Garden State Patriot

They say a picture is worth a thousand words. This chart, and the ones in the slide show linked to below, can be summed up with one – the title of my post.  

House Republican Budget Committee

While Scott Brown’s victory in Massachusetts was huge, I think it’s important for those of us in the conservative movement not to misread it or to allow it to make us complacent.

Brown’s election was, no doubt, an outright repudiation of everything going on in Washington right now. Certainly, Martha Coakley’s missteps helped, but if you listened to Massachusetts voters they were disgusted by the conduct of the Democrats in DC, opposed to one-party rule, and mostly against the healthcare bill.

For conservatives, this is heartening. But we shouldn’t overstate the meaning of Brown’s victory when it comes to winning on issues.

There are a number of other issues the Democrats are focusing on that are also very destructive. Cap & Trade is foremost in my mind. So are the banking regulations Obama is now pushing. Both of these, if enacted, will do untold damage to our nation’s economy. And then there’s the potential for an amnesty bill as well.

If, by chance, health care finds its way back to the Senate and another 60 vote margin is needed, Republicans can count on Scott Brown’s vote to filibuster the bill.

But the same can’t be said for Cap & Trade, bills that *reform* Wall Street or any other crazy piece of legislation the Democrats try.

Why?

Because there are still at least a few Republican senators that we cannot trust. You know their names: Collins, Snowe and, yes, McCain and Graham. Heck, it wasn’t that long ago that “Goober” Graham partnered up with John Kerry on gloabal warming in a New York Times piece.

As for health care, the Democrats are hardly giving up on it. According to Dick Morris, Reid and Pelosi are scheming to pass the bill.

Here’s what I learned top Democrats are planning to implement.

Senate Democrats will go to the House with a two-part deal.

First, the House will pass the Senate’s Obamacare bill that passed the Senate in December. The House leadership will vote on the Senate bill, and Pelosi will allow no amendments or modifications to the Senate bill.

How will Pelosi’s deal fly with rambunctious liberal members of her majority who don’t like the Senate bill, especially its failure to include a public option, put heavy fines on those who don’t get insurance, and offering no income tax surcharge on the “rich”?

That’s where the second part of the Pelosi-deal comes in.

Behind closed doors, Reid and Pelosi have agreed in principle that changes to the Senate bill will be made to satisfy liberal House members — but only after the Senate bill is passed and signed into law by Obama.

This deal will be secured by a pledge from Reid and the Senate’s Democratic caucus that they will make “fixes” to the Senate bill after it becomes law with Obama’s John Hancock

You can read Morris’ piece in its entirety here. And he tells you which Congressmen.women to target here.

If this doesn’t make it clear, though, nothing will. The far left radicals in Congress, led by Reid and Pelosi, aren’t just going to give up now. We still have work to do to defeat health care. And we must continue to put the pressure on Republican lawmakers when these other bad bills come up.

Again, this is no time for complacency. We must continue to fight hard all the way until November – just as hard if not more so than we have up til this point.

Cross-posted at CMNJ.

Sinking, sinking, sinking…

The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Tuesday shows that 25% of the nation’s voters Strongly Approve of the way that Barack Obama is performing his role as President. Forty-six percent (46%) Strongly Disapprove giving Obama a Presidential Approval Index rating of -21 That’s the lowest Approval Index rating yet recorded for this President (see trends).

Fifty-three percent (53%) of men Strongly Disapprove along with 39% of women. Most African-American voters (58%) Strongly Approve while most white voters (53%) Strongly Disapprove.

Seventy-four percent (74%) of Republicans Strongly Disapprove as do 52% of unaffiliated voters. Forty-seven percent (47%) of Democrats Strongly Approve.

For the second straight day, the update shows the highest level of Strong Disapproval yet recorded for this President. That negative rating had never topped 42% before yesterday. However, it has risen dramatically since the Senate found 60 votes to move forward with the proposed health care reform legislation. Most voters (55%) oppose the health care legislation and senior citizens are even more likely than younger voters to dislike the plan.

LINK

Last night I stayed up until after one in the morning to watch the Senate vote on healthcare. Perhaps, I am a masochist because watching this vote take place was kind of like watching a Lakers-Nets game. You know what the outcome is going to be. But after the months of fighting this atrocity, going back to August and all the town halls through the 9/12 rally, the November rally before the House vote and last week’s rally, I couldn’t help but watch with some degree of finality.

Yes, there is a small glimmer of hope that somehow this reconciliation process unravels but it is doubtful. This runaway train, for all intents and purposes, has all but crashed and burned already. It’s like watching one of those videos where someone jumps out of a plane and you know the rip cord is going to malfunction. 

Other thoughts keep running through my mind. How did we get to this point?  Yes, we knew trouble lay ahead when Obama was elected and the Democrats maintained control of Congress. Last year, I remember thinking after the election, at least we have enough Republicans to filibuster in the Senate.

Then everything possible started to go wrong beginning with the the Minnesota senate race where we witnessed an election that was truly stolen; where all kinds of funny business went on. In that race, we found out that there were more votes than people in some districts. Ballots that looked identical in every way, except one was for Coleman, were tossed out. The fact that a vulgar, small-minded failure of a comedian was even remotely close to winning that race was pathetic enough to begin with. But the way Franken ultimately pilfered the election made it all the more tough to take. 

Then the stimulus bill came along, which led to the defection of the pathetic Benedict Arnold Specter. Specter seems to be a forgotten man. But as I watched the vote last night and heard his name called out and his ‘aye’ vote registered, I felt nothing but contempt for a very small man who has nothing but a quest for power and feels he is entitled to his precious senate seat. Any remaining remnant of Republicanism in that man has vanished completely. He is nothing but a shill for Democrats. Just how does someone who called themself a Republican as long as he did, then turn around and vote for socializeed medicine? How dare he tell us that the Republican Party has moved too far right when he votes in a way no Republican – not even the mushy moderates Snowe and Collins – could vote? It was Specter who changed when he saw that his vote for the stimulus bill was going to mean the end of his political career. Benedict Arlen is a disgraceful man. If the people of Pennsylvania elect him again they should forever hide in shame.

Now, thanks to Specter’s disloyalty, Franken’s stolen election and a Democratic President and caucus willing to do anything possible including – let’s call it what it really is – bribing fellow senators for their votes while also giving the public the middle finger, the nation is on the cusp of crossing a barrier we have never before been willing to cross.

The America the Democrats are about to *transform* us into is a dark one. But the sneaky Democrats were too cunning to let the American people experience what is to come in 2010, let along 2011 or 2012. Nope, the real damage - aside from the massive, devastating tax hikes that will come next year in the middle of a terrible recession – will start in 2014 well after the next Presidential election and the elections for many of these incumbent Democrat senators. They are banking on us forgetting but that, I can assure them, will not happen.

I believe there will be a huge price to pay for this next November. I’m not one who likes to make predictions but my gut tells me that 2010 is going to make 1994 look like a Democrat year. Democrats have already lost independents in droves. Elderly people are against this 2:1 and we all know that seniors are the single biggest voting bloc in the country. This is how it stands now. Wait until every shred of the Democrats’s bill is scrutinized for the next 11 months. And wait until the Democrats start pushing for amnesty again next year.

I would be remiss if I didn’t also mention that, by virtue of surfing the Internet, I was amazed to find so many disgruntled liberals. I kid you not. There are many upset with Obama and the Demcorats about this. It’s not enough for them. They want their single payer system. As unbelievable as this sounds to the rest of us, it reminds us just what we are up against. The left is made up of many people who have disdain for the capitalist system and the free market. They will never be satisfied until the government runs everything and takes everything we have in the name of their so-called good intentions.

But what is good about this is the Democratic base is now becoming disillusioned. The fire and energy is on the right.  

Regardless of what happens in the coming weeks with reconciliation, this fight will not end. In fact, it will be a fight that will go on now for years. I fear that it will handcuff our nation as many of us do everything in our power to roll it back. No matter how big the gains are for Republicans next year, at best it will take a couple of cycles to put in place the people we need to start reversing this. That will take strong majorities in both houses of Congress and a Republican President. I am also holding out hope for constitutional challenges, starting with the clear violation of our rights in the way of a mandate to buy health insurance.

So, we need to gear up and take it one step at a time. 2010 as we know is crucial and we must start from the ground up. That means getting involved with locally with the Republican Party, wresting control from the moderates and RINOs and then working to select the right candidates. If the grassroots does not do so then we get what we deserve – an America that is nothing like we grew up with and nothing at all like our Founders intended.

For another take on all of this, I’d also recommend this WSJ article: Change Nobody Believes In

Cross-posted at CMNJ.

The media would have us believe the real news this week coming out of Copenhagen had to do with Obama and whether or not he was able to strike any kind of agreement there. But the real story of Copenhagen had little to do with that – and a lot to do with the anti-capitalist sentiment held by the fools in attendance, as well as the protestors outside.

First, we were treated to this little diatribe earlier in the week from nutcase Venezuelan thug dictator Hugo Chavez. While Chavez blamed the ills of the world on capitalism, the fools in the audience reacted, not with derision, but with several ovations.

And outside, global warming zealots were busy showing their true colors. Thankfully our friends at Americans for Prosperity were there to capture these socialists in action.

These two examples make it abundantly clear; the global warming movement has little to do about concerns over climate change and everything to do with attacking America, capitalism and our way of life. Unfortunately, we have an administration that is ’simpatico’ with these idiots, ready and willing to literally sell America out in the name of junk science.

Cross-posted at CMNJ.

Yesterday, I was privileged to travel down to D.C. yet again with fellow Americans for Prosperity activists to protest against Obamcare. Many people from Jersey traveled down to this event, with busloads leaving from points across the state - including Ridgewood, Bogota, Sparta, Parsippany, and Egg Harbor, to name a few.

All told, thousands of activists attended the rally at the Capital (see AFP coperage here). The crowd was addressed by a number of legislators – among them  Dr. Tom Coburn, Sen. Jim DeMint, Sen. Richard Burr, Sen. Johnny Isakson, Jim Martin, Rep. Michelle Bachmann and former Rep. Dick Armey. I was privileged to meet with the latter two who are each genuine articles. In fact, Rep. Bachmann is nothing short of a hero for her fortitude in opposing Obamacare.

Our last speaker was radio talker Laura Ingraham who delivered a speech with the bite and humor we have come to expect of her. Here it is in its entirety.

After the rally broke up, everyone descended upon the senate office buildings across the street. Many of our NJ contingent went to the offices of Sens. Lautenberg and Menendez. Of course, the Senators were busy during the day twisting arms to get this deal done and weren’t available. However, a rep for each Senator did briefly speak with constituents and they did collect notes from anyone willing to leave one. 

While not much new came out of the talk with the Senators’ representatives, the spokesperson for Senator Lautenberg’s office, Doug Meehan, did mention that the Senator would not vote for a bill that included funding for abortions. This surprised me because last week the Senate voted on an amendment that would do just that. The amendment was killed by a vote of 54-45 (one abstaining). Senator Lautenberg? He voted right along with Democrats in killing the amendment.

So, I’d like to thank Mr. Meehan for lying to the Senator’s constituents. In fact, you will officially know this is a lie when Sen. Lautenberg votes for this atrocity of a bill.

In fact, if anything has become clear throughout this process, it is that New Jersey has two senators that have disdain for their constituents. Their accessibility during the debate has been nil and their willingness to oppose their constituents’ will on this issue is nothing short of contemptible. Lautenberg and Menendez are not worthy of the offices they hold and if New Jersey voters have any sense left at all they will vote these two bums out of office the next time they are up for re-election. 

Frankly, I’m not sure what influence yesterday’s rally will have. Public opinion to this point, which is overwhelmingly opposed, has been dismissed. And as it stands now, the Democrats are only a vote or two away from passing this. Thus far they have been willing to walk the plank for Obama and now they are one step away from plunging into the depths below. My expectation (and I hope I’m wrong) is this will still pass and the Democrats will have hell to pay next November.

Cross-posted at Red County and CMNJ.

Today is your last opportunity to ‘get on board’ and join tomorrow’s protest in Washington D.C. The rally will start at the Capitol at 1:30pm. Buses will be leaving from various points throughout New Jersey. For more information and to register, click here.

My understanding, having spoken with a Senate GOP source, is that this bill will be coming up for a cloture vote soon. This will not bleed into next year. In fact, my source said, ‘We’re in an end-game scenario here.’ There is no sense that Harry Reid will delay this.

If this is not enough motivation for you then I’m not sure what is. The future of our healthcare system and our nation still hangs in the balance. It is time to muster up the same energy that was evident in August during the town hall meetings and make a final push to defeat this bill.

Hope to see you there.

[UPDATE] Maybe this, too, will serve as motivation.

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama will meet with Senate Democrats at the White House Tuesday to press for action at a make-or-break moment for his health care overhaul.

All 60 members of the Democratic caucus have been invited, according to three Democratic officials. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because the announcement was not yet public.

The meeting comes as Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid works to round up votes to get a sweeping health bill passed before Christmas. The outcome is uncertain with moderates in danger of defecting on issues including abortion and a proposed expansion of Medicare.

Amazingly, over the weekend the Senate approved another $1.1T in spending. This after Congress also raised our debt ceiling to a whopping $14B. The appropriations bill that passed by a vote of 57-35 included a 12% increase in discretionary spending – 12%! - when our country is drowning in debt.

Dec. 14 (Bloomberg) — Congress gave final approval to a $450 billion spending bill for government agencies providing an average 12 percent budget increase for many programs amid what polls show is mounting public concern over federal deficits.

The Senate voted 57 to 35 yesterday to forward the measure to President Barack Obama. The measure combines six annual appropriations bills needed to fund federal agencies for the fiscal year that began Oct. 1. The House last week approved the 1,092-page bill, along with 1,351 pages of explanatory documents, which would replace a stopgap measure funding most agencies through Dec. 18.

Republicans, criticized as spendthrifts during former President George W. Bush’s administration, attacked the increases in the bill drafted by Democrats, forcing the Senate to debate the matter into the weekend.

“We have a $12 trillion debt, a debt that our children and grandchildren are going to have to pay, and here we are” approving a 12 percent spending increase, Senator George LeMieux, a Florida Republican, said yesterday. “Washington is out of control in its spending.”

Democrats said the increase, which far exceeds the inflation rate, was needed to pay for important domestic programs. The consumer price index, minus the volatile food and energy components, rose 1.7 percent for the 12 months ending in October.

Of course, despite the fact that The Anointed One has saddled us and future generations with this incredible debt…

…lately he has tried to sell the idea to the American people that he is concerned about it. Just last month, Obama actually said this:

“It is important though to recognise if we keep on adding to the debt, even in the midst of this recovery, that at some point, people could lose confidence in the US economy in a double-dip recession,”

Well, here’s a simple test to see if Obama means what he says. When this bill gets to his desk, all he needs to do is reach into the pocket of his jacket, take out his pen and veto this spending. 

If he does not, then we will know, once again, that his words are nothing but empty rhetoric.

Cross-posted at CMNJ.

According to Rasmussen Reports Presidential Index, Obama has hit a new low of -19.

The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Sunday shows that 23% of the nation’s voters Strongly Approve of the way that Barack Obama is performing his role as President. Forty-two percent (42%) Strongly Disapprove giving Obama a Presidential Approval Index rating of -19.

Today is the second straight day that Obama’s Approval Index rating has fallen to a new low. Prior to the past two days, the Approval Index had never fallen below -15 during Obama’s time in office (see trends).

The 23% who Strongly Approve matches the lowest level of enthusiasm yet recorded. Just 41% of Democrats Strongly Approve while 69% of Republicans Strongly Disapprove. Among voters not affiliated with either major party, 21% Strongly Approve and 49% Strongly Disapprove.

What’s even more interesting is Obama’s dismal numbers among people who are most fixated on the economy and the elderly.

Among those who consider the economy to be the most important issue, just 26% Strongly Approve of the President’s performance while 39% Strongly Disapprove.

Among those who consider fiscal policy issues the most important, just 1% Strongly Approve and 81% Strongly Disapprove.

The President’s Approval Index rating is -2 among voters under 30 and -29 among senior citizens. From an income perspective, the President’s ratings are weakest among those who earn $40,000 to $100,000 annually.

LINK: Daily Presidential Tracking Poll

With the Democrat’s health care destruction bill now in the Senate, GOP Senators have embarked on a strategy of using every parliamentary trick at their disposal to stop it. This includes proposing amendment after amendment. Last week, Republican Senators successfully proposed amendments that put Democrats on record in favor of half a trillion in Medicare cuts, $120 billion in cuts to Medicare Advantage, and $42 billion in cuts to home health services.

Meanwhile, GOP Senators are also putting forth a PR strategy aimed at picking apart the Democrats on every component of the bill. In the latest release from the Senate Republican Comunications Center, they do just that by exposing Obamcare’s broken promises. Here are just 8 ways in which Obamacare breaks the President’s own promises to the American people:

THE PRESIDENT’S PROMISES

8 Examples Why Dems’ Health Care Bill Does Not Meet The President’s Stated Goals 

PROMISE #1: “If You Like Your Plan, You’ll Be Able To Keep It” 

PRESIDENT OBAMA: “If You Like Your Current Plan, You Will Be Able To Keep It.  Let Me Repeat That:  If You Like Your Plan, You’ll Be Able To Keep It.” (President Obama, Remarks At The White House, Washington, D.C., 7/21/09) 

AP FACT CHECK: “This Is A Pledge That’s Beyond The President’s Power To Keep.” (“Fact Check: Obama’s Words About Iran Get Tougher,” The Associated Press, 6/23/09) 

SEN. BOB CASEY (D-PA) On Medicare Advantage Cuts: “We’re Not Going To Be Able To Say ‘If You Like What You Have, You Can Keep It’ … And That Basic Commitment That A Lot Of Us Around Here Have Made Will Be Called Into Question.” (“Obama’s Planned Medicare Cuts Distress Some Democrats,” Bloomberg, 12/3/09) 

PROMISE #2: “My Plan Won’t Raise Your Taxes One Penny”

SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D-IL): “And If You’re A Family Making Less Than $250,000 A Year, My Plan Won’t Raise Your Taxes One Penny — not your income taxes, not your payroll taxes, not your capital gains taxes, not any of your taxes.” (Barack Obama, Remarks, Orlando, FL, 8/3/08)

SENATE FINANCE COMMITTEE REPUBLICANS’ ANALYSIS OF JOINT COMMITTEE ON TAXATION FINDINGS: “In 2019, 39.9 million individuals and families or 24% of all tax returns under $200,000 will, on average, see their taxes go up.  This is even after taking into account the premium tax credit.”  (“Joint Committee On Taxation Indicates That 38% Of People Earning Less Than $200,000 A Year Will See A Tax Increase Under The Reid Bill,” Senate Finance Committee Minority Staff, 12/05/09)

THOMAS BARTHOLD, JOINT COMMITTEE ON TAXATION CHIEF OF STAFF: “But To The Extent That, Yes, We Think That Some People Would Be Subject To The Penalty Excise Tax When Everything Shakes Out, We Would Expect That Some Would Have Incomes Less Than $200,000.” (Finance Committee, U.S. Senate, Hearing, 9/22/09)

PROMISE #3: “I Will Protect Medicare” 

PRESIDENT OBAMA: “So don’t pay attention to those scary stories about how your benefits will be cut, especially since some of the same folks who are spreading these tall tales have fought against Medicare in the past and just this year supported a budget that would essentially have turned Medicare into a privatized voucher program.  That will not happen on my watch.  I will protect Medicare.” (President Obama, Remarks To Joint Session Of Congress, 9/9/09)

Reid Bill Contains Half Trillion Dollars In Medicare Cuts. “Senate Republicans lost their first major challenge to a Democratic plan to overhaul the health-care system, as the chamber voted Thursday to reject a GOP proposal to strip the package of nearly $500 billion in Medicare cuts, its most important source of financing.” (“Senate Votes Down GOP Plan To Strip Medicare Cuts From Bill,” The Washington Post, 12/4/09)

CBO: Medicare Cuts Could “Reduce Access To Care Or Diminish The Quality Of Care.” (CBO Director Doug Elmendorf, Letter To Sen. Harry Reid, 11/18/09, P. 1, 17)

PROMISE #4: “Slow The Growth Of Health Care Costs” 

PRESIDENT OBAMA: “And It Will Slow The Growth Of Health Care Costs For Our Families, Our Businesses, And Our Government.” (President Obama, Remarks To Joint Session Of Congress, 9/9/09)  

CBO: “Under The Legislation, Federal Outlays For Health Care Would Increase During The 2010–2019 Period, As Would The Federal Budgetary Commitment To Health Care. The net increase in that commitment would be about $160 billion over 10 years, driven primarily by the $848 billion gross cost of the coverage expansions (including increases in both outlays and tax credits).” (CBO Director Doug Elmendorf, Letter To Sen. Harry Reid, 11/18/09, P. 16)

THE NEW YORK TIMES: “Experts — Including Some Who Have Consulted Closely With The White House, Like Dr. Denis A. Cortese, Chief Executive Of The Mayo Clinic — Say The Measures Take Only Baby Steps Toward Revamping The Current Fee-For-Service System, Which Drives Up Costs By Paying Health Providers For Each Visit Or Procedure Performed.” (“Democrats Raise Alarms Over Costs Of Health Bills,” The New York Times, 11/10/09)

WILLIAM GALSTON, BROOKINGS INSTITUTION: Dem Health Bills Do A “Very Poor Job” Of “Controlling Costs.” “I say with regret but consistent with a very important article on the front page of today’s New York Times that of the two objectives that people had going into health care reform, namely expanding access and controlling costs we’re on track to do a pretty good job on number one and a very poor job on number two. So if we don’t do number two in this bill we’re going to have to come back and do it in some subsequent bill because it is not sustainable to expand access and to do nothing about costs. It’s just as simple as that. I am interested in sustainable moral commitments.” (Senate Budget Committee, Hearing, 11/10/09)

PROMISE #5: “Broadcasting Those Negotiations On C-SPAN”

SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D-IL): “That’s what I will do in bringing all parties together, not negotiating behind closed doors, but bringing all parties together, and broadcasting those negotiations on C-SPAN so that the American people can see what the choices are, because part of what we have to do is enlist the American people in this process.” (Sen. Obama, Presidential Debate, 1/31/08) 

“But Now, As A Senate Vote On Health-Care Legislation Nears, Those Negotiations Are Occurring In A Setting That Is Anything But Revolutionary In Washington: Three Senators Are Working On The Bill Behind Closed Doors. Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) sits at the head of a wooden table at his office as he and Sens. Christopher J. Dodd (D-Conn.) and Max Baucus (D-Mont.) work to merge two competing versions of health-care legislation into one bill. The three men will be joined by top aides as well as by members of President Obama’s health-care team, led by White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel. The sessions started on Wednesday and could be completed this week.” (“Small Group Now Leads Closed Negotiations On Health-Care Bill,” The Washington Post, 10/18/09) 

“After Months Of Buildup, The Historic Debate On Health Care Reform Opens On The Senate Floor Monday — But The C-SPAN Cameras Won’t See The Real Action.” (“Dems Seek Deal As Sen. Debate Begins,” Politico, 11/30/09) 

PROMISE #6: “Slow The Growth Of Health Care Costs For … Our Businesses”

PRESIDENT OBAMA: “And It Will Slow The Growth Of Health Care Costs For Our Families, Our Businesses, And Our Government.” (President Obama, Remarks To Joint Session Of Congress, 9/9/09)  

Mandates In Health Bill Are “Likely To Reduce Employment” 

“Penalty Payments By Employers And Uninsured Individuals… 2010-2019… 36 [Billion Dollars].” (CBO Director Doug Elmendorf, Letter To Sen. Harry Reid, 11/18/09, P. 6) 

COMPANIES THAT DON’T PROVIDE INSURANCE FINED $750 PER WORKER

CBO: “Firms With More Than 50 Workers That Did Not Offer Coverage Would Have To Pay A Penalty Of $750 For Each Full-Time Worker If Any Of Their Workers Obtained Subsidized Coverage Through The Insurance Exchanges; That Dollar Amount Would Be Indexed.” (CBO Director Doug Elmendorf, Letter To Sen. Harry Reid, 11/18/09, P. 7)CBO: “Requiring Employers To Offer Health Insurance—Or Pay A Fee If They Do Not—Is Likely To Reduce Employment…”(“Effects Of Changes To The Health Insurance System On Labor Markets,” CBO, 7/14/09) 

More Than $100 Billion In Taxes & Fees On The Health Care Industry 

“Fees On Certain Manufacturers And Insurers… 2010-2019… 102 [Billion Dollars].” (CBO Director Doug Elmendorf, Letter To Sen. Harry Reid, 11/18/09, P. 6) 

PROMISE #7: “Will Not Sign It If It Adds One Dime To The Deficit” 

PRESIDENT OBAMA: “I Will Not Sign It If It Adds One Dime To The Deficit, Now Or In The Future, Period.” (President Obama, Remarks To Joint Session Of Congress, 9/9/09)  

CBO: “A Detailed Year-By-Year Projection For Years Beyond 2019, Like Those That CBO Prepares For The 10-Year Budget Window, Would Not Be Meaningful Because The Uncertainties Involved Are Simply Too Great.” (CBO Director Doug Elmendorf, Letter To Sen. Harry Reid, 11/18/09, P.14) 

The Washington Post’s David Broder: “Every Expert I Have Talked To Says That The Public Has It Right. These Bills, As They Stand, Are Budget-Busters.” (David Broder, Op-Ed, “A Budget-Buster In The Making,” The Washington Post, 11/22/09) 

PROMISE #8: Medical Liability Reform: “This Is Going To Be A Priority For Me” 

PRESIDENT OBAMA: “I want to work with the AMA so we can scale back the excessive defensive medicine that reinforces our current system, and shift to a system where we are providing better care, simply — rather than simply more treatment. So this is going to be a priority for me.” (President Obama, Remarks To The AMA, Chicago, IL, 6/15/09) 

Reid Bill Does Not Directly Address Medical Malpractice Reform. “It is the sense of the Senate that— health care reform presents an opportunity to address issues related to medical malpractice and medical liability insurance.” (S .Amdt 2786 To H.R. 3590, “Patient Protection And Affordable Care Act,” P. 1858)

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Meanwhile, the fight against Obamacare continues at the grassroots level. On Tuesday, December 15th, AFP will once again is organizing a bus trip to D.C. If you would like to go, then click the link here to sign up.