Obama's Big Sellout

[unionguy]

OK everyone, Your assignment for today is to read Matt Taibbi's well written article Obama's Big Sellout (http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/story/31234647/obamas_big_sellout/print) in this month's Rolling Stone Magazine. We will have discussion time tomorrow. Class dismissed.

[unionguy]

With Obama's poll numbers dropping like a rock, he really needs to find support somewhere. I guess my brotherhood are no longer going to be there for him.
Firefighters Rip Obama For Breaking Campaign Promise Over Cadillac Tax

The International Association of Fire Fighters--an influential union that belongs to the AFL-CIO--has released the strongest condemnation yet of President Obama's support for taxing high-end health insurance plans as a means of financing a major health care overhaul--accusing him of breaking a campaign promise, and threatening to hold him accountable.

"If candidates make a promise to us, we hold them accountable. We held President Bush accountable when he made decisions that had a negative impact on our members' jobs and lives. We will do the same with President Obama," reads a statement from IAFF President Harold Schaitberger. "In 2008, then-candidate Obama promised three things: he said he would not raise taxes on folks making less than $250,000 a year; he vowed not to tax health insurance benefits; and he promised that under his health reform plan, people would be able to keep their existing coverage."


Now, President Obama supports the misguided excise tax passed by the Senate. The Senate bill will either subject the health care coverage provided to thousands of America's fire fighters to a tax or those benefits will be slashed to avoid the tax....
The president's support for the excise tax is a huge disappointment and cannot be ignored. If President Obama continues to support it and signs a bill that includes the excise tax on workers, we will hold him accountable.

The rebuke comes as Obama meets with a host of labor leaders, including AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka, at the White House tonight to sell them on his support of the tax, and find common ground.

Trumka made clear earlier today, that his organization's top priorities in health care reform are the public option, the employer mandate, and the elimination of the excise tax. With the public option gone, and Obama still foursquare behind the excise tax, it seems evident that the country's largest labor federation will walk away from the health care fight badly disappointed. Trumka, however, declined to say whether he could ultimately support a bill that didn't address his top priorities.

Tomorrow evening, House Democrats, who overwhelmingly oppose the excise tax in the Senate bill, will gather to discuss health care reform at a caucus meeting. You can bet the excise tax will be a key focal point for them.

You can read Schaitberger's entire statement below.


"The core political principle of this union is 'we support those who support us.' If candidates make a promise to us, we hold them accountable. We held President Bush accountable when he made decisions that had a negative impact on our members' jobs and lives. We will do the same with President Obama.
"Throughout the debate on health care reform - even before excise tax on so-called high-cost health plans was proposed - this union made it clear to Congress and President Obama that our goal is reducing health care costs, preserving the benefits our members already have and avoiding piling more taxes on the backs of hardworking Americans.

"In 2008, then-candidate Obama promised three things: he said he would not raise taxes on folks making less than $250,000 a year; he vowed not to tax health insurance benefits; and he promised that under his health reform plan, people would be able to keep their existing coverage.

"Now, President Obama supports the misguided excise tax passed by the Senate. The Senate bill will either subject the health care coverage provided to thousands of America's fire fighters to a tax or those benefits will be slashed to avoid the tax.

"We have made it clear to every senator and representative on Capitol Hill and President Obama that we are fully and completely opposed to this tax.

"The health care reform bill passed by the U.S. House of Representatives does not contain the excise tax, and the House leadership continues to stand with us. We applaud our House allies for their courage as they wage this battle. This union will continue to fight to keep the excise tax out of the final bill.

"The president's support for the excise tax is a huge disappointment and cannot be ignored. If President Obama continues to support it and signs a bill that includes the excise tax on workers, we will hold him accountable."

Talking Points Memo (http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/01/firefighters-rip-obama-for-breaking-campaign-promise-over-cadillac-tax.php?ref=fpb) - January 11, 2010

[johnr]

ALL Cadillac plans,wether Health Care, Car Leasing , Gasoline subsidies ,travel etc should be taxed AS INCOME, that it is.

This is a big mistake that American Unions are making with their"No tax my medical plan" complaints.

Compare this "Pull the the ladder up Jack ,I am aboard philosophy", of US Unions to the European and Canadian Unions, who fought ,regardless of how good their beni's were, for equal health care for all of the people.:)

It is beyond belief that these Union members think that they have good medical coverage when their children,if they have any, will be thrown to the Insurance wolves at 23 years of age or so, when the Union Plan of their parents drops them.:eek:

What Idiots that they cannot see that they have a bag of garbage.
Medical care should cover all from birh and be paid out of taxes.:eek:

Suummary; Good For Obama`Tax their Plans.:D

[johnr]

http://media.nzherald.co.nz/webcontent/image/jpg/AsifAliZardari_220x14795585.jpg:D:D:D

[unionguy]

ALL Cadillac plans,wether Health Care, Car Leasing , Gasoline subsidies ,travel etc should be taxed AS INCOME, that it is.

You don't think that health care is a little more important and more of a necessity then Car Leasing or Gasoline subsidies? I don't really think of your health care as a "company perk".


This is a big mistake that American Unions are making with their"No tax my medical plan" complaints.

Compare this "Pull the the ladder up Jack ,I am aboard philosophy", of US Unions to the European and Canadian Unions, who fought ,regardless of how good their beni's were, for equal health care for all of the people.

You do know that American labor unions have been fighting for universal health care for over 70 years (i.e. AFL-CIO (http://www.aflcio.org/issues/healthcare/)). But universal health care is not what is on the table, thanks to Obama who seems to be just a puppet to his corporate masters.


It is beyond belief that these Union members think that they have good medical coverage when their children,if they have any, will be thrown to the Insurance wolves at 23 years of age or so, when the Union Plan of their parents drops them.

What Idiots that they cannot see that they have a bag of garbage.
Medical care should cover all from birh and be paid out of taxes.:eek:

I don't think we should be slamming union members who have fought and struggled to keep the wages and benefits they rightly deserved while the rest of America drank the grape kool-aid that corporate America fed them, that they didn't need unions or universal health care. It is up to our children, just like it is up to us, to tell greedy corporate America that enough is enough and we deserve better. Yes, me and my brotherhood see that our health care is a "bag of garbage", its the rest of America that cannot see why we need universal health care.



Suummary; Good For Obama`Tax their Plans.:D

Summary; Time to roll over Obama, Tax everyone fairly, provide care for everyone. :D

[Bart Lidofsky]

You don't think that health care is a little more important and more of a necessity then Car Leasing or Gasoline subsidies? I don't really think of your health care as a "company perk".
I think it's more important. That does not mean that other things are not important, and it certainly does not mean that I think that the current monstrosity that is before the House will do anything more than put the government one step closer to stamping on our collective face with its boot. Forever.

[unionguy]

........ and it certainly does not mean that I think that the current monstrosity that is before the House will do anything more than put the government one step closer to stamping on our collective face with its boot. Forever.

You mean we will be more oppressed by our new corporatocracy goverment, where all our health care decisions will be decided by private health insurance companies with our government's help and everyone will be forced to become customers to these mighty health insurance companies who will be "stamping on our collective face with its boot"?

[unionguy]

So the list is long. It's hard to keep your promises to the people who voted for you if your trying to keep your opponents just as happy.


PROMISES, PROMISES: Many Obama pledges unkept

WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama ends his first year in office with his to-do list still long and his unfulfilled campaign promises stacked high.

From winding down the war in Iraq to limiting lobbyists, Obama has made some progress. But the president has faced political reality and accepted - sometimes grudgingly - compromises that leave him exposed to criticism. Promises that have proven difficult include pledges not to raise taxes, to curb earmarks and to shut down the Guantanamo Bay detention facility in Cuba by the end of his first year.

"We are moving systematically to bring about change, but change is hard," Obama told a town hall crowd in California. "Change doesn't happen overnight."

That was in March.

During his two-year campaign, Obama thrilled massive crowds with soaring speeches, often railing against an Iraq war that now is seldom mentioned. His presidential comments now are often sober updates on issues like terrorism and the economy, a top priority now that emerged as a major issue only in the campaign's final weeks.

Obama's campaign ambition has been diluted with a pragmatism that has been the hallmark of Year One - without much of the progress he had hoped.

A look at some of the promises:

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THE ECONOMY, TAXES AND DEFICITS

Obama inherited an economy in severe distress that has since shown marked improvement. With the crisis developing so close to last year's election, it wasn't the focus of his earlier campaign promises. But Obama managed to craft his main anti-recession measure to address one of the top political commitments.

He campaigned on a pledge to provide a $1,000 tax credit to 95 percent of all working families, and almost delivered.

The $787 billion stimulus bill included an $800 tax credit for couples making up to $150,000, and a declining credit for those making up to $190,000. The Tax Policy Center estimates that 90 percent of taxpayers qualified for a tax cut under the stimulus package.

In a Dover, N.H., campaign stop, Obama pledged that "no family making less than $250,000 will see their taxes increase - not your income taxes, not your payroll taxes, not your capital gains taxes, not any of your taxes."

True, unless you're a smoker.

Obama, himself an occasional smoker, signed into law a 159 percent increase in the tax on a pack of cigarettes. Other tobacco products were hit with similar or much steeper increases to help pay for a children's health initiative, enabling him to keep another promise to make sure all kids have health insurance.

Obama also promised to cut the federal budget deficit by more than half in his first term. That now appears unlikely, given the spending on the stimulus and the billions of dollars spent on bank and auto company bailouts. The 2009 federal budget deficit hit a record $1.42 trillion, and the red ink in the first two months of fiscal 2010 was nearly 6 percent higher than the same period in 2009.

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FOREIGN POLICY

As a candidate, Obama touted his early opposition to the Iraq war and pledged to pull all U.S. combat troops out within 16 months. As president, he pushed that deadline back two months, to August 2010.

Even then, he will leave 35,000 to 50,000 military personnel in Iraq through 2011 to train, equip and advise Iraqi security forces, and to help in counterterrorism missions.

As a candidate, he vowed to prosecute the war against al-Qaida in Afghanistan, arguing that Iraq had distracted the U.S. from its anti-terror priorities. By the end of his first year, he had retooled the Afghan war strategy, replaced the U.S. commander there, doubled the number of U.S. troops in the country and ordered another 30,000 there by the middle of this year.

He also promised to "end the use of torture without exception" in U.S. anti-terror campaigns and to close Guantanamo Bay, which he called "a recruiting tool for our enemies." He signed an executive order outlawing torture, cruelty and degrading treatment of prisoners. A companion order closing the Guantanamo prison has proven more challenging.

Congress refused to fund the transfer of any Guantanamo detainees to U.S. prisons, and foreign countries are reluctant to accept them. Obama did order the purchase of an Illinois prison to house up to 100 Guantanamo detainees. Still, Guantanamo cannot be closed until the disposition of more than 200 remaining detainees is resolved. A failed attempt at bombing a Detroit-bound airliner on Christmas has made that more difficult.

Obama also campaigned to restore U.S. prestige abroad by engaging allies and adversaries alike, a direct swipe at George W. Bush, his predecessor. Now, he's finding that rhetoric tough to live up to.

He vowed to use "tough, direct diplomacy" to keep Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. Once in office, he offered dialogue to Tehran, made direct appeals to the Iranian people and included Iran in multinational discussions, while insisting that Iran not be permitted to develop nuclear weapons.

The power centers in Tehran have largely shrugged, and Obama so far has been unable to unite a coalition of countries behind new economic sanctions intended to block Iran's development of nuclear weapons.

A solution for North Korea's nuclear program also remains elusive. Its envoy to the United Nations said his nation is willing to conduct talks, but only if all sanctions against it are lifted.

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TERRORISM

On his 2008 campaign Web site, Obama declared that "we must redouble our efforts to determine if the measures implemented since 9/11 are adequately addressing the threats our nation continues to face from airplane-based terrorism," including screening all passengers against "a comprehensive terrorist watch list."

The verdict on that promise came last month, when an alleged terrorist known to authorities boarded an airliner bound for Detroit from overseas carrying explosives in his clothes. Disaster was averted when he botched an attempt to ignite the bomb.

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HEALTH CARE

During his political run, Obama said he would increase the number of people covered by health insurance and pay for it by raising taxes on families making more than $250,000 a year and by taxing companies that do not offer coverage to employees.

Although lawmakers have taken steps toward the broad outline Obama promised, it remains unfinished. The House and Senate have passed versions of the plan, but major differences remain. And Obama's left flank is none too pleased with the compromises to this point, which have all but eliminated a government-run insurance option, something he called for in the campaign.

Even the process has violated one campaign pledge.

"We'll have the negotiations televised on C-SPAN, so that people can see who is making arguments on behalf of their constituents, and who are making arguments on behalf of the drug companies or the insurance companies," Obama said.

That hasn't happened. Instead, Democrats in Congress and the White House have made multibillion-dollar deals with hospitals and pharmaceutical companies in private. C-SPAN asked to televise the negotiations between the House and Senate versions; the White House insists it hasn't seen the request.

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OTHER ISSUES

On other domestic promises, from energy to education, Obama has been faced with a tight budget, a struggling economy and a deficit-conscious public that he will need to court if he seeks another term in 2012.

Early on, he had to recant his pledge not to sign legislation that includes lawmakers' pet projects. "When I'm president, I will go line by line to make sure that we are not spending money unwisely," Obama had said in September.

But Congress controls spending, and Obama hasn't been willing to veto bills approved by his Democratic allies on Capitol Hill. For example, he signed what he called an "imperfect" $410 billion spending bill that included 7,991 so-called "earmarks" totaling $5.5 billion. He had little choice. The measure, a holdover from the Bush presidency, was needed to keep government from shutting down.

Obama also promised to require lawmakers seeking money for earmarks to justify their requests in writing 72 hours before they're voted on in Congress.

That hasn't happened yet. Nor has his pledge to post legislation online for five days before acting; he broke that pledge with his first bill, a non-emergency measure giving workers more time to bring pay discrimination lawsuits. A promised ban on lobbyists serving in his administration hasn't been absolute; a few former lobbyists were granted exemptions.

White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs explained that by saying:

"Even the toughest rules require reasonable exceptions."

Associated Press (http://apnews.myway.com/article/20100114/D9D7MDGG0.html)- January 14, 2010

[unionguy]

I think it's more important. That does not mean that other things are not important.

So, you believe that these things should be taxed? :eek:

I can't see taxing something that are taxes should be paying for. It was like when I was in the military, I couldn't understand why the government taxed my Army pay when the government were the ones paying me or when New York state taxes lottery winnings that they are paying you. :confused:

[Bart Lidofsky]

So, you believe that these things should be taxed? :eek:

I can't see taxing something that are taxes should be paying for. It was like when I was in the military, I couldn't understand why the government taxed my Army pay when the government were the ones paying me or when New York state taxes lottery winnings that they are paying you. :confused:
I am saying that stopping all other government business until the federal government starts grabbing control over individual health care is probably a bad idea. And the current "health care" plan has more to do with increasing the power of the federal bureaucracy than it does with helping the health of Americans. Look at what's happening in New York, where any current fad in health is becoming enshrined into law.