The Political Fish

At least according to the CATO Institute. It seems that Congress has pulled a few of their patented budget tricks to try and mask the actual cost of the healthcare bill. CATO analyst Michael Cannon hashes out the details here.

One gimmick makes the new entitlement spending appear smaller by not opening the spigot until late in the official 10-year budget window (2010–2019).  Correcting for that gimmick in the Senate version, Sen. Judd Gregg (R-NH) estimates, “When all this new spending occurs” — i.e., from 2014 through 2023 — “this bill will cost $2.5 trillion over that ten-year period.”

Another gimmick pushes much of the legislation’s costs off the federal budget and onto the private sector by requiring individuals and employers to purchase health insurance.  When the bills force somebody to pay $10,000 to the government, the Congressional Budget Office treats that as a tax.  When the government then hands that $10,000 to private insurers, the CBO counts that as government spending.  But when the bills achieve the exact same outcome by forcing somebody to pay $10,000 directly to a private insurance company, it appears nowhere in the official CBO cost estimates — neither as federal revenues nor federal spending.  That’s a sharp departure from how the CBO treated similar mandates in the Clinton health plan.  And it hides maybe 60 percent of the legislation’s total costs.  When I correct for that gimmick, it brings total costs to roughly $2.5 trillion (i.e., $1 trillion/0.4).

Here’s where things get really ugly.  TPMDC’s Brian Beutler calls “the” $2.5-trillion cost estimate a “doozy” of a “hysterical Republican whopper.”  Not only is he incorrect, he doesn’t seem to realize that Gregg and I are correcting for different budget gimmicks; it’s just a coincidence that we happened to reach the same number.

When we correct for both gimmicks, counting both on- and off-budget costs over the first 10 years of implementation, the total cost of ObamaCare reaches — I’m so sorry about this — $6.25 trillion.  That’s not a precise estimate.  It’s just far closer to the truth than President Obama and congressional Democrats want the debate to be.

One way to limit this outrageous cost would be to limit any proposed healthcare reform to legal citizens and legal aliens. Sadly, the Senate bill as well as the House bill do nothing to safeguard against illegal aliens hoppin’ on board the taxpayer dole and receiving their very own shiny healthcare policy, courtesy of the American taxpayer. You might recall our good friend Joe Wilson shouting out above the crowd “You LIE” when President Obama stated in no uncertain terms that his proposals would not cover those here illegally. 

“This, too, is false — the reforms I’m proposing would not apply to those who are here illegally,” Mr. Obama said.

It seems Mr. Obama failed to consult with the runaway Congress on this proposal. Its bad politics you know to discriminate against those who knowingly break the laws and the sovereignty of the United States. Both bills that came out from behind closed doors, completed in secrecy by the Party leaders of the House and Senate, fail miserably in controlling the misuse and abuse of the system at the hands of illegals. One could even argue, that by controlling illegal immigration you could alleviate much of the cost burden that is currently draining the system…but that is for another time…

I guess the term “ILLEGAL aliens” doesn’t mean much to certain Senators on Capitol Hill these days. Obama hasn’t passed out free citizenship amnesty to all just yet, so for the time being illegal aliens are still…ahem…illegal. Check out the story from Judicial Watch.

An influential senior Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee is withholding support for his party’s recently drafted healthcare reform bill because illegal immigrants won’t benefit under the plan. 

The only Hispanic in the U.S. Senate, New Jersey’s Robert Menendez, doesn’t like the way illegal aliens are treated in the bill, recently released by Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, and refuses to vote for it until changes are made. This could create a huge problem, according to the congressional newspaper that broke the story, because Menendez has considerable leverage and may represent the committee’s deciding vote. 

Specifically, Menendez objects to the portion of the bill that forbids illegal immigrants from buying health insurance through newly created exchanges that will be set up to cut costs. The senator, once among the highest ranking Democrats in the U.S. House, has joined forces with Hispanic advocacy groups that have denounced the proposed measure’s emphasis on legal and illegal immigrants. 

Sickening how race-based politics gets in the way of that pesky rule of law thing….Shame on you Senator Menendez!

It has been a whirlwind news cycle the last few days as video after video has been coming out exposing the corrupt underbelly of the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN).

Andrew Breitbart and his new website BigGovernment.com has been absolutely destroying ACORN, and for his opening act he started releasing the videos and stories from Hannah Giles and James O’keefe as they sought to expose ACORN for who they really are, and contacted Breitbart to get the word out. And what a massive success they have been. They have travelled to Baltimore, Washington DC, New York City, San Bernadino and most recently San Diego playing the same act as a pimp and a prostitute looking for housing. Clearly, the ACORN employees were well versed in manipulating the system, even if it meant aiding and abetting criminal behavior. Things got really good in San Bernadino California, where the Tresa Kaelke (ACORN employee) admitted on camera to killing her husband, effectively illustrating her street cred to the “hooker” Giles and her “pimp” O’Keefe.  Sean Hannity got the scoop tonight on the newest video to come out, which happened in San Diego. Take a look at the interview with Breitbart and Giles, along with the newest damning video evidence.

Its simply amazing. Even though to look at them, it would seem there would be no way they could pull off the act, they apparently have convinced ACORN employees across the country, even so much as to get a solicitation from the San Diego representative.

This recent scam, which was attempted in San Diego, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia to name a few places, had failed for months before the results we’ve all recently seen.
-Bertha Lewis, Chief Organizer, ACORN

Sorry Bertha, it doesn’t look like they failed. It looks like ACORN has been exposed.

THE FALLOUT

And boy has there ever been some fallout. Shortly after the release of the Baltimore video, Senator Johans (R-NE) added an ammendment to HR3288 which is the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2010. Senate ammendment 2355 cut funding to ACORN, and was passed in overwhelming fashion, 83-7. Believe it or not, yes there were 7 who voted to continue funding ACORN. They are as follows:

NAYs —7
Burris (D-IL) Casey (D-PA) Durbin (D-IL)	Gillibrand (D-NY) Leahy (D-VT) Sanders (I-VT)	Whitehouse (D-RI

I know that I am not surprised by this list. Burris and Durbin jump out at me though, as likely being deeply connected with this organization, as they hail from the very center of government corruption in America, the great state of Illinois.

Also, in the days following ACORNs new found (albeit unwanted) fame, the US Census Bureau decided to cut ties with ACORN as well.  Ben Smith at Politico points out…

The latest ACORN expose, in which a conservative producer and his partner got two ACORN employees to give him advice on running his prostitution business and evading taxes with their underage Latin American prostitutes (really) has dealt the organization a final blow as far as the Obama administration is concerned: The Census has chosen to stop working with the group, with Census Director Robert Groves writing ACORN President Maude Hurd that public “concern” about the group has become “a distraction from our mission” and that recent events — an apparent reference to the expose — has “added to worsening negative perceptions of ACORN.”.

Conspicuously absent in this whole process has been the mainstream media. This expose from Giles and O’Keefe has exposed ACORN for who they really are (1 or 2 times coincidence, 5 is a pattern, sorry ACORN), but it has also exposed the inept main stream media for who they really are as well. They have been all but silent, other than MSNBC and CNN blasting these radical conservative 20-somethings who are on a witch hunt, following the right-wing obsession with ACORN. Actually MSM, they are doing your job…real investigative journalism.  Check out the piece MSNBC put out, including an interview with ACORN CEO Bertha Lewis. Tell me after watching this there isn’t some sort of leftist bias and radical agenda from this news organization. Its so thick in this segment, it cannot be missed.

Classic MSNBC…I was actually waiting for Rachel Madcow or Keith Olbermann to rush the stage and start up with one of their inane right-wing demonizing rants. One can dream I suppose.

I will end with this. We should all lift these two patriots up in our prayers, as the media and this organization has threatened them with lawsuits and other smears, and I’m sure its just a matter of time before more serious threats are levied in their directions. With a little creativity, they have accomplished what millions of decent Americans were hoping for, which is effectively bring down the largest “social justice” aka socialist community organizations in the country. Their website uses this social and economic justice double speak in its “ABOUT” section. Too bad the American public is awake now to what that term actually means.

It will be interesting to see more of the fallout in the coming days and weeks. Potential Congressional investigations into lawmakers ties with this group would be appropriate, and let us not forget that the Obama administration and campaigns have been intricately involved with ACORN. It was after all his first job out of college! Already the White House has thrown ACORN under the bus, by attempting to distance itself from the group. But the American public already knows better than that. Its their typical modus operandi to sell out their friends when times get tough.

This has truly been a shock and awe campaign unleashed by the grassroots in America against corruption.

We are now to refer to her as Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor.

I am not going to get into the details of why I think this is a catastrophe for our country. You can read my views here and here and here and here….or maybe here and here and here as well.

For a complete list of my Sotomayor opinions, just go here

I am not going to wax eloquent on this blog. She was confirmed, we are now going to be forced to live with her on the Court for many years. We have no one to thank but ourselves. The Constitution is under attack, how long shall we sit and observe it. It does not matter whether she is white, black, hispanic, Chinese, or even not of this world…she has shown in her career that the Constitution of the United States does not serve as her guide in judicial decision making. For that, we should not celebrate her confirmation, but lament the fact that the United States Senate enabled her to take this lifelong appointment.

For me, I will remember the name of Senator Lindsey Graham, the one Republican who sold his conscience on the Judiciary Panel.

The war on the Mexican border continues quietly, and under the radar of the Washington elite who choose not to deal with the problems for fear of offending the growing Hispanic voting bloc.

United States Customs and Border Patrol Agent Robert Rosas was killed Thursday night while responding to a call near the town of Campo, California. Rosas, who is 30, responding alone to this call and was gunned down by what is thought to be drug smugglers coming across the border by car.

“My thoughts and condolences are with Agent Rosas’ family and his fellow agents at this difficult time,” said Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said in a statement.

“His death is a vivid reminder that we are engaged in a serious effort to secure our border and that thousands of Border Patrol agents and other DHS employees risk their lives every single day to protect and defend our nation.”

The growing concern of the Mexican drug violence spilling over in the southwest has been growing for a while. Yet we continue to do nothing about it. Drug cartels have been raging a war against Mexican officials for years, its only a matter of time before it comes into the US (which it already has on some levels) and we will undoubtedly continue to see the escalation of this type of violence, unless the root issue of controlling our southern border is dealt with. We do not need the constant flow of illegals coming into our country, let alone the lawless element of Mexico continuing their activities in our homeland. Our border is porous and should be a top priority of our government, no matter who you are going to offend. Its our security we are talking about.

One of the questions that popped into my head about this latest incident is why was Agent Rosas responding alone? I am not exactly sure of the way they operate, if its similar to a normal policing situation, but I would have thought he would have had a partner.  Its kind of an irrelevant point I suppose, but could have made a difference in preventing this tragedy.

According to Michelle Malkin, there has been a break in this case….

KPIX in San Francisco is reporting that two men and one woman were arrested in relation to this case in a San Jose Hospital where they were seeking treatment. Reportedly, a blood sample of one of the assailants was found at the scene. Reports that the Agent may have been shot with his own weapon are unconfirmed at this time.

This tragedy underscores the need for a better fence and tighter control over the United States Border with Mexico. It also signals an escalation of the violence on this side of the fence or lack thereof. The area where the agent was killed is still only protected by the decades old ten-foot fence that smugglers and illegal immigrants have been scaling or crawling under since it was installed.

Local residents and citizen border watchers are stricken with grief, many of whom knew and worked with Agent Rosas…Agent Rosas is survived by a wife and two small children. Flags across the area are flying at half-staff.

Rosas was the first CBP agent to die in the line of duty in more than a decade. I salute him and offer prayers for his family.

RIP Agent Rosas.