Comments on: Vetoes Leave Congress Settling for “Good,” Not “Perfect”

By: LHKMAN

LHKMAN — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 17:34:15 +0000

So “Terrible Tommy Tancredo” will no doubt be succeeded by a conservative Republican. That may not be so bad — if the conservative Republican has any interest in representing his/her district, something no one can accuse Terrible Tommy of doing.

But I digress. Frankly, I’m tired of hearing Salazar and other Democrats whine about GWB and his irrational vetoes, blaming Republicans for not providing the votes to override Bush. These guys are so corrupted by the system that all a Republican Senator has to do is utter the word “filibuster” and they all pack up a day early and go home. Whatever happened to taking up the challenge? Let them filibuster. Let them read the phone book and recipe books while standing on their feet round the clock, the way filibusters always have been conducted. At least the American people would see first hand who the obstructionists are. This Casper Milquetoast approach of the Democrats contributes to voter distrust and disgust with the ineffective Democrats who supposedly control Congress. As is said during a real filibuster periodically to make sure the filibusters stay and fight the fight instead of packing it in and going home: Mr. Chairman, I detect the lack of a quorum.

By: Wildflower

Wildflower — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 00:02:49 +0000

Finslly Sen. Salazar has realized the “my way or the highway” attitude of Bush. What took him so long?
Forget renewable energy I guess, let’s keep selling that oil, although D.C. does not seem to be short on wind.
Sen. Allard has government-subsidized health care himself, why does he want to deny it to others?
We simply can’t wait until after Jan. 2009 to get health care to children and adults who don’t have health insurance!
We must forget abt. taking down the HMO’s and Drug Cos. and start “Budget HMO” now, for anyone who doesn’t have health insurance, period. If Medicare can do it for $100 mo., why can’t “Budget HMO”?

If we can’t get tax money, “Budget HMO” needs a start-up philanthropic backer, perhaps Ted Turner or Bill Gates have a few billion they don’t want to pay taxes on this year? It is evil for us to continue to deny people health care or have them go bankrupt.

By: LHKMAN

LHKMAN — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 22:01:06 +0000

Well, Wildflower, I am inclined to agree with you, or at least with where you want to go on healthcare. Do not forget, though, that Medicare is spending far more than it takes in each year, and absent some pretty significant changes reasonably soon, will become a great drain on the federal budget. As we have discussed in other message threads, there is no such thing as a free lunch. We Americans have to decide what it is we want (and what it is that we are willing to do without) and how much we are prepared to pay for it. I am on Medicare (traditional Medicare, where I get to choose my own doctors, etc.) and I thank my fellow taxpayers for having subsidized me through some major medical problems the past few years. I know my taxes while working and paying into SS and Medicare, and my monthly premiums do not begin to cover the cost of major medical procedures.