Peter Roskam’s Scare-athon Continues… All Fear, All the Time

On 11.18.09, In Homeland Security, Mark Kirk, Peter Roskam, Terrorism, By RSR

TARGET_ILLINOIS

My brother used to have a dog, a big mutt, who’d lived only to fetch a green tennis ball.  All day long that dog would carry the ball around and beg you to throw it for him. And he’d bring it back and want you to throw it again…and again…and again…all day long. The dog didn’t want to do anything else. And because he had that ball in his mouth all day, it got all wet and slobbery…pretty gross…and you didn’t really want to touch it, but the dog would insist. That was his only trick. I think the dog was kind of dim.

That dog reminds me of Peter Roskam. Peter was at it again today…his one trick…trying to scare the hell out of his constituents, and it is getting pretty old. Roskam proudly tweeted earlier today that his followers should watch him on MSNBC’s Morning Meeting where he had spoken about “Al-Quaeda possibly coming to Illinois”. Turns out he was on with Rep Bruce Braley, a Democrat from Iowa’s 1st District, which is right across the Misssissippi from Thomson, Illinois, home of the prison that is being considered to house inmates presently incarcerated at Guantanamo Bay. Here’s the video:

Roskam spouted the same tired old talking points, trying to scare you. Braley, on the other hand, demonstrated what we would expect from a Congresman: he had been out to the site and inspected it, had been briefed by federal officials, had talked it over with citizens. Why can’t we have a real Representative like Braley, firmly rooted in reality?

Braley wasn’t the only one to call Roskam on his scare tactics. Just yesterday BOTH major Chicago newspapers criticized the antics of Roskam, Mark Kirk, and the other Republican fearmongers.

Here’s what the Tribune had to say:

…when Republicans heard that the Obama administration is looking at buying the largely vacant Thomson Correctional Facility to house some detainees now held at Guantanamo (as well as ordinary maximum security prisoners), they reacted as though Osama bin Laden had been given the keys to a missile silo…

…Give us a break. A super-maximum security prison, such as Thomson would become, is not what most of us associate with the word “neighborhood.” The critics seem to forget that no one has ever escaped from a supermax. If having a terrorist imprisoned on our soil were an invitation for his confederates to slaughter innocent Chicagoans, it would surely have happened already…

…We don’t think the residents of Illinois will buy into the panic the opponents are trying to stoke. And while the change would surely bring economic benefits and jobs to a depressed corner of the state, the best reason for using Thomson for these inmates is that Guantanamo needs to be closed and they have to be locked up securely somewhere…

…It’s a vital responsibility that Illinois citizens are not likely to shirk.

And the Sun-Times:

America’s federal prisons are full of people who scare the hell out of us — mob hit men, mass murderers and international terrorists. We arrest and charge such fiends, give them a fair trial and, if they are found guilty, lock them up. We do not quake in fear. We do not shelve our values. We do not cheap out on due process — a fair day in court for even the worst human beings, homegrown or foreign.

…Kirk’s scare talk might do him wonders with the GOP base, but it won’t convince a single terrorist that this nation has a backbone.

Nor will it create a single job in northwest Illinois…

…Federal prisons are skilled in dealing with high-risk inmates (the mobster Frank Calabrese Sr. comes to mind) who try to plot from behind bars. They are subjected to special administrative measures, which typically include solitary confinement, drastic restrictions on visitors and a close eye on all communications.

In the case of the Guantanamo detainees at Thomson, they will be isolated from other prisoners and supervised by the Department of Defense. Under DOD rules, they will be allowed visits only from lawyers.

Guantanamo, where American values go to die, is nothing more than a worldwide recruitment tool for terrorists.

Even Republican stalwarts Grover Norquist, Bob Barr, and and David Keene are critical of Roskam and Kirk’s scare tactics:

The scaremongering about these issues should stop. Using a state of the art but little used prison facility like the one at Thomson, Illinois – with any appropriate security upgrades our law enforcement professionals deem necessary – makes good sense for the tax payers who invested $145 million in the facility and who are seeing millions wasted every month at the costly, inefficient Guantanamo facility. It makes sense for the community which will benefit from the related employment and has absolutely no reason to fear that prisoners will escape or be released into their communities. But most of all it makes sense for America because it is a critical link in the process of closing Guantanamo and getting this country back to using its tried and true, constitutionally sound institutions.

So I wish Peter Roskam would just shut up about Guantanamo and Thomson. His rhetoric is becoming about as attractive as that dog’s slobbery green tennis ball.

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On to health care reform. Peter Roskam emitted another tweet this afternoon pointing to an article he wrote for Andrew Breitbart’s Big Government. (Guess the Tribune and the Sun-Times weren’t taking his calls.) The piece is titled: “Pelosi’s Healthcare Vision: Government Mandate or Jail”. It seems to be aimed directly at the Teabaggers, the only ones, I think who still take Roskam seriously.

Roskam starts out:

“Failing to purchase “acceptable health insurance coverage” could result in a fine punishable “up to $250,000 and/or imprisonment of up to five years.” Those are direct quotes from a letter of analysis done by the Joint Committee on Taxation, a non-partisan analysis committee in Congress. While that policy may not be one of Nancy Pelosi’s main talking points about her healthcare takeover legislation, it is an undoubtedly destructive portion of her healthcare bill, part of the reason it passed with only two votes to spare.”

There’s a picture of a scary prison corridor inserted after that paragraph.

Yes, more b.s. on the individual mandate. Yes, the House bill requires most Americans to purchase health insurance, with government subsidy if their income is such that they can’t afford it on their own. And yes, there is a tax that is applied only to those who opt out. The rationale for the mandate and the tax is to try to insure that everyone is covered, because when people who can afford insurance don’t buy insurance, we all end up paying for their care when they get into trouble. In effect, we are all already taxed for their irresponsibility.

When Peter Roskam refers to jail time, what he is really talking about is potential penalties that may apply to people who don’t pay their taxes. It the same as with any tax. If you refuse to pay your federal or state income taxes long enough, eventually you’ll go to jail.

Christopher Weaver, writing at Shot’s – NPR’s Health Blog today, did a good job of debunking Roskam on the mandate:

In any event, imprisonment of tax evaders is usually reserved for the most outrageous cases. The letter to Camp notes that the Internal Revenue Service usually pursues unpaid taxes through the civil process — meaning no jail time. In 2008, fewer than 500 people were incarcerated because of the penalties the Republicans are fretting about.

So again, Peter Roskam, is just stirring up needless fear in the minds of his most impressionable constituents. The rest of us are just growing weary  and irritated.

On a brighter note:

Our future Congressman, Ben Lowe of  Wheaton, today initiated a capability for online donations at his website. I hope everyone will visit  and give him some help to get his campaign up and running.

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Call Peter Roskam Today and Ask Him to Vote for H.R. 3962, the Affordable Health Care for America Act

On 11.06.09, In Healthcare, Peter Roskam, By RSR

(202) 225-4561

Hey, miracles can happen. Maybe Peter was visited by three ghosts last night or something.

scrooge

The House is expected to vote on the bill on Saturday and  every vote is important.

So ask Roskam to vote in favor of the Democratic plan to ensure affordable healthcare coverage for all Americans and against the ridiculous Republican alternative that will result in higher premiums and watered down coverage and will actually increase the number of uninsured Americans. You can read a detailed summary of H.R. 3962 here.

H.R. 3962 has been endorsed by the American Medical Association:

“On balance, H.R. 3962, The Affordable Health Care for America Act, is consistent with our principles of pluralism, freedom of choice, freedom of physician practice and universal access. It will significantly expand health insurance coverage to Americans to empower patient and physician decision making; institute meaningful insurance market reforms; make substantial investments in quality; institute prevention and wellness initiatives; provide incentives to states that adopt certificate of merit and/or early offer liability reforms, and reduce administrative burdens.”

“H.R. 3962 is not the perfect bill, and we will continue to advocate for changes, but it goes a long way toward expanding access to high-quality affordable health coverage for all Americans, and it would make the system better for patients and physicians,” Dr. Rohack said. “This is not the last step but the next step toward health system reform. We will remain actively engaged with patients, physicians, Congress and the administration to ensure that the final bill results in marked improvements to our health system.”

H.R. 3962 has been endorsed by the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP):

AARP Chief Executive A. Barry Rand said the organization supports the House bill over other proposals because the measure does more to lower drug costs for Medicare beneficiaries, strengthen Medicare and bar insurance companies from denying people coverage because of their health or age. The bill also would lower premiums for Americans ages 50 to 64 who have to buy insurance in the private market and would create a voluntary long-term care insurance program.

“Under the House plan… insurance companies will not be able to reject you or charge you an outrageous premium because you got sick once, you may get sick again, you lost your job, you’re over 50 years old or because your employer dropped your coverage,” Rand said at the briefing. “Millions of Americans will start to regain control over their lives.”

H.R. 3962 has been endorsed by the American Cancer Society:

The insurance reforms proposed in the Affordable Health Care for America Act represent a tremendous improvement over the current system. Cancer patients and survivors will no longer face the loss of affordable coverage due to their illness. These critical changes include:

  • Elimination of the use of pre-existing medical conditions and health status in determining insurance premium rates, and limiting rating differential to 2:1 on the basis of age, geography, and family size only;
  • Guaranteed issue and renewal of insurance policies, and the elimination of rescissions except in the case of fraud; ? Elimination of annual and lifetime benefit caps;
  • Establishment of a national health insurance exchange to facilitate access and affordability;
  • Provision of premium subsidies for low- and middle-income families;
  • And limits on out-of-pocket expenses.

ACS CAN supports the national approach to health insurance exchanges. We believe that a national model can greatly facilitate making quality, affordable health care more uniform across the country over time. We support the subsidies covering individuals and families up to 400 percent of the federal poverty level. Health insurance is essential to good health, and it is imperative that we not put low- and middle-income individuals and families in a position where the cost of insurance threatens their financial viability.

H.R. 3962 has been endorsed by the American Academy of Family Physicians:

Family physicians particularly appreciate that the revised legislation would provide health insurance coverage for some 96 percent of Americans and would reduce the federal deficit by $30 billion. It is particularly noteworthy that the Congressional Budget Office has estimated that the revised bill would also lower health care costs overall by accelerating the applicability of the medical home and other health care delivery improvement models.

H.R. 3962 has been endorsed by the Consumers Union:

In addition to key consumer protections that eliminate current anti-consumer practices like excluding applicants who have pre-existing conditions, the bill makes health insurance more affordable and secure. It includes a wealth of major health reforms—far too many to single them all out. We particularly support:

  • the provision on comparative effectiveness research, which will help consumers and their medical providers better determine the most effective treatment options;
  • public reporting of health-care acquired infection rates: public disclosure will help consumers and providers focus on reducing these deadly infections, which are killing 100,000 Americans per year;
  • a new public health insurance option in a National Health Insurance Exchange.

Of course the bill has not been endorsed by angry teabaggers:

obama=nazi

Who will Peter Roskam listen to?

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Idiotic Republican Healthcare Plan INCREASES Numbers of Uninsured, Saves Less

On 11.05.09, In Healthcare, Peter Roskam, By RSR

Well we’ve listened to Peter Roskam for months badmouthing Democratic efforts to address the nation’s growing healthcare crisis. During that time what’s been missing is Roskam’s own plan to make healthcare affordable and available to all Americans.

johnboehner

Well the wait is over and the plan is in. And it is really, really stupid.

It came the other day in the form of an ammendment to H.R. 3962, the Affordable Healthcare for America Act, offered  House Minority Leader and Chief Idiot John Boehner. The Boehner ammendment essentially replaces all of the provisions of that bill, the House Democratic plan, with a great big Christmas present to the healthcare industry.

Yesterday the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), which Peter Roskam has repeatedly cited as authoritative in discussing the Democratic plans, released its evaluation of the Boehner ammendment. You can read the whole thing here.

Essentially though, the CBO finds that the Republican plan would actually increase the number of Americans with no health insurance coverage by 2019 when population growth is considered. The CBO found that the Republican plan would make it possible for only an additional 3 million Americans to obtain health coverage (compared to 34 million for the House Democratic plan) making not even a dent in the percentage of American without coverage. 17% now. 17% in 2019. This compared with the Democratic plan which reduces the percentage of uninsured to 4% in the same period.

Ironically, the Republican plan will only cut the deficit by $68 billion, compared to $104 billion for the Democratic plan.

The Washington Post’s Ezra Klein sums it up well:

The Democratic bill, in other words, covers 12 times as many people and saves $36 billion more than the Republican plan. And amazingly, the Democratic bill has already been through three committees and a merger process. It’s already been shown to interest groups and advocacy organizations and industry stakeholders. It’s already made its compromises with reality. It’s already been through the legislative sausage grinder. And yet it saves more money and covers more people than the blank-slate alternative proposed by John Boehner and the House Republicans.

The Democrats, constrained by reality, produced a far better plan than Boehner, who was constrained solely by his political imagination and legislative skill.This is a major embarrassment for the Republicans. It’s one thing to keep your cards close to your chest. Republicans are in the minority, after all, and their plan stands no chance of passage. It’s another to lay them out on the table and show everyone that you have no hand, and aren’t even totally sure how to play the game. The Democratic plan isn’t perfect, but in comparison, it’s looking astonishingly good.

Key to the Republican plan are a couple of provisions that Peter Roskam likes to tout:  capping damages in medical malpractice cases and allowing insurance companies to sell policies across state lines.  These are huge gifts to the healthcare industry which has poured so much money into the campaign coffers of Roskam and other Republicans. They are also huge mistakes.

Capping malpractice damages would effectively immunize healthcare provider conglomerates against negative consequences when they screw up. This would reduce the incentive that healthcare providers currently have to improve quality and prevent errors and would leave consumers who are harmed by medical errors or negligence with little recourse.

Allowing policies to be sold across state lines would mean that health insurers would flock to jurisdictions where insurance regulations are minimal. Premiums would rise and benefit plans would shrink. Consumers will pay more for health insurance and get less.

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Peter Roskam’s Constituents Need Health Coverage – Roskam Gives Them a Blog Instead

On 06.25.09, In Economic Justice, Healthcare, Peter Roskam, By RSR

In his latest attempt to distract 6th District residents from his absolute refusal to do anything to meet their real needs, Republican Congressman Peter Roskam has launched the “Medi-Fraud Blog” at his Congressional website.  Aside from using your tax dollars to in another misguided public relations scheme to shore up his image in the district, Roskam’s new blog has two main goals:

  • To distract you from the real issues in the current national discussion as to how we can best insure the 45 million Americans who currently have no health coverage
  • To scare you into believing that real health reform is just too dangerous an undertaking now with all the scary criminals seeking to defraud the government and that the 45 million Americans who don’t have access to the quality healthcare that Roskam’s family receives courtesy of the taxpayers will just have to wait … for oh say 10 to 20 years until we can get this fraud thing under control.

Peter Roskam’s press secretary, Dan, each day will tell you a story about some crooks who made a killing defrauding Medicare – until they got caught. It will be just like  “COPS” on a blog except that everyone will be wearing their shirts.

Well at least this will give you something cool to read while you are performing your own appendectomy at the kitchen table. (This is may not be so bad an idea. My goodfriend Jon had our other friend Tony, who is a pretty good mechanic, sew up a nasty gash in his leg last summer because Jon didn’t have any insurance. It left kind of a big scar but there was no infection. So you can probably do it too – if Roskam doesn’t change his mind about health insurance for everyone).

Did I mention that Peter Roskam is working against universal coverage? Because that is the most important thing you need to know. Your Congressman, Peter Roskam, the one guy who’s job it is to work to  get you a fair shake in Washington, is actively working to defeat any Democratic proposal to give insurance coverage to people here in Illinois who don’t presently have any. It would be too expensive, a misuse of your tax dollars.

And did I mention that Peter Roskam has an excellent health plan for himself and his family, paid for by your tax dollars? I wrote about it once before here. I guess that’s part of why it just doesn’t matter to Congressman Roskam whether we do anything about health reform this year. His family is already taken care of.

So, enjoy Peter’s blog. And be sure and post your comments about what a great Congressman Peter Roskam is because he’s fighting the commies in Washington who want to make sure everybody has healthcare whether they’re rich or a Congressman or not. (Be nice. Dan will be weeding out all the bad things people say). And good luck with that appendectomy.

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