Special interests receive a copy of Baucus plan before the White House does

[Mr. Sparkle]

Source: ThinkProgress.org

Special interests receive a copy of Baucus plan before the White House does.

In today’s press briefing, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs admitted that the Obama administration has not yet seen a copy of Sen. Max Baucus’ (D-MT) newest draft of health care legislation. “We’ve seen what we’ve read in the paper, but I do not believe that we’ve seen paper on the plan,” said Gibbs. However, he added that he believes special interests on K Street have already received a copy:

GIBBS: I was told that — that K Street had a copy of the Baucus plan, meaning, not surprisingly, the special interests have gotten a copy of the plan that I understand was given to committee members today.

Baucus has received hefty financial contributions from the health care industry.

Read more: http://thinkprogress.org/2009/09/08/baucus-k-street /

[DJ13]

1. And well they SHOULD!

They paid for it after all.......

[primavera]

23. Duh!

How else are they supposed to approve their minion's plan before allowing him to go public with it? Sheesh, some people just don't think...

[BadGimp]

26. I agree

They paid good money for this political land mine field.

[Craftsman]

34. Every time the middle class get thrown a bone, Wall Street gets a steak.

[sofa king]

35. They likely wrote it, too.

We used to have a guy in our firm whose specialty it was to find out who in particular on K Street (or on the Hill, or elsewhere) was drafting legislation, then ply that person with drinks or other things and get a draft copy of the legislation.

The only firm I--I mean that guy--couldn't sink his hooks into was Greenberg Traurig, Jack Abramoff's firm during the early Bush years. Once Jack showed up the entire firm began behaving as a criminal operation, which, it turned out, it was. If they wanted a piece of you, they'd do the same things, only with an unlimited expense account. They were all too clever--or too scared--to have it done to them.

[wordpix]

36. unfortunately, I think you're right on

[sofa king]

40. I wouldn't be surprised if I am.

Let me just say that the famous Schoolhouse Rock song about how a bill becomes a law is just as much crap as everything else they taught you as a kid.

But I'll say something else, too: if you have a choice between having legislation drafted by the special interests who understand the issue, and the grandstanding fools on Capitol Hill who take credit for the legislation, the special interests will draft a better bill every time. But it may be a better, more evil bill.

There are about two dozen Members of Congress with legislative staffs large and competent enough to draft and review quality legislation. Most of the legislation with a chance in hell of passing goes through those offices at least once, and knowing which staffs to present your legislation to is one of the tricks of the trade.

No offense to Senator Baucus, but his staff is not one of those I described above.

[Overseas]

48. And probably wrote it too.

Just sent to them for final edits.

[harun]

51. They absolutely wrote it.

[donheld]

50. they probably wrote it.

[valerief]

2. Well, the insurance companies wrote it. nt

[joeycola]

20. yup--The Max Baucus WellPoint/Liz Fowler Plan...

Forum Name General Discussion: Presidential
Topic subject The Max Baucus WellPoint/Liz Fowler Plan
Topic URL http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.ph...
8636127, The Max Baucus WellPoint/Liz Fowler Plan
Posted by joeycola on Tue Sep-08-09 10:31 PM

no surprise here!!



http://emptywheel.firedoglake.com/2009/09/08/liz-fowler... /

The Max Baucus WellPoint/Liz Fowler Plan
By: emptywheel Tuesday September 8, 2009 12:32 pm


picture-132.png

All this time I've been calling Max Tax health care Max Baucus' health care plan.

But, as William Ockham points out, it's actually Liz Fowler's health care plan (if you open the document and look under document properties, it lists her as author). At one level, it's not surprising that Bad Max's Senior Counsel would have authored the Max Tax plan. Here's how Politico described her role in Bad Max's health care plan earlier this year:

If you drew an organizational chart of major players in the Senate health care negotiations, Fowler would be the chief operating officer.

As a senior aide to Baucus, she directs the Finance Committee health care staff, enforces deadlines on drafting bill language and coordinates with the White House and other lawmakers. She also troubleshoots, identifying policy and political problems before they ripen.

“My job is to get from point A to point B,” said Fowler, who’s training for four triathlons this summer in between her long days on Capitol Hill.

Fowler learned as a sophomore at the University of Pennsylvania that the United States was the only industrialized country without universal health care, and she decided then to dedicate her professional life to the work.

She first worked for Baucus from 2001 through 2005, playing a key role in negotiating the Medicare Part D prescription drug program. Feeling burned out, she left for the private sector but rejoined Baucus in 2008, sensing that a Democratic-controlled Congress would make progress on overhauling the health care system.

Baucus and Fowler spent a year putting the senator in a position to pursue reform, including holding hearings last summer and issuing a white paper in November. They deliberately avoided releasing legislation in order to send a signal of openness and avoid early attacks.

“People know when Liz is speaking, she is speaking for Baucus,” said Dean Rosen, the health policy adviser to former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.).

What neither Politico nor Bad Max himself want you to know, though, is that in the two years before she came back to the Senate to help Max craft the Max Tax plan, she worked as VP for Public Policy and External Affairs at WellPoint.

So to the extent that Liz Fowler is the Author of this document, we might as well consider WellPoint its author as well.

[avaistheone1]

27. Not only did the Insurance Companies write it, they own everyone on the Finance Committee.

Hell, it looks the way things are going they own the whole damn government.

We are just a bunch of stupid serfs.

[IndianaGreen]

3. Baucus works for them, so why shouldn't he give them a copy of his plan?

There is a big BOHICA coming up!

[mod mom]

39. He desrves his CHAIRMANSHIP taken AWAY!

[SpiralHawk]

4. "Smirk." - Republicon Homelander K-Street Krony FatCats

[glinda]

5. Why isn't Backass removed for this and conflict of interest. This is beyond what should be allowed.

[bertman]

19. Reid remove someone??!! He couldn't remove a dog turd from his lawn with a shovel.

[glinda]

45. Appears to be the case sadly.

[femrap]

6. Damn it....

Get that pisshole Baucus on the phone and tell him to get over the WH NOW!!!! WTF?

And I'd have every bit of bad news on Baucus in my pocket when he arrived.

Or maybe it's true....there is only one Party in DC....the Party of Greed.

[tomm2thumbs]

7. The Baucus Caucus wants to Faucus

and Faucus they will

[robinlynne]

42. the funniest thing I've heard all week.

[progressoid]

47. I hate to laugh at something so serious but that's a good one!

[kath]

8. Government of the corporations, by the corporations and for the corporations.

[Jakes Progress]

9. He had to have his boss's secretary spell check it. nt

[FVZA_Colonel]

10. I doubt Obama is too happy with that.

[burning rain]

17. Is there evidence the president's dissatisfied?

.

[robinlynne]

43. well, Gibbs statement?

[burning rain]

44. There are degrees of dissatisfaction.

Gibbs' statement is pretty much inevitable. Who's going to say, "We're happy for K Street to see the bill before us"? That would be as much as admitting the president accepts just being a figurehead and that the real power resides with special interests. No-one's going to say that, or have his spokesman say that. The proof will be in the pudding.

[Old and In the Way]

11. When the people finally fire his ass...guess where he'll end up?

Doing the same thing for Big Healthcare to a new generation of Congressional Reps/Snators.

There ought to be a law....

[SlingBlade]

12. And they should be told to keep the fucking thing

Fuck 'em, God damned traitor bastards, Who the fuck does this rat bastard think he is
a fucking democrat ? Hardly, He's a bought and paid for whore .

Wonder how the dems feel that wasted their votes on this piece of shit Dino

[laughingliberal]

30. Now, now. That's grossly unfair to whores. n/t

[SlingBlade]

38. True, My apologies to Whores :)

[Aragorn]

13. just chiming in

No one so far here is surprised. Let's make this wide-spread public knowledge especially if we have to vote out all of these scoundrels next time. (IOW if we don't get decent HC changes.)

[RedCloud]

14. This will enable them to heat up their lie machine.

[craigmatic]

15. You're supposed to be the first to get what you pay for.

I'm just saying.

[never cry wolf]

16. We all know who Max is supporting

Dammit, I used to like him...I guess I am naive

Fuckin sellout Max.....

[Old Codger]

18. it is a fact

We have pretty much been sold down the river on this.... politics as usual in good old usa ... hooray for big guys and fuck the people, we just pay the bills but not the bribes.

[berni_mccoy]

21. K-Street didn't receive a copy first. THEY WROTE IT!

[avaistheone1]

28. How convenient.

And how convenient to not have any of American people the real stakeholders at the table during this process.

[defendandprotect]

22. Baucus should have been bounced from the health care meetings ...

on the basis of PRE-BRIBERY by health care/insurance industry!!

[Name removed]

24. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[colsohlibgal]

25. The Head Dino

Hate that guy. I mean really hate him. I will never forget his leer as he was having single payer advocates handcuffed and arrested. I think the guy channels Goebbels.

Throw him out next chance you get Montana and get a real populist in there, not a water boy for the corporations.

[dreamnightwind]

31. Montana citizens fans of corporate pols?

I know nothing about Montana politics, but I would guess that they would dislike reps who favor corporate interests over citizens interests almost as much as they would dislike liberals.

Seriously, I know these states with few people are more easily dominated by special interest money, just because it's cheaper, there's less money required to "buy" a senate seat in Montana than, say, in California, but it seems like a savvy campaign that rats Baucus out as a corporate whore would do well.

[harmonicon]

29. of course they have

Or did they see it before Baucus and then just send it on to him?

[and-justice-for-all]

32. I want to smack the shit out of that asshat...

Baucas plan = F A I L.

[Solly Mack]

33. Because that special interests paid for access

[wordpix]

37. the country keeps going from bad to worse---Obama should veto any corporate bill

[samsingh]

41. the special interests are baucas' employers afterall.

[wroberts189]

46. Gomer: Suprise.. Suprise.. Suprise! nt knr

[PA Democrat]

49. Probably because K Street WROTE it.

Baucus is despicable.