No, YOU Lie.
Nothing says fund-raising for a political opponent like incorrectly yelling, "You lie" at the POTUS in front of millions of Americans and the entire Congress.
Section 242 of HR 3200 specifically states that in order for an individual to receive coverage: "For purposes of this division, the term 'affordable credit eligible individual' means, subject to subsection (b), an individual who is lawfully present in a State in the United States [...]" (Some people forget that the PDF is online and word-searchable).
~also~
SEC. 246. NO FEDERAL PAYMENT FOR UNDOCUMENTED ALIENS (all caps in the original). Nothing in this subtitle shall allow Federal payments for affordability credits on behalf of individuals who are not lawfully present in the United States.
Joe Wilson has started a bit of a battle for his seat in 2010 with those two little words. His opponent, Rob Miller, has raised (at the time of this post) over $188,000 dollars since last PM. Check it out. (Update: as of 5PM EST, the donations top $450,000.)
President Obama must be doing a lot of things right to get such a strong (if not irrational) reaction from some people.
One last thing: an argument I keep hearing against this reform is that small businesses will have to pay an 8% penalty if they do not provide coverage for their employees.
Two problems with that:
A) That helps small businesses who have seen their premiums increase by 129% in the last eight years.
B) Don't we want to help small businesses with costs? Click here for a report straight from the House Ways and Means Committee on the benefits of reform to small businesses.
It's time to act. In the face of all of the evidence, at this point anyone who is against this reform is seriously underinformed, misinformed or illiterate. Read the bill. I think my August post was strangely prescient of Wilson's outburst last PM...
PS: What with all this bipartisanship nonsense? The citizenry sent a very clear message in this *Democracy*. (Princeton defines Democracy as "majority rule".) The majority of Americans voted for the Democrats... that's the team we want... not a mix of those who were in the minority. If we want bi-partisanship, we should do away with the system of representation in this country. Those who lost lost for a reason...
8 comments:
It is getting so tiring that our fellow citizens, in particular those elected to represent us, still cannot be bothered to actually read the bill but would rather repeat nifty sound bites heard on FUX...Tim is now getting his kicks by playing the following trick on me in the mornings, he walks into the bathroom while I'm showering and just repeat the last thing he heard on FUX & Friends...
That Tim better be nice to you... especially since you have some major changes on the horizon.
I am sorry I haven't called... let's try to chat this weekend, okay? Miss you, friend...
I've never seen this level of open disrespect directed at a president. Especially since the last one deserved it! Where are the mad-as-hell people when it MATTERS?
According to a story at CNN, Joe Wilson Flipped the PRez the bird when he hollard as well. As if yelling at the POTUS wasnt bad enough.
My jaw hit the floor when I saw this. Just blatant lies because they have absolutely nothing to offer the American public. Not one thing. All that matters to the GOP is winning. But they lost. Badly. And are sore losers.
I think it was more than partisan. I think it was racist. I can't imagine anyone yelling that at a white male president.
"They" are determined not to give this man the respect he deserves. That is what burns me. Same with the refusal to broadcast his message to some schools. This is classic racist behavior, IMHO.
For a moment during the speech I almost thought that we had reverted to a Parliamentary system such as the House of Commons in which yelling, gnashing of teeth and throwing of shoes is not unheard of behavior by politicians.
But then, brought back to reality by the image of President Obama standing there at the podium as opposed to jumping over chairs to throw down with Wilson, I thought to myself, "Geezuzfuckingcrist. Did he just call POTUS a liar in front of the whole world? And why is no one escorting him from the chamber?"
You can bet that if someone had done that during W's rule, there would have been hell to pay, immediate orders for wiretapping and an audit by the IRS.
Good speech, by the way. I love it when Obama does the whole oratorial heights thing. Makes me almost forget about the dumbasses.
It's the epitome of laziness when our own elected officials--those who are, in fact, charged with hashing out the details of health care reform--can't be bothered to actually read the proposals.
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