Senators Urge House To Pass China Currency Bill

By Andrea Salazar

A day after the China currency bill passed the Senate, a bipartisan coalition of senators urged House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and the White House to join them against China’s currency manipulation. 

“China has a callous disregard for the rule of law,” Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said. “They cheat at every turn. They steal intellectual property, they counterfeit goods affecting our defense industries and they manipulate their currency. We don’t have this kind of discussion with normal nations. We don’t have this kind of discussion with democracies. You’re having this kind of discussion with a communist dictatorship with a command and control economy that’s acting like the mob.”

Graham echoed those sentiments and dismissed worries about China’s reaction to the currency bill.

“I’m not worried about the Chinese response because at the end of the day they need us as much as we need them, if not more so,” Graham said. “I’m worried about the idea that American politicians are going to let threats coming from China stop what, I think, is a rational approach to dealing with this.”

Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said he expects the bill to pass, despite opposition from leadership.

“We have tried to keep this as non-political, frankly, as possible,” Schumer said. “That’s because we believe in this. I just believe in my bones that this is one of the five ways… to keep America number one over the next several decades.”

Senate Democrats: We Support Middle Class, Not Tax Breaks For Rich

Senators Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) and Ben Cardin (D-Md.) today called for end to tax breaks for wealthy Americans.

Their pair of Democrats spoke minutes after several House Republican leaders said they would continue to fight for an extension of all the tax cuts, which were originally passed in 2001 and 2003 under the Bush administration. The series of cuts are all set to expire by the end of this year.

Stabenow said the difference between parties is clear; Democrats would like to help the middle class while Republicans care only about helping those who don’t need help.

“We are committed to extending tax cuts for middle class Americans,” she said, adding that Republicans are willing to “hold hostage” middle class Americans until they get tax cut extensions for the millionaires and billionaires of the country.”

“We have had 10 years of tax cuts for the wealthy, my question is ‘Where are the jobs?’” Stabenow asked.

“The extension of the tax cut for our wealthiest… will add $700 billion to the national decifit, we can’t afford to do that,” added Cardin.

Stabenow Counters Cut To Physicians' Pay

By Ravi Bhatia-Talk Radio News Service

Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) called the delay in changing the Medicare formula a yearly “Kabuki dance” in a press conference Tuesday on the Medicare Physicians Fairness Act, a piece of legislation that will prevent a significant pay-cut for physicians.

“Now we need to take the next step,” she said. “Which is, in the context of health reform, to say we are not going to move forward with the devastating cuts that would happen if we take no action. Instead, we embrace the new focus on prevention and quality and incentives in the health care reform bill that refocus how we look at physician care and physician payments.”

If passed, the act would eliminate the 21.5 percent Medicare payment rate reduction for physician services in 2010 and sunset the application of the sustainable growth rate formula. Stabenow stated that she is hopeful the legislation will pass this week.

Congress Urged To Pass Health Care Reform On Behalf Of Consumers

By Leah Valencia, University of New Mexico – Talk Radio News Service

The Consumers Union urged congress Wednesday to pass comprehensive health care reform this year in response to findings from a recent survey the Union conducted that revealed a high level of consumer dissatisfaction with the current health care model.

In a press conference on Capitol Hill, Senators Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) and Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) welcomed Consumers Union president Jim Guest to speak on what he described as an urgent need for health care reform.

Guest said the magazine Consumer Report’s, published by CU, recently did a consumer survey and found sobering inadequacies in the current health care system.

“Early this week consumer reports released a poll... nearly 73 percent of respondents said they worry that an illness or accident would be financial devastating to them, an equal number said they worry if they got sick they will be denied care or their care would be rationed by health insurance companies... those are devastating numbers,” Guest said. “51 percent in the last year said they didn’t go to the doctor, didn’t get a follow up treatment or procedure, didn’t fill a prescription they couldn’t take care of their own health because they couldn’t pay for it.”

Guest said CU is serious about health care reform because it is in the best interest of the American public.

CU, a historically nonpartisan organization, announced last week that it would run a TV ad in Washington, D.C. for two weeks that urged consumers to put pressure on Congress to pass health care reform this year. According to CU, this is something the organization has never done for any other cause since its founding in 1936.

Baucus Accuses Republican Senator Of Attempting To "Gut And Kill" Health Care Reform

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus accused Sen. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) of attempting to "gut and kill" health care reform legislation Thursday during the Committee's seventh day of markup for the America's Healthy Future Act.

“You want to gut the President’s program, or you want to cut health care reform," Baucus said to Crapo. He added, “you want to take away personal responsibility for individuals to buy personal coverage… this amendment guts and kills health care reform."

The amendment states "This amendment provides that no tax, fee or penalty imposed by this legislation shall be applied to any individual earning less than $200,000 per year or any couple earning less than $250,000 per year."

There was a ray of bi-partisanship Thursday when Sen. Jim Bunning (R-Ky.) introduced an amendment that would allow taxpayers to deduct over-the-counter medical products as medical expenses. Chairman Baucus along with Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D- Mich.) offered to assist the Senator from Kentucky on the amendment, both agreeing that it addresses an important issue.

Chairman Baucus hopes to finish the markup late Thursday night. The Finance Committee has heard arguments for 107 amendments of the 564 submitted.