Mandating health Insurance - Obamacare

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Steve King Calls For Revolution In The Streets Of Washington To Stop Health Care Bill

Eric Kleefeld | March 16, 2010, 5:41PM


Rep. Steve King (R-IA)

Rep. Steve King (R-IA) is calling for a new procedural solution to stop the health care bill: Have an angry mob of citizens storm Washington and prevent Congress from acting, in imitation of the Velvet Revolution that overthrew communist rule in Czechoslovakia!

The Huffington Post interviewed King after his speech at today's "Code Red" anti-health care bill rally, a speech in which he called upon the crowd to "Storm this city, fill up Washington D.C., jam this capital so they can't move."

Speaking to the Huffington Post shortly after his speech, King declared that a peaceful uprising, a la the successful overthrowing of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia on the streets of Prague in 1989 "would be fine with me."

"Fill this city up, fill this city, jam this place full so that they can't get in, they can't get out and they will have to capitulate to the will of the American people," he said.

"So this is just like Prague under communist rule?" the Huffington Post asked.

"Oh yeah, it is very, very close," King replied. "It is the nationalization of our liberty and the federal government taking our liberty over. So there are a lot of similarities there."

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Obama delivers health care pitch in St. Charles, St. Louis

Obama pledged to keep fighting:

"I don't get worn down. I wear them down," the president said. "Don't give up on me now — we're just getting started."



President Barack Obama spoke to a select audience Wednesday afternoon at St. Charles High School about the need to pass health care. (J.B. Forbes/P-D)

By Jake Wagman, Blythe Bernhard, Mark Schlinkmann

POST-DISPATCH

03/11/2010

President Barack Obama brought his health care road show to the St. Louis area Wednesday, announcing a crackdown on waste and fraud in hopes of persuading a gridlocked Congress to pass sweeping health insurance reform.

After delivering a speech in St. Charles, Obama appeared at a downtown St. Louis fundraiser for U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo. Hundreds of protesters appeared in St. Charles and in downtown St. Louis, many to express opposition to the health care plan.

Obama's speech in a stuffy gymnasium at St. Charles High School, his second health care address in three days, is part of a White House push to take the debate from the halls of Congress directly to voters, allowing the administration to frame the issue in its own terms.

Earlier in the week, Obama used the prospect of rising insurance premiums to make the case for health care reform. On Wednesday, in front of an invitation-only crowd in St. Charles, he offered a new angle, announcing additional oversight of federal programs.

Obama was joined on stage by McCaskill, a former state auditor whom the president praised as a person who "just pinches pennies."

"Washington is a place where tax dollars are often treated like Monopoly money," Obama said, "where waste — even billions of dollars in waste — is accepted as the price of doing business."

Obama signed an executive memo Wednesday calling for greater use of "payment recapture audits," which allows federal government departments to hire private auditors to find taxpayer funds paid in error or through fraud. The auditors can be paid based on the amount of improper payments they reclaim, providing incentive to root out waste.

The audits could be used to prevent overpayment in Medicare, Medicaid and, potentially, any new or expanded health care program.

The audit plan, which has bipartisan support, comes as Obama attempts to pick certain Republican ideas that could make his health care package more palatable across the aisle. Obama also expressed interest in a proposal from U.S. Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., to use undercover investigations to combat fraud.

The White House says expanded use of payment recapture audits could return $2 billion in taxpayer money over the next three years.

Hours before Obama's speech, as many as 2,000 people gathered for a Republican rally at the St. Charles Convention Center.

"I have a question that I respectfully ask of my president," Missouri Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder said. "What part of 'no' don't you understand?"

Kinder and several GOP state legislators spoke in person at the event, while others delivered remarks from Washington via videoconferencing, displayed by a large TV screen. All were well-received by the enthusiastic crowd.

"This is so much more fun than watching C-SPAN, isn't it?" remarked the announcer, local radio host Jamie Allman.

Among the long-distance speakers was the event's organizer, U.S. Rep. Todd Akin of Town and Country, whose 2nd District includes St. Charles, and U.S. Rep. John Shimkus of Collinsville.

Akin called Obama's bill "a threat from within and a danger from Washington, D.C." House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., also was taken to task by speakers.

"This is Pelosi versus the people, and we stand with the people," Kinder said, adding that Democratic measures would turn the country "into something that is unrecognizable."

"But we the people will have the final say," he added.

Obama's visit to St. Charles offered an opportunity to refocus attention on health care and attempt to blunt the opposition.

"The plan that I've put forward ... incorporates the best ideas of Democrats and Republicans, even though the Republicans have a hard time acknowledging it," he said, calling it a "common sense approach to protecting you from insurance company abuses and saving you money."

He said the bill would force insurance companies to cover pre-existing conditions and ban insurers from dropping customers when they get sick. It would also offer a pool for individuals and small businesses that the president said would lead to lower premiums for many.

Obama — with sleeves rolled up and no jacket in the tightly packed gym — spoke with teachers and staff from the high school who were standing behind him. Most of his comments were met with applause from the invited audience of local officials and party activists.

Frank Scimo, 64, of Ballwin, said he helped organize a group of about 100 people outside the high school who came to support the president and health care reform.

"I believe the people should have health insurance," he said. He pointed to his stepdaughter, who he said was denied insurance because of a pre-existing problem with her knees.

Amy Smoucha, an organizer with the nonprofit Jobs with Justice, said she left the speech feeling confident in the president and his plan. "I'm happy to see he is so sincere about fixing the health care system," said Smoucha, 42.

Even those who don't agree with Obama's approach on health care came to catch a glimpse of the commander-in-chief.

"I am sincerely honored that the president of the United States has chosen to come to our county and my hometown," said St. Charles County Executive Steve Ehlmann, a Republican. "I'm just not buying what he's selling."

Obama has asked Congress to deliver an "up or down" vote on health care by the end of next week. Each branch of Congress has approved its version of a health care reform bill, but, in order to take effect, lawmakers must agree to one identical bill.

If the administration musters the 216 House votes needed to pass Senate legislation, the next step would be the so-called reconciliation process, under which Congress hammers out a final version to submit to the Senate for an up-or-down vote requiring a simple majority.

Polls show split public opinion on the direction of health care. Outgoing U.S. Sen. Christopher "Kit" Bond, R-Mo., said the president's speeches in St. Charles and elsewhere — he was in Philadelphia on Monday and will be in Ohio next week — are an attempt by Obama to use oratorical skills to sell a plan Americans don't want.

"He is trying to cram it through. He has shown that he is not listening," Bond, who is retiring when his term ends this year, said. "He thinks if he talks very slowly, we will understand."

U.S. Rep. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., who is running for Bond's seat, proffered a more measured approach to health care, endorsing incremental steps — such as limiting lawsuits and allowing patients to shop across state lines for insurance.

"Go back to the things that everybody believes would change the system. Do a handful of those in the next couple of years. Then see what needs to be done," Blunt said.

This week's visit was Obama's third trip to the St. Louis area since he took office last year.

At Wednesday's speech at St. Charles High, Obama was joined by several local Democratic officials. One noticeable absence was Democratic Senate hopeful and Missouri Secretary of State Robin Carnahan, who has attempted to distance herself from Obama. Carnahan, the state's chief security regulator, was in Washington on Wednesday talking to lawmakers about financial reform.

A White House official said Wednesday that Carnahan's visit to Washington was planned before the president's trip here was scheduled, and that Carnahan has already asked to appear with the president at an event soon.

McCaskill, who flew to St. Louis with Obama on Air Force One, did not have to wait.

On Wednesday evening at the Renaissance Grand hotel downtown, Obama headlined a fundraiser for McCaskill, who is not up for re-election until 2012. Tickets ranged from $25 for standing room to $25,000 for dinner and a photo with the president.

Obama pledged to keep fighting.

"I don't get worn down. I wear them down," the president said. "Don't give up on me now — we're just getting started."

He also stopped to respond to interjections from the audience. One supporter asked about the White House.

"The house is OK. It's got a bowling alley," Obama deadpanned. "My bowling has not gotten any better."

Outside, several hundred protesters representing a wide spectrum of viewpoints stood on nearby street corners, chanting slogans and yelling at one another through bullhorns.

A large group of local Tea Party activists gathered on one corner, while a smaller group of Obama supporters set up shop on another corner. Across the street was a mixed bag of protesters and activists who seemed less vocal.

Rose Green, 70, had never seen a sitting president in person before watching Obama talk Wednesday downtown.

"A president, a black president. It's history, and I'm a part of it," Green said. "It was worth the wait."

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Bachmann: We Won't Obey 'Illegitimate' Health Care Bill


Starts at 20:00.

Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) is going a step beyond simply pledging to fight efforts to pass the health care bill -- she's openly pronouncing that people should personally declare it unconstitutional and defy it, depending on how it ends up getting passed.

At a rally at the Minnesota State Capitol on Saturday, Bachmann declared illegitimate the potential route that House Democrats could take to pass the health care bill. She was specifically railing against a parliamentary tactic by which the House could skip voting on the Senate bill by declaring it passed as part of the reconciliation bill. Bachmann pronounced this to be taxation without representation. "They have just started a revolution -- and they did it," said Bachmann.

"But mark my words, the American people aren't gonna take this lying down," Bachmann later said. "We aren't gonna play their game, we're not gonna pay their taxes. They want us to pay for this? Because we don't have to. We don't have to. We don't have to follow a bill that isn't law. That's not the American way, and that's not what we're going to do."

Bachmann continued. "Because it's one-party rule now in Washington, D.C. Their Chicago tactics, their Chicago friends, twisting Democrats' arms, threatening their own team members with ethics charges and a submission. This handful of people thinks they can enforce their will on 300 million Americans? They're not gonna do that. This is dictatorial, what they are doing. We are not compelled to follow a non-law just because Obama and Pelosi tells us we have to.

"If they pass the bill legitimately, then yes, we have to follow the law -- until we repeal it. But if they pass it illegitimately, then the bill is illegitimate, and we don't have to lay down for this. It's not difficult to figure out. So if for some reason they're able to get their votes this week and pass this 2,700-page Senate bill -- if they get it, trillions of dollars is what it's gonna cost, when we didn't vote on it, we need to tell them a message: That if they get away with this, they will be able to get away with anything -- with anything. And you can't say you voted on a bill when you didn't, because it's fraud. But we are not helpless here. We are not helpless, there are things that we can do." Read more here.

[American Patriot]

Good for Congresswoman Bachmann

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Breaking Preliminary Report: CBO releases the actual report

Update: Almost all $940 billion incurred in just six years

It’s much as advertised. Thanks to its spending provisions mainly starting in 2014, the reconciliation bill combined with the Senate version has a total cost of $940 billion, with deficit savings of around $138 billion (via No Runny Eggs):

CBO and JCT previously estimated that enacting H.R. 3590 by itself would yield a net reduction in federal deficits of $118 billion over the 2010-2019 period, of which about $65 billion would be on-budget. The incremental effect of enacting the reconciliation proposal—assuming that H.R. 3590 had already been enacted—would be the difference between the estimate of the combined effect and the previous estimate for the Senate-passed bill, H.R. 3590. That incremental effect is an estimated net reduction in federal deficits of $20 billion over the 2010-2019 period over and above the savings from enacting H.R. 3590 by itself; almost all of that reduction would be on-budget (see the bottom panel of Table 1 and subtitle A of title II on Table 5). …

Although CBO does not generally provide cost estimates beyond the 10-year budget projection period, certain Congressional rules require some information about the budgetary impact of legislation in subsequent decades, and many Members have requested CBO’s analyses of the long-term budgetary impact of broad changes in the nation’s health care and health insurance systems. Therefore, CBO has developed a rough outlook for the decade following the 2010-2019 period by grouping the elements of the legislation into broad categories and (together with the staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation) assessing the rate at which the budgetary impact of each of those broad categories is likely to increase over time. Our analysis indicates that H.R. 3590, as passed by the Senate, would reduce federal budget deficits over the ensuing decade relative to those projected under current law—with a total effect during that decade that is in a broad range between one-quarter percent and one-half percent of gross domestic product (GDP).3 The imprecision of that calculation reflects the even greater degree of uncertainty that attends to it, compared with CBO’s 10-year budget estimates.

Using that same analytic approach, the combined effect of enacting H.R. 3590 and the reconciliation bill would also be to reduce federal budget deficits over the ensuing decade relative to those projected under current law—with a total effect during that decade that is in a broad range around one-half percent of GDP. The incremental effect of enacting the reconciliation bill (over and above the effect of enacting H.R. 3590 by itself) would thus be to further reduce federal budget deficits in that decade, with a total effect that is in a broad range between zero and one-quarter percent of GDP.

Undoubtedly, this is good news for Nancy Pelosi and the Democrats. The overall deficit reduction number from the CBO, as well as the under-$1 trillion price tag, gives them some momentum towards winning the votes of reluctant moderates. Whether they can overcome the issues of abortion and Demon Pass will still have to be seen, but at least on cost they have some ammunition.

That also applies to the reluctance in the Senate to take this bill back up again. The House version with the reconciliation package saves more money off of the deficit than the Senate version alone, at least according to the CBO. If the Senate balks at considering the reconciliation changes, they’ll essentially be writing off supposed savings to the deficit.

Republicans set part of their argument against the House effort on the CBO response, but not all of it. This doesn’t help build opposition to the bill, but it doesn’t stop it on the other grounds. Expect the GOP to push hard on abortion and the individual mandate, as well as Demon Pass in response.

Update (AP): Here’s the key table from CBO’s letter to Pelosi. Via Philip Klein, want to see what a shabby fraud these cost estimates are? Check out the line for “Gross Cost of Coverage Provisions”:

cbo

This is why they’re delaying the start of the program, of course. If it kicked in right away, the decade-long estimate would obviously be well into the trillions. So they simply stalled it for four years, incurring just $17 billion in costs — or 1.8 percent of the total 10-year estimate — through 2013 so that wavering Democrats could go back to their districts and tell baldfaced lies to their constituents about the pricetag. A perfect ending to this travesty.

[American Patriot]

Wow just heard a Republican Congressman ask if Pelosi was so Arrogant, Ignorant and Incompetent that they want to shove this bill down our throats.

Wow. Slam dunk.

haha

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BOISE, Idaho, March 17, 2010
Idaho to Sue If Health Care Bill Passes

Governor Signs Bill That Requires State General Attorney to Sue Congress If Bill Passes Forcing Resident to Buy Insurance

(AP) Idaho's governor is the first state chief executive to sign a measure requiring his attorney general to sue the federal government if the U.S. Congress passes health care reform.

Legal experts say the measure, signed by Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter on Wednesday, will likely be struck down. But Idaho's new law reflects growing frustration with President Barack Obama's health-care proposal.

Legislation similar to Idaho's is pending in as many as 37 other states nationwide.

Democrats in the nation's capital are hoping to pass health care reform by this weekend.

The American Legislative Exchange Council created the model legislation for Idaho and other states. The Washington, D.C.-based, nonprofit says Idaho is the first to sign a version into law.

Idaho Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter on Wednesday became the first state chief executive to sign a measure requiring his attorney general to sue Congress if it passes health reforms that force residents to buy insurance.

Similar legislation is pending in 37 other states nationwide.

Constitutional law experts say the move is mostly symbolic because federal laws supersede those of the states. But the movement reflects a growing national frustration with President President Barack Obama's health care overhaul.

Democrats are hoping to pass a version of the reform by this weekend.

Last week, Virginia legislators passed a measure similar to Idaho's new law, but Otter was the first state chief executive to sign such a bill, according the American Legislative Exchange Council, which created model legislation for Idaho and other states. The Washington, D.C.,-based nonprofit group promotes limited government.

"Congress is planning to force an unconstitutional mandate on the states," said Herrera, the group's health task force director.

Otter, a Republican, already warned U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid in December that Idaho was considering litigation if health reform went through. He signed the bill during his first such public ceremony of the 2010 Legislature.

"What the Idaho Health Freedom Act says is that the citizens of our state won't be subject to another federal mandate or turn over another part of their life to government control," Otter said.

Minority Democrats in Idaho who opposed the bill called any lawsuits over health care reform frivolous.

Senate Minority Leader Kate Kelly, D-Boise, also complained about the bill's possible price tag. Those who drafted the new law say enforcement may require an additional Idaho deputy attorney general at a cost of $100,000 a year.

Kelly said that was irresponsible when Idaho is grappling with a $200 million budget hole.

"For Democrats in the Legislature, our priority is jobs," she said. "We'd rather Gov. Otter was holding a signing ceremony for (a jobs package) meant to put Idaho residents back to work."

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Cuccinelli's office confirms Virginia will sue over health care

A spokesman for Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli II (R) said this afternoon that Virginia will file suit against the federal government if the Democratic health care reform bill is approved by the U.S. Congress.

Cuccinelli has long said he was examining the legal issues and suggested he would likely file suit. Brian Gottstein, a spokesman for the office, said this afternoon that a lawsuit is now a definite. Gottstein would provide no details of the legal rationale for such a suit, indicating the process is "still being worked out."

Virginia last week became the first state in the country to pass a state bill declaring it illegal for the government to require individuals to purchase health insurance, a key part of bills under consideration on Capitol Hill.

We are also expecting to receive a letter shortly that Cuccinelli is sending to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) warning her that using the so-called "deem and pass" procedure to pass the Senate health reform bill in the House would open the measure to additional constitutional challenges from the states.

UPDATE: We've received a copy of Cuccinelli's letter to Pelosi. In it, he writes: "Should you employ the deem and pass tactic, you expose any act which may pass to yet another constitutional challenge."
The full letter is included after the jump.

March 17, 2010 The Honorable Nancy Pelosi Speaker of the United States House of Representatives Office of the Speaker H-232, U.S. Capitol Washington, D.C. Dear Speaker Pelosi: I am writing to urge you not to proceed with the Senate Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act under a so-called "deem and pass" rule because such a course of action would raise grave constitutional questions. Based upon media interviews and statements which I have seen, you are considering this approach because it might somehow shield members of Congress from taking a recorded vote on an overwhelmingly unpopular Senate bill. This is an improper purpose under the bicameralism requirements of Article I, Section 7 of the U.S. Constitution, one of the purposes of which is to make our representatives fully accountable for their votes. Furthermore, to be validly enacted, the Senate bill would have to be accepted by the House in a form that is word-for-word identical (Clinton v. City of New York, 524 U.S. 417 (1998). Should you employ the deem and pass tactic, you expose any act which may pass to yet another constitutional challenge. A bill of this magnitude should not be passed using this maneuver. As the President noted last week, the American people are entitled to an up or down vote. Sincerely, Kenneth T. Cuccinelli, II Attorney General of Virginia

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Breaking: Obama To Be Here For The Rioting

March 18th, 2010
Posted By Pat Dollard



WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama is postponing his trip to Asia until June so he can stay in Washington for a possible Sunday vote on his health care overhaul plan.

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs says Obama has called the leaders of Indonesia and Australia to express his regret that he will not be able to visit their nations.

Obama had already pushed the trip back once, delaying his originally scheduled March 18 departure until Sunday so he could help Democrats on Capitol Hill rally last-minute votes for the plan.

House Democrats say they are on track to vote Sunday on what they claim to be a $940 billion health care bill that they say will expand coverage to millions.


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Latin Marxist Community Organizing at the next level. In return amnesty, immigration reform and economic justice next in line on the Marxist agenda after Health Care.

In time for elections?


While still Senator, Obama speaks at the National Council of La Raza annual conference at San Diego, Calif. about Health Care.







LaRaza aka NCLR Marching On Washington 3/21/2010



3/21/2010


STAY UPDATED: Text JUSTICE to 69866



On March 21st, we will march on Washington, DC to demand immigration reform and economic justice for all Americans. Our vision of reform includes immigrants and native-born U.S. citizens working shoulder to shoulder to achieve better wages, working conditions, and labor protections, and of an American that’s back to work, with a fair balance between main street and wall street.

People from all across America will lend their voice in the fight for reform. We will come together as one voice on the National Mall for a strong America – for families, for workers, for businesses, and for security.

Join thousands from across the country in the March For America in DC on March 21st, and demand Congress act NOW to pass immigration reform and move quickly to put all Americans back to work

Where: National Mall, Washington DC
When: March 21st, 2010, Rally begins at 2 PM

Please note that the Interfaith Immigration Coalition and other faith partners are holding an Interfaith Prayer Service on the National Mall at 1 PM. We encourage everyone to attend.

Sign up to march today!

Whose March?
STAY UPDATED: Text JUSTICE to 69866
This is your march. American families cannot win immigration reform or real economic justice without you. Immigrants and native-born U.S. citizens must work together to demand real change.

Help spread the word about the March For America by downloading this flyer: March for America (PDF) or by posting this handy widget on your web page or blog.

Won’t you join in?

Why March?

"Here are just a few of the organizations sponsoring the March For America:
AFL-CIO
African Immigrant & Refugee Foundation

Alliance to Develop Power/ADP
America’s Voice
American Jewish Committee
Amigos Multicultural Services Center (Eugene, OR)
Asian American Justice Center
Asian Pacific American Legal Center
Asistencia Migratoria
Bergen County (NJ) Sanctuary Committee
Bienestar
Border Network for Human Rights
Brazilian Women’s Group
Breakthrough: Bring Human Rights Home
Cabrini Immigrant Services
Campaign for Community Change
Casa de Maryland
Catholic Charities Hawaii
Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc.
CAUSA, Oregon’s Immigrant Rights Coalition
Center for American Progress
Centro para Familias Hispanas
Christ’s Foundry United Methodist Mission
Coalition for Education About Immigration (CEI)
Coalition for Humane Immigration Reform of LA
Coalition of Latino Leaders-CLILA
Coalition on Human Needs
Cobb (County,GA) Immigrant Alliance & Labor of Love Coalition
COFEM
Community Catalyst
Community Nashville (formally National Council For Christians and Jews/Nashville Chapter)
Comunidad Liberacion/Liberation Community
Conexion Americas
Confederacion de Organizaciones de California y Clubes Oriundos de Michoacan
Democracia Ahora
Divine Word Missionaries
Dominican-American National Roundtable
Ecumenical Advocacy Days
El CENTRO de Igualdad y Derechos
Fair Immigration Reform Movement
Farmworker Justice
First Focus Campaign for Children
Georgia Association of Latino Elected Officials (GALEO)
Georgia Urban Rural Summit
Greater New York Labor-Religion Coalition
Hispanic Community Dialogue Organization of Virginia
Hispanic Information Center
Hispanic Ministry of the New Albany Deanery
Hispanos Unidos de Passaic
Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters, JPIC, USA
Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights
Immigrants’ List
Immigrant Rights Network of Iowa
Interfaith Immigration Coalition
Japanese American Citizens League – Pacific Southwest District
Jewish Council on Urban Affairs
Jobs for America Now
Jornaleros Unidos de Passaic
Kansas House of Representatives
Kentucky Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights
Korean Resource Center
La Comunidad, INC
La Union (UCL, INC.)
La Union del Pueblo Entero
Labor Council for Latin American Advancement
Latino Coalition of Randolph County
Latinos del Norte de Portland
League of United American Citizens (LULAC)
League of United Latin American Citizens
Liberación Juice Station, LLC
LULAC Ohio
Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service
Mexican Americans for Immigration Reform
Migrant Support Services of Wayne County
National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials Educational Fund (NALEO Ed Fund)
National Center for Lesbian Rights
National Council of La Raza
National Immigration Forum
National Immigration Law Center
National Korean American Service and Education Consortium
National People’s Action
New Haven Peoples Center
Omni Center For Peace, Justice & Ecology
Patria Morazan, Houston
Peruvian American Political Action Committee
Progressive Democrats of America – Phoenix Chapter
Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada
Reform Immigration for Texas Alliance (RITA)
Refugee and Immigration Ministries, Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
Rocky Mountain Peace and Justice Center
SEVA (Social Empowerment & Voter Action)
SEIU
Sí Se Puede Latino Democratic Caucus
Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Sojourners
South Asian Americans Leading Together
Southeast Asia Resource Action Center (SEARAC)
St. Matthew/San Mateo Episcopal Church and Jubilee Center
St. Rita Catholic Church
The Dominican American National Roundtable
The Hispanic Institute
The Hispanic Leadership Club of Annandale High School
The Law Offices of Richard S. Bromberg
United Action Connecticut
TODEC Legal Center
UFCW
UNITE HERE
United Farm Workers
US Action
US Conference of Catholic Bishops
Venezeula Awareness Foundation
Washington Community Action Network
Washington New Sanctuary Movement
Wayne Action for Racial Equality
WIN – the Welcoming Immigrants Network
World Relief

Why March?

STAY UPDATED: Text JUSTICE to 69866


© Jonathan Laurence

Today we are at a pivotal moment in the history of this nation. We are faced with a choice. We can do nothing, and watch as our families and communities continue to be torn apart by the broken immigration system; watch as profiteers continue to take advantage of people desperate for work; watch as due process is taken away from our understanding of justice; and watch as our leaders work on economic solutions that simply aren’t bold enough to turn this country around. Or we can stand up for our families and our communities. Join thousands from across the country at the March For America in Washington DC on March 21st. It is up to us.

March For Democracy: Our democracy is betrayed by having 12 million people who work, pay taxes, and are part of our communities, but are excluded from the full American family. Immigration reform must include a path to earned citizenship for the undocumented that helps new Americans learn English, become naturalized, and contribute fully to our economic renewal.

March for Families: Immigration policy that keeps families together is good for the country: families help their relatives get jobs, get housing, and get started. Anti-family policies have put more than 5 million Americans who have applied to bring family members here into a never-ending bureaucratic line. Thousands of American families have been thrown into poverty because the breadwinners have been deported. We’ve created a new group of high tech indentured servants, captives of corporate sponsors and living without their families. All workers deserve to be with their families.

March For American Workers: Decades without immigration reform have created a second class of workers who are exploited by unscrupulous employers. Immigration reform must slam shut this trap door on the wage floor that drags all workers down. Reform is a crucial component of restoring fairness to the labor markets and will help our economy recover.

March For Justice: The United States has always lifted up justice, ensuring everyone is afforded due process and fairness. Anti-immigrant conservatives have been whittling away at our great justice system, putting important court decisions in the hands of low-level clerks. It’s time to restore justice by ensuring immigrants have full due process protections and by re-prioritizing judicial discretion over capricious bureaucracy.

It’s time to take back the American story and American values by enacting true immigration reform.

March For America!
This is your call. We need you in DC to show our collective power and energy. Join the March For America. Mark your calendars for Sunday, March 21st.

Sign up to march today!

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News Link • Protests and Protesters
They are EXPECTING an uprising

03/18/2010 • godlikeproductions.com

Last Friday morning, you could see workers beginning to set up barricades around the Capitol in preparation for the demonstrations they expect in response to the Democrats' autocratic actions.

They mistakenly think that the Tea Party protests are temporary flareups that mere barricades can contain, but their legislative and executive tyranny is unleashing emotions that have the potential to rival the antislavery movement of the Civil War era and the Civil Rights protests of the 1960s.

Having abandoned those transcendent moral principles upon which this nation was founded for a false ideology of their own imagining, these people have no understanding of the righteous fury that will build in this nation when her citizens see their government sanction morally reprehensible acts.

Read Full Story

Reported by Phennommennonn Glp

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March 18, 2010
ObamaCare is Tyranny, Not Legislation

By Janice Shaw Crouse

What we're seeing in Washington, D.C. is not "politics as usual" with the arm twisting and "horse-trading" that is typical in getting a bill passed; instead, it is ideological warfare. What Obama, Reid, and Pelosi are doing is not legislating; it is an act of tyranny -- overturning all the rules and principles of government in a representative democracy. Attempting to pass the Senate version of ObamaCare in the House under the ironically named "Slaughter Rule" (to circumvent the objections of the Stupak coalition to taxpayer funding of abortion) is an exercise in raw power akin to the many acts of judicial tyranny the American public has endured over the last forty years from judges who have little regard for the Constitution.

Apparently Obama, Reid, and Pelosi aren't worried about losing control of Congress in 2010 or even the presidency in 2012, because their higher goal is to irrevocably institutionalize their ideology. Once government control of health care is established, their leftist principles will be implemented by an unelected bureaucracy that rules without accountability to the general public, whether or not the Democratic Party is the majority in Congress or holds the presidency.

Obama, Reid, and Pelosi have learned nothing from history; they are as blind to their own tyranny as were King George and the British Parliament. They show no comprehension of the moral outrage that will ignite in this country if they ram through ObamaCare, a bill that requires taxpayer funding for abortion, usurps an individual's right to choose her own personal health care options, and saddles the nation with a growing flood of debt which will drown our children and grandchildren.

Last Friday morning, you could see workers beginning to set up barricades around the Capitol in preparation for the demonstrations they expect in response to the Democrats' autocratic actions. They mistakenly think that the Tea Party protests are temporary flareups that mere barricades can contain, but their legislative and executive tyranny is unleashing emotions that have the potential to rival the antislavery movement of the Civil War era and the Civil Rights protests of the 1960s. Having abandoned those transcendent moral principles upon which this nation was founded for a false ideology of their own imagining, these people have no understanding of the righteous fury that will build in this nation when her citizens see their government sanction morally reprehensible acts.

Leaders across the nation --- nearly half a million strong --- have already signed the Manhattan Declaration declaring that moral principles take precedence over laws that ignore the value of human life and individual freedom. These deeply-held religious beliefs are inviolable, non-negotiable, and protected under the U.S. Constitution. Thousands of America's Orthodox, Catholic, and evangelical Christian leaders have laid down a gauntlet: By reaffirming the fundamental truth that life and liberty come not from man-made laws, but from God, we have joined together "to defend the sanctity of life, the dignity of marriage as the conjugal union of husband and wife, and the rights of conscience and religious liberty."

We have, in good faith, expressed our objections and righteous indignation over and over again, only to be repeatedly rebuffed and ignored. Poll after poll demonstrates that U.S. citizens are strongly opposed to ObamaCare and its impact on our nation. Yet the Obama/Reid/Pelosi axis is determined to ignore the will of the people that they were elected to represent and to dictatorially impose on the nation their ideas of what's best. They have lived so long in the rarefied air of elitism that they think that the "masses" will simply accept their "superior wisdom." These unprecedented assaults on basic American principles compel Manhattan Declaration signers to forcefully mount a defense of human life, marriage, and religious freedom.

Manhattan Declaration-signers have said that civil disobedience is necessary when faced with gravely unjust laws requiring submission to other laws that violate our principled moral beliefs about abortion, marriage, and religious freedom. As the Manhattan Declaration states, "We will fully and ungrudgingly render to Caesar what is Caesar's. But under no circumstances will we render to Caesar what is God's."

[vector7]

Here it comes...

Updated March 18, 2010
Democrats Post Health Care Bill Online, Starting 72-Hour Clock

FOXNews.com

The updated health care reform bill has been posted online, starting the clock on a 72-hour window before the House can vote on it.

President Obama pledged in an interview with Fox News on Wednesday that the final provisions of the health care plan would be "posted for many days before this thing passes" to give the public a chance to review it.

The earliest the House could vote on the latest health bill is Sunday.
Lawmakers, though, are still waiting to see firmer estimates from the Congressional Budget Office as to how much it costs. Estimates released Thursday morning were listed only as "preliminary."

The preliminary CBO estimates pegged the price tag of the updated bill at $940 billion over 10 years.

Democrats have posted the package of changes to the Senate-passed health care bill that House Democrats are insisting on in exchange for their support on the original Senate bill.

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Obama to Dems: Our Fates Are Tied to Health Bill

AP



Obama is telling nervous Democratic lawmakers that their political fates are linked to the health care bill's passage, discouraging the notion that they can save themselves by opposing it, House members say.

WASHINGTON - In seeking enough votes to overhaul the nation's health care system, President Barack Obama is telling nervous Democratic lawmakers that their political fates are linked to the bill's passage, discouraging the notion that they can save themselves by opposing it, House members say.

They also say the president's not asking lawmakers to save his skin either, while the White House insists that no special favors in exchange for votes are being offered or accepted.

The president has pushed aside almost all other matters, including a long-planned Asia trip, now rescheduled for June, to try to embolden House Democrats who have wavered on the health care legislation, which he has championed for a year.

"I think the president, in the calls and the meetings that he's having" with lawmakers "is making great progress," White House press secretary Robert Gibbs told reporters Thursday.

Gibbs, who said the president has spoken with more than three dozen Democratic lawmakers since Monday, repeatedly sidestepped questions of whether Obama has told them his presidency's fate depends on the legislation's passage.

Such suggestions could be ticklish because all 435 House seats are up for grabs in November, whereas Obama won't face voters until 2012.

In interviews with House Democrats who have spoken with Obama lately, none described an overtly save-me message from the president. Most spoke of sober, policy-drenched conversations in which Obama essentially equated good policy with good politics, for him and them.

"He says that this bill is good for the American people, that it moves the system forward, saves money," said Rep. Dennis Cardoza, D-Calif., who has spoken with Obama recently and plans to do so again before Sunday's showdown House vote. Asked whether Obama suggested his presidency's success was on the line, Cardoza said, "No, never with me."

Rep. Jason Altmire, D-Pa., who has met with Obama more than once on health care, said: "He addresses specifically the concerns that I have had in the past and how the bill addresses each of them. It's just a continuing conversation."

Senior administration adviser David Axelrod said in an interview, "There's not been one minute of talk around the White House about what this means for Barack Obama's presidency."

But he said Obama makes it clear to fellow Democrats that "we're far better off passing this bill, politically." If it's enacted, Axelrod said, Americans will start seeing benefits soon, and lawmakers who voted for it can counter misinformation spread by their opponents.

Axelrod said Obama is well aware that a president's success often builds more success and that rejection of the health proposals could make it difficult to enact other major initiatives.

Rep. Henry Waxman of California, a member of the House Democratic leadership who is heavily involved in health care negotiations, said the president correctly notes that his success and each Democratic lawmaker's success are inextricably linked to the health care package.

"Members who think they have a tough race are not going to find security in voting 'no."' Waxman said. "Because if this bill doesn't pass, they are going to be wiped out" in November.

House and Senate Republicans unanimously oppose the legislation, so Democrats need overwhelming majorities of their members to enact it.
White House officials say Obama offers no overt promises or favors to House Democrats who agree to back the health care proposals. But suspicions of mutual back-scratching are almost inevitable in the wake of quiet Oval Office meetings, which White House officials have refused to divulge to the media.

Freshman Rep. Suzanne Kosmas, D-Fla., repeatedly failed to obtain an audience with Obama to discuss her concerns about cuts at NASA, a crucial agency in her district. But she got invited to the Oval Office last week when Obama needed her vote on health care. She has declined numerous interview requests from reporters ever since.

On Thursday, Rep. Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill., said he agreed to vote for the health care package on the understanding that Obama and congressional Democrats would soon move a major immigration bill. About an hour later, Senate Democrats unveiled an immigration bill, and Obama issued a statement praising it.

"I'm committed to voting for this health care bill on that basis," Gutierrez told reporters as the Congressional Hispanic Caucus endorsed the health overhaul. "I want the president to be in lockstep with us (on immigration), which I believe he was during the campaign."

Axelrod said there was no quid pro quo involved in the administration's dealings with Gutierrez, who recently joined other Latino lawmakers at a White House meeting with Obama. Obama consistently has said he hopes to move ahead with immigration reforms, he said.

Privately, few members of Congress thought the liberal Gutierrez could possibly vote against the health legislation. But he used the occasion to withhold his official support and make sure the president and his aides would hear him out.

Meanwhile, some on-the-fence Democrats have not sought or received Obama's close attention on the health care matter. Rep. Harry Teague, D-N.M., who remained undecided as of midday Thursday, said neither the president nor anyone at the White House had contacted him.

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After Health Care, Is Immigration Next?



More
By Max Fisher on March 19, 2010 12:46pm
With most observers expecting health care reform to finally pass once and for all this weekend, what will be Democrats' next big issue? Many signs point to financial regulatory reform: Senator Chris Dodd has put forward an ambitious plan and President Obama has made "reining in Wall Street" a recent goal. The campaign-friendly issue, conducive to a populist tone, would coincide nicely with the November 2010 elections. But Obama and Democrats long hinted that, with health care the top issue of 2009, immigration reform would reign in 2010. Is that still true? Here's what people think of the prospects.

• Seems Unlikely, But Senate Making Moves NBC News' Chuck Todd is as skeptical as anyone, but he points out that Senators Graham and Schumer are pushing immigration reform anyway. "Lots of skepticism in DC that immigration reform will be truly taken up this year; nonetheless, key moves yesterday."

• The Schumer-Graham Plan In a Washington Post op-ed, Democratic Sen. Chuck Schumer and GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham lay it out:

Our plan has four pillars: requiring biometric Social Security cards to ensure that illegal workers cannot get jobs; fulfilling and strengthening our commitments on border security and interior enforcement; creating a process for admitting temporary workers; and implementing a tough but fair path to legalization for those already here.

• Immigration's Tough Timeline The Washington Post's Spencer Hsu scopes out the proposal's reception, including generalized support from Obama. "Advocates set an April deadline, but that would require additional Republican support," he writes. "Congressional supporters, whose ideas track those proposals, have labored under a self-imposed deadline, hoping to advance a bill to the Senate floor before Memorial Day. Lawmakers do not want to hold a contentious debate over immigration policies close to fall elections at a time of high unemployment."

• Securing Real Reform Lambasting the Schumer-Graham plan, The American Prospect's Gabriel Arana gives the reform requirements likely to become sacrosanct on the left: Update the "grossly unfair" by-country quota system, allow more green cards for unskilled labor, build "family unification" policies, and increase funding to key immigration agencies.

• Dems Should Champion Immigration The Nation's Kai Wright makes the case. "The long-term politics are plain: Latino communities nationwide are young, growing and increasingly ready to show up at the polls. And the certain-to-be xenophobic reaction of the GOP's loudest voices today will not only motive Latinos this November, it will alienate independent voters as well." After alienating the liberal base on national security and other issues, "Obama and the Dems could surely use at least one motivated voting bloc this fall."

• Is There 'Centrist' Immigration Reform? The Crossed Pond says that because of "Democrats trying to prove to the center that they understand 'tough on illegal' concerns, it will likely have to be done in a very 'centrist' way. Which means that a lot of bones have to be thrown to anti-immigration fervents." The challenge for Dems will be making centrist concessions while courting the often-skeptical Latino voting blocks in the midwest and southwest.

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Skip to comments.
After Health Care, Immigration?

National Review - The Corner ^ | March 18, 2010 | Mark Krikorian
Posted on Thursday, March 18, 2010 8:33:34 AM by La Lydia

Reader Stephen T. worries: "I have a bad feeling that failure of healthcare will impel Democrats to unite on amnesty in order to hand Obama *some* victory to redeem his loser administration...

Do you foresee any of this happening? The short answer is "No...Graham was essentially saying "If you guys use reconciliation to pass health care, even I won't be your cabana boy, and that's saying something."

As for the bigger point that the failure of health care would impel Democrats to seek a win on immigration, I find it hard to imagine. Look at what Rep. Jason Altmire told Politico: "The calls to my office have been pretty negative, and it's gaining momentum every day. I'm giving everybody a chance to be heard, but if my district's not on board with this, I'm not going to be able to vote for this."

What do you think these guys are going to hear from people at fairs, restaurants, and church festivals if they start debating an amnesty when there's 10 percent unemployment, Mexico is imploding, and the "virtual fence" is abandoned without being replaced by a real fence?

This Sunday's illegal-alien march in Washington will make it even harder to move amnesty...Hopefully, there will be lots of Che Guevara posters and "This Is Our Land" demands, along with the American flags that organizers no doubt bought in bulk at Costco to hand out...

And if the president doesn't agree to push amnesty? "We will go into the field," says [Rep. Luis] Gutierrez, "like the civil rights movement and the suffragists did." "We will escalate," says Gustavo Torres of Casa de Maryland, "to civil disobedience."

Civil disobedience! By illegal aliens demanding amnesty! I can't wait.

(Excerpt) Read more at corner.nationalreview.com ...

[Ryan Ruck]

Hmmm...

Brick Thrown Through Window In Slaughter's Falls Office

March 19, 2010

The "Slaughter Solution" on health care isn't the only thing that has come under attack in U.S. Rep. Louise M. Slaughter's world this week. Sometime early this morning, someone threw a brick through the front window of her Pine Avenue office.

The damage was discovered about 12:30 a.m., city police said.

The brick put a hole in the outer-most window at the office at 1910 Pine Ave., but did not damage a second interior window, police reported. A piece of broken brick believed to have caused the damage was found at the scene.

Damage was estimated at $350.

Slaughter, D-Fairport, is head of the House Rules Committee, which will structure the debate on health care reform votes set for this weekend.

Well, I deem the brick to have been a marshmallow and the window to not be broken.

I wonder how that will work out...

[Backstop]

Heard on the radio about an hour ago this will be an up and down vote. Announcer mentioned that twice. Also said they'd be back in session at 1300.

Man, this freaking better not pass; it'll destroy this country.

[Backstop]

Know the TRUTH about the Government Health Care Bill H.R.3200 - Key Points

I really hope this is BS.

Will try and validate it later.

[Backstop]

HR 3590 Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act has passed.

[Malsua]

Let the taxing begin!

[American Patriot]

Eight Hours after passing.. .Virginia is saying they are suing... "Unconstitutional" - specifically the "mandate" to make us buy something.

Idaho, Florida and thirty four other states are going after the Federal government for this.