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26 Sep 2011 21:33

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Politics: Obamacare likely headed to the Supreme Court pretty soon

  • what The Obama administration has decided not to ask an appeals court to re-hear arguments over his lightning rod of a health-care bill.
  • why The president probably plans on taking it to the Supreme Court. Just in time for the 2012 election, guys! This should be fun. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

20 Jun 2011 22:00

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U.S.: Why would you steal a buck from the bank?

  • On June 9th, 2011, a 59-year-old man with no criminal history robbed a bank of one dollar. The man, who was unarmed, made it clear that he only wanted a single dollar, and calmly waited for the police to arrive after collecting it from the teller. James Verone had been laid off from his delivery job three years earlier, and was subsequently forced to take a position as a convenience store clerk. But this job slowly ate away at his body, and resulted in serious health problems. He couldn’t afford health insurance, and was denied disability. So, Verone intentionally landed himself in prison in order to take advantage of the free health care. The most amazing part? He says now that he doesn’t regret it. source
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink

02 Jun 2011 01:47

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Politics: Republican budget plan falls flat with the public

  • Is it just us, or was Paul Ryan foolish to start using the word “Mediscare” to describe the Democrats’ opposition to his plan? Because when you hear “Mediscare,” you don’t think, “Oh, the Democrats are just trying to scare me. I’m sure the Ryan budget is perfectly innocuous.” No; you think, “Oh no! Someone’s trying to take my Medicare away, and I’m scared!” Anyway, this is a shocking, rare PR victory for the Democrats, so let’s let them cherish it for the ten minutes it’ll take before they inevitably blow it and do something stupid. source
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink

02 Jun 2011 00:30

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U.S.: Latest attempt to defund Planned Parenthood fails

  • plan In preparation for his aborted presidential run, Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels signed a bill blocking Medicaid recipients from using Planned Parenthood’s services.
  • problem The Health and Human Services Department has informed Daniels that the bill he signed is in violation of federal Medicaid law, and thus can’t be implemented. source
  • » What was wrong with the bill? Well, from a moral standpoint, a lot. But from a legislative standpoint, the issue is that Medicaid beneficiaries are legally permitted to use their Medicaid anywhere they want, so long as they do so at a “qualified service provider.” The bill Daniels discriminates against Planned Parenthood for reasons unrelated to its qualifications. Proponents of the bill correctly pointed out that the Hyde Act makes it illegal for federal funds to pay for abortions; however, only 3% of Planned Parenthood’s services are abortive, and for low-income Hoosiers to be blocked from Planned Parenthood’s other services simply because the governor once wanted to run for president is not only wrong–it’s against the law.
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 May 2011 15:48

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Politics: Newt Gingrich, whatever you want him to be

  • “I oppose the Obamacare mandate”: That quote is very telling, because the truth is, Newt does oppose the Obamacare mandate — because it’s Obama’s. Hearing him musing about the merits of a health insurance mandate just a day before, on Meet The Press, may make you think there’s some sort of hypocrisy, or flip-flop here, but there isn’t. You see, this mandate we’ve got now… it’s Obama’s! Seriously, though — this is nothing new for Newt. You may remember his utter reversal on whether he would intervene in Libya, a clear instance of him espousing policy beliefs simply to appear opposite Obama, rather than having any conviction or integrity behind them. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

13 May 2011 15:08

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Politics: Chris Christie plays lone wolf in Mitt Romney health-care support

  • Gov. Romney’s speech yesterday was just the type of tone we need. While folks may not agree with what he said, that type of candor is what Americans expect from a serious presidential candidate today.
  • New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie • Offering a big wet kiss to Mitt Romney for his straight-talking approach to health care. Romney made the argument that the health care approach (which Obama based his national health-care plan upon) was the right one for his state — but not necessarily for the country. What’s weird is that Christie was one of the few to offer support to Mitt after the speech, which many on the right really didn’t like. Guess we know who Chris Christie is voting for in 2012. (Hint: Not himself.) source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

11 May 2011 19:37

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U.S.: “Mitch The Knife” lives up to name, cuts health services for poor sick people

  • NO Planned Parenthood access for poor Hoosiers source
  • » Last June, he called for a “truce” on social issues. Now, with a presidential run looking ever-so-tempting, Mitch Daniels has no problem cutting reproductive services for 9,300 Medicaid recipients in Indiana, of which he is regrettably the governor. Today, a court rejected Planned Parenthood’s efforts to postpone enforcement of the bill. For low-income Indianans who feared they might have life-threatening illnesses, Planned Parenthood was one of their only resources. Now, thanks to Daniels’ quixotic presidential ambitions, they’re out of luck. (Note: A separate request for an injunction, filed by the ACLU, has not yet been ruled on)
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

11 May 2011 15:04

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Politics: Mitt Romney believed in that individual mandate back in 2007

  • I’d think it’s a terrific idea. I think you’re going to find when it’s all said and done, after all these states that are the laboratories of democracy, get their chance to try their own plans, but those who follow the path that we pursued will find it’s the best path, and we’ll end up with a nation that’s taken a mandate approach.
  • Mitt Romney • Expressing his experience-based belief that health care (and insurance) reform would be helped by an individual mandate, on a 2007 episode of Meet The Press. In other words, one of the quotes Romney is hoping beyond feverish hope not too many Republicans read heading into 2012. The thing is, this does conform with what he’s been insisting, that he supports what he did on health care because it was at the state level (the laboratories of democracy), not the federal level. However, he clearly says here that the mandate would, in fact, be the best plan nationwide. This is a problem — the GOP’s talking points haven’t just been saying that the mandate is bad because it’s federal, they’ve also been saying it’s wrong for the government to force you to buy something. Whether it’s Barack’s federal government, or Mitt’s Massachusetts, that argument ought to stay the same, right? source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

15 Apr 2011 11:34

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Politics: Three harsh criticisms Obama said into a hot mic last night

  • Say what you want about CBS’ Mark Knoller, but he gets stories. The dude may have a massive beard, but that beard is probably large enough to fit a high-quality tape recorder into. Which is why the White House correspondent was able to pretty much beat everyone else to a pretty killer Obama story this morning. (With audio!) See, Obama thought he was talking to donors. But he had an hot mic on that was accidentally pumping audio from the closed-door fundraiser into the press room, and Knoller caught it. Including the audio. While Obama said fairly harsh things about the White House IT department, like “We are like 30 years behind – we can’t get our phones to work,” the stuff he said about the budget situation and Paul Ryan had the strongest impact:
  • On health care “I said (to Republicans), ‘You want to repeal health care? Go at it. We’ll have that debate. You’re not going to be able to do that by nickel-and-diming me in the budget. … You think we’re stupid?'”
  • On Planned Parenthood He reportedly told Boehner and his staff, regarding the controversial riders: “Put it in a separate bill. We’ll call it up. And if you think you can overturn my veto, try it. But don’t try to sneak this through.”
  • On Paul Ryan “… the same guy that voted for two wars that were unpaid for, voted for the Bush tax cuts that were unpaid for, voted for the prescription drug bill that cost as much as my health care bill …” source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

23 Mar 2011 22:41

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Politics: Who’s afraid of Rahm Emanuel? Not Bart Stupak!

  • Rahm [Emanuel] doesn’t scream and shout at me, ’cause he knows better. I’ll just tell him to go to Hell and move on.
  • Bart Stupak • Reflecting on the passage of health care reform last year, and his dealings with Obama’s old right hand man. The former congressman from Michigan says that he is “proud to have voted for [health care reform],” despite still getting “accosted” by the law’s detractors. source
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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