Thursday
Sep172009
Obama Sends Health Care Reform Message To College
Thursday, September 17, 2009 at 12:54PM
By Justin Duckham-Talk Radio News Service
President Barack Obama held another in a series of health care rallies late Thursday morning, this time tailoring the health care reform message for college students.
“A lot of you here today and a lot of young people gave their time and their effort to this campaign because you believe America can still do great things,” Obama said to the heavily college aged crowd at the University of Maryland. “I may not be the first President to take up health care reform, but I am determined to be the last with your help.”
The President addressed the heated tone taken by opponents of Obama’s plan in recent months, describing their proposed solutions to the health care crisis as the “same old, same old.” However, Obama did note that tort reform, which has been pushed heavily by Republicans, was an idea worth considering.
“I’ve heard a lot of Republicans say they want to kill Obamacare. Some may even raise money off it. But when you ask these folks what exactly my plan does they have it all wrong,” Obama said.
Obama once again defended the notion of a public health care option, denying that it was a form of “government takeover.”
Obama also discussed education issues, noting that Congress would soon be voting on student loan reform.
“Because you voted for change in November, we’re going to bring change to the House of Representatives today,” Obama said.
At one point an excited student yelled out “I love you, Obama.”
“I love you back,” Obama replied.
President Barack Obama held another in a series of health care rallies late Thursday morning, this time tailoring the health care reform message for college students.
“A lot of you here today and a lot of young people gave their time and their effort to this campaign because you believe America can still do great things,” Obama said to the heavily college aged crowd at the University of Maryland. “I may not be the first President to take up health care reform, but I am determined to be the last with your help.”
The President addressed the heated tone taken by opponents of Obama’s plan in recent months, describing their proposed solutions to the health care crisis as the “same old, same old.” However, Obama did note that tort reform, which has been pushed heavily by Republicans, was an idea worth considering.
“I’ve heard a lot of Republicans say they want to kill Obamacare. Some may even raise money off it. But when you ask these folks what exactly my plan does they have it all wrong,” Obama said.
Obama once again defended the notion of a public health care option, denying that it was a form of “government takeover.”
Obama also discussed education issues, noting that Congress would soon be voting on student loan reform.
“Because you voted for change in November, we’re going to bring change to the House of Representatives today,” Obama said.
At one point an excited student yelled out “I love you, Obama.”
“I love you back,” Obama replied.
Experts Find Little Evidence Connecting Drug, Human Smugglers
By Adrianna McGinley
Distinguished professors and researchers from Mexico, Arizona and California agreed Friday at a panel discussion hosted by the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars that there is virtually no evidence linking the drug cartels with human smuggling from Mexico.
Dr. Gabriella Sanchez, Senior Researcher at the University of Maryland’s National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism, said that in a case study involving 66 known human smugglers in Arizona, she found no evidence connecting violent organized crime to human smuggling.
“There’s no indication or evidence of collaboration among criminal groups and smuggling activities,” Sanchez said. “Among the smugglers, there’s really no true interest in participating in other activities that while more profitable, will actually increase the risk of prosecution. This is especially the case of families with children.”
Sanchez also said she found no indication of ties to drug smuggling in her sample group.
Erik Lee, Associate Director of the North American Center for Transborder Studies, emphasized that the panel was discussing human smuggling, which involves some degree of consent, not human trafficking, which involves force or coercion and where ties to violence and other organized crime may be more prominent.