Area's representatives split on bill Tonko supported health care reform package while fellow Democrat Murphy voted no
By SCOTT WALDMAN, Staff writer First published in print: Monday, November 9, 2009
The Capital Region's members of the House of Representatives voted on opposite sides of the health care issue after months of heated rhetoric finally led to a floor vote Saturday night. The Democrat-controlled House narrowly passed the Affordable Health Care for America Act, 220-215. U.S. Rep. Paul D. Tonko, D-Amsterdam, was one of 219 Democrats and one Republican to support the plan. U.S. Rep. Scott Murphy, D-Glens Falls, was among 39 Democrats who voted with the Republicans because he said the plan would put affordable health care out of reach of many small businesses.
I watched these debates. Interesting! I think it will be a hard sell in the senate. It is expensive and with loopholes of it's own.
I personally don't think this is the time to push for such a huge bill during this deep recession. We, as everyday average people know enough not to create more bills/expenses right now. I'm totally against anymore government run health care AT ANY TIME. But it seems totally idiotic and irresponsible to try to pass it during this huge economic downturn. It's nuts!
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
SHOW ME THE $$ TRAIL......is this a form of in-country sanctions? or are they afraid to 'really' piss off their big contributors......they scare the union folks and the union folks said dont levy a fee against us if we dont choose yours....and they agreed....BUT, why wont the elected face the insurance industry?? drug industry??
......................................SHOW ME THE $$ TRAIL.........................
THEY ARE A BUNCH OF MILLIONS ELECTED TO GET RICHER....OFF OUR BACKS.....HAD ENOUGH YET????
the system is broken,,,,they are walking around in the dark ages of their respected parties....no light....get it....
.........................................SHOW ME THE $$ TRAIL.........................
...you are a product of your environment, your environment is a product of your priorities, your priorities are a product of you......
The replacement of morality and conscience with law produces a deadly paradox.
STOP BEING GOOD DEMOCRATS---STOP BEING GOOD REPUBLICANS--START BEING GOOD AMERICANS
While watching TV, MVP had a commercial promoting their insurance, of course. They will give their policy holders $600 for joining a gym or taking yoga or anything for physical fitness. No wonder why insurances are so damn high! UGH!! >
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
Papers Ignore Bill Clinton Taunting 'The Teabaggers Are Inflamed' Because Dems Are Winning By Tim Graham (Bio | Archive) November 11, 2009 - 06:58 ET
The New York Times and The Washington Post both reported on former president Bill Clinton's pep talk with Senate Democrats on Tuesday. But both skipped over what the folks at Politico recounted:
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) said Clinton described the ongoing tea party protests against the Democratic agenda as a sign their party was making progress.
Whitehouse quoted Clinton arguing: "The reason the tea-baggers are so inflamed is because we are winning."
Perhaps the top editors felt this quote was not suitable for a family newspaper. Or perhaps they thought for Bill Clinton to joke about someone else's crotch being inflamed was just too embarrassing (to Clinton fans) to pass along.
The Washington Post hyped another quote on their front page:
"The worst thing to do is nothing."
That's what former president Bill Clinton told Senate Democrats on Tuesday about their upcoming vote on health care legislation. A3
SHOW ME THE $$ TRAIL.....ask them to face the insurance industry.....WHY WONT THEY??? WHY WHY WHY
...you are a product of your environment, your environment is a product of your priorities, your priorities are a product of you......
The replacement of morality and conscience with law produces a deadly paradox.
STOP BEING GOOD DEMOCRATS---STOP BEING GOOD REPUBLICANS--START BEING GOOD AMERICANS
AP Sources: Reid eyes payroll tax hike on wealthy Published - Nov 11 2009 09:21PM EST By DAVID ESPO - AP Special Correspondent
WASHINGTON— Majority Leader Harry Reid is considering a plan for higher payroll taxes on the upper-income earners to help finance health care legislation he intends to introduce in the Senate in the next several days, numerous Democratic officials said Wednesday.
These officials said one of the options Reid has had under review would raise the payroll tax that goes to Medicare, but only on income above $250,000 a year. Current law sets the tax at 1.45 percent of income, an amount matched by employers.
It was not known how large an increase Reid, D-Nev., was considering, or whether it would also apply to a company's portion of the tax. President Barack Obama has said he will not raise taxes on wage earners making less than $250,000.
The officials spoke only on condition of anonymity, saying they were not authorized to disclose details of private deliberations.
Reid's spokesman, Jim Manley, declined comment and said the majority leader has made no final decisions and is awaiting detailed information from the Congressional Budget Office about the cost and coverage implications of the proposals he has drafted....................>>>>................>>>>................http://www.rr.com/news/topic/a....._tax_hike_on_wealthy
I disagree with this. Many of these people who make over $250,000/year are company owners who employ hundreds and thousands of people. And they offer good medical benefits to those employees. Now they will be held responsible(penalized) to pay for others as well?
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
On Nov. 7 the House narrowly approved a health care bill that would provide coverage for 36 million American presently not covered and would eliminate insurance company rejection of individuals due to pre-existing conditions. The bill establishes a health insurance exchange where employers can obtain health insurance for their employees. Section 329 specifies that no person will be required to join. Article 342 of the bill provides that illegal foreigners are not eligible to participate in the exchange. A last-minute amendment to the bill provides restrictions on funds used for abortions. The bottom line is that many of the features desired by conservatives are contained in the bill. Yet, with only one exception, the entire Republican membership voted against the bill, as well as some Democrats. In fact, the House minority leader, Rep. John Boehner from Ohio, insisted that this bill will destroy America’s freedom. What freedom is he talking about? The freedom to go without necessary medical treatment or to be forced into bankruptcy because you got sick without medical insurance? Or is he talking about the freedom to be an indentured servant because your employer provides health insurance and you can’t afford to go elsewhere? Rep. Boehner and those who agree with him obviously are motivated by something other than the interest of the American people. Could it be the medical and insurance companies? Do they think that a government-sponsored plan would drive private insurances company out of business? Only if the government-sponsored programs are better than private insurance and millions of people switch to the government system. If the government system is as bad as Boehner insists, no one would join them, and Boehner should have nothing to worry about, right?
On Nov. 6 I opened The Daily Gazette to read about the citizen protest at the Capitol in Washington. I searched the paper in vain. Not one word was written about the tens of thousands of Americans who had gathered in a last-minute effort to stop the passage of Obama’s health care bill. Instead, on the second page, I found an Associated Press article headlined, “Doctors, seniors call for passage of House health bill.” What? Doctors and seniors are very much against the bill. The news report eventually revealed that the American Medical Association is pushing Obamacare, not doctors in general. The truth is that less than 20 percent of front-line, practicing physicians belong to the AMA. Doctors no longer join the association because it has adopted a strong left-wing agenda that does not represent their interests. Stating that the AMA speaks for the majority of American doctors is totally untrue. The AP also said that seniors are calling for passage of the health care bill. The article made seniors synonymous with the AARP — another deliberate fabrication. The AARP is an organization created to represent senior citizens, but its strong liberal bias has alienated much of that group. Because of AARP’s support of the Democratic health care bill, it has lost thousands of members. Most seniors understand how dangerous the proposed legislation is to their future well being. The AARP has a financial interest in passage of the health care bill. The organization provides medical insurance, and it is in a position to make large profits when the government takes over American medicine. Just like the doctors' association, AARP has thrown its members under the bus! I should point out that at the very bottom of the AP article was one sentence in reference to the Washington protesters. No doubt the writers added it to prove they were balanced in their reporting, but they made no attempt to explain the spontaneous outpouring of Americans of all ages and backgrounds who are trying desperately to stop the largest federal takeover in American history.
Someone emailed this to me so I thought I'd pass this along to you guys/girls............
Randolph H. Brinkley > Brinkley & Associates > > > > OBAMACARE ENDORSEMENTS: WHAT THE BRIBE WAS > > By DICK MORRIS & EILEEN MCGANN > > Published on TheHill.com on November 6, 2009 > > Printer-Friendly Version > > As the suicidal Democratic congressmen proceed to rubber-stamp the Obama > healthcare reform despite the drubbing their party took in the '09 > elections, the president trotted out the endorsements of the AMA and the > AARP to stimulate support. But these -- and the other endorsements -- his > package has received are all bought and paid for. > > Here are the deals: > > * The American Medical Association (AMA) was facing a 21 percent cut in > physicians' reimbursements under the current law. Obama promised to kill > the > cut if they backed his bill. The cuts are the fruit of a law requiring > annual 5-6 percent reductions in doctor reimbursements for treating > Medicare > patients. Bravely, each year Congress has rolled the cuts over, suspending > them but not repealing them. So each year, the accumulated cuts threaten > doctors. By now, they have risen to 21 percent. With this blackmail > leverage, Obama compelled the AMA to support his bill...or else! > > * The AARP got a financial windfall in return for its support of the > healthcare bill. Over the past decade, the AARP has morphed from an > advocacy > group to an insurance company (through its subsidiary company). It is one > of > the main suppliers of Medi-gap insurance, a high-cost, privately purchased > coverage that picks up where Medicare leaves off. But President Bush-43 > passed the Medicare Advantage program, which offered a subsidized, > lower-cost alternative to Medi-gap Under Medicare Advantage, the elderly > get > all the extra coverage they need plus coordinated, well-managed care, > usually by the same physician. So more than 10 million seniors went with > Medicare Advantage, cutting into AARP Medi-gap revenues. > > Presto! Obama solved their problem. He eliminates subsidies for Medicare > Advantage. The elderly will have to pay more for coverage under Medigap, > but > the AARP -- which supposedly represents them -- will make more money. (If > this galls you, join the American Seniors Association, the alternative > group; contact sbarton@americanseniors.org. This e-mail address is being > protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .) > > * The drug industry backed ObamaCare and, in return, got a 10-year limit > of $80 billion on cuts in prescription drug costs. (A drop in the bucket > of > their almost $3 trillion projected cost over the next decade.) They also > got > administration assurances that it will continue to bar lower-cost Canadian > drugs from coming into the U.S. All it had to do was put its formidable > advertising budget at the disposal of the administration. > > * Insurance companies got access to 40 million potential new customers. > But when the Senate Finance Committee lowered the fine that would be > imposed > on those who don't buy insurance from $3,500 to $1,500, the insurance > companies jumped ship and now oppose the bill, albeit for the worst of > motives. > > The only industry that refused to knuckle under was the medical device > makers. They stood for principle and wouldn't go along with Obama's > blackmail. So the Senate Finance Committee retaliated by imposing a tax on > medical devices such as automated wheelchairs, pacemakers, arterial > stents, > prosthetic limbs, artificial knees and hips and other necessary > accoutrements of healthcare. > > So these endorsements are not freely given, but bought and paid for by an > administration that is intent on passing its program at any cost.
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
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