Former House Majority Leader Unleashes Armey Of Attacks On Democrats

By Benny Martinez
University of New Mexico/Talk Radio News Service

Former House Majority Leader Dick Armey (R-Texas) called the Tea Party movement an effort to return the Republican Party to its grassroots spirit, and chided lawmakers for passing “panic legislation" in the more than eight years since the attacks of September 11, 2001.

During a luncheon Monday at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., Armey, CEO of the organization FreedomWorks, defended the Tea Party movement at length, criticizing the leadership of the Democratic party for failing to earn the support of the public. He blasted the Democratic agenda, especially healthcare reform, saying “[Democrats] will get politically bounced” if their bill passes.

For good measure, Armey used the word “inept” to describe the leadership style of current House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.)

Responding to criticism that his organization has helped create an environment of obstruction over key legislative items, Armey attributed the failure to get health reform done to Democrats “accustomed to doing sloppy work."

"I don’t think they have left within them the skills to do the disciplined, hard work that such ventures require," he added.

While the former Congressman did say that he believes President Barack Obama will get the votes necessary to pass health reform, he criticized the undertaking.

“They are ineptly trying to do the wrong thing.”

Obama: Congress Owes America A Vote On Healthcare

President Barack Obama said Wednesday that he would like to see an up-or-down vote on his healthcare reform plan happen within the next few weeks.

"I believe the United States Congress owes the American people a final vote on healthcare reform...Reform has already passed the House with a majority. It has already passed the Senate with a supermajority...and now it deserves [an] up-or-down vote," said Obama during a short speech cast by many as being his last major push for reform.

During his remarks, the President never once used the "R" word, but essentially gave the Senate the go-ahead to use reconciliation -- a legislative procedure that would allow them to pass a healthcare bill under a simple majority vote -- if no vote takes place.

Drawing on last Thursday's bipartisan healthcare summit, the President said he liked a few ideas Republicans had, including proposals to address medical malpractice issues and limit wasteful spending within the healthcare system. But he criticized members of the GOP for being on the wrong side of certain fundamental disagreements between his party and theirs.

"There are those, including most Republicans in Congress, who believe the answer is to loosen regulations on the insurance industry. I disagree with that approach...If they truly believe that less regulation would lead to higher quality...then they should vote against the proposal I've put forward."

Looking ahead, it is widely believed that the House has already agreed to pass the Senate's bill, with the understanding that both Houses would subsequently be allowed to make "fixes" to the legislation before it goes to the President's desk.

For all the latest news on healthcare reform, follow @politicalbrief on Twitter.

Pelosi: Dems, GOP Not Seeing Eye To Eye After Summit

By Benny Martinez - University of New Mexico/Talk Radio News Service

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) emphasized Friday that there are still many issues that Democrat and GOP members do not see eye to eye on.

Starting from scratch is an idea that was suggested numerous times by GOP leaders at the summit, but Pelosi reiterated “you just can’t do it.”

“There are certain things that, unless you do them together, it doesn’t have the impact, it doesn’t have the synergy, it doesn’t hold the insurance companies accountable,” the Speaker said during a press conference.

According to Pelosi, another issue that is not being met with support from both sides of the aisle is the denial of health coverage to patients with pre-existing medical conditions. Pelosi said this is something that “Democrats stand fully behind and Republicans don’t have it in their bill.”

Pelosi commented on the possible use of reconciliation in the Senate to pass legislation.

“What you call a complicated process is called a simple majority,” Pelosi said. “That’s what we’re asking the Senate to act upon.”

Pelosi said that there is some bipartisan support in Congress for health care reform, saying that Wednesday’s vote to remove the anti-trust exemption for insurance companies shows this.

Health Care Analysts: Obamacare Won't Meet Same Fate As Hillarycare

Leah Valencia, University of New Mexico-Talk Radio News Service

While the heated debate over health care reform is often compared to the struggle that former President Bill Clinton faced in the early nineties, there are several key differences, according to a number of health care analysts.

"[President Barack Obama's] effort was initiated when the economy was in free fall, unemployment still rising, we were on the brink of a world wide financial meltdown," Urban Institute President Robert Resichauer said during a panel discussion at the American Enterprise Institute Friday. "In 1992 the economy wasn't chugging, but it was improving."

Resichauer said the current economic circumstances have forced the government to take extraordinary action, which makes the American public leery of the role government is playing in the economy's life.

Resichauer said that it is imperative to have a bipartisan effort on health care reform in order to win the support of the American public.

Health care attorney Dean Rosen said the political atmosphere surrounding the current debate also stands in contrast with Clinton's efforts.

"I think it will be very difficult to find more than a few Republicans in the Senate who are willing to do this," Rosen said. "It makes it a political necessity for this to be a Democrats-only enterprise. This was not the case in 1993 or 1994."

Ultimately, all panelists in attendance agreed that the current reform effort will meet a different fate than Clinton's.

"It is not whether we are going to have it, it is when and how," Resichauer said. "At least at a superficial level we have a lot more support on this than we ever have."

Health Care Crisis Can Not Be Solved By Universal Insurance Coverage Alone, Says Mass Sec. Of Health

By Laura Woodhead - Talk Radio News

Universal insurance coverage alone will not solve the health care crisis said Massachusetts Secretary of Health and Human services JudyAnn Bigby Tuesday during remarks on "The Massachusetts Model for Health Care Reform: Lessons Learned" at the Health Resources and Services Administrations Summit on the Future of Primary Care in Rural and Urban America.

"We have no illusions about how difficult this is and how long it will take," Bigby said. "We don't feel that simply making sure that everyone has insurance is the answer to the problem."

Bigby stressed that while there is a lot to be learned from Massachusetts' attempt at health care reform, passing the same reform nationally would be problematic since, as Bigby noted, reform means different things to different groups.

"Part of the difficulty with a national debate on health care reform is we don't really all speak the same language about what reform means," said the Secretary. "When we talk about reform in Massachusetts, we recognize that we have multiple segments within the health care regulatory system, the health care payment system and that we have to coordinate our efforts if we are going to see true reform and long lasting effects."

The Massachusetts health care reform, which was signed into law in 2006, mandates that those that can afford to must purchase health insurance, either from a private insurer or through the state's exchange program. In 2006, 7.4% of Massachusetts residents were uninsured which has fallen to 2.6% in 2009. Responding to a question regarding the exclusion of the state's subsidized program from the exchange, Bigby said it allows them to better the administration of the system.

"Quite frankly we do not believe...that any program that looks like medicaid should be in the exchange," said Bigby. "It would be, administratively, a nightmare."

The Secretary dismissed claims that the Massachusetts health reform was costing more than was budgeted for.

"The notion that this is costing the state much more than they anticipated and much more than they budgeted for is simply not true."