Republicans upset over U.S. children's health bill

[sabra]

Source: Reuters

WASHINGTON, Jan 15 (Reuters) - A push by congressional Democrats to make good on Barack Obama's pledge to provide millions more American children with health care coverage has Republicans accusing them of breaking the president-elect's promise of bipartisanship.

Senate Finance Committee Republicans said legislation approved by the committee on Thursday that would expand a popular children's health insurance program violated a spirit of bipartisanship that went into earlier versions of the legislation.

"That spirit of bipartisan partnership for low-income children appears to be disappearing before our very eyes. It's being replaced with partisan exploitation" said Sen. Charles Grassley of Iowa, the top Republican on the usually collegial Finance Committee.

He called it "damn disgusting."

Grassley blamed Democratic leaders rather than committee Chairman Max Baucus, a Montana Democrat, for producing a bill that he said omits a number of items sought by Republicans including provisions aimed at preventing the government run program from "crowding out" private insurance plans.

Read more: http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N15543384.htm

[ananda]

1. Anyone who doesn't want to help children..

.. doesn't deserve bipartisanship.

[OhioChick]

2. Republicans hate kids. n/t

[FiveGoodMen]

3. Republicans hate everybody. That's what makes them Republicans.

No, I'm not kidding. Their desire to attack, judge, outlaw, or steal from everyone is their sine qua non.

[OwnedByFerrets]

24. Everyone except their rich brethern....and even that could be debatable.

[nc4bo]

12. Only after they've exited the womb. Before that, they simply love 'em to death. nt

[mac56]

33. We love the babies.... UNTIL they're born!!

nm

[nc4bo]

46. Thank you for putting that in much more concise terms. nt

[Baby Snooks]

18. Just poor kids...

And the opposition to providing health care to poor kids just reflects the belief by Republicans that if you can just kill enough poor children, eventually there will be no poor people in this country.

The reality is that like George W Bush, the Republicans really only represent the haves and have-mores. Everyone else, well, find a freeway underpass and be so kind as to just drop dead.

Leave no child behind. Unless they're poor. In which case kill as many of them as you can.

And you think the Republicans are not going to try to stop any form of universal health care? Think again.

[Hawkeye-X]

4. Republicans needs to eat shit and die.

My son hasn't been born yet, and already I'm trying to apply for Colorado Children's Health Plan - I think we're just barely eligible for it.

So if the Rethugs whine about it, and harms my son, then the Rethuglicans will be facing major karma that will befall all future Republican generations - 200,000 years of permanent minority, or even the demise of their party.

Hawkeye-X

[antimatter98]

5. Repubs: claim to love the unborn, and truly hate the born. n/t

[AlCzervik]

6. Love the fetus, hate the child.

[KakistocracyHater]

29. EVERY anti 'abortion' bill the Right puts

up should be FORCIBLY connected to the health & care of already born children.

[Zuiderelle]

47. That's exactly right.

[ejpoeta]

7. we don't want to leave the private insurance companies out in the cold.

Grassley blamed Democratic leaders rather than committee Chairman Max Baucus, a Montana Democrat, for producing a bill that he said omits a number of items sought by Republicans including provisions aimed at preventing the government run program from "crowding out" private insurance plans.

Yes, we wouldn't want the insurance companies to be crowded out. who gives a crap about kids and their health. i mean, you guys get Cadillac health insurance. the rest of us... even the kids can go screw ourselves.

[DollyM]

13. so we just want to leave individuals in the cold who can't afford health insurance?

I think they are missing the point. Many of us can't get or can't afford health insurance. So doesn't it matter that they are leaving us in the cold or don't we count? I live in Illinois and we were able to get All Kids/All Family and it saved our lives, literally. Our son turns 19 at the end of the month and then we will have nothing again. My husband is diabetic, we have tried to get insurance, no one will insure him. What are we suppose to do. It would be nice if health insurance were truly available to everyone at a reasonable price but it's not. I would like to challenge every Republican who thinks this would leave health insurance companies "in the cold" to pay for all their medical care themselves for one year and then see how they feel about this. That is what the rest of us have to do and generally at higher fees than the those who are insured. Ironically, the hospitals, doctors, labs, etc., charge the uninsured more because they are trying to make of for the lower rates than insurance companies pay them.

[ejpoeta]

25. here's what i think they are trying to do.

we have access to health insurance through my husband's job. now, we have had independent health for a few years now. and the price keeps going up. now, they just increased it $100/mo which made it impossible for us to continue. now, we could switch to a high deductible insurance, which we did end up doing. but we wanted to ensure our kids had decent insurance. so we signed them up for child health plus. now, currently we didn't have to be uninsured for six months before qualifying at our pay rate. I am betting that the republicans want to make it so people like me who have access to any insurance, be it crappy or way to expensive, are forced to have that insurance instead of have the option to have our kids on child health plus. i could be wrong, but i would bet that is what they were trying to do. because if we didn't have the option available to us, we would have ended up having to keep the insurance to ensure the kids have decent insurance.

[yardwork]

19. Money before children. Same as in Iraq. It's the Republican Party platform.

[liberalhistorian]

48. Yeah, those oh-so-wonderful private

insurers, who care so much about their customers and who do so much for kids (NOT!) You mean, like THESE motherfuckers?:

http://www.rapidcityjournal.com/articles/2009/01/10/new...

[katandmoon]

8. 'Cause private insurers should get first crack at those taxpayer dollars, right, Rep. Gassley?

[Dr.Phool]

9. Fuck the private insurance plans.

And Republicans too.

[skyounkin]

10. Fuck you bitches!!

Elections have consequences.

Fuck off, fuck off and die.

All of you.

[Maineman]

11. Republicans are little more than shills for big corporations

[felinetta]

14. This garbage for the Repugs who shut out the lights, shut out the microphones on Democrats!

[texastoast]

15. Well, maybe if we could pay their mothers more

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/20...

[AldebTX]

16. If You Don't Support The Children...

Then how can you call yourself a true American.

If THEY can use the argument for a war...that kills...we can certainly use it for a
bill that will ultimately save lives.

[santamargarita]

17. Maybe their heads will explode!

[Lorien]

20. it's not about "bipartisanship" to them; it's about killing off the poor

who don't have insurance, and maintaining insurance company profits for those that do. I hope some Dem calls them on this BS.

[SlingBlade]

21. Republicans upset ??? Fuk em One and all !

[Libertyfirst]

22. The thing that is "damn disgusting" is Grassley and his party opposing kids care. n/t

[AlbertCat]

23. Bipartisanship

Let's define, shall we?

Main Entry: bi·par·ti·san
Function: adjective
Pronunciation: (")bī-'pär-t&-z&n, -s&n, -"zan, chiefly British "bī-"pär-t&-'zan
: of, relating to, or involving members of two parties <a bipartisan commission>
- bi·par·ti·san·ism/-z&-"ni-z&m, -s&-/ noun
- bi·par·ti·san·ship/-z&n-"ship, -s&n-/ noun


Hmmmmmm....I don't see anything about "the minority party getting what it wants all the time" in that definition at all. Maybe I need the GOPebonics Dictionary.

[Still Sensible]

26. In the spirit of bipartisanship, Senator Grassly

Piss off. I'm sorry, bipartisan doesn't mean that we will allow your side's point of view to keep us from getting health coverage to millions of our country's uninsured children. If you want to talk about a bipartisan approach about how to fund it, that's fine... but really, you don't want to find a way to get these kids covered. That's not bipartisanship, just wrong.

We've just been through eight years of your idea of bipartisanship is "my-way-or-the-highway." We voted to change that on November 4... yes we did.

[defendandprotect]

27. ...because we all know we need "PRIVATE INSURANCE" in health care--!!!

[farmboxer]

28. Republicans are so very cruel

like Hitler and his pals, but they are such good Christians!

[Joe Chi Minh]

30. ROFL!!!!! You can absolutely rely on the Republicans. They never ever let you down! Well....

in the sense that you can depend upon them always letting you, and your children, and your grandchildren, down!

To Mammon and its devotees, "mom and apple-pie" has always, of course, been viewed and whenever possible, used, as a negotiable instrument; sacrificed at the Great god, Mammon's altar. You can't help loving the seemingly terminally-broken political antennae of these Neocons, can you? Rove must be having forty fits!

[neverforget]

31. What will we tell the insurance companies? Will someone please

think of the insurance companies? For Gods sake, they're being crowded out! Where will they make their billions?

[democrank]

32. Stop acting like a bunch of bleeding heart liberals.

Feed multi-millioinaires, not children.

[Proud-D]

34. This country

is economically on life support and these bastards still want to play politics?!?! Child health care is one of the most popular things in this country to regular people of both party's. If the repugs want to keep shooting themselves in the foot by loudly swimming against the stream on this one then more power to them. When the 2010 midterm elections come around those that voted no on this bill will be labeled what they are, obstructionists against the well being of America's children! Every time the repugs shoot themselves in the foot like this brings us one step closer to that magic number 60 and making their party truly obsolete. And even then the Democratic Party will treat the repubs a whole lot better then they treated Democrats when they had control of both houses of congress and the White House! Is it Tuesday yet?

[madrchsod]

35. republicans want babies to die! baby killers! baby killers!

[guitar man]

36. tough shit

The time to give a rat's ass about what upsets republicans is long since past. The ideology they are slaves to has proven to be a dismal failure. They lost and they need to sit down, shut up and let the adults attempt to clean up the mess they made of this country as a result of their pandering to the smallest of minorities, the top .05% of the wealthiest.

The rest of us have suffered enough as a sacrifice to their profit god and it's high time to rebuild the prospects and opportunities of the working middle class, formerly known as the backbone of this country. Their "trickle down economics" need to be tossed on to the ash heap of historical failures. The Wall Street barons need to drop their arrogance and realize they are standing with their hats in their hands. Enough, Enough Enough!!!!!

[mbperrin]

39. Thank you. Well said.

All I could think of was fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck the fucking pukes.

Yours is way better.

[guitar man]

42. lol

That's what I was thinking for about 20 min after I read that, just fuck the fucking pukes. I had to go have a smoke and think about it for a while before I could compose anything.

[ozymandius]

37. I would love to post something snarky here but I have nothing original to say.

Otherwise, I would have said, "Listen to them bitch because Congress has the gall to be kind to kids."

There's a reason Republicans lost so many races. They just despise people without money.

[pattmarty]

38. They don't like it????? Fuck 'em!!!!!!

[w4rma]

40. Is the choice bipartisanship or lives? Then the answer is to save lives and kill bipartisanship.

Not to kill lives and save bipartisanship.

[VP505]

41. ATTENTION REPUBLICKERS!

This is the first in a long series of disappointments you can expect over the next eight years, possibly longer, get used to it and get over it. That is all, return to your whining!

[1776Forever]

43. Lou Dobbs had a report on last night about immigrant children being helped by this...

Seems he didn't want any of them to get help. Funny though I never saw anyone being turned away if they needed help from any ER I know of and this would actually save money if it was used for prevention of disease. Stupidly of anyone voting against this!

[treestar]

53. LOL, Lou Dobbs would consider that first

Those illegals - they take our jobs AND go on welfare! Their children go to our schools yet are ignorant, uneducated, and criminal! Now they take advantage of the ERs to get free medical help, and therefore, no children need any medical aid!

or just quoting Lou Dobbs.

[AwakeAtLast]

44. I think someone dropped their pacifier

or it may be time to burp. When you've suckled at the teat of corporate money as long as they have, you suck a lot of air in when it gets yanked out.

[Yavin4]

45. Republicans, Love The Fetus. Hate the Child

Twisted bastards they all are.

[Endangered Specie]

49. Well they can take that bi-partisanship and shove it where the sun don't shine!

[struggle4progress]

50. I thought the private insurance companies were all collapsing: didn't AIG just get billions? And

the others all seem to be scrambling for a piece of the pie:



Lincoln, Hartford may get piece of bailout
By buying thrifts, the insurance companies will become eligible.
By Marcy Gordon of The Associated Press

WASHINGTON — Federal regulators will allow two large insurance companies, including Lincoln National Corp., to buy thrifts so they can qualify to receive money from the government’s financial rescue program.

The Office of Thrift Supervision, a Treasury Department agency, said Friday that it approved applications from Hartford Financial Services Group Inc. and Lincoln National Corp. to acquire existing savings and loans and become thrift holding companies.

Insurance companies that own thrifts, which are federally regulated, are eligible to apply for a piece of the $700 billion in government bailout funds ... http://www.news-sentinel.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=...

[and-justice-for-all]

51. Repukes ruin everything...I mean EVERYTHING...

That is better for Amerika. Progress, to them, is evil.

Those assholes are nothing but a damn burden!

[4dsc]

52. Fuck you Grassley...

[treestar]

54. Trust a Repuke to get upset about that

and not get upset about war, bombing and overall economic distress.

Bipartisanship? To a Republican, that means "just doing it our way." Or as DU is fond of saying, "caving in."

[Aristus]

55. "Dang it! We don't wanna hep kee-yids! We jes' want them tah git BORNED!"

Fuckers...

[Marie26]

56. LOL, the Congress should only do what Republicans want!

In the spirit of bipartisanship!

[FloridaJudy]

57. "Damned disgusting"???

Okay, who took these people off their meds? With their health insurance, surely they can afford them!

[riverdeep]

58. They still don't get it.

And they never will. That's why their Republicans. Anyway, you lost. Bipartisanship has limits, and you're going to have get used to not getting what you want. Remember when you made the Democrats hold meetings in the basement and then turned the lights off? Yeah, we remember that and many, many more examples of your 'bipartisanship'.

Consider yourself lucky you're dealing with someone like Obama instead of someone like Harry Truman who would feed your entrails to you.

[damntexdem]

59. They could have had their bipartisanship -- all they had to do was vote for SCHIP.

[underpants]

60. "The people have spoke, the bastards."

California Democrat Dick Tuck

As the ballot totals piled against him on Election Night, the candidate was asked his reaction. Referring back to his cemetery speech, Tuck quipped, "Just wait till the dead vote comes in." When defeat became inevitable, Tuck made the now notorious statement, "The people have spoke, the bastards."
....

Guess what Grassely... WE WANT IT

[Joe Chi Minh]

61. I think Adlai Stevenson said it first. Or did he come after Tuck?

[Joe Chi Minh]

62. They should rename the GOP, the TTL - Trailblazers to the Titanic Lifeboats.

They think WC Fields' quip that anyone who hates kids can't be all bad, is just sound economics.

[TygrBright]

63. Get used to that feeling, GOPpies. But don't expect sympathy. n/t