Republican politicians display stunning hypocrisy on health care insurance reform

Americans United for Change is calling out U.S. Rep. Fred Upton, R-St. Joseph, on his hypocrisy of saying repealing the historic health care insurance reform law is his “top priority,” yet he has no problem accepting his own government-subsidized health plan.

In response to Upton’s declaration earlier this week that his “top priority will be full repeal” of the Affordable Care Act, progressive issue-advocacy group Americans United for Change challenged the incoming Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee to practice what he preaches and start by dropping his own government subsidized health plan. It only seems fair considering that repealing health reform would effectively deny thousands of Michigan families access to the same kind of quality, affordable health care choices Upton enjoys as a Member of Congress.

“You first, Congressman,” said Tom McMahon, Executive Director, Americans United for Change. “If Fred Upton insists on going down this path towards denying thousands of Michigan families access to quality, affordable health care, shouldn’t he start with his own family and forgo his government subsidized health plan?”

The Republican hypocrisy on this issue has been stunning, like that of U.S. Rep.-elect Andy Harris, R-MD. Harris, another fervent proponent of repealing the Affordable Care Act, recently made national headlines when he brazenly complained to his colleagues that his congressional health benefits weren’t kicking in soon enough for his liking. It would be funny if it weren’t so hypocritical. It has led Americans United for Change to launch a radio and Facebook ad campaign in Maryland calling on Harris to “Drop It or Stop It.”

But Upton is just one of many GOP hypocrites.

“If Congressman Upton had his way and the new health law were repealed, the insurance companies would go right back to dropping people’s coverage when they get sick, young adults under 26 would be kicked off their parents’ plans, insurance companies could go back to imposing lifetime limits on care and denying care to those with “pre-existing conditions”, and seniors would again have to fear falling into the “doughnut hole” prescription coverage gap,” McMahon said. “Why does Congressman Upton want to put the big insurance companies back in charge?”

But we also have another stunning example of hypocrisy right here in Michigan with extremist Republican Congressman-elect Tim Walberg, R-Tipton. Blogging for Michigan revealed that the Lenawee County extremist will opt out of federal health-care coverage. But Walberg, conveniently, forgets to tell you that he already receives lifetime government-subsidized health care insurance because of the 16 years in spent in the Michigan House.

Passing a Growing Michigan on to the Republicans in 2011

Tuesday’s election made no sense when you consider that President Obama and the Democrats lifted the country out of the Bush Recession – the longest and deepest since the Great Depression – that created by the Republicans.

Time after time voters said their No. 1 priority was jobs and the economy, and federal Republicans said their No. 1 priority was defeating President Obama in two years. The only good news is we finally have job growth, although not fast enough for voters, but Republicans are already trying to take credit for it, despite blocking every single effort to improve things.

To combat that and so we don’t forget, I am reposting this post from the Muskegon Critic over at Blogging for Michigan called “Passing a Growing Michigan on to the Republicans in 2011.”

As we move into a Republican controlled...well...everything in Michigan, it's important to take a stand on various narratives.

One narrative I'm personally keen on keeping on the burner is that job growth in Michigan began a full year before many of the Republicans in 2011 even got elected in 2010.

From March 2000 on, Michigan lost jobs almost continuously until 2005. From 2000 to 2003 under Governor Engler we lost 283,000 jobs before Granholm even took office.

Job growth picked up in 2005 and 2006 and then the massive recession hit in 2007 and we lost jobs for 37 consecutive months until January 2010 when many of Granholm's efforts to diversify our economy and lure new industries here began to bear fruit.

In the first nine months of 2010, Michigan added 65,204 jobs. The largest January to September nine month jump in job growth since 1997 when we gained 68,535 jobs in the same time frame during the Booming 90s. The largest economic expansion in American history.

Michigan's Democratic leadership combined with a sound partner in the White House helped pull Michigan from the brink and restore us to job growth in 2010.

Ford is making record profits and is hiring again in Michigan.

General Motors is hiring again, setting up a factory in Lansing to make, get this, small price and feature competitive Cadillacs.

Advanced battery manufacturing plants are opening in Michigan, employing thousands.

General Electric is hiring 1100 people in its new R&D facility near Detroit.

So when the Republicans move into Lansing...they're moving into a state that's already growing...already on the mend...already creating jobs.

Hey Republicans! Try not to SCREW IT UP!

Patterson’s mouthpiece spins the facts

Apparently, Oakland County is a little sensitive about its decision not to enforce the workplace smoking ban, and my post about that over at Blogging for Michigan (BFM) drew a response from Bill Mullan, the media and communications officer for Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson.

Here is his rebuttal to my essay posted both here and at BFM.

The "Communications Guru" says it's a mystery why Oakland County will not enforce the State of Michigan's smoking ban. Trust me, the "Guru" knows. Like many who tell half-truths, the "Guru" omitted the rest of the quote that puts it all in context.
Oakland County Health Division Manager Kathy Forzley told The Detroit News that the new law amounts to an unfunded mandate. "With dwindling funding and trying economic times, implementing a new law without attached funding is very difficult," she said.

The "Guru" needs to pull out the Michigan Constitution. According to the Headlee Amendment, the smoking ban is unconstitutional because it is an unfunded mandate.

Section 29 of the Headlee Amendment says: "A new activity or service or an increase in the level of any activity or service beyond that required by existing law shall not be required by the legislature or any state agency of units of Local Government, unless a state appropriation is made and disbursed to pay the unit."

Oh, but why involve a little thing like the Michigan Constitution where public health is concerned? The "Guru" says, "Wow. Thanks for protecting the public from deadly secondhand smoke, Ms. Forzley."

In reply, I say, "Wow. Thanks for protecting the public from unconstitutional laws, Guru."

I know the state Constitution is a pesky little thing. I mean, if you're going to ignore a little item like a constitutional amendment that controls public funding - perhaps the government's most powerful tool - then I suppose you can toss aside such matters as freedom of speech, freedom of religion and the right against self-incrimination.

From a public health point of view, Oakland County Health Division agrees a smoking ban in public buildings is better. In fact, Oakland County will implement and comply with the law on our government campus in Pontiac, and any other facilities we operate.

Indeed, our county government enacted smoking restrictions in its own buildings years before the State of Michigan passed its ban into law, first in 1997, then expanded in 2006.

But if the State of Michigan wants Oakland County to enforce its ban, we're merely saying, "Put your money where your mouth is."

Here are Oakland County's numbers: We have 26 food service sanitarians that are responsible for inspecting more than 4,600 restaurants in the county. In 2008/2009, they conducted more than 17,000 inspections - that's 654 inspections per sanitarian.

When Ohio passed its smoking ban, there were 18,000 complaints against restaurants not enforcing the law its first year. Imagine if Oakland County absorbed merely 10% of that complaint load, we would have to budget for three additional inspectors just to keep up.

Taking a page out of the "Guru's" book, if you want the State of Michigan to do its job, call the Governor's office at (517) 335-6397 and tell them to uphold the Constitution to which she swore an oath when she took office.

Unlike the "Guru," I will not hide behind an anonymous blogging name. I am Bill Mullan, media and communications officer for Oakland County.

Great job, Bill, standing up for the taxpayers of Oakland County, or should I say the State of Oakland.

However the mystery remains why Oakland County would not enforce a popular state law that protects the public health that has not even gone into effect. I assume the State of Oakland County does restaurant inspections, so there is no reason it can't be handled then. Please tell me how that costs you any extra money.

The Michigan Department of Community Health and the Michigan Department of Agriculture have been meeting frequently since the law was passed in December to work out implementation and enforcement issues, and they have come up with a solid enforcement protocol.

Local health departments are responsible for inspecting food service establishments to comply with Public Act 188. Most violations would be no more than a bartender or manager asking the person who lit up to simply stop smoking. However, any complaint recorded by the health department would be logged, and a protocol would be followed. If the local department had to go out and investigate any complaint that could not be cleared up by phone, the business would be charged a fee for that investigation. If the bar or restaurant failed to pay, their liquor or food license would be at stake.

I fail to see the unfunded mandate here.

As for Mr. Mullan’s use of the Michigan Constitution to try and make his point, if you go to Article IV Section 51 of the Michigan Constitution it's pretty clear what the county’s mission should be: "The public health and general welfare of the people of the state are herby declared to matters of primary public concern.” I assume that applies to the State of Oakland County.

I don’t have the power to protect “the public from unconstitutional laws” even if that were the case, but Oakland County has the power and obligation to protect the public health from deadly secondhand smoke. They are shirking that responsibility.

It's great the State of Oakland County complies with the smoking ban in public buildings, so why will it not enforce the law in bars and restaurants?

As for my screen name, if he would have followed any of the links in the post on BFM - other than the one for the Detroit News article, it would have taken you back to my blog here where my name is at the top along with my picture. For the record, it's Kevin Shopshire. For a former research assistant at the Detroit News, that should have been pretty easy to smoke out.

The thugs come out at night

What a class guy Congressman John Dingell is. Despite the abuse and crap he took from the fake Astroturf tea bag thugs at his townhall meeting on health care Thursday night in Romulus, he opted for a second session so everyone could get inside.

As expected, the thugs, egged on by the corporate, Rightwing lobbying groups and think tanks “Americans for Prosperity” and “ “Freedom Works,” - the same people who brought us the fake “tea parties” - did their best to intimidate and harass people they disagree with. A colleague called me from there to tell me how was crazy it was, and as out of control as I expected. There were the usual disgusting signs comparing Democrats and President Obama to Hitler, and they tried to shout down anyone who disagrees with them.

I watched the 11 p.m. local news, and a guy who gave his name as Mike Sola of Milan to the media interrupted Dingell repeatedly as he pushed his son, Scott, in a wheelchair to the podium and got in the Congressman’s face and screamed at him until he was finally escorted out by the police. Frankly, I was a little confused by what he was angry about. I’m pretty sure his son is getting SSI checks every month (Supplemental Security Income), and his health care will be taken care of my Medicaid. This will not affect him. Plus, there is no such person as Mike Sola in Milan; or at least he is not a registered voter.

They have excellent coverage and photos of the event over at Michigan Liberal, as well as Blogging for Michigan.

I almost fell out of my chair when I read the official unofficial rightwing blog, who said “Wayne County Democrats did a great job of stacking the meeting, while simultaneously angering the large number of people who were in attendance this evening.”

Hello. This was a townhall for constituents of the 15th Congressional District, and the Downriver area is predominantly Democratic. However, this person is right about one thing though: we do need to “stack the meeting” to let people know insurance providers are making huge profits, rates for family plans have gone up 73 percent in just a few years and more than 50 million Americans are without access to quality health care is unacceptable. We also need to stack the meetings so that people know they are just a small, fringe minority. A loud, vocal minority, but still a minority. Most civilized people don’t want to get in the kind of mosh pit these people have created, but we need to for the good of our country and its citizens.

The good news is people are getting a good look at how low the GOP has sunk. We also know they will do anything to stop real reform.

It was also interesting to read the accounts from the corporate media.

Booth Newspapers reported:
“The meeting wasn't announced until Thursday morning, but word quickly spread.
Freep.com, Aug. 7: Scott Hagerstrom, the Michigan director for Americans for Prosperity -- a group opposing President Barack Obama's health care initiative -- said that after he learned about it, he sent an e-mail alerting 18,000 members in southeast Michigan.”

That’s a complete lie. Their affiliate web sits have been pushing this since at least Monday, but it does show that the corporate lobbyists are pushing this. After all, the insurance lobby is spending $1.4 million a day to stop this needed reform, but they are getting a bargain with these thugs. It’s a shame the way these people have been used, and that they have actually bought into the lies they have been told about assisted suicide, socialism and socialized medicine. Fear and ignorance can easily be manipulated.

Update: I was wrong about Mike Sola when I said he was not a registered voter and even suggested that may not be his real name. He is a Croatian immigrant, and because Mike is apparently an Americanized version of his first name I was unable to find him. In a good story in the Free Press, he claims he is now getting death threats, so I won’t tell you his real first name. But just like many of he other people disrupting townhalls who were duped by conservative lobbying firms and Republicans, he was set off by an outrageous lie. In this case is was a since debunked op-ed in the NY Post by Betsy McCaughey, a Republican former Lt. Gov. of New York, a fellow at the “free market” conservative think tank called the Hudson Institute and a member of the Board of Directors at Cantel Medical Corp.

Bishop caves to pressure over censorship of the press but still does not get it

After four days of solid pressure from both the left and right side of the political spectrum and those that truly understand the intent and importance of the First Amendment, Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop, R-Rochester, relented and stopped the illegal censoring of a liberal blog for daring to call him out on his foot-dragging and attempt to hold the state budget hostage for his political gain.

Late last Friday Bishop blocked access to the liberal blog “Blogging for Michigan” and only BFM from Senate computers. Bishop and his staffers blamed, depending on who asked and the time of day, that BFM was banned for saying mean things about Republicans or political staffers should not waste government time by reading political content.

Bishop’s office just released a statement that said:

"I stand by the position that Senate employees should be not be using taxpayer equipment to view political blogs pursuant to Senate Rule 1.401(c). These blogs are of questionable content and employees who are paid to conduct the business of the people of Michigan should not be interacting with them during business hours.”

He just does not get it. He further went on to blame Senate Democrats for correctly pointing out that he was doing exactly what the Founding Fathers were protecting against when they wrote the Bill of Rights: stopping the government from censoring political speech and writing and trying to hinder a free press.

"Senate Democrats seem intent on making this a debate on censorship and their right to view questionable political content during business hours. Senate Republicans believe this a discussion of the proper use of taxpayer resources and appropriate conduct during business hours and establishing strict guidelines on employee use of the Internet and websites.”

Again, he just does not get it. The debate is exactly about censorship. Perhaps someone should send Bishop a copy of the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Also, thanks to rightwing bloggers like “RightMichigan” for supporting the Constitution and recognizing the debate was exactly about censorship.

Bishop tramples on First Amendment’s Freedom of the Press

Senate Majority Leader and chief obstructionist Mike Bishop, R-Rochester, took the unusual step and for the first time in Senate history illegally censored a liberal blog for daring to call him out on his foot-dragging and attempt to hold the state budget hostage for his political gain.

Subscription only Gognwer News Service reported Bishop ordered "Blogging for Michigan" blocked from being accessed from Senate computers, using the false claim that the blog was “created by a Senate employee using Senate equipment.” The blog was created and operated by Shiawassee County resident Christine Barry, a systems engineer, from her home. All the material posted comes from public sources, such as newspapers, newsletters, the Senate websites, the Senate Journal and the Senate session and most of the committees are broadcast live on the Senate web site. Not only that, the info is properly sourced with links, something you don’t see in the mainstream media.

The blog was only created in June by Michiganliberal diarists Christine and Wizardkitten, and this attempt at censorship by Bishop and/or his henchman proves how effective it has been. I am proud to say I am a poster and an editor on Blogging for Michigan.

Ironically, this is the only blog that was blocked; leaving all three of the conservative blogs in the state, as well as that thing ran by the chair of the state GOP, even Michiganliberal was not blocked. That seems ironic when you consider that many people post on both sites, like me. I post on Michignaliberal as kjbas58, and many of my posts have been critical of the do-nothing-Senate, but only Blogging for Michigan has been blocked. Could you imagine the outcry from the right if the House Democrats tried to block one of the three rightwing blogs, or from everyone if a newspaper web site was blocked?

This situation is the very definition of censorship and a clear violation of the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution’s protection of freedom of the press. Now that the news services that cover the capitol and the nation via Daily KOS have caught on to this censorship attempt, hopefully the mainstream media in Michigan will catch on to what Bishop is really about.

Blogging fro Michigan now carries the well-deserved masthead “The site Mike Bishop doesn't want you to see.”

I suggest anyone who cares about the Bill of Rights contact Bishop.