence that Medicare Advantage enrollment is up, premiums are down, and that good work is being done to improve the quality of the service. Yet because AARP supported these reasonable reforms, the organization was hauled before a public hearing in an effort to discredit its work.
This stunt was unprecedented during my tenure in Congress, smacked of intimidation that harkens back to the McCarthy era, and sets a dangerous precedent. The issues raised in the hearing of complexity and having advocacy as well as public interest, in addition to various lines of for-profit activity, could have been leveled against AAA of the United States and its many affiliates in every state, as well as against dozens of businesses and product lines. Hopefully we won't do that, but that is exactly the unfortunate precedent that was established by this hearing. There are lots of areas that are ripe for investigation of the abuse of tax exempt funds. For instance, there are some charitable and educational institutions that pay truly outlandish salaries, far in excess in what was referenced in AARP's case, and are voracious money making machines. There are political activities that would clearly appear to violate the line into direct partisan advocacy and shouldn't be used with tax exempt funding. Truly, there are lots of worthy subjects for Congressional investigation. AARP is not one of them. It was a discredit to the Committee's Republican majority to have undertaken this spectacle.
I suppose the people who were subjected to it can take some small measure of satisfaction that it was on April Fools Day, but one fears that some of the people behind this hearing are actually serious.
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We're inching towards fascism. The only hope we have is that the Republicans will overplay their hand and inspite of the endless cash they now can access, will be brought down by an alarmed citizenry who realize that their lives and sacred honor are at stake.
McCarthyism is alive and well.
Despicable.
I do hope this sends a wake up call to AARP members who are also TBaggers. The GOP does not have your interests in mind, but you can still vote (at least for the time being).
These are blackmail tactics. And they are horrible. I have never seen the like. It sounds like someone didn't heed that "spare the rod, spoil the child" maxim. If ever a group of people needed a whuppin', it is these Regressive Newbies.
I think we should take 'em to the woodshed.
It will accomplish the same thing the GOP is doingon all the other issues. Nothing.
Perhaps they want to find out why 30 GOP senators voted against a rape vote?
Didn't think so.
The sooner we get rid of the GOP and Tea Party the sooner we can get done to the real business of America. For example. end the wars, tax corporations and the rich at a higher rate, end the Bush cuts, end captial gains taxes, jobs, better education for our kids and provide for the safety and security of our seniors.
Oh, and send white collar criminal bankers and wall street brokers to jail.
This is a perfect "talking point" to turn against the GOP/TBaggers.
all their lives and paid the taxes that help support these programs. I continue to wonder how any sane person can continue to support these people.