Archive for the ‘Nancy Pelosi’ Category
January 26th, 2010 | 
Author: ObamaCare's High-Risk Pools Cost Twice as Much Per Person As …
reason.com2/24/12
Enrollment in ObamaCare's high-risk insurance plans—intended to provide immediate coverage for the especially difficult to insure until the law's major insurance expansions start up in 2014—has so far been underwhelming: …
Thousands More Oppose Obamacare Mandate's Religious Liberty …
blog.heritage.org2/24/12
More than 2500 Christian leaders have signed a letter opposing Obamcare's anti-conscience mandate. The letter's release adds to the most recent furor over.
Many Democrats Appear Dumber And Dumber
Democratic congressional leaders are now said to be banding together around what is perhaps their last and best hope for salvaging President Barack Obama’s faltering health care overhaul.
Their Game Plan Explained
Senior Democratic aides said Monday that their present plan is to try and pass the Senate bill with as few minor changes as possible, and Dem (Dumb) leaders will present the idea to the rank and file later this week.
Do They Have The Votes?
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said last week she does not have enough votes to pass the Senate bill without changes, but it’s unclear if she said this because it’s true or because she was attempting to unite Dems.
Why Are They Pressing Ahead With This?
To the obvious surprise of almost everyone except the House Dems, the momentum to pass the Senate bill actually appears to be growing and among those arguing for a quick strike on health care is David Plouffe, who was the political adviser who helped elect Obama president and who has just got summoned back by the White House to help coordinate this year’s elections.
Plouffe just argued in a Washington Post op-ed;
"I know that the short-term politics are bad, but politically speaking, if we do not pass it, the GOP will continue attacking the plan as if we did anyway, and voters will have no ability to measure its upside. Among the immediate benefits: allowing dependent children to stay on their parents’ coverage into their mid-twenties, and assistance for seniors in the Medicare prescription coverage gap”.
And Dick Durbin of Illinois who is the No. 2 Senate Democrat said on Monday:
"We’ve put so much effort into this, so much hard work, and we were so close to doing some significant things. Now we have to find the political path that brings us out. And it’s not easy”.
But Ron Pollack, who is the executive director of Families USA, a liberal advocacy group, when asked, "Are they there yet?”, answered very categorically, “No”.
Three Possible Choices are:
1. The procedural route, also known as reconciliation, which would circumvent the need for a 60-vote majority to hold off Republican delaying tactics and would allow a majority of 51 senators to amend their bill to address some of the major substantive concerns raised by the House.
2. Scaling back the health care bill into less controversial, smaller pieces.
3. Setting the health plan aside for the time being and concentrating on either the growing deficit or unemployment.
The major problem that the Dems who are still pushing the bill will have with “reconciliation” is that it won’t be possible to resolve all the significant differences between the House and Senate bills through the special budget procedure, since only changes that affect taxes and government spending are normally allowed to pass with a majority of 51 senators, rather than a 60-vote majority.
Abortion is a case in point since the House bill is far more restrictive than the Senate’s version and it’s totally unclear how taxpayer funding for abortions could be restricted.
James R. Horney, a former Senate Democratic budget aide now with the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities said:
"Provisions that have no budgetary effect would clearly run afoul”.
Abortion opponents say they will count any House vote for the current Senate bill as favoring new government subsidies for abortion, and Douglas Johnson, who is the legislative director for National Right to Life said, "I suggest they do it the other way around, fix it first and then pass it. Members will be held accountable for what they actually vote for. It really doesn’t do to say, `I voted for something, but I was against it’".
So the bottom line is that although Democrats might be able to resolve the differences between the House and Senate on economic issues such as taxing high-cost insurance plans, closing the coverage gap in the Medicare prescription benefit, and providing subsidies to help middle-income households pay insurance premiums, they would most likely still be left with a bill that couldn’t pass both the House and Senate.
Posted in administration, congress, government, Health, health insurance, Health plan, job losses, jobless rate, jobs, layoffs, Nancy Pelosi, Obama, republicans, Senate, Unemployment, unemployment rate, work | 
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Health Insurance Continues Unaffordable Trend After Obamacare – Heritage.org (blog)
 USA Today |
Health Insurance Continues Unaffordable Trend After Obamacare
Heritage.org (blog) Among the many important findings in the report, one fact stood out: Americans are paying more and more for their health insurance every year, a concerning trend that is only getting worse under Obamacare. The report explains that: The cost of … Editorial: Health premiums jump, but don't blame 'ObamaCare' The ObamaCare 9% Plan A Year And a Half After ObamaCare, Employee Health Insurance Premiums Spike |
Health care taxing America’s workers – San Francisco Chronicle
 Fox News |
Health care taxing America's workers
San Francisco Chronicle On Tuesday House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan gave a talk at Stanford's Hoover Institution on what should become the Republican template behind its bid to "repeal and replace" Obamacare. Ryan cited the unintended consequences that employer-paid … Beyond 'Repeal and Replace' Ryan Pitches Voucher Plan to Replace Obamacare Romney's Health Care Record Won't Stop Him |
You Can’t Make Citizens Buy Health Insurance!
Very little has appeared in the MSM so far, regarding the illegality of parts of President Obama’s threatened health care plan.
The Individual Mandate
Consider for a moment, one component of the health plan known as the "individual mandate", which would require every American to have health insurance, either paid for by an employer, or at his or own expense.
The administration knows full well that the health plan could only work, or might possibly work, if the young are forced to subsidize the old, but a large number of young adults choose to go without coverage, and prefer to use their money for other things.
Can Congress Force People To Buy Health Insurance?
The short answer is, "No it can’t!".
The Constitution assigns only limited, enumerated powers to Congress and none of them, including the power to regulate interstate commerce, or to impose taxes, would support a federal mandate forcing a person to buy health insurance.
The Supreme Court has frequently interpreted Congress’s commerce power quite broadly, but this type of mandate could not undergo review without censure, regardless of the pressure exerted.
The federal government simply does not have the power to regulate Americans in this way, and in two key cases, United States v. Lopez (1995) and United States v. Morrison (2000), the Supreme Court specifically rejected the proposition that the commerce clause allowed Congress to regulate non-economic activities simply because, through a chain of causal effects, they might have an economic impact.
So What Options Does Congress Have?
Congress could try to coerce people into buying health insurance in the same way that many states will only register an automobile upon proof of insurance, but it’s hard to imagine a way of doing this that could be applied to the entire population of the United States.
The Senate version of the individual mandate as it presently stands, would see those who don’t buy health insurance penalized, and a fine would be collected by the IRS, but this would be totally unconstitutional, and is a total non-starter.
Our Wondrous Constitution
One of the wonders of our constitution is that neither the President nor the Congress can short circuit it, and regardless of how important our elected officials believe an issue to be, they can only accomplish their goals if the they are in accord with the powers and processes of the Constitution’s mandates, processes that make these officials accountable to the American people, whether they like it or not.
And Maybe Check out:
ABC’s Jake Tapper finally asked some, Tough Questions About ObamaCare!
Posted in congress, government, Health, health insurance, Health plan, Nancy Pelosi, Obama, public option |
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