Removing one of the best incentives for good health

Thinking and responsible people wish to remain healthy for several reasons.  One of the main impetuses for being healthy is the avoidance of medical costs. It is expensive to be sick or in bad health.

Fully understanding and recognizing that some illnesses are tragically unavoidable, these comments refer to those that are avoidable.

Michelle Obama has taken on the imagery of promoting good eating and health habits, yet her husband's signature legislation will reverse many of her efforts tenfold.

Obamacare promises to protect people from high medical costs. And, as mentioned, if these costs and their avoidance are a prominent reason for sustaining one's health, then those efforts will be reduced simply because the pecuniary penalties for bad health habits have been reduced.

The government protects those who cannot, or in this case will not, protect themselves from themselves.

And once again we have counterveiling efforts from those in federal power. Just as Bernanke attempts maximum employment by flooding the country with dollars as the federal government subsidizes unemployment with idle comforts, Michelle promotes responsible health habits as the federal government shelters those who have a high propensity for bad health habits from high costs, and their own stupidity.

Via: American Thinker

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Obama blocks agencies’ funding to stop Obamacare reforms

President Barack Obama is threatening to deny funding to all unfunded federal agencies until GOP legislators abandon their reforms to the Obamacare law that regulates the nation’s health-sector.

The threatening statement, issued Wednesday, clashes with the president’s efforts to portray the budget impasse as the “Republican shutdown” of the federal government.

“The Administration strongly opposes House passage … [of] fiscal year 2014 appropriations for very limited activities,” said the statement, which was issued after GOP leaders said they would pass multiple small-scale bills to fund individual agencies during the budget impasse.

That GOP mini-bill strategy allows them to continue their advocacy for Obamcare reforms, while also highlighting Obama’s strategy of shutting down government.

Obama’s hard line reflects his expectation that media coverage of the budget impasse will blame the GOP for the impasse, boost his poll ratings and help Democrats in their effort to win a House majority in November 2014.

“Consideration of appropriations bills in a piecemeal fashion is not a serious or responsible way to run the United States Government,” said the Oct. 2 statement, which comes only one day after Obama signed a law allowing continued payment of salaries for the the nation’s military.

“Instead of opening up a few Government functions, the House of Representatives should re-open all of the Government,” the statement insisted.

So far, Obama’s plan is working, partially.

Via: Daily Caller

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‘There Are No Glitches’: Ed Schultz Insists Fox Behind Myth of Obamacare Flaws

Now Republicans are on a 'Jihad'

We can add this one to the long list that includes 'Anarchists' and 'Legislative Arsonists'

It's career-lib Democrat George Miller of California today on the House Floor

Watch- 


Via: The Right Pundit

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‘There Are No Glitches’: Ed Schultz Insists Fox Behind Myth of Obamacare Flaws

“There are no glitches,” MSNBC host Ed Schultzdeclared. Ever, you ask? No, only in the case of the divinely inspired and flawlessly executed health care exchanges that opened on Tuesday as part of the Affordable Care Act. In fact, the widely reported and well-documented failures that the system experienced on opening day were, according to Schultz, a myth propagated by Fox News Channel. 

Schultz began his commentary on Wednesday by imploring that the White House refuse to budge off of their position that they will refuse to seek a negotiated settlement with Republicans in Congress to reopen the federal government.

RELATED: Obamacare Exchanges Frustrate MSNBC Anchor: ‘This Is Where My Patience Would Be Exhausted’

“This is about standing strong,” Schultz insisted. “This is about not backing down. This is about showing a spine.”

“You can just listen to them manufacture glitches,” he continued. After a brief digression, Schultz returned to his central point about the exchanges not experiencing” glitches” of any kind.

“There are no glitches,” he insisted. “If you opened up a restaurant and you couldn’t feed anybody because there were too many people that got in early, and you just couldn’t handle the line, do you think the manager of the restaurant is going to go back and chew out the staff because the response was overwhelming? I think they would probably call that a good night at the office.”

“But, of course, Fox News and the republicans, they call that a glitch,” he concluded.

Via: Mediaite.com

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POLITICO: UNPOPULAR OBAMA CLINGS TO 'HARD-LINE POSITION' IN DEBT CEILING GAMBLE

With President Barack Obama's Gallup approval rating down to just 45% after his mishandling of the Syrian crisis, and with CNN reporting that only 39% of Americans support Obamacare, White House officialstell Politico that "Obama doesn't see any reason to back off his hard-line position" on the looming debt ceiling showdown--a risky strategy that could drag Democrats down with him come the 2014 midterm elections.

On October 17, the federal government will officially hit the nation's $16.7 trillion debt ceiling. While polls show that more voters blame Republicans for the current government shutdown, polls also show that voters overwhelmingly side with Republicans in demanding that any raising of the debt ceiling be coupled with spending cuts. Indeed, a Bloomberg poll found that 61% of voters believe it is "right to require spending cuts when the debt ceiling is raised even if it risks default."

On Wednesday, Speaker John Boehner published an op-ed recounting House Republicans' numerous attempts to avert a government shutdown and stating Obama's refusal to negotiate on a deal to cut spending in exchange for agreeing to raise the debt limit.

"In just a few weeks, Congress must act to raise the debt limit to pay the tab for President Obama and Washington's out-of-control spending," wrote Boehner. "There is no way Congress can or should pass such a bill without spending cuts and reforms to deal with the debt and deficit and help get our economy moving again. But President Obama refuses to even talk about negotiating such a bipartisan agreement."

For months now, Obama and top Democrats have flatly refused to negotiate on the debt ceiling.

Via: Breitbart

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Remarks by the President on the Affordable Care Act and the Government Shutdown

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Good morning, everybody.  At midnight last night, for the first time in 17 years, Republicans in Congress chse to shut down the federal government.  Let me be more specific:  One faction, of one party, in one house of Congress, in one branch of government, shut down major parts of the government -- all because they didn’t like one law. 

This Republican shutdown did not have to happen.  But I want every American to understand why it did happen.  Republicans in the House of Representatives refused to fund the government unless we defunded or dismantled the Affordable Care Act.  They’ve shut down the government over an ideological crusade to deny affordable health insurance to millions of Americans.  In other words, they demanded ransom just for doing their job. 

And many representatives, including an increasing number of Republicans, have made it clear that had they been allowed by Speaker Boehner to take a simple up or down vote on keeping the government open, with no partisan strings attached, enough votes from both parties would have kept the American people’s government open and operating.

We may not know the full impact of this Republican shutdown for some time.  It will depend on how long it lasts.  But we do know a couple of things.  We know that the last time Republicans shut down the government in 1996, it hurt our economy.  And unlike 1996, our economy is still recovering from the worst recession in generations. 

We know that certain services and benefits that America’s seniors and veterans and business owners depend on must be put on hold.  Certain offices, along with every national park and monument, must be closed.  And while last night, I signed legislation to make sure our 1.4 million active-duty military are paid through the shutdown, hundreds of thousands of civilian workers -- many still on the job, many forced to stay home -- aren’t being paid, even if they have families to support and local businesses that rely on them.  And we know that the longer this shutdown continues, the worse the effects will be.  More families will be hurt.  More businesses will be harmed. 

Via: White House.gov

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Government shutdown: Harry Reid spearheads Democratic strategy

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has been the most ardent proponent of President Barack Obama taking a hard line with House Republicans in the latest fiscal crisis engulfing Washington.

And so far, Reid is getting his way.

When the president considered sitting down with the four congressional leaders in the White House ahead of the deadline to avert a government shutdown, Reid privately urged Obama to call off the meeting, according to several people familiar with the situation. Reid believed that it would amount to nothing more than a photo-op that would give the false impression that a serious negotiation was occurring, even warning he wouldn’t attend such a session. Obama scrapped it.

(Government shutdown full coverage)

As Washington barrels forward to the first government shutdown in 17 years on Tuesday, the wily Reid has taken the lead role in pushing a hardball Democratic legislative strategy that can be summed up like this: Make the Republicans cave.

“He’s been the rock … and he’s had our whole caucus behind him,” said Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), a close Reid ally who spoke with the majority leader nine times on Saturday afternoon. “Because if we negotiate on a short-term [government funding bill], what are [Republicans] going to do on a long-term bill? What are they going to do on the debt ceiling?”

So far in this fight, the party’s leadership, senior White House officials and the president have been on the same page. They will not let Republicans gut or delay Obamacare — or concede an inch to the GOP despite the ramifications of a shutdown. For now, even Republicans privately concede House Republicans could suffer much of the political backlash for a looming shutdown.

Via: Politico

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And then there was one—Obama

The Obama tornadoes wreak destruction everywhere as he and his minions prune, trim and reshape America. He and his demolition team could care less about broken legs and ripped off arms here and there. The lights are humming and buzzing as the Obama monster is getting ready to get up from the table and finish the job. Will we let him? I won’t insult Frankenstein. I would prefer him to the Obama monster being built.

Schools—There will be only one—Common Core

Everything must be one—controlled and shaped by Obama and his handlers. As in the days of Adolph Hitler, Obama must take over the minds and futures of our children. He will rise up an army of obedient ‘Stepford wives’ happily serving big Government and Obama. They will stop dreaming about becoming a Doctor, Firefighter, Pastor or Teacher. They will only think of their appointed place in the ‘Global Community’ ‘Private-Public Partnerships’ and latest ‘redistribution of wealth scheme ordered by Obama and his staff. Commentator and investigative journalist Sher Zieve (regular on my national radio show each Monday) captured this Nazi spirit beautifully in her article.

Through Common Core—public then charter schools are becoming nothing but deadly indoctrination centers to push porn, the gay agenda, Islam and sustainability. History is rewritten to leave a strong impression of shame and need to submit and apologize to the world. This is obviously inspired by our poser President who does nothing but apologize to the world for America.

Via: Canada Free Press

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Open thread: Obama to make undoubtedly helpful statement about shutdown at 4:45 p.m. ET; Update: “You don’t get to extract a ransom for doing your job”

Two ways he could go with this. One: Something conciliatory designed to make it easier for Boehner to agree to an eleventh-hour face-saving compromise. Two: Tough talk designed to show Republicans he intends to use the bully pulpit every day during a shutdown to make sure they bear the brunt of public discontent. The two aren’t mutually exclusive, of course, but we can all guess where the emphasis will lie. Per Dave Weigel, odds of a “let me be clear” happening shortly: North of 95 percent.

Boehner told reporters within the past hour that there’ll be no clean CR tonight. Stand by for updates.

Update: Wouldn’t surprise me if O uses the bulk of his time to pitch the ObamaCare exchanges opening tomorrow. The shutdown has created an intense media spotlight for him today; he’d be a moron not to use it while people are paying attention to get young adults to log in and sign up in the a.m. That may end up being his core message contra the GOP, in fact — “I’m not going to defund a program that’s starting literally tomorrow.”

For what it’s worth, a new poll shows that only one-third of the public wants Congress to defund, delay, or repeal O-Care. In fact, those who say they want the law expanded outnumber those who want delay/defunding.

Update: You might hear O mention this convenient data tidbit too.

Update: I’m skeptical, but here you go. For what it’s worth:

They’re going to pass it through the Senate when Boehner might not even be able to pass it through the House?

Update: The money line from O’s presser ended up being something about one faction of one party in one house of one branch of the government attempting to dictate terms after losing this fight in the last election. The rest of it was, as expected, a sales pitch for ObamaCare plus a reminder that the law can’t be defunded in the CR since spending for most of its core functions has already been appropriated. In other words, he said, the exchanges will open tomorrow, no matter what happens tonight.

Via: Hot Air

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WHO GETS CREDIT FOR A GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN?

The End is Nigh. So say the media, counting down the seconds to a partial shutdown of the U.S. government. Certainly Americans will miss some federal functions, and the media will focus eagerly on victims--real and imaginary--of the impasse (though, curiously, the government clocks out for two days every weekend, and most people seem OK with that). At the same time, we will be reminded that life goes on beyond the state.

The enduring memory of the last shutdown, in 1996, is that the economy hummed right along despite the fact that the federal government was closed. Suddenly, much of government didn't seem so necessary after all. The American people proved quite adept at handling our own affairs in most matters. It was before--not after--that shutdown that President Bill Clinton told the nation that "the era of big government is over." 

Earlier this year, President Barack Obama warned Americans that the budget sequester--his idea, proposed during the debt ceiling negotiations of 2011--would create apocalyptic damage. That is still, basically, the White House line, blaming slow economic growth on spending restraint. No one buys it--and the president did himself considerable political damage by exaggerating the pain Americans would suddenly begin to feel.

The government shutdown may be a repeat. It forces Washington to do what it pretends is impossible--to prioritize among government functions, to designate some programs and even some departments as "non-essential." That causes some hurt feelings, but it is reality. And among those non-essential parts will be new opportunities for savings that Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi recently claimed simply aren't there.

This particular shutdown is complicated by the fact that it coincides with negotiations on the debt ceiling, which could have a direct impact on the stock market and the country's credit ratings. But there are some who are already predicting that the fight over a government shutdown could make a deal on the debt ceiling more likely, not less. And it is hard to measure damage to an economy already badly damaged by bad policy.

Via: Breitbart

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[CARTOON] Obamacare Waivers

Via: California Political Review

Shutdown showdown hits brink as Senate kills House spending bill

House Republicans said Monday they will try to pass a stopgap spending bill that will fund Obamacare, but will delay the individual mandate requiring all Americans to obtain insurance, and will cancel the taxpayer subsidies lawmakers use to pay for their own health plans.

The House was pushing to vote in the late evening on the new plan, which they said would keep government open past a midnight Monday deadline.

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PHOTOS: Famous quitters: Those who bailed rather than face scandal, scrutiny or stress

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But Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has already said he will reject those provisions, leaving the two chambers no closer to a solution that would keep the government open.

“We are not going to change Obamacare,” Mr. Reid told reporters minutes after he led his chamber to kill two other Republican plans, one of which would have been a full one-year delay of the Affordable Care Act and the other which would have repealed the law’s unpopular medical device tax

The Senate’s 54-46 vote broke along party lines, suggesting that despite the misgivings of some Republicans, they are still maintaining unity in the face of a government shutdown.

The latest House offer has been brewing for some days, as Republicans insist there be some conditions attached to the stopgap spending bill. Democrats have said they will not accept any condition.

Sen. David Vitter, Louisiana Republican, said that those in Washington deserve to feel the same pain as the American people if Obamacare is not repealed.

“If [the government shuts down] because Democrats won’t accept treating Washington like it treats America, I think that’s a message that’s important for all Americans to hear,” Mr. Vitter told reporters Monday afternoon.

Via: Washington Times

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Americans Are More Conservative Than They Have Been In Decades

James Stimson knows as much about public opinion as anyone in America. He has been tracking the nation’s policy preferences for more than 20 years using a “policy mood” index derived from responses to a wide variety of opinion surveys involving hundreds of specific policy questions on topics ranging from taxes and spending to environmental regulation to gun control.

The latest update of Stimson’s policy mood series suggests that the American public in 2012 was more conservative than at any point since 1952. (Actually, since mood in each year is estimated with some error, it seems safer to say that the current level of conservatism roughly equals the previous highs recorded in 1980 and 1952.) While the slight increase in conservatism from 2011 to 2012 is too small to be significant, it continues a marked trend that began as soon as Barack Obama moved into the White House.

Via: Washington Post

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The DNC is nearly broke

As the government nears shutdown, the fundraising arm of the Democratic Party is having a budget crisis of its own.

FORTUNE -- There's another budget crisis in Washington, and it's unfolding inside the Democratic party. The Democratic National Committee remains so deeply in the hole from spending in the last election that it is struggling to pay its own vendors.

It is a highly unusual state of affairs for a national party -- especially one that can deploy the President as its fundraiser-in-chief -- and it speaks to the quiet but serious organizational problems the party has yet to address since the last election, obscured in part by the much messier spectacle of GOP infighting.

The Democrats' numbers speak for themselves: Through August, 10 months after helping President Obama secure a second term, the DNC owed its various creditors a total of $18.1 million, compared to the $12.5 million cash cushion the Republican National Committee is holding.

Several executives at firms that contract to provide services to the party -- speaking anonymously to avoid antagonizing what remains an important if troubled client -- describe an organization playing for time as they raise alarms about past-due bills falling further behind. And senior strategists close to the DNC say they worry the organization appears to have no road map back to solvency. "They really thought they could get this money raised by the summer," one said, "but the fact is, from talking to people over there, they have no real plan for how to solve this."

DNC national press secretary Michael Czin says the committee is working with vendors on a case-by-case basis to pay down their tabs. And filings show the organization over the last five months has made $4.5 million in payments to the Amalgamated Bank and appears to be hewing to a $1 million-per-month installment schedule now. "While we work to retire our debt, we're not taking our foot off the pedal and are making the investments that will help ensure that Democrats are successful in 2014, 2016, and beyond," Czin said. He pointed to ongoing work by the DNC's National Finance Committee, which met over the weekend in Colorado to discuss fundraising strategy.

Via: Fortune

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Who Will Blink? Dems, GOP in Shutdown Staredown

WASHINGTON (AP) -- With the government teetering on the brink of partial shutdown, congressional Republicans vowed Sunday to keep using an otherwise routine federal funding bill to try to attack the president's health care law.

Congress was closed for the day after a post-midnight vote in the GOP-run House to delay by a year key parts of the new health care law and repeal a tax on medical devices, in exchange for avoiding a shutdown. The Senate was to convene Monday afternoon, just hours before the shutdown deadline, and Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., had already promised that majority Democrats would kill the House's latest volley.

Since the last government shutdown 17 years ago, temporary funding bills known as continuing resolutions have been noncontroversial, with neither party willing to chance a shutdown to achieve legislative goals it couldn't otherwise win. But with health insurance exchanges set to open on Tuesday, tea-party Republicans are willing to take the risk in their drive to kill the health care law.

Via: AP

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