The Cellar - Congress has lost its mind...

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- - Congress has lost its mind... (http://cellar.org/showthread.php?t=5891)

I agree it has pluses and minuses. Some reforms are well needed and long over due. It just does not have the safe guards for those who have insurance to protect from huge increases in costs. It does nothing to fix the cost control of healthcare in general. And it is expensive as hell. There are a ton of "ifs" and "assumptions". Overall I think it is a bad idea in it's current form. There is this idea of "just pass something", and that is dangerous. They are trying to please their masters.

Quote:

Originally Posted by classicman (Post 617488)

Of course they are, Merc. I don't think anyone here is under the influence. The typical dwellar is much smarter than the average beer, ya know.

Fixed for ya, classic. ;)

Here's two that need reform

One is the loopholes in the law, the other is the culture that seeks them out and uses them to cheat society.

The Tax Breaks Abound....

Parker Griffith Staff Resigns: Nearly Every Member Quits

Quote:

Nearly every staff member of Democrat-turned-Republican Rep. Parker Griffith's office quit Monday morning in response to his decision to switch parties. His chief of staff resigned, along with his entire legislative and communications team -- many of whom have worked for Griffith since before he arrived in Washington.

"Alabama's Fifth District has deserved and has benefited from great Democratic conservative leadership since Reconstruction. And until now they had it," Chief of Staff Sharon Wheeler said. "I appreciate Congressman Griffith's being a very dedicated congressman. But we believe he made a mistake -- a well-intentioned but misguided mistake that is not in the interest of the great people of North Alabama who elected him a year ago as a Democrat. As his staff, we wish him only the best, and we all remain committed to the citizens of the Tennessee Valley.
But we cannot, in good conscience, continue working for him. It is with deep sadness that we leave our work for the Fifth District. But because we are unwavering in our own principles, we have no choice but to move on. We do not know what the future holds, but we are taking a leap of faith with the belief we will soon find ourselves in the employment of principled public officials."

WOW!

Good for them.

He'll be fine for staff, though. Capitol Hill is crawling with unemployed Republican staffers.

However, he will be teabag primaried. An ex-Democrat won't pass their purity test.

Yeh, I was thrilled to read that article though. I think its great that they made a stand, no matter that they'll all be re-employed soon, if they aren't already.

Quote:

Democrats moved closer to a final deal on health care reform Thursday — and for some vulnerable members, the end can’t come soon enough.

In an emotional talk with other Democrats on the Ways and Means Committee this week, North Dakota Rep. Earl Pomeroy said the protracted debate is hurting him so badly back home that he might as well retire if it drags on much longer.

A Democrat who attended the Ways and Means session said Pomeroy was “very angry” as he spoke about the delay. “Other folks were upset, but he was the maddest by far.”

“I believe Congress needs to resolve fairly quickly this protracted health care debate,” Pomeroy told POLITICO on Thursday. “We have a number of other issues that haven’t been able to get enough attention, because health care is taking up all the floor time, all of the attention. We need to move on.”

Pomeroy is hardly alone.

Rank-and-file members throughout the House Democratic Caucus are anxious to get past the health care debate — whatever the outcome — so that they can turn their attention to less polarizing issues that could help them win reelection in November.

Link
Ahh what it's really all about . . . getting re-elected. The R's are doing the same thing. Drag this thing out as long as possible so that the memory impaired masses have this travesty of a political show fresh in their minds. :vomit
Politics as usual from all of them.

Well I guess people are as satisfied with the way the country is going after all...

Independent Voters Abandon Democrats

Quote:

WASHINGTON—Democrats' loss in Tuesday's race for a Massachusetts Senate seat is a stark illustration of how support from independent voters has collapsed, a phenomenon that's prompting party leaders to revamp their playbook for this year's midterm elections.

Independent voters—typically centrist, white and working-class—backed President Barack Obama and the Democrats in 2008. But Massachusetts is now the third Obama-won state in the past three months where independents have swung decisively Republican.

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Democratic strategists worry the numbers paint a gloomy picture in states with competitive House, Senate and gubernatorial races this year, especially those where independent voters hold sway, including Colorado, Wisconsin, Florida and Ohio. Those states weigh heavy on the White House because they will be battlegrounds for Mr. Obama's re-election campaign.

Massachusetts could be problematic again in November when Democratic Gov. Deval Patrick is up for re-election amid dropping approval ratings. Unexpected blue-state contests could erupt for Sen. Barbara Boxer (D., Calif.) and Gov. Martin O'Malley of Maryland.

Republicans in November won the Virginia and New Jersey governorships by winning independents by two-to-one margins. In those states and Massachusetts, polls showed that independents were anxious about the economy and the rising jobless rate, with health care a less important issue.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000...330904680.html

US politics is a fucking pendulum.

Exactly: you get fucked no matter which way it swings.

Taxpayers pay $101,000 for Pelosi's in-flight 'food, booze'

http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=123472

Someone must stop this Nazi from spending our money for her jaunts...

Quote:

Judicial Watch, the public interest group that investigates and prosecutes government corruption, announced today that it has obtained documents from the Air Force detailing House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s use of United States Air Force aircraft for Congressional Delegations (CODELs).

According to the documents, obtained by Judicial Watch through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), the Speaker’s military travel cost the United States Air Force $2,100,744.59 over a two-year period — $101,429.14 of which was for in-flight expenses, including food and alcohol.

Quote:

The following are highlights from the recent release of about 2,000 documents:

* Speaker Pelosi used Air Force aircraft to travel back to her district at an average cost of $28,210.51 per flight. The average cost of an international CODEL is $228,563.33. Of the 103 Pelosi-led congressional delegations (CODEL), 31 trips included members of the House Speaker’s family.

* One CODEL traveling from Washington, DC, through Tel Aviv, Israel to Baghdad, Iraq May 15-20, 2008, “to discuss matters of mutual concern with government leaders” included members of Congress and their spouses and cost $17,931 per hour in aircraft alone. Purchases for the CODEL included: Johnny Walker Red scotch, Grey Goose vodka, E&J brandy, Bailey’s Irish Crème, Maker’s Mark whiskey, Courvoisier cognac, Bacardi Light rum, Jim Beam whiskey, Beefeater gin, Dewars scotch, Bombay Sapphire gin, Jack Daniels whiskey, Corona beer and several bottles of wine.

Quote:

* According to a “Memo for Record” from a March 29—April 7, 2007, CODEL that involved a stop in Israel, “CODEL could only bring Kosher items into the Hotel. Kosher alcohol for mixing beverages in the Delegation room was purchased on the local economy i.e. Bourbon, Whiskey, Scotch, Vodka, Gin, Triple Sec, Tequila, etc.”

* The Department of Defense advanced a CODEL of 56 members of Congress and staff $60,000 to travel to Louisiana and Mississippi July 19-22, 2008, to “view flood relief advances from Hurricane Katrina.” The three-day trip cost the U.S. Air Force $65,505.46, exceeding authorized funding by $5,505.46.

Quote:

“Speaker Pelosi has a history of wasting taxpayer funds with her boorish demands for military travel. And these documents suggest the Speaker’s congressional delegations are more about partying than anything else,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton.

Judicial Watch previously obtained internal DOD email correspondence detailing attempts by DOD staff to accommodate Pelosi’s numerous requests for military escorts and military aircraft as well as the speaker’s last minute cancellations and changes.

Good God, no wonder she has no problems wasting our tax dollars on legally passed bills...