Obama Lies About Lies

Wow! Where to start? Hmm...let's go through the transcript from the President's speech shall we?


On the Recession

August 1, 2009 : CNNMoney

President Barack Obama warned Saturday it would take "many more months" for the United States to get out of recession

September 9, 2009

"thanks to the bold and decisive action we've taken since January, I can stand here with confidence and say that we have pulled this economy back from the brink"

So is the recession going to last "many more months" or is it over?


On the number of uninsured

Over and over again all of the Demowhacks and BHO have been pushing this number of 46-47 million (often couched as almost 50 million) Americans that have no health care. Analysis has shown that number breaks down like this:

18 million can afford it but don't want to pay for it (Leaves 32 million)
8.4 million are 18 to 24 and think they are invincible (Leaves 23.6 million)
12.6 million are illegal aliens (Leaves 11 million)
9.4 million are only temporarily uninsured until they get a job (Leaves 1.6 million)
Some of those are covered by government programs but haven't signed up

Strangely enough, if you read the transcript, you will see that this magical number of 47 million somehow decreased overnight to 30 million.

"There are now more than 30 million American citizens who cannot get coverage."

I guess they decided they better stop count illegal aliens.


On Medicare and Medicaid

Regarding Medicare and Medicaid, here is what Obama had to say:

"Finally, our health care system is placing an unsustainable burden on taxpayers. When health care costs grow at the rate they have, it puts greater pressure on programs like Medicare and Medicaid. If we do nothing to slow these skyrocketing costs, we will eventually be spending more on Medicare and Medicaid than every other government program combined."

His theory is that rising costs cause people to not be able to afford healthcare and then go on to Medicare or Medicaid, raising the cost of those programs. What he fails to recognize is one of the major factors in pushing up the cost of medicine for everyone not on Medicare and Medicaid is the ridiculously paltry sum that the government pays providers for Medicare and Medicaid care, causing them to have to pad their costs to people with private insurance to be able to stay in business.


On How to Reform

"Since health care represents one-sixth of our economy, I believe it makes more sense to build on what works and fix what doesn't, rather than try to build an entirely new system from scratch."

So his idea of what works is government control ala Medicare and Medicaid which are going bankrupt? Or will they model it after Social Security - oh yeah, that's going bankrupt too. How about open competition in the market place - I guess that's too conservative an idea and doesn't give the Demowhacks enough power to keep them happy.


On Partisanship

"But what we've also seen in these last months is the same partisan spectacle that only hardens the disdain many Americans have towards their own government."

Partisanship? Really? Like when Obama stated, "We won."? Or like when Pelosi stated that since they were in power, they would write the bill? Or the fact that the President has not asked Republicans to the White House to discuss their ideas since April? I do believe, Mr. President, that making a charge of partisanship against the Republicans is akin to the pot calling the kettle black. I'm sure some people will think that is racist, but that is how the saying goes, so get over it.


On Details for Obama's Plan

"nothing in this plan will require you or your employer to change the coverage or the doctor you have. Let me repeat this: Nothing in our plan requires you to change what you have. "

Really? So all the people who read the section in the legislation coming out of the house where it stated that if anything at all in your plan changed, the premium, the coverage, whatever, you would be forced into the Public Option were just imagining it?

"This exchange will take effect in four years, which will give us time to do it right."

Translation: This will give me time to run for re-election, touting the fact that I passed health care reform before you have had to use it and figure out that it sucks!

"If some businesses don't provide workers health care, it forces the rest of us to pick up the tab when their workers get sick, and gives those businesses an unfair advantage over their competitors."

And if we force all business to provide health care to all their workers, people will lose their jobs (and therefore their insurance), and/or the additional health care costs will be passed on to the American people through increased prices. It's a zero sum game.

"And while there remain some significant details to be ironed out, I believe"

Really? You've been pushing this bill since January, wanted it signed by August, and you still have details to iron out? What the hell are you waiting for?


On the "Lies" Being Told About Obama's Plan

"claim made not just by radio and cable talk show hosts, but by prominent politicians, that we plan to set up panels of bureaucrats with the power to kill off senior citizens. "

No one claimed they will kill of senior citizens. Rather the claim is that care will be denied to seniors due to cost/benefit calculations to save money. If you don't think this will happen, take a look at the National Health System in Great Britain.

"There are also those who claim that our reform efforts would insure illegal immigrants. This, too, is false. The reforms -- the reforms I'm proposing would not apply to those who are here illegally."

Well, until now, Mr. President, you used a number that included illegal aliens. This time you saw fit to subtract them, but I would bet that there is no provision for checking citizenship status before providing care. If you write restrictions into the bill, but no provisions for enforcement, you are just giving lip service. Hell, you Demowhacks don't like to even require ID for voting, and that requirement of citizenship to vote is in the Constitution itself!

"And one more misunderstanding I want to clear up -- under our plan, no federal dollars will be used to fund abortions"

Yet back in July 2007, this is what he said to Planned Parenthood:

"We’re going to set up a public plan that all persons and all women can access if they don’t have health insurance. It will be a plan that will provide all essential services, including reproductive services"

Obama did not use the word "abortion," but a spokesman for the campaign said later that abortion would be included. Caught again, Liar-in-chief!

"a strong majority of Americans still favor a public insurance option of the sort I've proposed tonight"

What Obama is referring to is a poll that said that 77 percent of Americans feel it is important to have a choice between a government-run health care insurance option and private coverage. Liberals say this is support for the public option. Really? Sounds more like support for "choice". And in fact, when the question was rephrased as "Would you favor or oppose creating a public health care plan administered by the federal government that would compete directly with private health insurance companies?", the numbers come back as 43 percent support the public option, and 47 percent oppose it. Not a majority at all.

"I will not sign it if it adds one dime to the deficit, now or in the future, period. And to prove that I'm serious, there will be a provision in this plan that requires us to come forward with more spending cuts if the savings we promised don't materialize. "

And who do you suppose will force you to enforce that provision against yourselves?

"we've estimated that most of this plan can be paid for by finding savings within the existing health care system, a system that is currently full of waste and abuse... And this is also true when it comes to Medicare and Medicaid...The only thing this plan would eliminate is the hundreds of billions of dollars in waste and fraud, as well as unwarranted subsidies in Medicare that go to insurance companies -- subsidies that do everything to pad their profits but don't improve the care of seniors. "

So there is $900 billion of fraud and waste going on in Medicare and Medicaid? And you expect to start fixing that in 4 years? How about now?

"Everyone in this room knows what will happen if we do nothing."

A common straw man argument. No one on the right is saying do nothing. We can fix health care in 3 quick steps:

1) Remove exclusions for pre-exisiting conditions - this will slightly increase prices, but it's the humane thing to do.

2) Tort reform - this will decrease medical insurance costs and decrease prices.

3) Allow policies to be sold across the country, rather than being restricted state by state. This will increase competition and decrease prices.

Now, let's fix Social Security

1) Raise the eligibility age (it was originally set at life expectancy, but people are living longer)

2) Means testing - if you make more than $1 million a year, do you really nead $1500 a month?

3) Eliminate the ceiling on income that is taxable - at the same time you can lower the tax rate.

Now to fix taxes

1) Tax every dollar above the poverty level a flat rate

2) No exceptions, no exemptions, no tax credits (besides those below the poverty level).

3) Lower tax rate while receiving more revenue

If you need any other advice, Mr. President, feel free to contact me.