Sorry,Dems-the attack mode is full-force...editorial in my paper

[w8liftinglady]

http://www.thedailylight.com/articles/2010/11/24/opinion/doc4cec625a165b6368441493.txt

LETTER: A mandate for repeal’
Published: Tuesday, November 23, 2010 7:17 PM CST
To the Editor,

Voters recently delivered a stinging rebuke of President Obama’s big-government vision for the country. A primary reason for the Democrats’ defeat was Americans’ disgust with the new health reform law.

A Rasmussen poll found that 58 percent of likely voters support the repeal of Obamacare. And a Wall Street Journal poll reported that 84 percent of voters said Obamacare affected their vote.

With Democrats now in the minority in the House of Representatives, Americans can now get their wish — repeal and replace.

Of the 60 House seats that have officially switched to the GOP — some races are still too close to call — 12 formerly belonged to Democrats who said “aye” to Obamacare.

A substantial proportion of the Democratic base broke rank because of Obamacare. One survey found that among Democrats who favored repeal, over a third voted Republican. Among pro-repeal Independents, fully 86 percent voted Republican.

In both Arizona and Oklahoma, voters approved amendments to their state constitutions aimed at outlawing the mandated purchase of health insurance. A similar ballot initiative passed in Missouri earlier this year with 71 percent support.

With the Republicans taking 11 governorships, it is likely that a number of states will also file suits against the Department of Justice, adding to those already filed in Virginia and in Florida by 20 state attorneys-general and the National Federation of Independent Business.

The voters have spoken — they want Congress to scale back Obamacare. The question now is where to begin.

Lawmakers should start by repealing the law’s requirement that all businesses submit 1099 tax forms to the IRS for each vendor with whom they do more than $600 in annual business.

The $600 limit is laughably low. Many firms spend more than that on coffee every year.

The provision is expected to saddle 40 million businesses — and specifically small businesses, the engine of growth in this country — with huge new compliance costs. Money that could have gone towards creating jobs will instead be wasted on filing reams of new paperwork.

Even the president recognizes that repeal of the 1099 requirement is a no-brainer. Indeed, during Wednesday’s post-mortem press conference, Obama said the provision “appears to be too burdensome for small businesses.” The CLASS Act, the cuts to the popular Medicare Advantage program, and the 2.3 percent tax on medical device companies are also ripe for repeal.

Repealing other aspects of health reform will be tougher, as they have to make it through the Senate, which is still controlled by Democrats. And the president will surely strike them down even if they make it to his desk. So lawmakers should use their power of the purse to choke off Obamacare’s funding.

The Congressional Budget Office estimates that Congress will have to allocate $115 billion over the next decade to finance programs created or expanded by the law. Lawmakers should refuse to pay for the establishment the nearly 160 new boards, commissions, and agencies established by Obamacare.

All of these steps are temporary fixes until 2012, when voters will have the chance to relieve Obama of his veto pen and press for the total repeal of the health reform law in 2013. A new Congress — and new president — could then work to implement consumer-oriented reforms that will actually fix what plagues the world’s finest healthcare system.

The new Congress must heed voters their wishes and begin dismantling Obamacare right away.

Sally C. Pipes

President and CEO

Pacific Research

Institute

[tridim]

1. Those are lies, not attacks.

But you're right, RW think tanks are good at it.

[ProSense]

2. This RW drivel and not an editorial, but a letter to the editor.

For all anyone knows it was written by a teabagger.

The majority of polls show Republicans won no mandate and most people want the health care law kept intact or expanded. In fact, the exit polls show the same.

[w8liftinglady]

4. a letter apparently sent to many papers(It's from California)

and probably printed in many small-town papers like mine.
I know it's shit...but it's there,and it's our responsibility to re-educate people.

[ProSense]

5. They did the same thing in the past

It's a tactic they use often.

[movonne]

10. Most people I know that need re-educating are the ones that will

not re-educate...they are happy right where they are...they would watch this country go down the toilet than to agree with Obama in any way...this is a treasonous bunch...

[Kalyke]

3. They must be getting a template from some place because

I read a letter to the editor in my paper recently that sounded eerily the same as this one.

I can't find it just now, but I know I read it.

What idiots.

[Kalyke]

6. OH... and about Sally Pipes

Pipes doesn’t hold a masters degree in health policy or public policy. Nor she does have much experience in academia:

With her ‘BA with honors’ in economics, Pipes leads a tiny ‘think tank,’ Pacific Research Institute, and advances special interest (PRI’s list of donors include Altria (formerly known as Philip Morris), Microsoft, Pfizer and ExxonMobil) agendas. PRI promotes itself a s “free-market think tank,” but Pipes offers little in the way of solutions. During her testimony, Pipes simply regurgitated Sen. John McCain’s (R-AZ) health care plan:

If we could change the tax code to level the playing field by removing the tax advantage from those who get their insurance through their employer, reduce state mandates that add between 20-50% to the cost of a premium, allow the purchase of insurance across state lines, and have medical malpractice reform, we could reduce costs and significantly reduce the number of uninsured in this country.

Pipes’ real contribution is her ability to conflate the administrations’ health care proposals with the evils of socialized Canadian medicine and reference discredited health care crisis deniers along the way. For instance, when Braley asked Pipes why “dont’ people who come from your point of view come to this committee and talk about constructive ways we’re going to reduce preventable medical errors” and lower overall health care costs, Pipes quoted fellow health care denier Betsy McCaughey!

http://wonkroom.thinkprogress.org/2009/03/17/pipes-peeps/

[EFerrari]

7. I knew that name was familiar. From Sourcewatch:

PRI head Sally Pipes, a Canadian residing in the United States, frequently speaks and writes against universal health care. Her bio lists as healthcare topics she had addressed "the false promise of a single-payer system as exists in Canada, pharmaceutical pricing, solving the problem of the uninsured, and strategies for consumer-driven health care." She also authored a 2004 book titled, "Miracle Cure: How to Solve America’s Health Care Crisis and Why Canada Isn’t the Answer." <1>

On the FOX News show "The O'Reilly Factor" on January 10, 2007, Pipes spoke against California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's proposal to provide all state residents with healthcare. She warned that, "f we provide health insurance, just like we provide welfare and education for illegal aliens, think about people that are illegal in other states. We're going to get a huge influx of illegal immigrants into California. And that's going to make it even more expensive ." <2>

http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Pacific_Research_Institute

[w8liftinglady]

9. EXCELLENT

[the redcoat]

8. the world's finest healthcare system below the top 36.

[ChoppinBroccoli]

11. I Think Sally Has Seen A Few Too Many Pipes

Get her a bag of Doritos, put on "Dark Side of the Moon," and shut off her computer.

[deaniac21]

12. Health Reform was a huge success with the voters.

[nxylas]

13. So does this mean that...

Of the 60 House seats that have officially switched to the GOP — some races are still too close to call — 48 formerly belonged to Democrats who said “no” to Obamacare? Because when I went to school, 48 was 4 times as many as 12.