Elizabeth Warren signs on to Bernie Sanders "Medicare for All" bill.

Courtesy of Newsweek: 

Senator Elizabeth Warren announced on Thursday she's co-sponsoring Senator Bernie Sanders's "Medicare for All" bill, which is set to be introduced next week in the Senate. 

In a statement, Warren said, "There is something fundamentally wrong when one of the richest and most powerful countries on the planet can’t make sure that a person can afford to see a doctor when they’re sick. This isn’t any way to live." 

"I believe it’s time to take a step back and ask: what is the best way to deliver high quality, low cost health care to all Americans? Everything should be on the table – and that’s why I’m co-sponsoring Bernie Sanders’ Medicare for All bill that will be introduced later this month," the senator added. 

In her statement, Warren applauded the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) and former President Barack Obama's efforts on health care, signifying a desire to build off of his accomplishments. 

"We owe a huge debt to President Obama. Because of the Affordable Care Act, health care coverage is better – more people can get the treatment they need and families are less vulnerable to the financial fallout from a serious illness or accident," Warren said. "But there’s so much more we could do right now to bring down the costs of quality health care for every American."

I am gratified to see Warren giving President Obama the props he deserves for getting the Affordable Care Act passed. There are those who are not quite as gracious.

Earlier rising Democratic star Kamala Harris also voiced her support for this bill so it appears that it is likely to become an official plank of the Democratic party.

And that is a good thing.

I told my friend just the other day that I think the Democrats need one unifying policy to rally behind, and I think this could be it.

I also want to give Bernie Sanders credit for pushing this idea and bringing people on to support it. I am so over Sanders at this point I had to check twice to remember how to spell his name, but this is a positive step forward, and he deserves to be recognized for that.

Hopefully this will inspire other Democrats to sign on and together we can get this thing done.

After promising he would not cut Medicaid, Donald Trump is now planning to cut Medicaid. Pretend to be surprised.

I can't believe you people fell for that.

Courtesy of WaPo: 

President Trump’s first major budget proposal on Tuesday will include massive cuts to Medicaid and call for changes to anti-poverty programs that would give states new power to limit a range of benefits, people familiar with the planning said, despite growing unease in Congress about cutting the safety net. 

For Medicaid, the state-federal program that provides health care to low-income Americans, Trump’s budget plan would follow through on a bill passed by House Republicans to cut more than $800 billion over 10 years. The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that this could cut off Medicaid benefits for about 10 million people over the next decade. 

The White House also will call for giving states more flexibility to impose work requirements for people in different kinds of anti-poverty programs, people familiar with the budget plan said, potentially leading to a flood of changes in states led by conservative governors. Many anti-poverty programs have elements that are run by both the states and federal government, and a federal order allowing states to stiffen work requirements “for able-bodied Americans” could have a broad impact in terms of limiting who can access anti-poverty payments — and for how long.

If you click here you can hear Trump promising that he would not be for cutting social programs like social security, medicare, and medicaid.

I can't believe at this point there are too many people who actually still think that Donald Trump is not completely full of shit.

Cutting these programs is the GOP white whale and with control over the White House, the Senate, and the Congress of course they are going to try and roll all of these programs back, or get rid of them altogether.

This is why you NEVER vote Republican. EVER!

This new GOP health care bill screws Alaskans royally.

Courtesy of TPM:

This is the average difference in credits in 2020 for people buying insurance in marketplaces/exchanges under Obamacare and Ryan/GOP/Trumpcare. The big difference illustrated here is that in addition to making it dramatically harder to buy insurance, Trumpcare doesn't factor in how costs vary from state to state. 

So if you're from Alaska, you're screwed bigly - and pretty much everywhere else too, but a bit less.

Look we're Alaskans, we are quite used to paying exorbitant prices for just about EVERYTHING.  But this at least twice as much as everybody else in the country.

And if that were not bad enough, and trust me from an Alaskan standpoint it is, the new bill also depletes Medicaid at an accelerated pace.

Once again courtesy of TPM:

By repealing a payroll tax on high earners that provided a critical additional revenue stream for the Medicare trust fund, the GOP's proposed American Health Care Act would speed up the fund’s exhaustion by as many as three to four years, according to estimates from health care policy experts. 

“It’s clear, simple and undeniable that this bill would aversely affect the solvency of Medicare,” Paul Van De Water, a Medicare expert at the left-leaning Center on Budget and Policy Priorities told TPM. 

So even though Alaskans are already getting screwed, older Alaskans will get screwed even harder.

Not that the Republicans give two shits because they have long been dedicated to undermining every social program available to help those Americans in need.

So has this had any impact on support for this bill from Alaska's representatives?

Well Don Young has been largely silent on the issue, while Dan Sullivan has expressed an interest in keeping parts of Obamacare in place, but has not spoken publicly about his bill in particular.

Lisa Murkowski however HAS spoken about the bill and seems to be trapped between a rock and a hard place: 

Murkowski is not yet giving the house GOP leadership's plan her stamp of approval. 

“It's kind of premature to say I’m there or not there,” she said. 

She's one of four senators who sent a letter to Majority Leader Mitch McConnell expressing their concerns about the future of Medicaid. 

“We wanted to just make very clear that we want to be there for our constituents who have received the benefit of Medicaid expansion. Pulling the rug out from under those vulnerable populations is not really the direction we want to go,” explained the senator. 

Murkowski is troubled by parts of the new plan that would give the same tax credits to patients no matter what state they're from. 

“Our costs in alaska are higher than anywhere else in the country,” Murkowski noted.

I don't really see how any of these three can sign onto this bill and then be secure in their chances for reelection.  

There political opponents are sure to use a vote in favor of this bill to paint the three Republicans as heartless, cruel, and disconnected from the needs of their constituents.

But then again being heartless and cruel has certainly never cost Don Young very many votes. 

Jeb Bush wants to do away with Medicare. Does he not know his constituency?

"People hate Medicare, right?"

Courtesy of MSNBC: 

Republican presidential hopeful Jeb Bush appeared at a New Hampshire event last night sponsored by the Koch brothers’ Americans for Prosperity, and the former governor raised a few eyebrows with his comments on the future of Medicare. 

“The left needs to join the conversation, but they haven’t. I mean, when [Rep. Paul Ryan] came up with, one of his proposals as it relates to Medicare, the first thing I saw was a TV ad of a guy that looked just like Paul Ryan … that was pushing an elderly person off the cliff in a wheelchair. That’s their response. 

“And I think we need to be vigilant about this and persuade people that our, when your volunteers go door to door, and they talk to people, people understand this. They know, and I think a lot of people recognize that we need to make sure we fulfill the commitment to people that have already received the benefits, that are receiving the benefits. But that we need to figure out a way to phase out this program for others and move to a new system that allows them to have something – because they’re not going to have anything.” 

Remember, Jeb Bush is the ostensible moderate candidate in the massive GOP presidential field. It says something important about Republican politics in 2015 when the most mainstream candidate is also the candidate who wants to scrap Medicare altogether.

So not only does Jebbie support his brother's invasion of Iraq, but he also supports his efforts to privatize a program that works great and benefits millions of Americans.

Americans by the way that are usually elderly and who make up the base of the Republican party.

With this "phase out" talk Bush is hoping that like most GOP politicians the primary voters will have an "I got mine so screw the rest of you" attitude about Medicare.

But in fact parents want their children covered, and grandparents want their grandchildren covered as well.

As one elderly woman made abundantly clear:

Jeb Bush defended comments he made Wednesday night in which he seemed to advocate the “phasing out” of Medicare, after he was confronted during a town hall here Thursday afternoon by an elderly woman who said she was worried about losing benefits. 

“We’re not going to have adequate coverage for our children or our grandchildren without Medicare. I paid into that for years and years, just like all these other seniors here, and now you want to take it away?” said the woman, who did not identify herself and left before the town hall concluded. “Why are you always attacking the seniors?"

“Well, I’m not,” Bush responded. “Here’s what I said: I said, ‘We’re going to have to reform our entitlement system.’ We have to.” 

“It’s not an entitlement,” the woman shot back. “I earned that.”

Yeah I think Jebbie really whiffed on this one.

"Death Panels" are back! Cue the Sarah Palin outrage machine!

I know a lot of you were worried I did not see this yesterday, but I did.

Courtesy of HuffPo: 

Physicians would be paid to discuss end-of-life options with Medicare patients who want their wishes spelled out in advance under a regulation proposed by the federal government Wednesday. 

Medical societies and seniors' groups like the AARP have long supported so-called advance care planning as a way for patients to consider whether they want intensive medical care in the event of a life-threatening illness near the close of their lives, and to make their preferences known to their loved ones in writing. But Medicare has never had a mechanism with which to pay doctors for this counseling, except during a physical exam when beneficiaries first enroll in the program. 

“Today’s proposal supports individuals and families who wish to have the opportunity to discuss advance care planning with their physician and care team, as part of coordinated, patient- and family-centered care," Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Chief Medical Officer Patrick Conway said in a statement. "CMS looks forward to gathering public input on this proposal.”

The article goes on to point out that an earlier version of this option was derailed due to Sarah Palin's  histrionics over the so-called "death panels" which earned her Politifact's "Lie of the Year" back in 2009.

You may remember that back then Palin's ghostwriter wrote this on her Facebook page:

"The America I know and love is not one in which my parents or my baby with Down Syndrome will have to stand in front of Obama’s 'death panel' so his bureaucrats can decide, based on a subjective judgment of their 'level of productivity in society,' whether they are worthy of health care. Such a system is downright evil."

Which is so stupid that you actually risk losing brain cells by reading it.

Well fortunately today cooler, less ignorant, heads are prevailing and this end-of-life option is being reintroduced.

Which I think we all realize means at some point Palin will fire up her ghostwriter and post yet another brain cell murdering diatribe on her only remaining media outlet, Facebook.

I am sure reporters and pundits have their itchy fingers hovering over their keyboards in anticipation.

Robert Reich presents "The Medicare Solution." Man do I like this!

This, of course, is what most of us liberals were hoping for when Obama first took on the health care crisis. 

However due to incredible blow back from the Republicans, trust issues among many Americans, and lobbying by health insurance companies, all the President could deliver was the Affordable Care Act.  Which has some very good qualities, but is nowhere near the fix that we really need in this country.

But Medicare for all? Now THAT is change we can believe in.

Elizabeth Warren's 11 Commandments for Progressives. Oh yeah!

Courtesy of Vox:

1.  "We believe that Wall Street needs stronger rules and tougher enforcement, and we're willing to fight for it." 
2. "We believe in science, and that means that we have a responsibility to protect this Earth." 
3. "We believe that the Internet shouldn't be rigged to benefit big corporations, and that means real net neutrality." 
4. "We believe that no one should work full-time and still live in poverty, and that means raising the minimum wage." 
5. "We believe that fast-food workers deserve a livable wage, and that means that when they take to the picket line, we are proud to fight alongside them." 
6. "We believe that students are entitled to get an education without being crushed by debt." 
7. "We believe that after a lifetime of work, people are entitled to retire with dignity, and that means protecting Social Security, Medicare, and pensions." 
8. "We believe—I can't believe I have to say this in 2014—we believe in equal pay for equal work." 
9. "We believe that equal means equal, and that's true in marriage, it's true in the workplace, it's true in all of America." 
10. "We believe that immigration has made this country strong and vibrant, and that means reform." 
11. "And we believe that corporations are not people, that women have a right to their bodies. We will overturn Hobby Lobby and we will fight for it. We will fight for it!"

You know after reading that I want Warren to be Hillary's running mate in 2016 do badly I can taste it.

Damn that's good stuff!

What if you held an anti-Obamacare rally and nobody came? Well they did, and they didn't.

Courtesy of Politicususa: 

Sens. Rand Paul and Ted Cruz’s defund Obamacare rally today turned out to be a giant bust, as the only people most interested in stopping Obamacare are old people who are already on Medicare. 

Pat Robertson’s CBN Network touted the anticipated huge crowd size, “The start date for enrolling in the Affordable Care Act is Oct. 1. As the nation gets closer to that date, activists who want to defund Obamacare are putting more pressure on legislators. On Tuesday, they’re bringing thousands of protestors to Washington, D.C., for an event called Exempt America.”

Crowd shots were not often seen during the live stream of the event, and for good reason most of the people there appeared to be the typical older white Republican voters. The great irony of the rally was that many of the people who did attend the event were likely on Medicare. Those in attendance cheered on speaker after speaker as they railed against government run healthcare all the while knowing that they are recipients of one of the best healthcare programs in the country, which just so happens to be run by the government.

What? Nobody showed up?  How can that be?

After all the Wasilla Wendigo herself said  that it was "time to start bombing Obamacare."

Is it possible that nobody listens to her anymore?

Or ANYBODY in the Tea Party for that matter?

Yep, certainly starting to seem that way.

Here is how Politicususa summed it up:  

The tea party is dead. Obamacare is the law of the land, and if these are the people that Rand Paul and Ted Cruz are counting on to get them to the White House, they will be sorely disappointed. 

I could not have said it better myself. 

Perfect comparison.

You know I am really starting to warm up to John Fugelsang.

Definitely becoming one of the best we have on our side.

Are YOU ready for the "Romney Bunch?"

Let me answer my own question.

Hell no!

The New York Times smells BS in air concerning the Republican attacks on Obama's plans for Medicare.

Courtesy of the New York Times:

 Republican attacks on President Obama’s plans for Medicare are growing more heated and inaccurate by the day. Both Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan made statements last week implying that the Affordable Care Act would eviscerate Medicare when in fact the law should shore up the program’s finances.

Both men have also twisted themselves into knots to distance themselves from previous positions, so that voters can no longer believe anything they say. Last week, both insisted that they would save Medicare by pumping a huge amount of money into the program, a bizarre turnaround for supposed fiscal conservatives out to rein in federal spending. 

The likelihood that they would stand by that irresponsible pledge after the election is close to zero. And the likelihood that they would be better able than Democrats to preserve Medicare for the future (through a risky voucher system that may not work well for many beneficiaries) is not much better. THE ALLEGED “RAID ON MEDICARE” A Republican attack ad says that the reform law has “cut” $716 billion from Medicare, with the money used to expand coverage to low- income people who are currently uninsured. “So now the money you paid for your guaranteed health care is going to a massive new government program that’s not for you,” the ad warns.

What the Republicans fail to say is that the budget resolutions crafted by Paul Ryan and approved by the Republican-controlled House retained virtually the same cut in Medicare.
 
Here the New York Times lays out the facts:

Good news seniors! The Romney/Ryan plan now comes in a can!

The Romney/Ryan plan, a colorfully packaged can of shit that no self respecting feline would let anywhere NEAR their food bowl.

But of course it's good enough for seniors because, well hell they're almost dead anyhow.

I think if they were to be honest with the American people that THIS would be their new slogan: "The Romney/Ryan ticket. Sure it sucks for most of you, but if you really cared about that you wouldn't be voting Republican anyhow."

Mitt Romney, he'd let America fail. Update!

I don't think Romney is going to have much luck fighting back against the perception that if he were elected President, Americans, who are NOT millionaires or corporations, are essentially on their own.

Remember this is the man who believes corporations are people, and introduced a tax plan that was a gift to the very wealthy, and would cut spending by taking away funds that benefit the poor and middle class in America:

He proposed cutting individual marginal income tax rates by 20 percent; reducing the corporate tax rate to 25 percent, from 35 percent; eliminating capital gains taxes for people with incomes below $200,000; abolishing the alternative minimum tax and the estate tax; indexing the eligibility age for Medicare to longevity; allowing private insurers to compete with Medicare; eliminating the Affordable Care Act, Obama's health care law; and reducing federal spending to 20 percent of the national economy by making "hundreds of billions of dollars in cuts," including to programs like Amtrak and Planned Parenthood.

So reducing the corporate tax to 25 percent,  raising the age that the elderly receive medicare, and taking away funds from, or eliminating altogether, programs that provide medical assistance and transportation to those who otherwise cannot afford it.

Yeah that is exactly who Americans should place in office.

Update: And the Romney gaffes keep right on rolling in.

Asked by the AP reporter if he follows NASCAR, Romney responded, "Not as closely as some of the most ardent fans. But I have some great friends who are NASCAR team owners."

Yep a real man of the people. Assuming of course that corporations really ARE people.

Rand Paul may be the poster child for Teabagger hypocrisy.

From Kentucky.com:

 Paul, the Republican nominee, has been paid $130,461 in Medicaid funds since 2006, about one-third of the sum that he billed the program, according to the state Cabinet for Health and Family Services, which administers that program. Doctors' Medicaid billings often are disputed in part, leading to smaller payments than they requested.

Paul's campaign refused to say Friday how much he gets from Medicare. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said it does not release such information to protect the privacy of doctors who are paid with public funds.

But Paul's campaign confirmed that he receives far more funding from Medicare than Medicaid, and roughly half of his medical income comes from the two programs.

On the campaign trail, Paul calls for the abolition of entire agencies, such as the U.S. Department of Education, while complaining that Medicare payments to doctors have been cut too deeply, making it one of the few government expenses he consistently defends.

"Physicians should be allowed to make a comfortable living," Paul told supporters in Louisville in May, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Paul's campaign chairman, David Adams, said the candidate's political and personal stances are not inconsistent. Paul is sincerely critical of government spending, but being an eye surgeon essentially requires him to accept Medicare and Medicaid patients, Adams said.

You know stuff like this just leaves me slack jawed. Rand Paul seems to have NO problem suggesting that the government disband the Department of Education and force hundreds of thousands of teachers out of their jobs. Yet without missing a beat he can turn around and bitch that cuts to Medicare are unfair because he needs money for a less ratty looking toupee.

"I want to cut wasteful government spending.  Just not wasteful government spending that affects me!"  Let's see how THAT looks on a campaign bumper sticker!

By the way I also believe that the Medicare program does not work very effectively and that it should increase how much it pays out to physicians.  However I also believe that the public school system is a vital program in this county, and if I had to choose between keeping teachers employed or making sure that Rand Paul received more money that would be an easy choice for me.

And this guy is the prodigal son of the Teabagger movement?  You know I think that tells me just about everything I need to know about them.  How about you?

Update: Of course next to this guy Rand Paul seems almost reasonable.

Republican Representative Paul Ryan has a plan to slash Social Security and Medicare. And Teabagger queen Sarah Palin LOVES it!

It’s a radical plan to balance the federal budget by slashing the sacred cows of American entitlement spending: Social Security and Medicare. And it’s scrambling the political landscape: Sarah Palin loves it. Republicans in Washington are split, wary of the electoral fallout of the spending cuts with the midterm looming. And Democrats are gleeful, confident that they can exploit Ryan’s plan to divide the GOP and perhaps even conquer in a few competitive places this fall.

Threatening to cut Social Security and Medicare is considered political suicide, especially with so many voters in America, the baby boomers, just now qualifying for these programs.

That has many Republicans wary of Ryan's plan. But one famous Republican is not hesitating to show her support.

Sarah Palin has been quick to attach herself to Ryan's rising star, giving him a shoutout in her speech to the Tea Party Convention in Nashville and volunteering his name as a promising presidential candidate.

I am always amazed when people give Palin credit for being political savvy. The woman is wandering in a desert of ignorance and her supporters are stumbling along behind her.