Ted Cruz's Fake Filibuster
By Thom Hartmann A...
On Tuesday, Senator Ted Cruz took the floor of the Senate to launch an all-night fake filibuster. His 21-hour marathon speech was arranged in advance, and there was no way it would stop the Senate from voting on a continuing resolution to fund the government. Senator Cruz stayed on the floor all night, without so much as a bathroom break, just to keep himself in the public eye, and to fund-raise for the Republican Party.
Even if Senator Cruz had the support of 60 of his fellow Senators, President Obama would veto the legislation, and it would have no effect on the Medicaid expansion or federal subsidies that will soon help people buy insurance. And, the Texas Republican only has a few allies who support his political ploy. Only a few of his Republican colleagues took to the Senate floor to ask a question, which is a procedural tactic that gave Senator Cruz a short break from speaking.
Most of his party refused to take part in the political theater, and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said he would vote to cut off debate. Even Tea Party-Darling, Senator Rand Paul reminded Senator Cruz that Republicans “don't control all the government.” Waging a 21-hour speech, regardless of the potential outcome, can be an great way to bring attention to an important issue. But, many Americans believe that this all-night political ploy was about nothing more than bringing attention to Senator Ted Cruz.
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Comments
The way ACA (aka: Obama Care) will work is that you will have to make premium payments to the insurance companies, every month, based on what they have determined to be what they will charge for those premiums; and, at the end of the year, if you qualify, you may get a check back from the government as a rebate depending upon what you qualify for based upon your income, age, and number of dependents..and their ages.
And that is the data you provide when using those on-line calculators to determine what you will be paying. But, I suspect that there are other factors that they don't put up front in those calculators....preexisting conditions! Yes, ACA says that insurers can't prevent you from getting their insurance based on preexisting conditions...but...they don't tell you that the insurance companies will increase your premiums based on your preexisting conditions. If you go to any health insurance web site and go to fill out their forms...they always ask about preexisting conditions. Maybe the law should have included prevention of insurance companies from even asking about preexisting conditions and preventing them from increasing your premiums based on preexisting conditions.
It also doesn't limit what they can charge the next years and they could just greatly increase premiums once everyone is forced to participate.
If people aren't now buying health insurance because they can't afford those steep monthly payments..then how the heck are they going to pay those monthly payments all year and then have to wait for the government check at the end of the year?
I still think many people will see that a penalty of non-compliance of 1% (for the first year) of their yearly incomes are going to be way, way less than even one monthly premium. Even all the years following, as the penalties get steeper, will still be far less than even one month of insurance premiums. So, many people will likely opt out.
And look at all the "opt outs" that some people can claim: Religious grounds? What a farce! Everyone could then claim their religion forbids it and not get penalized for non-participation.
Good for senator Cruz, at least he knows how to stand up for what he believes in and giving a voice to the millions of people that elected him to represent their concerns. Bravo, what a refreshing idea to actually represent the people and stick it in the face of the go along to get along ruling elite. I think the polls show that most people oppose the implementation of Obamacare and it's 10 to 20000 pages of job killing regulations. Maybe this will at least put it in the sunlight for those 40 percent of Americans that are unaware that it is a law and the consequences it is already pounding our economy with.
From what I understand, some states...like, for example, California which has one of the largest non-insured health care populations in the US..but ties with 4 other states... has about 20% of the population non insured. So, California has an approved-by-the-state kind of a broker, called "Covered California", that bargains with the health care providers, ostensibly to keep rates low. The California web site is:
www.coveredca.com
My state...the great state of Pandemonium..which is just North East of the state of Maine..doesn't have this broker entity yet....but we're all healthy and never "supersize those fries" so we are all going to opt for paying the penalty of 1% of our income. And the money we save in one year will let us all buy another yacht and winter home in Greenland.
Great to see the insurance company shills are out in force today. After all, anything that reforms the health industry in a user beneficial manner has got to be detrimental to the industry's massive profits.
Back on topic of Sen. Cruz; his fake filibuster is a glaring example of how broken our system of government is and how dysfunctional and desperate the Republican and Tea Parties are. This extended tantrum from the right wing extremists just has to stop. Unfortunately, I'm pretty sure these spoilt brats won't stop until they're either voted out of office or get control of the government. I hope the former prevails over the latter.
I never was a particularly political person until the Evil Empire of Bush Jr, Cheney and Rummy. Since then, the Republicans and their mal-adjusted offspring the Tea Party have just gotten worse, far, far worse. To me, a lot of these politicians look like complete sociopaths, engaged in a class war for the benefit of the Neo-Robber Barons.
I'm beginning to wonder if we will ever see any resemblence of Democracy return to our government and our nation. I think our founding fathers would turn in their graves at the antics of the contemporary Republicans. I'm sure the members of the original Tea Party would be horrified beyond belief to see how their legacy has been perverted by corporates and the uber-wealthy.
21 freaking hours of Texas teabag crazy Cruz control. Pretty damn disturbing dude! Cruz and his Teabaggers are fighting like hell to keep health insurance unaffordable for the many and highly profitable for the very few. In addition they've blocked economic stimulus bills in order to keep unemployment high. The combination of these two things keeps working class citizens at the mercy of the so called job creators, both in being underpaid and a prisoner to the company health insurance plan. Thanks Teabaggers!
I heard a guy on Thom's show today talking about his definition of what a welfare state is. He thinks an economic system based on Democratic Socialism is a welfare state. Well here's my definition. A welfare state is where the wealthiest 400 go from a net worth of one trillion to two trillion while at the same time the average family income goes down $5000. In other words it's a state where the rich depend entirely on screwing the working class.
This shows that Obama Care was originally a Republican plot to do what they are doing today. It shows 25 major Republicans that were supporting the idea.
http://www.motherjones.com/mojo/2013/08/republicans-supported-obamacare-...
The Republicans aren't against Obama Care...it was their plan to begin with...they are against Obama. And pretending to be against the very policy they first proposed makes liberals support Obama Care even more. Exactly what the Republicans want to happen. All their noise now, after Obama Care passed and blessed by a right-wing Supreme court... is merely hatred expressed against Obama himself. The Republicans desperately want to regain the reigns of government but the ruling elite, like Greek Gods in the clouds watching the earthling mortal's battles from above, don't really care who their puppets are. It's just a game...an amusement ...that they can manipulate their puny subjects so easily with their rigged two party system.
What do you call a nation whose system takes half of its wealth, being defined as labor, income, and natural resources, and gives it to 400 persons?
A slave nation?
Who's Ted Cruz? Another ex-Mickey Mouse Club junior celebrity? I thought his rendition of Sam I Am was absolutely brilliant. I hope this rising star gains the Republican nomination in 2016! He obviously can go the distance and his oratory is absolutely riveting. I almost cried.
IIlistened to some of Ted's speech. He wandered around so much that if you were careful in extracting sections of his speech you could make up an argument that he was for the Affordable Healthcare Act but for the most part, he was against it. Apparently he has some constituents that are for it and he could extract portions to satisfy them!
I cry almost every time one of these right wing, tea-brain, nut job, sociopaths open their mouth. And it usually only takes a few short self indulgent and sophomoric statements to do it. 21 hours? Seriously? Almost cried? I'd have been all cried out long before then and have moved on to pulling my hair out of my head and trying to slit my own wrists before his witless diatribe was through it's first quarter. Thank God the television has an off button. My heart goes out to anyone who sat through the whole thing. I wouldn't be surprised if the CIA recorded the whole fiasco and is planning on forcing prisoners in Gitmo to watch it. Inhuman monsters! Where is Amnesty International when you need them?
The problem with this anti-Obama-care speech is that is it the height of hypocrisy. This health care plan of extortion originated in the womb of the right wing Cabal and their Insurance Mafia backers. This gesture/display is one of pure spite and hatred. It is more of an anti-Obama (anti-Minority) Kabuki theater diatribe than anything else. Certainly it wasn't anything meant to serve the common good. (You notice that Republicans only sound like human beings when they don't have a snowball's chance in hell of winning?) Everything stated was in vain and meant to look like someone in Washington cares about the people when in reality everybody in Washington despises the people. Everyone is reaping their reward for selling out the real wish of the masses--Single-Payer for all.
Obama-care, a step in the right direction? Maybe. Obama-care, a step in the right wing direction? Yes! Obama-care, a solution to our health care problems? No!
The only true sincere rebuttal to the implementation of Obama-care that would truly take into account the needs of the nation would be to say that Obama-care fails to provide what the nation truly needs--Medicare for all. That doesn't take 21 hours to say!
By the way, being given a podium for 21 hours to rant on national health care in this country, does any brave soul out there who may have actually listened to the entire ordeal know if the idea of Medicare for all was even mentioned? If so, what was said? I find it hard to believe that anyone could criticize health care in this country for that long without suggesting Medicare for all or even mention single-payer.
Of course if there is anyone fit for such a pointless task it is the hot air bag Republicans who are bred for the job.
unregulated and unrepresentative!
What ever happened to "National Health Care?" How did it morph into national health care reform, and then to national health care insurance reform? Where do people living from pay check to pay check come up with another 200+ dollars a month for health care? How do other countries manage? Can't help but think that insurance companies are going to make out really good. Looks like business as usual for the USA.
@W Willie
"How did it morph into national health care reform, and then to national health care insurance reform?"
The Corporations captured what was left of US democracy. Bush and Obama represent the two faces of this new experiment in political order. Tbh rent-seeking classes have been destroying empires and nations via debt slavery for 1000s of years.
After reading some of the transcript of Cruz's speech--mostly looking for the words Medicare and single-payer--I grew weary and quit. Someone mentioned that it was a "Sam, I am" speech. I didn't know what that meant till looking at the transcript. It appears to be a feedback loop of the same old tired cliche strung together incoherently at nauseum. Here are some highlights:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/sf/national/2013/09/25/transcript-sen-ted-cruzs-filibuster-against-obamacare/
Wow! I hope you feel better having heard that. Personally, now I really need Obama-care.
Most have missed the main point. Those who wrote this great plan have exempted themselves! That is WRONG on several levels.
...and I completely disagree, Global! Cruz is just another Corporate Puppet tap dancing for the Board Members...Aproxametly 1/10th of the 1%...A far cry from representing the voice of We the People.
Now that being said, I am not a "fan" of Obama's Healthcare Plan. I support a Medicare-for-All System.
No U.S. Citizen (Working, Unemployed, Retired) should have to go without Healthcare Insurance.
This is the United States of America; A country were We the People represent the Equal Right to Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness. If one U.S. Citizen cannot afford to see a Doctor, or cannot afford treatment, do to being unisured, or under-insured then We the People failed our own fellow citizen and robbed them of their Right to Equal Opprotunity! In this case the opportunity to freely seek Life and Happiness.
My understanding of national health care was some sort of medicare for all. We would pay for it at the pump with maybe 7 or 8 dollars a gallon for gas, plus other taxes.But, no medical bills, ever.
Bulls On Parade...Only in an Evil Empire!
http://normangoldman.com/uploads/ringTones/36/we-do-not-have-time-for-this-kind-of-silliness.mp3
http://normangoldman.com/uploads/ringTones/44/are-we-gonna-lose-our-country-to-these-nutbags.mp3
Sorce of above ring tone click here