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Re: The Cost of the 'Doc Fix' -- By: Andy McCarthy

The Corner  | Links  | Related | Mar 19, 2010 05:59 PM EST   [*New!*]

Yuval, I hate to be a hopeless paranoid, but is there significance in the fact that, of all the numbers they could have arrived at, the CBO picked $59B, which, added to the previous $940B estimate, still remarkably manages to keep the pricetag just under the dread $1 trillion mark?

Can Nancy Pelosi really be this, er, stupid

Sister Toldjah  | Links  | Related | Mar 19, 2010 05:55 PM EST   [*New!*]

Astonishing : Transcript : WASHINGTON, DC, March 19, 2010 (LifeSiteNews.com) On the solemn Catholic feast of one of the most prestigious patron saints of unborn children, St. Joseph, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has invoked the husband of Mary and the stepfather of Jesus to help pass the abortion-laden health care bill. Today is the feast of St. Joseph the Worker, Pelosi told reporters Friday on Capitol Hill. It's a day where we remember and pray to St. Joseph to benefit the workers of America, and that's exactly what our health care bill will do. However, Catholic commentators quickly pointed out that Pelosi's Catholic pitch was less than pitch-perfect: March 19 is actually the Catholic feast of St. Joseph, husband of Mary, and not...

CBO: ObamaCare Would Increase Deficits by $59 Billion

Cato-at-liberty  | Links  | Related | Mar 19, 2010 05:52 PM EST   [*New!*]

By Michael F. Cannon Of course, it depends on what the meaning of “the Obama health plan” is. If the Obama plan is understood not to include the $208 billion Medicare “doc fix” that the House removed from its bill to pass separately, and if the Obama plan would be sealed in an impenetrable vault within the National Archives, never [...]

WWJC

Cato-at-liberty  | Links  | Related | Mar 19, 2010 05:50 PM EST   [*New!*]

By Michael F. Cannon Or, whom would Jesus coerce?  That’s the question that comes to mind when I read the Center for American Progress’ latest attempt to argue that, if Jesus were a member of Congress, He would vote for President Obama’s individual mandate. I was raised Catholic, and I don’t remember Jesus teaching that we should put people in [...]

Suzie Kosmas (D-NASA) Sells Out

Ace of Spades HQ  | Links  | Related | Mar 19, 2010 05:49 PM EST   [*New!*]

Gee, I wonder if she was promised a job after she's booted from office. Another bad one....

Transparency Alert: Their Closed Doors, Our Health Care

Riehl World View  | Links  | Related | Mar 19, 2010 05:40 PM EST

This is particularly infuriating, even more so as they have excluded themselves from the bill. Bastards! They get to hide. We don't . We can't throw them far enough out of office in November to make up for it. But we'll settle for just out! Senate Democratic leaders have decided they will not publicly release a health care reform letter signed by their rank and file intended to calm nervous House Democrats before their historic vote this weekend on the comprehensive Senate-passed measure and a budget reconciliation bill of fixes. Sources said a handful of Democratic Senators asked Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) to keep the letter private. The missive laid out a set of principles that Senatorial signatories would pledge to support in the health care reconciliation bill, which will need...

The Cost of the 'Doc Fix' -- By: Yuval Levin

The Corner  | Links  | Related | Mar 19, 2010 05:38 PM EST

In response to a question from Paul Ryan (as Kathryn notes below ), the CBO has now priced out the cost of the Democrats’ health-bill (including the reconciliation bill), together with the cost of the permanent “doc fix” they have proposed. CBO writes: “enacting all three pieces of legislation would add $59 billion to budget deficits over the 2010-2019 period.” That, of course, is without even accounting for all the other gimmicks, empty promises, and implausible offsets in the Democrats’ bill. Together with all those gimmicks, keeping the “doc fix” separate from the health-care bills they are getting ready to vote on was key to allowing the Democrats to get a CBO score that seemed to keep the bill from raising the deficit. (As I note below, the memo that Politico posted earlier, which purported to...

Toyota Responds To ABC News' Attack - Demands Retraction

Astute Bloggers  | Links  | Related | Mar 19, 2010 05:37 PM EST

After all of this is said and done, somebody's going to end up looking stupid, and it's not going to be Toyota. The L.A. Times most likely will be next. From the WSJ : Toyota Demands ABC Retract Report The Wall Street Journal 03/19/2010 Toyota Motor Corp . has asked ABC News for a public retraction and formal apology for an 'irresponsible broadcast' of a report last month that purported to show how electronics problems in Toyota vehicles could lead to unintended acceleration. In a letter to ABC News President David Westin dated March 11, Toyota said ABC 'fabricated' a shot of a Toyota Avalon sedan in the report 'to create the false and misleading impression with viewers of a dangerous and uncontrolled acceleration' in the Japanese...

Happy Hour Links

Worldwide Standard  | Links  | Related | Mar 19, 2010 05:31 PM EST

Democrats waste time -- don't want to talk health care -- on the House floor :  Rep. Keith Ellison:  'The fact is, we're honoring a great American novelist, but we have to divert that important conversation…the Republican caucus wants to go toe-to-toe on health care.' Rep. Jackie Speier:  'While we are trying to recognize the life and work of a great American novelist, we find ourselves drifting into a discussion of health care.' The Congressional Budget Office responds to Rep. Paul Ryan and finds that Obamacare could get very pricey, very quickly. Jim Treacher : If the Democrats want to destroy their own party, fine. Why can’t they leave the rest of us out of it? Max Boot : No way to treat a friend. Krauthammer : What the Israel crisis says about Barack Obama.

Ellsworth Splits from Stupak -- Will Vote Yes And Now Cao's 'Reconsidering' -- All He Wants Is a Promise The'll Pass the Anti-Abortion Language They Despise So Much

Ace of Spades HQ  | Links  | Related | Mar 19, 2010 05:25 PM EST

This is a bad one. Thanks to Drew. And Now Anh Cao: He's going to 'reconsider' over the weekend. He wants what the fake-pro-life Democrats want -- an empty CYA promise from radical pro-abortionist Nancy Pelosi and the pro-abortion Senate...

Stay Here -- By: Kathryn Jean Lopez

The Corner  | Links  | Related | Mar 19, 2010 05:23 PM EST

We'll -- needless to say -- be working for the weekend ...

U.S. Rep. Altmire To Vote No

Riehl World View  | Links  | Related | Mar 19, 2010 05:21 PM EST

Altmire confirmed that he has decided to vote no in a telephone conversation with KDKA Political Editor Jon Delano.

Hatch Issues a Warning as Harry Reid Stays in Town -- By: Kathryn Jean Lopez

The Corner  | Links  | Related | Mar 19, 2010 05:20 PM EST

WASHINGTON - With prolife House Democrats attempting to fix portions of the Senate health care bill that allow taxpayer funding of abortion as a separate measure, U.S. Senator Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) said today that they should remember that neither the Democratic Leadership in the Senate nor the White House has given any assurances that it would secure the necessary 60 votes to pass the Senate.  Hatch issued the following statement:   “Prolife Democrats in the House, who supported the Stupak amendment, are coming under intense pressure to vote for the Senate health care bill and are desperately trying to find a way to change those provisions that allow taxpayer funding of abortion.  I wish it were that easy.  But to my friends in the House, who are looking to pass a fix separately, I have a regrettable piece...

This Is a Real Shame -- By: Kathryn Jean Lopez

The Corner  | Links  | Related | Mar 19, 2010 05:19 PM EST

I've long admired the fact that Sean Hannity has devoted so much time -- the summer concerts, etc. -- to the Freedom Alliance's scholarships for children of military heroes who have been injured or killed in the service of freedom. Freedom Alliance and Sean have been subjected to some attacks in recent days. Freedom Alliance has responded to the allegations and their letter is below: March 18, 2010 Dear Friends of Freedom Alliance: This week, false and malicious allegations about Freedom Alliance were posted on the Internet and we want to address them with you. We don’t know the motivation for these vicious smears, but we will not allow them to go unanswered. First, we want to thank you for your support and assure you that Freedom Alliance’s record of financial stewardship and programmatic...

Some members of Stupak bloc trying to make a deal with Pelosi Update: Ellsworth to vote yes, Cao might “reconsider” his no

HotAir  | Links  | Related | Mar 19, 2010 05:17 PM EST

Heart-ache.