#GOP Attempts to Avoid Valid Criticism

Did you hear the Republicans at their Political Convention?

They called Obama a blamer; one who blames others and does not accept responsibility!

Accepting responsibility is proper for actions or lack there of when decisions are in or under your control.Our system requires agreement between legislative branches of government and the executive; compromise.

Barack Obama is not personal responsibility for the deregulation of the finance industry which lead to greed fraud and abuse that crashed our economy. These abuses occurred during the George W. Bush Dick Cheney Presidential Administration with a republican controlled congress for six of those eight years.

Here we have the Republicans blaming Barack Obama for something the Republican Presidential Administration and Republican lead Congress is responsible for over the last ten years.

REPUBLICANS FAIL to accept responsibility for their actions which were a major contribution to the failures in our economy causing a great recession; leaving American Citizens with bankruptcy, homelessness, empty bank accounts, retirement accounts gone (used to manage living these past three years after the crash) and they attempt to convince folks that Barack Obama is the blamer who fails to accept responsibility?

It is the Republican congress who choose not to compromise on what they promised during the 2008 Election cycle. The GOP ran on and promised jobs. And then they purposely opposed every executive or legislative initiative to create an environment for government to support private industry jobs or to have the government actually create jobs. Yes, the government creates jobs, they hire militarily men/women; they hire military industrial complex private corporations to make things for us; they hire construction engineering firms, architects, engineers, and a variety of construction sub-contractors to build roads, bridges and perform maintainance.

The Republicans owe America an apology, they need to accept responsibility and citizens need to place blame on the Republicans; where blame belongs.

Fronting valid criticism with misleading statements, untrue opinions, and out right lies about the who is responsible and who should accept responsibility for damaging America.  

Republican Words vs. Actions [] Medicare

Here is what the Mitt Romney Republican Candidacy actually means to the medical insurance program folks have been paying into for decades. He has failed to put concrete legislative proposals  and or a budget in place to fully examine; but the actions of the Republican lead House of Representatives and the actions of the Republicans as a minority party in the Senate leave absolutely no question about their plans.

We want to Protect today's Medicare Program:

Key Elements of Mitt’s Plan

• Nothing changes for current seniors or those nearing retirement (Untrue, as the existing Medicare Program participation is reduced, less folks are enrolled which means program costs are shared by less people and the costs associated with operating the plan will rise. Meaning higher costs, reduced services or a Republican Party who will use the consequences they created with their policies as an excuse to try to end the program).
• Medicare is reformed as a premium support system, meaning that existing spending is repackaged as a fixed-amount benefit to each senior that he or she can use to purchase an insurance plan (This statement runs counter to the intent and meaning of insurance coverage. Insurance is meant to take a "Large number of similar exposure units" [eg. retired senior citizens]: Since insurance operates through pooling resources, the majority of insurance policies are provided for individual members of large classes, allowing insurers to benefit from the law of large numbers in which predicted losses are similar to the actual losses.Less members higher costs or reduced services!)
• All insurance plans must offer coverage at least comparable to what Medicare provides today (Placing a private for profit insurance carrier between the patient and a doctor is NOT better than having a not-for-profit single-payer system. At the very least, private insurance companies are in business to make a profit for shareholders, policy holders are not for profit insurance carriers primary concern).
• If seniors choose more expensive plans, they will have to pay the difference between the support amount and the premium price; if they choose less expensive plans, they can use any leftover support to pay other medical expenses like co-pays and deductibles (Placing different levels of insurance for consumer choice is not a bad thing. Fact is, today's Medicare Program Standard Service Plan offerings are not available for the dollar value offered by the Romney premium support [VOUCHER Plan Proposed] payment. Vouchers will not buy an equivalent coverage to today's Medicare Insurance. And adjustments for future costs will NOT keep up with Medical Services Inflation. All participants in private insurance plans will likely loose 5% or 6 % of their full premium cost a year.)
• “Traditional” fee-for-service Medicare will be offered by the government as an insurance plan, meaning that seniors can purchase that form of coverage if they prefer it; however, if it costs the government more to provide that service than it costs private plans to offer their versions, then the premiums charged by the government will have to be higher and seniors will have to pay the difference to enroll in the traditional Medicare option (Who negotiates the fee for service payment costs, either the government or a private for profit insurance company. Costs would be dramatically reduced if there was one single-payer Medicare Program. This allows not-for-profit insurance administrators to spread the risk among all participants; therefore lower costs.)
• Lower income seniors will receive more generous support to ensure that they can afford coverage; wealthier seniors will receive less support (I'm from Missouri, the "Show Me State" show me the written legislation so the support structure for all participants can be reviewed and verified)
• Competition among plans to provide high quality service while charging low premiums will hold costs down while also improving the quality of coverage enjoyed by seniors (Unfortunately this is NOT true. Insurance carriers are exempt from some restraint of trade laws allowing them to participate in anti-competitive activities. We know private insurance has done nothing to hold down costs. Witness the private insurance history of escalating costs below). 

 If we want to protect the Medicare Program as it presently exists, we extend and offer the program to every citizen of the United states of America. This way, the folks can use the free market concepts to choose the best service provider no matter where they are located, no matter whether they belong to one private insurance carrier plan or not.

True free market enterprise in health care is one single insurance payer and unlimited choice to use whatever doctor, hospital or clinic you wish. You choose the best based on the reputation and ability to provide the best health care service.

Republican politicians have it wrong, they'll get over it!

• Escalating Health Care Costs

  Families, business, and state and federal budgets are straining under skyrocketing health care costs.
  
  Employer-sponsored health insurance premiums have more than doubled in the last 9 years, a rate 3 times faster than cumulative wage increases.
  
  The United States spent approximately $2.2 trillion on health care in 2007, or $7,421 per person. This comes to 16.2% of GDP, nearly twice the average of other developed nations.
  
  Health care costs doubled from 1996 to 2006, and are projected to rise to 25% of GDP in 2025 and 49% in 2082.
  
  The proportion of spending attributable to Medicare and Medicaid in the health system is expected to rise from 4 percent of GDP in 2007 to 19 percent of GDP in 2082, making it the principle driving force behind rising federal spending in the decades to come.
  
  Health care costs add $1,525 to the price of every General Motors vehicle. The company spent $4.6 billion on health care in 2007, more than the cost of steel.
  
  As a result of these crushing health care costs, American businesses are losing their ability to compete in the global marketplace. Health care at General Motors puts the company at a $5 billion disadvantage against Toyota, which spends $1,400 less on health care per vehicle.
  
  The average cost of an employer-based family insurance policy in 2008 was $12,680, which was nearly the annual earnings of a full-time minimum wage job.
  
  From 2000 to 2008, the percentage of employees with an annual deductible greater than $1000 increased from 1% to 18%. Among small businesses, more than one in three workers must spend at least $1000 out of pocket before their health benefits kick in.
  
  Half of all personal bankruptcies are at least partly the result of medical expenses.
  
  The typical elderly couple may have to save nearly $300,000 to pay for health costs not covered by Medicare alone.
  
  Eight in ten Americans are dissatisfied with the total cost of health care, and over half report paying for the cost of a major illness as a major problem.

Republican vs. American Values - The Record

 Let's review what Republican Party Policies gave to us from 2000 - 2008:

• Cut taxes for most citizens ended up starving government of adequate funding.
• Deregulated investment banking to bring unfettered free market principles back to business, created greedy investment banks that defrauded depositors by borrowing large sums of money from the Federal Reserve at extremely low interest rates, gambled on exotic financial instruments earning large fees and high interest rates for management while Federal Government Regulations protect depositors (FDIC Insurance) holding our government hostage to bail out these shysters.
• Created unbalanced Government Budgets which did not account for all actual government outlays (GOP never budgeted for off balance sheet expenditures like Middle East Wars) widening deficits.
•  Allow corporations to damage the environment and our financial system then prevent subpoena power to congressional oversight committees entrusted by our constitution to protect the people from such acts.
• Now, today call for further tax cuts and tax cut extensions due to the depressed economy brought upon the nation by the very same policies they call to action today.
• Create larger and larger government deficits with full knowledge that our citizens are aging will be cashing in on the insurance programs they paid for during their entire working life. GOP failed to properly budget for and fund these promises for an entire decade and today want the average citizen to believe we can't afford what the republican's purposefully created with deficit spending.

In short the activities which caused our problem today were imprudent tax cuts made by those who always talk about our job creators (Republicans, where are the jobs?). And when our government officials ought to have been planning to secure the benefits citizens paid for their entire working life rather they were offering corporate socialism to the job creators (no jobs) and fighting unpaid for wars. The campaign slogan of the Romney/Ryan ticket is "Bring America Back".

For 10 years Republican Policies were catering to the wealthiest of our nation taking the middle class in America to its knees; sending millions of ordinary citizens into bankruptcy, family's onto food stamps and into the welfare and medicaid social safety net systems. When President Barack Obama took over in 2009, the worst had not yet peaked. His policy shifts were good, have had the effect of ending the carnage.

3 years is insufficient time to dig America out of the "largest Republican hole" every created in the modern era, Especially when the Republican controlled House of Representatives never negotiated in good faith. When the Republican Senate minority used the cloture or  filibuster rules in every way possible to be sure AMERICA and therefore Barack Obama "never received a win". The Republican party's number one priority was to see that Barack Obama was a one term President.

The policies presented today by the Republican Party are a heavier dose of what were were provided during the years 200-2008. The Republicans want you to believe the correct course for America is to offering more tax cuts and deregulation (and to have average people sacrifice the benefits citizens have already paid for their entire life knowing the security they will need in their retirement years.


MEDICARE/MEDICAID:
Taxes Paid Years in Advance for Services Rendered at Retirement.

• 30 year old paid these taxes for at least 10 years
• 35 year old paid these taxes for at least 15 years
• 40 year old paid these taxes for at least 20 years
• 45 year old paid these taxes for at least 25 years
• 50 year old paid these taxes for at least 30 years
• 55 year old paid these taxes for at least 35 years
• 60 year old paid these taxes for at least 40 years
• 65 year old paid these taxes for at least 45 years

Tell the entire Republican party that their words which twist the truth are unacceptable. Tell then that you know when the GOP uses euphemisms to distort the truth. Tell them that the standard marketing done with Frank Lutz which tells the GOP which words to use to mislead average American citizens won't work this time around. The tax cuts for job creators did not create jobs, the deregulation lead to shenanigans and skulduggery all which hurt millions of people and created enormous debt.  

Tell the Republican party they will never get away with their budget proposals on Medicare, Social Security and their attempts to erase the American standards set for America's social safety net are a recipe for failure.


Tell your elected official the Republican Parties solution for our countries economic problems are unacceptable to you as a citizen of the United States of America.

Who Can Negotiate Health Care Costs?

You, your family, your doctor, your hospital, or is it the government and/or an insurance company.

Today received a bill for diagnostics (Standard Blood Work Tests) a routine set of tests for any citizen going to a physician for an annual check-up.

The Lab standard charges were $766.85.
The Insurance Company Health care Plan Negotiated Costs Approved at $96.25.

An uninsured person in in my locale pays almost $800 and an insured person pays almost $100.

You can not negotiate, your family can't negotiate, your doctor has no ability to negotiate (he signs insurance company agreement or is not an in-network healthcare provider choice in the network he did not agree with) so that leaves the private for profit insurance company and/or the government negotiating for you.

So who has your best interests at heart, a not-for profit government program like Medicare or your private for profit insurance company?

Citizens either pay full fare (uninsured) citizens pay private Insurance company negotiated rate (they differ) or citizens pay the government not for profit rate that every insured pays.

Imagine, the Republican party does not want to have the Medicare, Veterans Healthcare Services or Government Insurance Pools competing against the Healthcare Insurance Industry negotiating pricing with healthcare providers.

Further, the Republican party wishes tens of thousands of citizens to remain uninsured, do you now understand why?

Support a single payer system, one negotiation with payment of fair price to healthcare providers so healthcare professionals earn a healthy living, allowing every citizen health care coverage at the same cost.

Job Creation - Corporate Income Taxes & Reality

Taxing the wealthiest Americans a 35% rate vs. a 28% rate on every extra $1,000,000 of investment income if every other deduction for their business remains the same means this:

The former tax rate of 28% cost $280,000 in tax revenue leaving $780,000 of net income after taxes.

The revised tax rate of 35% cost $350,000 in tax revenue leaving $650,000 of net income revenue.

Any Republican Party official who says to you that a job creator will stop investing in existing businesses, create new businesses or the continued use of existing or new investment vehicles all of which sustain or create jobs are “full of beans”

Business owners are NOT going to stop investing because their investment only produces $650,000 rather than the $780,000 they earned in the years America gave them the gift of the George W. Bush Temporary Tax Cuts.

 

The job creators will continue to invest in products and services that people of the world will buy. Our government can pay down some of this unnecessary debt. And can assist our fellow citizen in need of food and healthcare for their family allowing them to buy products and services made by our job creators.

And it is about time we expand the investments in our countries infrastructure allowing our job creators to create better products and services and deliver it through out the world. We are a consumption economy, we need people buying products and services for greater job creation; we need a an increased revenue stream demonstrating government officials can balance income with expenses; NOT more tax cuts.

  

There are no smart business people who actually pay the standard tax rate. Every person who owns and operates a business uses deductions, depreciation's and other tax loop holes to reduce the actual tax rate that the job creator pays.


It is tiring keeping track of all the nonsense the Republican party tells to our citizens.


Sadly, many are incapable of knowing how badly they are being deceived.

#GOP Fairy Tales [] Fast Facts #10

Taxing the wealthiest Americans a 35% rate vs. a 28% rate on every extra $1,000,000 of investment income if every other deduction for their business remains the same means this:

The former tax rate of 28% cost $280,000 in tax revenue leaving $780,000 of net income after taxes.

The revised tax rate of 35% cost $350,000 in tax revenue leaving $650,000 of net income revenue.

Any Republican Party official who says to you that a job creator will stop investing in existing businesses, create new businesses or the continued use of existing or new investment vehicles all of which sustain or create jobs are “full of beans”

Business owners are NOT going to stop investing because their investment only produces $650,000 rather than the $780,000 they earned in the years America gave them the gift of the George W. Bush Temporary Tax Cuts.

 

The job creators will continue to invest in products and services that people of the world will buy. Our government can pay down some of this unnecessary debt. And can assist our fellow citizen in need of food and healthcare for their family allowing them to buy products and services made by our job creators.

And it is about time we expand the investments in our countries infrastructure allowing our job creators to create better products and services and deliver it through out the world. We are a consumption economy, we need people buying products and services for greater job creation; we need a an increased revenue stream demonstrating government officials can balance income with expenses; NOT more tax cuts.

  

There are no smart business people who actually pay the standard tax rate. Every person who owns and operates a business uses deductions, depreciation's and other tax loop holes to reduce the actual tax rate that the job creator pays.


It is tiring keeping track of all the nonsense the Republican party tells to our citizens.


Sadly, many are incapable of knowing how badly they are being deceived.