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WASHINGTON – Sen. Max Baucus, a leader in the troubled effort in Congress to write a health care overhaul bill, has received more campaign donations from the health industry than any elected federal official except President Barack Obama and three other senators.
The Montana Democrat is enjoying this largesse — some $3.9 million in contributions from the health care industry since 1989 — principally because of his place as chairman of the Senate Finance Committee. The panel is at the center of this year's health care debate, and on Wednesday Baucus released his view of how the medical system should be reshaped: an $856 billion, 10-year package of changes.
THE INFLUENCE GAME: Health interests fund senators - Yahoo! News (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090916/ap_on_go_co/us_health_care_campaign_contributions - broken link)
WASHINGTON – Sen. Max Baucus, a leader in the troubled effort in Congress to write a health care overhaul bill, has received more campaign donations from the health industry than any elected federal official except President Barack Obama and three other senators.
The Montana Democrat is enjoying this largesse — some $3.9 million in contributions from the health care industry since 1989 — principally because of his place as chairman of the Senate Finance Committee. The panel is at the center of this year's health care debate, and on Wednesday Baucus released his view of how the medical system should be reshaped: an $856 billion, 10-year package of changes.
THE INFLUENCE GAME: Health interests fund senators - Yahoo! News (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090916/ap_on_go_co/us_health_care_campaign_contributions - broken link)
Ah-ha.
"At least initially, no Republicans were supporting Baucus' bill. Yet the work of the Gang of Six is important because Baucus' measure comes closer than any of Congress' health overhaul bills to what the health industry and many Republicans want."
WASHINGTON – Sen. Max Baucus, a leader in the troubled effort in Congress to write a health care overhaul bill, has received more campaign donations from the health industry than any elected federal official except President Barack Obama and three other senators.
The Montana Democrat is enjoying this largesse — some $3.9 million in contributions from the health care industry since 1989 — principally because of his place as chairman of the Senate Finance Committee. The panel is at the center of this year's health care debate, and on Wednesday Baucus released his view of how the medical system should be reshaped: an $856 billion, 10-year package of changes.
THE INFLUENCE GAME: Health interests fund senators - Yahoo! News (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090916/ap_on_go_co/us_health_care_campaign_contributions - broken link)
When he was asked why he robbed banks Willie Sutton is reported to have replied "Because that's where the money is." For those of you who deplore the influence peddling in Washington did it ever occur to you that it grows commensurate with the growth of the power and size of the federal government? Congress is busy writing legislation that will cripple, if not annihilate, insurance companies. Are they supposed to sit idly by and let it happen? The more Congress taxes and seeks to control our lives, economic and otherwise, the more lobbyists are going to show up to try to shape legislation to the advantage of its interest group. Reduce the size of government and de-centralize it, as was initially intended by the Founding Fathers, and you'll see a commensurate decline in influence peddling in Washington. Now you may see an increase of lobbyist activity at the state level as the states resume their rightful place in the federal system but at the state level the corruption is easier to monitor and to root out.
When he was asked why he robbed banks Willie Sutton is reported to have replied "Because that's where the money is." For those of you who deplore the influence peddling in Washington did it ever occur to you that it grows commensurate with the growth of the power and size of the federal government? Congress is busy writing legislation that will cripple, if not annihilate, insurance companies. Are they supposed to sit idly by and let it happen? The more Congress taxes and seeks to control our lives, economic and otherwise, the more lobbyists are going to show up to try to shape legislation to the advantage of its interest group. Reduce the size of government and de-centralize it, as was initially intended by the Founding Fathers, and you'll see a commensurate decline in influence peddling in Washington. Now you may see an increase of lobbyist activity at the state level as the states resume their rightful place in the federal system but at the state level the corruption is easier to monitor and to root out.
Boohoo. For the life of me, I can never feel bad for the insurance companies. Is that your arguement...poor insurance companies? I say F***** the insurance companies.
Boohoo. For the life of me, I can never feel bad for the insurance companies. Is that your arguement...poor insurance companies? I say F***** the insurance companies.
If I had the power I'd shut them down yesterday in insuring the delivery of Americans' healthcare. And then look real close for fraud in their books and lock'em up if I could. Scumbags the lot of them.
When he was asked why he robbed banks Willie Sutton is reported to have replied "Because that's where the money is." For those of you who deplore the influence peddling in Washington did it ever occur to you that it grows commensurate with the growth of the power and size of the federal government? Congress is busy writing legislation that will cripple, if not annihilate, insurance companies. Are they supposed to sit idly by and let it happen?
No, they aren't, which is why there should be rules in place to seperate corporate influence from governmental power.
Your proposal just gives corporations more power anyway, so it's not like "destabilize the government so corporations can do whatever they want" is some kind of holy non-authoritarian solution.
Same ****, same authority but under a different name.
Boohoo. For the life of me, I can never feel bad for the insurance companies. Is that your arguement...poor insurance companies? I say F***** the insurance companies.
No, that's not my argument. I used the insurance companies as an example
of influence peddling that is current. But any business that is subject to regulation and/or taxation by the federal government will act to protect its interests. The point of my post is that the power of the federal government has grown so massively that it now affects every aspect of our lives. For gosh sake they even dictate the number of gallons a flush toilet can have. And they are about to tax evil sugars in drinks, etc. How much money do you think is going to flow to Washington from sugar producers to try to stop this madness? In effect the federal government has become an extortion racket.
No, they aren't, which is why there should be rules in place to seperate corporate influence from governmental power.
Your proposal just gives corporations more power anyway, so it's not like "destabilize the government so corporations can do whatever they want" is some kind of holy non-authoritarian solution.
Same ****, same authority but under a different name.
There are rules--ethics rules--which Congress routinely flaunts. Look at the sweetheart mortgage deals that Chris Dodd made with Countrywide, one of the worst offenders in the mortgage debacle. But you can't prevent lobbyists from communicating with Congress people because of the constitutional right to petition the government.
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