Here's what Henry Brown is voting against: YOU

U.S. Congressman Henry Brown will be voting against health insurance reform. Just wanted you to know that. As for what his vote means, you probably wouldn't care. You see, people here really don't pay attention to what they are voting for. They think it's the "cool" thing to vote Republican because they have God - locked away in a token box to be used during election time.

Well, let's look at what those people who claim God support. Henry Brown will be voting against such improvements to his district:

--Improve coverage for 473,000 residents with health insurance.
--Give tax credits and other assistance to up to 203,000 families and 20,300 small businesses to help them afford coverage.
--Improve Medicare for 125,000 beneficiaries, including closing the donut hole.
--Extend coverage to 104,000 uninsured residents.
--Guarantee that 19,200 residents with pre-existing conditions can obtain coverage.
--Protect 700 families from bankruptcy due to unaffordable health care costs.
--Allow 65,000 young adults to obtain coverage on their parents? insurance plans.
--Provide millions of dollars in new funding for 30 community health centers.
--Reduce the cost of uncompensated care for hospitals and other health care providers by $45
million annually.

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Join the blog swarm for ENDA today: Call Speaker
Pelosi

Today, AMERICAblog joined a blog swarm for ENDA along with Towleroad, Pam's House Blend, Joe My God, Michelangelo Signorile, David Mixner, GoodAsYou.org, Daily Kos, Open Left, Daily Gotham, Culture Kitchen,Taylor Marsh, PageOneQ, Dan Savage, and others.

A full explanation and the details, which were explained in great detail by Jillian Wise at Bilerico, are at AMERICAblog Gay.

Here's the action we need today:

Please call Speaker Nancy Pelosi at 202-225-4965. Ask that the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, HR 3017, move to a vote.

Please be polite, but firm.

After you call, please tell us how the call went by clicking here. If you get a busy signal or hang up, let us know that too.

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Presented By:

[...]

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Down to the Wire

In the final haggling to get the "Cadillac tax" issue resolved and get the budget and deficit numbers right, the House and White House had to really think outside the box to find a way that would get the numbers right and keep the unions on board. It[...]

Read The Full Article:
http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Talking-Points-Memo/~3/HFMtG9vduXs/down_to_the_wir
e_3.php

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C&L's NCAA Championship Bracket: Please join

I'm sorry I'm late this year. So much has been going on. Anyway, We had 400 players last year and I thought it was pretty fun so let's try it again even if we don't have much time.

Please get your picks in by noon EST on Thursday and we should be good to go. If we have technical problems, so be it...

url: http://crooksandiars.mayhem.cbssports.com/e

password: crooks

You will have to register on CBS SportsLine to get in...

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Two Georgia Gov Candidates Were Accused Of
Inappropriate Behavior With Female Students

What's the matter with Georgia? Two long-shot candidates in the state's governor's race were suspended as school-teachers after allegations of inappropriate conduct with female high-school students.

One of those, Republican Ray McBerry, leads a Georgia secessionist group and is hovering around 2 percent in GOP primary polls. McBerry already last weekend issued a hilarious pre-emptive denial of those charges -- as well as several others. The other, Democrat Carl Camon, is the mayor of Ray City, and polls around 2 percent in the Democratic primary.

A 2004 case summary from the state's Professional Standards Commission, obtained yesterday by TPMmuckraker, alleges that McBerry "maintained an inappropriate relationship with a student and that he deliberately misrepresented the facts of the case in his first response to the school system's investigation."

A girl to whom McBerry taught Sunday School had told investigators that she and McBerry, who also taught high school in Henry County outside Atlanta, had struck up a relationship, and that she had developed "romantic" feelings for him. She said that he had "kissed her and had fondled her breasts," and that he had given her a cellphone so she could call him.

The girl's parents had subsequently tried to have McBerry arrested, and a judge warned him not to have any contact with the girl for six months. But McBerry was seen again meeting with the girl, though they were in separate cars. McBerry admits that when questioned about this by school administrators, he deliberately lied about the meeting, out of "panic."

McBerry denied to investigators that he had acted in an in appropriate way with the girl, suggesting he was acting as a counselor and mentor. In the end, McBerry's teaching certificate was suspended for a week. He had resigned from the high school he taught at when the allegations were first brought.

Gary Walker, of the Professional Standards Commission, told TPMmuckraker he did not know the reason for the relatively light punishment, but said that it would likely have been administered with McBerry's agreement.

The Atlanta Journal Constitution first reported on the episode last night.

And it obtained a similar case summary, from 2009, for Camon, a former teacher at Valdosta High School, who was first accused in 2007 by numerous female students of making a slew of inappropriate comments. According to the summary:
? One student alleged that Camon "told her he wanted to take her home and 'beat it up' (i.e. have sex)."
? Another student reported that "when she told the educator that his girth was getting bigger, the educator responded that something else was getting bigger too."
? Another "recalled that the educator had asked her if she was a virgin, and that the educator had often expressed displeasure that she had boyfriends."
? Another "reported that she had witnessed the educator tell a female student that he would take her home and give her a whipping."
? And several students said Camon told them that he could see their breasts, or up their skirts.

Camon denied to investigators that he had made such comments, saying that he had only told students to "correct your dress."

Camon quit rather than agree to the suspension. "I was not going to serve a single day, a single hour, for something I didn't do," he told the AJC.

The frontrunners in the race are GOPer John Oxendine, who is the state's insurance commissioner, and Democrat Roy Barnes, a former governor.

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How a Bad Bill Becomes Historic

?The Democratic Party strongly and unequivocally supports Roe v. Wade and a woman?s right to choose a safe and legal abortion, regardless of ability to pay, and we oppose any and all efforts to weaken or undermine that right.? – Democratic Party[...]

Read The Full Article:
http://www.taylormarsh.com/2010/03/18/how-a-bad-bill-becomes-historic/

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Fox caught, again

On Tuesday and Wednesday, Fox breathlessly promoted what it claims to be a new survey from the New England Journal of Medicine showing doctors oppose health care reform, but there’s a problem: the non-scientific survey was conducted months ago, was not published in the NEJM, and, according to a spokesperson for the journal, it has "nothing to do with the New England Journal of Medicine’s original research."

I've put together a video compilation of Fox's false claim -- it's really a remarkable example of journalistic malpractice.

Watch:

A New England Journal of Medicine spokesperson told Media Matters that despite Fox's claims, such a survey "was not published by the New England Journal of Medicine."

Contrary to Fox's claims, the survey had nothing to do with NEJM. Instead, the survey, which was conducted several months ago and was non-scientific in nature, was posted on a career-oriented website maintained by the publisher of NEJM.

But of course the simple fact that Fox's reporting wasn't true did not prove to be an obstacle to getting it on the air. After all, Fox knows how to entertain its audience, and it's 'smart' enough to never let reality never get in the way of a good story.

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HotAir falsely suggests "Louisiana purchase"
doesn't have "anything to do with health care"

HotAir.com blogger Cassy Fiano criticized President Obama for standing by a provision in the health care bill that provides funding for states that have suffered natural disasters and stated, "I just don't see how disaster relief has anything to do with health care." In fact, the funding is tied to health care because it would fix gaps in federal Medicaid payments that some states -- such as Louisiana and Hawaii -- have experienced as a result of recent disasters.

HotAir.com: "I just don't see how disaster relief has anything to do with health care"

From Fiano's March 17 HotAir.com post:

This moment, from Bret Baier's interview on Fox News with Obama, might just be one of the biggest "WTF?!" moments from Obama's presidency yet. Obama is either completely making things up, living in an alternate reality, or really, really confused.

Actually, my guess is that's it's probably a combination of all three.

OBAMA [video]: I'll give you some exceptions, though. Something that was called a special deal was for Louisiana. It was said that there were billions of dollars -- millions of dollars going to Louisiana, this was a special deal. Well, in fact, that provision, which I think should remain in, said that if a state has been affected by a natural catastrophe that has created a special health care emergency in that state, they should get help. Louisiana obviously went through Katrina, and they're still trying to deal with the enormous challenges that were faced because of that. ... That also -- well, I'm giving you an example of one that I consider important. It also affects Hawaii, which went through an earthquake. So that's not just a Louisiana provision. That is a provision that affects every state that is going through a natural catastrophe.

Apparently, there was a devastating earthquake in Hawaii that we all somehow missed.

Oh, wait, no. That's right. There was no earthquake, and Obama is just totally clueless, as usual. In fact, the last earthquake in Hawaii to cause any deaths at all was in 1975, and two people died.

In any case, why is he using this argument, anyways? He's turned this health care bill into a one-size-fits-all solution for everything. Not only will it fix our health care, but it will apparently create jobs and give disaster relief around the country!

Maybe I'm the only person who doesn't get it, but I just don't see how disaster relief has anything to do with health care. This is just more evidence that Obama is just talking out of his you-know-where now. He's become this desperate. And you know, I say good. That means we're getting to him, and now's the time to push even harder.

Health care bill provision fixes Medicaid gap caused by recent natural disasters

Funding would fix FMAP rates for "certain states recovering from a major disaster." The Senate bill as passed includes a provision -- often referred to as the "Louisiana Purchase" by conservative media -- that would adjust the Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP) rate for "certain states recovering from a major disaster." The bill requires that it only applies to states "for which, at any time during the preceding 7 fiscal years, the President has declared a major disaster" and "determined as a result of such disaster that every county or parish in the State warrant individual and public assistance or public assistance from the Federal Government."

The Department of Health and Human Services states that FMAP is "used in determining the amount of Federal matching funds for State expenditures for assistance payments for certain social services, and State medical and medical insurance expenditures. The Social Security Act requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to calculate and publish the FMAPs each year."

Times-Picayune: Temporary post-Katrina spending "spiked" per capita income "long enough" to skew Medicaid funding formula, causing state Medicaid funding shortfall. The Times-Picayune reported on January 22 that "FMAP refers to the percentage of a state's payments under Medicaid that are covered by the federal government. Louisiana usually gets a higher match because of how poor the state is, but because of all the recovery and rebuilding money that poured in after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, state per capita income spiked long enough to throw the formula out of kilter and threaten to blow a hole [in] the state budget. [Sen. Mary] Landrieu's fix was, according to state officials, only the beginning of a solution for a huge Medicaid shortfall the state is facing." The article stated that Landrieu said "attaching the Medicaid provision to a health-care bill made sense, and there is no obvious and feasible legislative alternative."

Jindal: "If not corrected in Washington, D.C.," FMAP problem will cost $500 million a year. Louisiana Republican Gov. Bobby Jindal's fiscal year 2010-2011 budget proposal says that the "Louisiana state government faces significant, multi-year budget challenges, compounded by a faulty federal FMAP formula that, if not corrected in Washington, D.C., will cost the state approximately $500 million a year in Medicaid funding, impacting services for the poorest in our state, and often those who need care the most." The proposal also says that "[w]hile there is discussion in Washington about extending the enhanced federal Medicaid match rate for six months for all states, without a permanent fix to Louisiana's faulty FMAP calculation, combined with the loss of federal stimulus funding, Louisiana will still face a projected $1.7 billion shortfall for FY 12."

HotAir post oblivious to 2006 Hawaii earthquake

Hawaii was declared a disaster area following earthquake. During the Fox News interview cited by HotAir, Obama stated that Hawaii could benefit from the health care bill provision that helps Louisiana deal with the FMAP problem. The HotAir post responded: "Apparently, there was a devastating earthquake in Hawaii that we all somehow missed. Oh, wait, no. That's right. There was no earthquake, and Obama is just totally clueless, as usual." In fact, a magnitude 6.7 earthquake hit Hawaii on October 15, 2006, as Media Matters for America noted. At the time, President Bush "declared a major disaster exists in the State of Hawaii and ordered Federal aid to supplement State and local recovery efforts in the area struck by an earthquake." USA Today also reported that Hawaii Gov. Linda Lingle also issued a disaster declaration for the state, after reports of damaged buildings, landslides, and power outages.

Times-Picayune: Hawaii might also be eligible for aid under health care reform. The Times-Picayune reported on February 23 that the provision "was intended as a one-time, partial fix for a sharp drop in federal Medicaid money coming to the state because of a temporary surge in per capita income in Louisiana as recovery dollars flooded into the state in the wake of Katrina and Rita." The article noted that Hawaii could also be eligible for aid under the Senate health care reform bill:

In order to qualify, a state would have to face an FMAP decline of a magnitude that would only include at this time three states: Louisiana, North Dakota and Hawaii. The legislation also requires the state be one that experienced a major disaster in the past seven years in which every county or parish in the state was eligible for FEMA public assistance. That would eliminate North Dakota, leaving only Louisiana and Hawaii, where all four of its counties were eligible for aid after the 2006 earthquake.

Hawaii officials reportedly pursuing FMAP funding. A March 11 Times-Picayune article quoted a Hawaii Department of Human Services spokeswoman as saying they are "optimistic we will find a way to get the FMAP provision," amid some confusion over whether Hawaii will ultimately qualify for the fix.

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Glenn Beck Puts on Mask of Christianity While
Betraying the Teachings of Jesus

BUZZFLASH NEWS ALERT
by Jeffrey Joseph

It took Glenn Beck just a few days to respond to all the blow back he received for telling people to "leave their church" if it mentioned social justice, a tenet prominent in many Christian circles. In so doing, he took the only route he felt comfortable approaching in avoiding any of the specific criticisms or even his accusers and relying on a single pseudohistorian to defend him.

Beck opened the segment talking with David Barton because "I'm under attack by the 'Christian' community," complete with air quotes. He explained, "It's not the 'Christian community,' it's the 'progressive community' covering themselves or wearing the mask of Christianity," again accompanied by his air quotes. In effect, Beck tried to change the topic, doing his best not to reiterate the term "social justice" in the segment to defend his ludicrous ties between it and Nazism and Communism, preferring instead to attack any who would oppose him as progressives.

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