Following Rep. Foxx's lead, media conservatives compare health care reform to terrorism
On November 2, Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-NC) said on the House floor regarding health care legislation before the House: "I believe we have more to fear from the potential of that bill passing than we do from any terrorist right now in any country." Following Foxx's statement, Fox News' Glenn Beck compared health care reform to 9-11, and talk radio host Neal Boortz and the Fox Nation promoted Foxx's attack.
Foxx: Health care bill more dangerous "than any terrorist right now"
Speaking on the House floor on November 2, Foxx said:
FOXX: Thank you, Madame Speaker. Everywhere I go in my district, people tell me they are frightened. They are frightened about what is happening in this country. They fear for the future of our country. What they're talking about is that they fear for our freedoms, and they fear for the principles that formed this country and have always been the basis on which we've operated. I share that fear, and I believe they should be fearful. And I believe the greatest fear that we all should have to our freedom comes from this room, this very room, and what may happen later this week in terms of a tax increase bill masquerading as a health care bill. I believe we have more to fear from the potential of that bill passing than we do from any terrorist right now in any country.
Right-wing media echo Foxx's comparison
Beck: Fighting health care reform like "stand[ing] in line and tak[ing] our shoes off before the plane actually hits the tower." On the November 2 edition of his Fox News program, Glenn Beck drew parallels between health care reform and 9-11:
BECK: Conservatives are awake -- 9-12ers are willing to do the hard things. We know what this means. We're taking time out of our busy lives, taking time away from their families. They're attending town hall meetings. Do you think they want to do that?
They are calling their representatives. How many times do we have to be yelled at by your people in Washington? They are reading 2,000-page health care bills on the weekend. The 9-12ers are willing to stand in line and take our shoes off before the plane actually hits the tower.
Boortz: "Rep. Virginia Foxx has it right." In a November 3 update to his Twitter page, talk radio host Neal Boortz wrote: "Va. [sic] Rep. Virginia Foxx has it right. ObamaCare does present a greater threat than Islamic terrorism."
Fox Nation promotes Foxx's statement. On November 3, Fox Nation linked to a video of Foxx's comments under the headline: "Rep. Foxx Fears 'Obamacare' More Than Terrorist Attack."
Comparing Obama to terrorists is not new
Limbaugh: Obama worse than Al Qaeda. Appearing on Fox News' Hannity earlier this year, radio host Rush Limbaugh said of President Obama: "If Al Qaeda wants to demolish the America we know and love, they better hurry, because Obama's beating them to it." Limbaugh went on to say that Obama is "beating" Al Qaeda to "demolish[ing] the America we know and love." In April, Limbaugh explained how an unnamed friend of his believes "Obama is terrorist attack number 2; Obama is the follow-up to 9-11."
-- The health care bill headed for a vote in the House this week costs $1.2 trillion or more over a decade, according to numerous Democratic officials and figures contained in an analysis by congressional budget experts -- AP
Add to the $1.2 trillion the $245 billion to be paid to doctors who treat medicare patients...in separate and unpaid for legislation proposed by democrats...and we're at $1.5 trillion in spending.
-- The Stabenow bill, however, is not paid for, leaving Democrats in the uncomfortable position of claiming that a complete overhaul of the way doctors are paid under Medicare is somehow not a part of health care reform --
No matter how hard they try, congress cannot control its bloated spending habits. The current democratic legislation is a disaster in the making...No Thanks.
A recent study found that 62 percent of all bankruptcies filed in 2007 were linked to medical expenses. Of those who filed for bankruptcy, nearly 80 percent had health insurance. -http://www.nchc.org/facts/cost.shtml
The majority of bankruptcies filed in 2005 were that of individuals...The total number of bankruptcies in fiscal 2005 reached 1,782,643, up from 1,618,987 in 2004. - http://www.filingforbankruptcyonline.com/stats.html
What about 1.5 million foreclosures?
Half of all respondents (49%) indicated that their foreclosure was caused in part by a medical problem, including illness or injuries (32%), unmanageable medical bills (23%), lost work due to a medical problem (27%), or caring for sick family members (14%).
These are societal costs that are felt by all of us. Decaying neighborhoods, ruined credit, loss of assets, all of which can be helped by the public option.
So extrapolating from this data (roughly, of course), we have 1,100,000 bankruptcies each year caused in part by health care costs. Let's say each one of these costs $50,000. That's $55 billion a year saved.
Let's say the 750,000 foreclosures caused by medical bills costs $50,000 each. That's another $35 billion a year.
So right there, we've prevented the loss of $90 billion (and probably more).
So all this whining about costs is just that. Whining. Just because you can't understand the benefits is your problem. And I didn't even mention the thousands who die every year and the thousands more who don't seek medical care because of the cost. How much is 1 life worth?
About $300-400...for an abortion.
You're off-base as well in your dreamed up assumption that conservatives don't support healthcare reform...many of us simply don't like the democrat's solutions.
Who says I support it? Assuming things again, Wes? Last time I checked abortion was legal and, as always, you're free to not have an abortion.
Also, just for clarification, I am personally pro-life, but I am am politically pro-choice. Why? Because I have no right to tell somebody else what to do with their life and/or body. It's called personal freedom-the right to take advantage of something that is legally afforded every citizen under the laws of this country. How can "conservatives" cry all day about personal freedoms and government staying out of our personal lives, but you want the government to intrude into our personal lives when it's something you don't agree with? You can't-and shouldn't-legislate morality. Just like there's no law against jagoffs like you spewing nonsense and assuming you, and only you, know what's best for everybody else. Maybe there should be. (I can only wish.)
Please excuse my long post and my apologies to anyone offended by it. Except you, Wesley. Idiot.
You're off-base as well in your dreamed up assumption that conservatives don't support healthcare reform...many of us simply don't like the democrat's solutions.
Therefore, you have no complaint. Come on board. The public option will good for everyone. But, as always, you'll be free to keep your overpaid, under-covered private health insurance.
Don't you mean "many of us simply don't like any democratic solution"?
Gee, I wonder whose fault that is? I am more frightened that some extraordinary medical situation will blast me with insurmountable debt than a terrorist attack. Does that mean that the healthcare industry is worse than the terrorists? And I am really tired of people claiming that they will lose 'freedoms' to this healthcare bill? Someone explain what freedoms they think they will lose to healthcare reform?!
The freedom to belong to a relevant Republican party. Hatch recently let the cat out of the proverbial bag, saying that reform must be defeated because people will be happy with the reform pushing the Republicans into a permanent minority.
The CBO scores the HCR proposals as fully paid AND lowering the deficit ... AND covering 36M addl American citizens.
Your rantings sound like another idealogue wearing blinders and not willing to see the benefits.
When did you begin worrying about trillions of dollars in deficit spending? Was it before, during, or after the Iraq war?
Forget about your incorrect numbers, let me ask about your concern for human life, not the pre-born, those that now walk the earth. Does it bother you that you supported without blinking the wasting of trillions to impose death to innocents by way of a false war? Now though you are unhappy because others want to spend money on keeping people alive?
That is the change Bush imposed on America, with your approval, apparently.
Now, we are changing it back.
<crickets>
However, in the big picture what kills more people, terrorists or cancer? What takes more American lives, Al-Qaeda's bullets or heart disease?
No one seems to complain much about the nearly one TRILLION in taxes and TRILLIONS overall we have spent on the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. Over the last eight years tens of thousands of people lost their lives in military (more than 5,100 U.S. troops) and civilian casualties, but we will argue like hell over spending under 900 billion to try to SAVE lives. WTF?!?!
The President recently signed a $680 Billion defense appropriation bill. That is for one year. That is NON Iraq and Afghanistan war money. But people will raise hell over a few billion more over ten years to save lives and improve health?!? We spent over $2.8 TRILLION on health care LAST YEAR, but we don't want to fix the system to reduce those costs and save American lives? I just don't @#$% get it!
This assessment was a balance of both likelihood and impact. A huge meteor would have great impact, but not high likelihood over the next couple of thousand years, so it wouldn't make the list. The election of Michele Bachmann had a higher likelihood, but not a huge impact so that didn't make the list.
I knew that excessive tax cuts to the wealthy had potential to do more significant harm than terrorism. Warrantless wiretapping also has harmful potential beyond any likely terrorist impact. I hope you see where I'm coming from.
Therefore, if Foxx genuinely believes that Health Care (Insurance) Reform would do damage to our country, I could see her comparison as rational. That said, I disagree with her and believe that a failure to reform our Health Care Funding system represents a far greater threat to the health of our country than does terrorism.
Now where is the MSM indignation over Rep Foxx comparing HCR to terrorism??
Now where is the MSM indignation over Rep Foxx comparing HCR to terrorism??
From today's NY Times:
http://mediamatters.org/research/200911030025
"The health insurance industry likes to cite figures showing that 87 cents of every dollar in premiums is spent on medical claims.
"But a new Senate analysis suggests that for-profit insurance companies are spending much less than that, especially for policies sold to individuals and small businesses. Instead, as little as 66 cents of each dollar paid in premiums goes toward doctor and hospital bills, while the rest covers administrative expenses, marketing and company profits, according to the analysis.
"The data come from an analysis of regulatory filings by the Senate Commerce Committee from the largest for-profit companies, including WellPoint, the UnitedHealth Group, Aetna and Cigna. They spent about 74 cents out of every dollar on medical care in the individual market, according to the information released by Senator John D. Rockefeller IV, the West Virginia Democrat, who is chairman of the commerce committee."
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/03/business/03insure.html?_r=1&sq=rockefeller%20insurance&st=cse&scp=1&pagewanted=print
It's just not fair.