Article 1, Section 7: Can Nancy Pelosi read?

Does Nancy Pelosi understand the Constitution?

If you’ve been following the health care debacle in Washington, then you’ve probably heard about how Nancy Pelosi and her henchmen are planning on using “deem and pass” to ram through health care reform. For those of you who aren’t familiar with this procedure, it will allow the House to pass the Senate version of the bill without actually having to vote on it. What if they don’t have the votes? No problem! Of course, this method could very well be ruled unconstitutional. Here’s Article 1, Section 7 of the United States Constitution:

All Bills for raising Revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives; but the Senate may propose or concur with Amendments as on other Bills.

Every Bill which shall have passed the House of Representatives and the Senate, shall, before it become a Law, be presented to the President of the United States: If he approve he shall sign it, but if not he shall return it, with his Objections to that House in which it shall have originated, who shall enter the Objections at large on their Journal, and proceed to reconsider it. If after such Reconsideration two thirds of that House shall agree to pass the Bill, it shall be sent, together with the Objections, to the other House, by which it shall likewise be reconsidered, and if approved by two thirds of that House, it shall become a Law. But in all such Cases the Votes of both Houses shall be determined by yeas and Nays, and the Names of the Persons voting for and against the Bill shall be entered on the Journal of each House respectively. If any Bill shall not be returned by the President within ten Days (Sundays excepted) after it shall have been presented to him, the Same shall be a Law, in like Manner as if he had signed it, unless the Congress by their Adjournment prevent its Return, in which Case it shall not be a Law. » read more

Impeach Barack Obama?

Barack Obama as The Joker. I'm not laughing.

Washington Times writer Jeffrey Kuhner has an interesting column, where he argues that Barack Obama and his gang of leftists should be impeached. Here is an excerpt from Mr. Kuhner’s column:

Mr. Obama is willing to devour his presidency, his party’s congressional majority and – most disturbing – our democratic institutional safeguards to enact it. He is a reckless ideologue who is willing to sacrifice the country’s stability in pursuit of a socialist utopia.

The Slaughter Solution is a poisoned chalice. By drinking from it, the Democrats would not only commit political suicide. They would guarantee that any bill signed by Mr. Obama is illegitimate, illegal and blatantly unconstitutional. It would be worse than a strategic blunder; it would be a crime – a moral crime against the American people and a direct abrogation of the Constitution and our very democracy. » read more

Rush Limbaugh mobilizes the troops

Conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh

It looks like Rush Limbaugh has mobilized his listeners, and jammed Congressional phone lines and e-mails in the process. For the life of me, I don’t know why Rush Limbaugh doesn’t do this sort of thing more often. With his large, dedicated fan base, his suggestions could make a meaningful difference.

New Gallup poll is bad news for Barack Obama

Barack Obama's approval rating continues to drop.

The latest Gallup Poll shows that more Americans disapprove of Barack Obama’s performance than approve. The poll shows that 47% of Americans disapprove of his performance, while just 46% approve. This is just the latest sign of the slow erosion of the President’s support.

I wouldn’t be surprised to see Barack Obama’s approval rating drop into the high 30% range. If the health care bill passes, especially without being voted on by the House, his approval rating will take a massive hit. This will only be compounded once debates start on immigration reform. » read more

David Axelrod seems fine with illegal aliens receiving health care

In yet another bit of hypocrisy, Barack Obama’s senior adviser, David Axelrod went on CNN’s “State of the Union” to discuss the health care bill. During his appearance, he criticized addressing illegal immigration and abortion in the health care bill:

“The president’s view is that this is not the vehicle to address immigration issues…this is not the place for this, this is not the place to resolve disputes over abortion,” he said. “I believe that as the week goes on, these issues will clarify themselves…We have to resolve the larger questions, which is the status of undocumented workers…we can’t resolve it within the context of this debate.”

Axelrod’s words might have had some credibility if the health care bill weren’t being used to expand the federal government’s role in higher education. Student loans have nothing to do with health care, yet they are part of the debate. On the other hand, the debates surrounding illegal immigration and abortion concern who is eligible for benefits and what procedures are covered. The last time I checked, those were both central issues that would need to be discussed in any reform plan.

In regards to the undocumented workers illegal aliens David Axelrod referred to, his position is a harbinger of things to come. By ignoring any prohibition on illegal aliens, he’s essentially hoping to extend benefits to the law-breakers. Maybe I’m wrong, but wouldn’t health care costs be reduced if we deported the 12 million or so illegal aliens who burden the United states financially?

Health care vote coming next week

The health care bill is on pace to have a vote in the House by next week. Until this point, debate has focused on a public option, the Stupak Amendment, and bribes favors given to certain Senators to secure their vote. Now, it looks like the latest disagreement might revolve around student loans. Yes, you read correctly, student loans.

You might be wondering what student loans have to do with the health care bill. If you can’t figure out how they are related, don’t feel bad, they have nothing to do with each other. Democrats are simply trying to tack on changes to the student loan program which would cut out the banks, have the government originate the loans, then use the savings to increase Pell Grants. » read more

Barack Obama’s approval rating drops and he’s taking fellow Democrats with him

How low will Barack Obama go? If you check out the latest poll by Rasmussen and follow the trends, it looks like the President’s downward spiral is continuing to pick up steam. The latest Presidential tracking poll shows that 25% of Americans strongly approve of the President’s performance, while 43% strongly disapprove. Overall, just 45% approve of the job Barack Obama is doing, while 54% disapprove.

The same poll found that nearly half of Americans believe GM will need another bailout, 61% believe Congress should drop healthcare reform, and 66% believe the country is heading in the wrong direction. It doesn’t look like American’s are fond of the Obama agenda. » read more

Barack Obama’s credibility continues to take a hit

In the past few days, Barack Obama has managed to break not one, but two campaign promises. The first involved his promise to have health care negotiations televised on C-Span to ensure transparency. His second was a meeting with House leaders, where he urged them to support a tax on high-end health insurance plans. Many of these plans are owned by the middle class, a group he vowed not to tax.

As far as televising negotiations, Barack Obama really doesn’t have the authority to promise such a thing. It made a great sound byte, but in the end, it was just another empty promise. With that said, he could have at least publicly expressed a desire to have a more open process. It probably wouldn’t have accomplished much, but at least it would have made him appear consistent and show that he cares about transparency. As for the tax on health plans, that’s another story. » read more

Sheldon Whitehouse’s ingnorant rant: Who is really a member of “the lunatic fringe”?

If you are in Washington, D.C. and talk about the simpleton from Rhode Island, you might automatically think of Patrick Kennedy. However, we can’t forget that Rhode Island has another simpleton in D.C.: Senator Sheldon Whitehouse. In case you think my categorization is merely a partisan shot, it isn’t. While I disagree with other Democratic politicians, I wouldn’t question their intelligence. I would just recognize the fact that we see the issues differently. With Senator Whitehouse, there is a certain shallowness to his thinking, tinged with hyper-partisanship, and a heaping helping of smarminess.

There have been many comments over the years which reinforced my opinion of him, but his latest speech on health care reform illustrates his failings perfectly:

“Voting ‘no’ and hiding from the vote are the same result. Those of us on the floor see it. It was clear the three of them who did not cast their yes votes until all 60 Senate votes had been tallied and it was clear that the result was a foregone conclusion. And why? Why all this discord and discourtesy, all this unprecedented destructive action? All to break the momentum of our new young president.

They are desperate to break this president. They have ardent supporters who are nearly hysterical at the very election of President Barack Obama. The birthers, the fanatics, the people running around in right-wing militia and Aryan support groups, it is unbearable to them that President Barack Obama should exist. That is one powerful reason. It is not the only one.” » read more

Ben Nelson sells his health care vote to Harry Reid

Senator Ben Nelson “negotiated” some changes to the Senate Health bill that have were needed to gain his support. One change stipulated that federal money wouldn’t be used to pay for abortions, while the others are nothing but freebies for Nebraskans. Here’s a brief summary:

Nelson secured full federal funding for his state to expand Medicaid coverage to all individuals below 133 percent of the federal poverty level. Other states must pay a small portion of the additional cost. He won concessions for qualifying nonprofit insurers and for Medigap providers from a new insurance tax, and was able to roll back cuts to health savings accounts.

“I know this is hard for some of my colleagues to accept and I appreciate their right to disagree,” Nelson told reporters at the Capitol, of the many changes made at his behest. “But I would not have voted for this bill without these provisions.” » read more

Tom Harkin talks about the road to single-payer health care

I’d like to thank Senator Tom Harkin for being honest about the Democrat’s plan to ram a single-payer system down the throats of the American people. In a comment aimed at his progressive colleagues, Harkin compared the current Senate health care bill to building a house:

“What we are buying here is a modest home, not a mansion. What we are getting here is a starter home. It’s got a good foundation: 30 million Americans are covered. It’s got a good roof: A lot of protections from abuses by insurance companies. It’s got a lot of nice stuff in there for prevention and wellness. But, we can build additions as we go along in the future. It is a starter home. Think about it in that way,”

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Barack Obama thinks the federal government will go bankrupt without health care reform

Yes, you read the title of the post correctly. Barack Obama believes that without health care reform, the federal government will go bankrupt. Here is an excerpt:

The president said that the costs of Medicare and Medicaid are on an “unsustainable” trajectory and if there is no action taken to bring them down, “the federal government will go bankrupt.”

I’m not an economist, but that seems like a bit of an exagerration to me. The President’s comments about Medicare and Medicaid also make me wonder why we would want to expand Medicare enrollment to those ages 55 to 64. If we already have a massive federal program facing serious financial challenges, then why would we want to expand it? Wouldn’t we just be making a bigger problem for ourselves? » read more

Joe Lieberman is in, but is Roland Burris out?

Now that it looks like the Senate health care bill is moving away from Medicare expansion, Senator Joe Lieberman says he can support the bill. This is good news for Majority Leader Harry Reid, who is trying to be everything to everyone in order to patch together 60 votes, but things might have just become a little more difficult.

Illinois Senator Roland Burris has indicated that he will not vote for a bill if it doesn’t achieve “the goals of a public option.” Notice that he doesn’t specifically insist on a public option, merely the goals that he believes a public option would achieve. Still, it makes you wonder how many votes might be lost in this attempt to appease Joe Lieberman, and there lies the problem. » read more

The health care balancing act: Be afraid, be very afraid

It looks like Senate Democrats might be close to dropping an idea to expand Medicare for those between 55 and 64. It would be dropped in order to bring Senators like Joe Lieberman on board, but one has to wonder how progressive Democrats will react to this decision.

You would think that progressives would vehemently oppose any changes to Medicare expansion. The scary part will happen if progressives are fine with the decision to drop the expansion. If they go along with the idea, then read carefully: The bill will be guaranteed to contain even bigger costs and give-aways. » read more

The Obama Limbo: How low will his approval rating go?

A new Rasmussen poll finds that Barack Obama’s approval rating continues to fall. Just 24% of Americans strongly approve of the job he is doing, while 42% strongly disapprove. When you combine those who strongly approve and somewhat approve, the number rises to only 44%. The same poll also found that 40% of Americans approve of the current health care plan, while 56% oppose the plan. So, what does all this mean?

For one thing, it illustrates that the President’s popularity is sinking steadily, and that Congressmen will not be cast aside for disagreeing with his administration. When the $787 billion stimulus bill was passed, I had the feeling that the President’s popularity helped suppress some dissent. The President will not have that luxury in the near future. » read more

Barack Obama on 60 Minutes

Watch CBS News Videos Online

Barack Obama appeared on 60 Minutes and discussed Afghanistan, health care, and “fat cat bankers” who receive exclusive blame for all that is wrong in the world. The majority of the interview dealt with Afghanistan, and the President mentioned that the decision to send more troops isn’t popular, but is necessary. I agree, but it’s also fairly easy to see that he attempted to make it more popular.

The President stated that the success of the tropp surge will begin to be known in December of 2010, with a reduction of forces to begin in July of 2011. Barack Obama states that a deadline is needed to make a point to the Afghan people, to drive home the point that the United States will not have an open-ended commitment. I agree, but of course, there’s no mention of how many soldiers will return home, or a final date to fully withdraw. » read more

Health care bill will likely include coverage limits

When discussing health care reform, Barack Obama stated that he opposed, “some arbitrary cap on the amount of coverage you can receive in a given year or a lifetime,” because “no one should go broke because they get sick.” Well, it looks like Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid missed that speech.

The current health care bill will allow insurance companies to enforce annual coverage limits for expensive illnesses, so even if people have health insurance, they could still “go broke because they get sick”. Reid’s spokesman defended the decision to allow limits: » read more

Get Harry Reid a history book

When Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid made his rambling speech about how opponents of the health care bill (mainly Republicans) are racist, he brought up the Civil Rights Act to prove his point. Unfortunately, Mr. Reid was wrong about those evil Republicans:

Historians also faulted Mr. Reid’s curious reference to the Senate civil rights debates of the 1960s. After all, it was Southern Democrats who mounted an 83-day filibuster of the 1964 Civil Rights Bill. The final vote to cut off debate saw 29 Senators in opposition, 80% of them Democrats. Among those voting to block the civil rights bill was West Virginia Senator Robert Byrd, who personally filibustered the bill for 14 hours. The next year he also opposed the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Mr. Byrd still sits in the Senate, and indeed preceded Mr. Reid as his party’s majority leader until he stepped down from that role in 1989.

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Barbara Boxer twists the truth on the abortion debate

Sometimes, I wonder if Barbara Boxer ever listens to herself speak. While debating an amendment to the health care bill which would block women receiving subsidies for a public health plan from having abortions covered, she had this to say:

“Why are women being singled out here? It’s so unfair,” Boxer said on the Senate floor Tuesday. “We don’t tell men that if they want to … buy insurance coverage through their pharmaceutical plan for Viagra that they can’t do it.”

Will someone please tell Barbara Boxer that this isn’t an attack on women. If someone were trying to block payments for hysterectomies, then she would certainly have a point, and the Viagra comparison would be suitable. However, her comparison of of abortions to Viagra is laughable. If an abortion isn’t performed in the case of rape, incest, or to save the life of the mother, then the procedure is nothing but birth control for the wreckless. Viagra is used by men attempting to restore a function that has been lost. How can she compare the two? » read more

Do you oppose the health care bill? If you do, you’re a racist and a sexist

Do you oppose the health care bill? If you’re concerned about taking a step toward a single-payer system, using tax dollars to pay for abortions, or rationing, you’re not a concerned citizen, you’re a racist. Oh, I almost forgot: You’re also a sexist. If you’re thoroughly confused, don’t worry, so is Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.

In a sign that he realizes his house of cards is falling in around him, the Senator made a vicious attack on Republicans who oppose the health care bill. Here is his statement: » read more