Weiner: GOP Is A 'Wholly Owned Subsidiary Of The Insurance Industry'
Yesterday the House debated the legislation that would repeal the health-insurance industry's anti-trust regulations, and Anthony Weiner really let the Republicans have it:
Speaking on the House floor this afternoon, Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY) lambasted Republicans for being “a wholly owned subsidiary of an insurance industry,” prompting an offended Rep. Dan Lungren (R-CA) to lodge a complaint:
WEINER: You guys have chutzpah. The Republican Party is the wholly owned subsidiary of the insurance industry. They say this isn’t going to do enough, but when we propose an alternative to provide competition, they’re against it. They say we want to strengthen state insurance commissioners and they’ll do the job. But when we did that in our national health care bill, they said we’re against it. They said we want to have competition but when we proposed requiring competition they’re against it. They’re a wholly owned subsidiary of the insurance industry. That’s the fact!
LUNDREN: Mr. Speaker I ask that the gentleman’s words be taken down.
WEINER: You really don’t want to go there, Mr. Lundren.
A minute later, Weiner returned to the floor and withdrew his words, and then substituted them by clarifying, “Make no mistake about it, every single Republican I have ever met in my entire life is a wholly owned subsidiary of the insurance industry!”
Lungren once again immediately demanded that Weiner’s words be taken down. Weiner once more finally returned to the floor to withdraw his words, and ended his statement by saying that he has had “enough of the phoniness. We are gonna solve this problem because for years our Republican friends have been unable to and unwilling to. Deal with it!” His colleagues applauded his remarks.
to have his baby.
“The greatest evildoers are those who don’t remember because they have never given thought to the matter, and, without remembrance, nothing can hold them back,”
Someone needs to smack Obama upside the head and make him listen to the people, especially those who disagree with him. Republicans don't count, Obama agrees with them to a certain extent on most everything.
American health is not a business goal
Feb. 24: Rachel Maddow points out that health insurance companies don't care about the well-being of Americans and shouldn't be expected to because they are businesses so their goal is making money. Because American health care is a profit-making system, not a health care system, the incentives are wrong to provide Americans with adequate care.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26315908/vp/35573...
Some stuff you can't make up!
healthcare eats up 1/7 of our economy!
I don't think so.
Health *care* doesn't. Health care plus the overhead of *health insurance* does. Too bad we don't make that distinction more often.
Is the Kucinich Amendment back in the legislation yet?
Unfortunately only chairpersons of the individual committees were allowed to attend.
No one who doesn't have their head up their ass.
Democracy is the road to socialism. ~ Karl Marx
If only our fellow dems would strap on a set half the size of his.
It's not like those words were actually 'taken down,' Mr. Lundren. You just highlighted them.
Too bad, I'm pretty sure he was thinking it.
Lundren to come running from the right side of the screen waving a broom telling Weiner to get off of his (Lundren's) lawn.
"When are we going to stop trying to tell elected officials what to do. Our job is to spend the taxpayers' money the best way we can." -- Tommy Watkins, Justice of the Peace, Crawford County, Arkansas
He didn't have to say it. His tone and stubbornness said it for him. Ultimately not helpful, but very entertaining.
Democracy is the road to socialism. ~ Karl Marx
not Lundren.
Religion will be the downfall of Humanity.
Hey, how about a open topic about the health care "summit" or whatever it is on tee vee right now??????
Damn, great minds do think alike :)
Say what you mean. Mean what you say. But don't say it mean.
and start over. And make sure we can comment across state lines.
“Why would anyone with a functioning brain believe this guy?”
Some guy with an eating disorder
Weiner/Grayson ticket for 2016?
“The greatest evildoers are those who don’t remember because they have never given thought to the matter, and, without remembrance, nothing can hold them back,”
YES
or grayson / wiener ticket.
WE WIN WITH EITHER TICKET.
he has been in the House longer. Grayson is a new rep....after he has 8 years of VP under his belt, we should be good for another 8!!
“The greatest evildoers are those who don’t remember because they have never given thought to the matter, and, without remembrance, nothing can hold them back,”
Bad idea,
The presidency isn't the weak spot (although the guy we've got in there right now isn't strengthening my case), it's the Senate. It's a horribly corrupt and stagnant legislative body. We're not going to see effective campaign finance or lobbying reform, maybe we can just eject them from the Senate. Maybe.
TERM LIMITS!!!
Democracy is the road to socialism. ~ Karl Marx
Right on, ride that wave dude!
Sometimes I wonder if it's too much to ask. I no longer believe that Obama has the stomach to stand up to the Republicans. Obviously he was never taught not to try to appease bullies. Weiner and Grayson don't waste their time trying to please people who will never agree with them. They both have my respect.
DeMint was honest once: he said he wanted Obama's Waterloo.
Limbaugh was honest once: he said he wanted Obama to fail.
I want a Democrat who hears them and doesn't think "Kumbaya! Let's all hold hands and sing "Michael, row the boat ashore" to stand up and take charge.
If people were paying attention during the primaries and main campaigns, Obama said he was a centrist. He told us what he was and most Lefties completely ignored this because of the pretty words and flashy smile. Obama has always been, and always will be a centrist. What that means: a limp-wristed do-nothing!
Democracy is the road to socialism. ~ Karl Marx
Too bad there are so very few like him.
To the site posters here at C&L. Could we perhaps have an open thread this morning regarding the healthcare summit? Thank you for your consideration.
Say what you mean. Mean what you say. But don't say it mean.
can I file a nuisance lawsuit.
“Why would anyone with a functioning brain believe this guy?”
Some guy with an eating disorder
in the new blog-care bill.
Some stuff you can't make up!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wge2-Mi59yM&fe...
Diabolus est Deus Inversus
??
“The greatest evildoers are those who don’t remember because they have never given thought to the matter, and, without remembrance, nothing can hold them back,”
It sounds like the Republican position is real simple. Either we start over from scratch or we vote no.
“Why would anyone with a functioning brain believe this guy?”
Some guy with an eating disorder
and THEN we vote No.
“The greatest evildoers are those who don’t remember because they have never given thought to the matter, and, without remembrance, nothing can hold them back,”
Now they want to cite polls opposing the Senate Bill. Will someone have the temerity to cite poll numbers on the Public Option or Medicare expansion.
“Why would anyone with a functioning brain believe this guy?”
Some guy with an eating disorder
or GOO
govt of opposition!
OR "NO"
vote No.."
spot on!!!
Start from scratch, then filibuster. Claim you're protecting Americans from tyranny of the majority. Say no one listens to your ideas. Demand to start over from scratch.
We already know that their game plan is to make the Democrats completely ineffective (at least more so than they already are) by preventing any legislation from going through. That way they can blame the "last four years" of bad times on Obama when they attempt to retake the presidency.
I believe they've even said so publicly. Not in those exact words, but still...
This is great tv. We have an adult at the head of the table and a bunch of rude children in attendance. I expect the kids to start a food fight at any time. Lamar Alexander needs his butt spanked for interrupting the adult when the adult was talking.
Say what you mean. Mean what you say. But don't say it mean.
if you ignore the leprechaun analogies.
There is no reason not to go full bore on fraud. His definition
of fraud and abuse, however, doesn't include the fraud of pre existing conditions or recission.
“Why would anyone with a functioning brain believe this guy?”
Some guy with an eating disorder
The Bush DoJ let fraud run amok, because they wanted Medicare to look bad. For 8 years enforcement was gutted and the thieves multiplied.
Until you respect the citizenship of those with which you disagree, you're not a true American.
But, to be fair, the insurance industry owns a lot of Democratic legislators as well. Glenn Greenwald was on Democracy Now! this morning and hit it out of the park on the corporate takeover of the healthcare "reform" effort.
http://www.democracynow.org/2010/2/25/glenn_g...
The transcript isn't up yet, so here is the link to the segment.
President Obama (?).
BOTH the Republican and Democratic parties are merely divisions of the Federal Government of the United States of America, a wholly owned subsidiary of America, Inc. Sure, the two parties compete for resources and kudos, but it's friendly competition which helps Corporate's bottom line.
republicanism/conservatism is a mental illness, it has almost totally destroied our economy, our morals, and the sprituality of America!
You got it.
Why does everyone call it "healthcare reform"? Call it what it is, "health insurance reform".
That is, unless they're not going to reform health insurance at all, merely subsidize them out of the public pocket and force everyone to pay into them. But that wouldn't be very nice.
Real HCR would be putting money into medicine rather than insurance companies. Single payer, anyone?
Why?
I'd say you answered your own question.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sG9ID4ncrTU
Diabolus est Deus Inversus
Having worked in health care for 20 years, there is definitely some room for reform in the way that providers operate. The profit motive is alive and well in health care- and not just with the insurance companies.
Is a crock of sh*t. Republican'ts need to be slapped down and told the TRUTH -- that being the majority of Americans WANT HEALTHCARE REFORM!
What the average American thinks ot the health care bill...http://campaignspot.nationalreview.com/post/?q=NmJhOGViZmYwYjM3N2VhY2E5YzNlNTU4YTBiNjRhYTM=
And another link about health care...http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2010/02/24/politics/politicalhotsheet/entry6239942.shtml?tag=cbsnewsMainColumnArea
Just for you information, when posting a link you must separate it from the body of the message. You have no space between the link and the last period after bill... and care... and the link will not work.
but, if the GOP is a "wholly owned subsidiary" what does that make the dems? a partially owned subsidiary?
two-thirds owned subsidiary.....including Rham Emanuel.
“The greatest evildoers are those who don’t remember because they have never given thought to the matter, and, without remembrance, nothing can hold them back,”
GOP pages.
GOP is a wholly owned subsidiary. The industry just has a "Controlling Interest" in the Dems.
"We are gonna solve this problem because for years our Republican friends have been unable to and unwilling to... deal with it.”
As opposed to a declaration for Republicans to "Deal with it!", I though he was saying they were unable and unwilling to deal with this problem.
Whatever, either way, I'm very pleased to have Mr. Weiner get up there and say what we all know to be true, and interesting that such remarks are inappropriate. The truth is not allowed on the floor of the House, apparently.
I'm itching watching this and having the GOP throw poll results out with no backup, continue to spread lies, and filibuster their time. They are SO not interested in American health and welfare.
No more "individual stories" (and you just leave the room if you mispronounce Spanish names).
“Why would anyone with a functioning brain believe this guy?”
Some guy with an eating disorder
I don't know a politically-safe way to do it, but those stories are ubiquitous and take up too much damn time. I'm glad they've kind of dropped off.
Baucus is up, he's gotta pick a side now...
I was thinking the same thing. "Mr. President, I know time is limited, and we have a lot of serious work to do here today, so I'll be brief. I received a very long letter from a constituent who has a tragic medical story to tell. Here it is..."
Tell the Repukes we can start over on health care if they will roll back the decade where they fucked up everything they touched.Imagine the 2000s without Bush and his Neo Con war criminal buddies ? No wars... most of us might still be working at our real jobs... No 911...... etc .etc. etc.
from the comments near the top what I have been trying to verbalize for over a year. The health insurance industry is a money making system......not a health care system.
Why isn't that alone enough to drive change?
Health care in America makes profit. More important to protect than the health of the American public. When something makes money that's just God's way of telling us he sides with business on this one.
from economic reform to HCR to campaign finance reform one thing is constant: profit trumps democracy
and both parties speak with forked tongues about 'change' and 'the will of the people' during elections, then go back to legislating on behalf of those that have nothing to do with 'change' nor the 'will of the people'.
and this will be the case until the politicians' success at the ballot box is jeopardized for their anti-democratic behavior.
. . . doesn't necessarily make it need to be changed. We don't mind seeing someone or something making a profit if we feel we're getting a fair deal, right?
The problem is, we're not getting a fair deal. Health insurers aren't giving us good value for the money. They're not keeping costs reasonable by watching our for fraud, or buying medicine in bulk for subscribers or anything else that would justify their margins (at least not for enough of us).
And of course, if you're too "rich" for Medicaid and don't get decent employer-provided health insurance, you're kind of out of luck. Again, the health insurance industry could justify making money by doing all the paperwork, fraud protection, helping clients find good practitioners -- that sort of thing. I bet lots of people would be happy to see the uninsured get subsidies to buy that sort of quality product.
But none of these things is the case. The insurance industry just serves as the gatekeeper to the medical industry, and takes its slice off the top as profit. They really don't add a thing.
I want to see everybody in the country covered by a quality health plan. If the insurance industry was willing to do this for the right price, who would complain? You don't mind your plumber making a profit fixing your pipes, right?
But we're dealing with corporations, who must make a profit to satisfy shareholders. Failure to do so will make the share price fall. Continued failure may result in bankruptcy. So profit must be made above all, including the quality of the product. And it's not a product one can do without or find a substitute for.
So you were right after all. The fact that they must make a profit -- regardless of consequences for customers -- and that they are selling something we can't live without is reason enough to change the system.
I suppose we could feel sorry for all who own shares of the health insurance industry when we finally get national health care (in 200 years). They'd sure be screwed. Of course, they wouldn't die when they got screwed, unlike those screwed by insurance or lack thereof. So I don't suppose I'd feel sorry after all.
Hoyer utters the two words...public option.
See how long it takes to come back up again.
“Why would anyone with a functioning brain believe this guy?”
Some guy with an eating disorder
If he really wanted to make some senators drop loads in their pants, he could say "single payer". "Public option", at least as it is now, is an effective insurance company subsidy... If everyone can't optionally buy into it, it isn't exactly an "option" of any sort.
Because the profiteers are blocking that change at every opportunity. They won't give up the green without a helluva fight.
(This was in response to Stufl's question)
the democrats have rebutted with facts that say that idea is being addressed. If the republicans would have read the bills they would know that. Their 150+ amendments also contributed to the 2700 pages that are in it.
There's a new post up here and it's about the summit. I'll race you there. :)
Say what you mean. Mean what you say. But don't say it mean.
It was a thing of great beauty!
The Repubs are owned by the insurance industry.
Of course, he forgot to mention that the Dems are too. :(
That's why the American People,who have been for national health care since Truman, are stuck with the current system.
Greenwald on the Democratic "phonies":
http://www.salon.com/news/opinion/glenn_green...
What a set of balls on that Weiner!
Weiner was great , with spine and principles no less he is one of the few good guys . Sadly the Health care and Pharma Industries have bought and paid for our government , the White House included . If this past year is the best they can do Obama and the Dems can go screw themselves next time they ask for campaign donations or my vote . This country is terminally ill I am afraid .
Insanity , it is what it is , there is no understanding it .
"Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY) lambasted Republicans for being “a wholly owned subsidiary of an insurance industry,” prompting an offended Rep. Dan Lungren (R-CA) to lodge a complaint:..."
Fuck the GOP scum and their phony outrage. We need more people like Weiner and Grayson-people who are willing to say what needs to be said and who are willing to look the RepubliCONS in the face and say "Yeah bitches, you heard what I said. Deal with it!"
If you have selfish, ignorant citizens, you're gonna get selfish, ignorant leaders.
George Carlin
We need more truth-seekers like them.
Good job, Anthony.
What a contrast to the lying Repugs ...
BID
fears more than being widely known for exactly what they are. They can only succeed as predators if their public pretense of trustworthiness and healthy socialization remain intact. Once their prey (all of us) widely know them for what they are, the jig is largely up.
In selling themselves to the insurance companies, corporate Amerika and the banksters, they've also sold every one of their constituent out. They are preying upon us for their own gain. When a guy like Weiner comes along and pierces their dishonest public pretense, he threatens their entire gravey train. Last thing in the world they can tolerate.
The GOP has sold-out to many different special interests. Ownership of the GOP is like owning a piece of Springtime for Hitler (in The Producers). Maybe the best ownership model is a "time share": each special interest gets the GOP for just the legislation that they need.
The prostitute is all yours.....at least for a few minutes. Then, it's another customer's turn. And then another's. And another's......
"Me so horny. Me love you long time".
As one of Lungren's constituents, I must say that this is the NICEST thing that I could say about him. Weiner was certainly more polite that I would have been.
I agree.....need a whole lot more like him and Grayson
all it takes is all of us
Watched this last night on Maddow and was giddy. I'm in love! A Democrat with some spine. More please.
I love this guy. We need more like him, Alan Grayson, and John Dean. They've got fire and grit and aren't afraid of the right-wingers.
A Democrat shows some spine! Who wudda thunk?
Thank you, thank you, thank you Rep. Weiner for pulling back the curtain and revealing the elephant in the room, which other so-called Democrats are too afraid to mention.
He should never had withdrawn his words. Never.
is a total dick. I worked around the California State Capitol when he was there. He's smarmy and arrogant. I'm glad Weiner didn't back down in the face of that bully.
Anthony Weiner is a liar both Republican & Democrat Party are the wholly owned subsidiary of AIPAC the American Israel Political Action Committee and AIPAC members owns Insurance, Media, Hollywood, Trade, Commerce, Banking, Judiciary, local governments, Domestic & Foreign Policy as well as the President of America.
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