November 5th, 2009

Dear Liberty Activist,

Today, thousands of opponents of ObamaCare will be gathering on the steps of the nation's Capitol at Noon, as they go to tell Congress not to vote for HR 3962. You should be able to watch the broadcast of the rally at cspan.org.

If you can, join them in person, but if not, why not give them a call and send a few faxes their way? 

To assist you, here's a few important facts that were sent my way about the bill:

In order to assist people seeking to read and review the health "reform" legislation (H.R. 3962) introduced by House Democrats, the Republican Conference has compiled a list of important page numbers and provisions in the 1,990-page "Affordable Health Care for America Act:"

Page 94—Section 202(c) prohibits the sale of private individual health insurance policies, beginning in 2013, forcing individuals to purchase coverage through the federal government

Page 110—Section 222(e) requires the use of federal dollars to fund abortions through the government-run health plan—and, if the Hyde Amendment were ever not renewed, would require the plan to fund elective abortions

Page 111—Section 223 establishes a new board of federal bureaucrats (the "Health Benefits Advisory Committee") to dictate the health plans that all individuals must purchase—and would likely require all Americans to subsidize and purchase plans that cover any abortion

Page 211—Section 321 establishes a new government-run health plan that, according to non-partisan actuaries at the Lewin Group, would cause as many as 114 million Americans to lose their existing coverage  Page 225—Section 330 permits—but does not require—Members of Congress to enroll in government-run health care

Page 255—Section 345 includes language requiring verification of income for individuals wishing to receive federal health care subsidies under the bill—while the bill includes a requirement for applicants to verify their citizenship, it does not include a similar requirement to verify applicants' identity, thus encouraging identity fraud for undocumented immigrants and others wishing to receive taxpayer-subsidized health benefits

Page 297—Section 501 imposes a 2.5 percent tax on all individuals who do not purchase "bureaucrat-approved" health insurance—the tax would apply on individuals with incomes under $250,000, thus breaking a central promise of then-Senator Obama's presidential campaign

Page 313—Section 512 imposes an 8 percent "tax on jobs" for firms that cannot afford to purchase "bureaucrat-approved" health coverage; according to an analysis by Harvard Professor Kate Baicker, such a tax would place millions "at substantial risk of unemployment"—Uwith minority workers losing their jobs at twice the rate of their white counterparts

Page 336—Section 551 imposes additional job-killing taxes, in the form of a half-trillion dollar "surcharge," more than half of which will hit small businesses; according to a model developed by President Obama's senior economic advisor, such taxes could cost up to 5.5 million jobs

Page 520—Section 1161 cuts more than $150 billion from Medicare Advantage plans, potentially jeopardizing millions of seniors' existing coverage

Page 733—Section 1401 establishes a new Center for Comparative Effectiveness Research; the bill includes no provisions preventing the government-run health plan from using such research to deny access to life-saving treatments on cost grounds, similar to Britain's National Health Service, which denies patient treatments costing more than £35,000

Page 1174—Section 1802(b) includes provisions entitled "TAXES ON CERTAIN INSURANCE POLICIES" to fund comparative effectiveness research, breaking Speaker Pelosi's promise that "UWe will not be taxing [health] benefits in any bill that passes the HouseU," and the President's promise not to raise taxes on families with incomes under $250,000

Top Ten Tax Increases Included In H.R. 3962

TOTAL TAX INCREASE . . . . . . . . . . $729.5 Billion
*[Violates President Obama's pledge to avoid tax increases on Americas earning less than $250,000]

Should be helpful to activists, pass it on.

These are the Democrats who MUST be called every day from now until the vote, which may be as early as Saturday now. Here's the Target 92 list on the House side to all vulnerable and Blue Dog Democrats.  Blue Dogs are in blue. Here's the .xls and .pdf versions.  Of note, the first 40 on the list are the Blue Dogs that signed the "deficit-neutral" letter mentioned above.  Everything you need to email their staff, write letters, make phone calls and send faxes, both to their district and Capitol Hill offices.

Keep calling out to the House and to the Senate in general. Of course, you can also reach them via the Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121.  And of course, here is the CapWiz alert so you can contact your own members directly.

In today's special edition of the Liberty Action Report, what the election outcome means, it's all about Barack Obama, conservative bloggers target top Obama advisor, and the WIRE reports on Obama's rose-colored--err, 3-D glasses. 

Please send your letters to the editor at Robert@getliberty.org. We publish all points of view! Today, Nancy Goldman writes, "This is bunk! Civic responsibility in providing appropriate health care is NOT socialism!"

Thank you for a wonderful letter.  That is why we must educate as many individuals as possible to how deleterious government can be.

Keep fighting!

For Liberty,

Robert Romano
ALG Senior News Editor
www.getliberty.org

P.S. Want to help us keep fighting? Help us out with a small donation today! Or mail it to: Americans for Limited Government, 9900 Main Street, Suite 303, Fairfax, VA 22031.

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Election 2009: Lessons Taught – And Learned?
The lesson that the Democrats need to learn is far more difficult to address than that of the Republicans, it is the GOP who will have the more painful experience finding a remedy.

Not About Me
It is all about Barack Obama until his party loses.

Conservative Bloggers Target Top Obama Advisor
The American people are just learning about Valerie Jarrett—what she has done, and what she may be capable of doing as Obama's top advisor.

The Wire: Barack, You Have a Problem
Today's insider wire covers health care revenues, Barack Obama, and the past elections.

ALG in the News: Bloggers digging dirt on Obama adviser Jarrett
Americans for Limited Government's New Media Director Adam Bitely is featured in the Washington Examiner on Valerie Jarrett.

Election 2009: Lessons Taught – And Learned?

By Bill Wilson

At the risk of getting far too deep in the weeds, it was not just the Obama Administration and Congressional Democrats who were sent a warning Tuesday. The GOP honchos in Washington were sent a clear signal as well.

The lesson that the Democrats need to learn is far more difficult to address than that of the Republicans, it is the GOP who will have the more painful experience finding a remedy.

To start with, the Democrats fundamental problem is that the vast majority of the American people don't like their ideas. Bigger government, more taxes, greater power handed to union thugs and greedy public employee groups simply does not have the support of the people. The voters know instinctively that these are prescriptions for disaster.

But denial runs deep. The great debate inside leftist circles today is whether to "double down" and push for every crazy, nation-killing measure on their check list; or, pull back and rethink. Betting is that the soft-Marxist zealots of Pelosi and Valerie Jarrett win out and a renewed push for the mutation of America will continue unabated. We will see how many moderate Blue Dogs join them in their act of mass suicide.

The Republicans' problem is all internal. It can be fixed in plenty of time for the 2010 elections. But, while it is too soon to place odds on success or failure, one thing is certain; it will be a nasty, bloody, public fight.

For too long, a tiny minority inside the GOP, the so-called "moderates", have insisted that only adopting their brand of me-tooism can lead to electoral success. But at no time does this handful of people say what they would do if they achieved there success. And that is the rub.

The loss on Tuesday of Conservative nominee Doug Hoffman in New York's 23rd Congressional District demonstrates starkly the dilemma. Party insiders, led by super liberal former GOP Congressman Tom Reynolds and aided by the liberal Republican Main Street Partnership, manipulated the process to produce a nominee completely out of step with GOP voters. They called her "moderate," but in truth DeDe Scozzafava is an extremist. She supported the Obama give-away stimulus. She advocated handing union bosses new powers. She was an advocate for tax increases. In short, she would have been considered "liberal" in the Democratic Party.

Conservative grassroots Republicans rebelled. They could not allow this woman to represent them when in fact she advocated everything they opposed. Thus, the Doug Hoffman campaign was born, out of a deep sense of betrayal.

With the backing of conservatives in New York and throughout the country who felt the same sense of betrayal, Hoffman surged. As the election approached, two fact became obvious: Scozzafava could not win because she had no base, and the only way to block the conservative was for Scozzafava to endorse the Democrat and move her small sliver of support to him. And that is exactly what happened.

Of course, the professional spinsters started immediately to mouth the liberal GOP line – Hoffman was too conservative, we need "moderates", etc. But the truth of the matter is Hoffman was more than electable if the spoiled brats of the Republican Left had not shown their true colors and joined the other side.

There was plenty of warning. Former Congressman Tom Davis, Chairman of the Republican Main Street Partnership, said, "We can play checkmate forever and moderates (sic) can do next what conservatives did to Scozzafava." Well, to be frank, Congressman Davis makes one incorrect assumption here. He assumes most conservatives think of themselves as "Republican." Increasingly they do not.

Independent polling the week before the election made this point abundantly clear. While only 20% of America accepted the "Republican" label, more than 40% identified themselves as "conservative".

So, where does the one-fifth of the country stand? They look at the candidate. And a candidate as radically fringe left-wing as DeDe Scozzafava is someone they will not support. It is not the conservatives who need to find a place inside the Republican Party. It is the Republican Party that needs to appeal to conservatives.

It can start with a little respect. Again, to quote Tom Davis from an October 31 Politico article, "'We need to capture this lightning in a bottle,' he (Tom Davis) said of the conservative energy. 'They're now the energy base of the party. But you can't let them run the show…'"

That says it all. It's the same formula the GOP establishment has used for decades. Take conservative votes. Raise money on conservative issues. Depend on conservatives to do the hard, dirty work. But don't let them run anything. Don't give them a voice. And for God's sake don't let them actually get anything for all their contributions.

Every conservative knows the drill. When the GOP candidate is a "moderate," we are told to pitch in and help because we need the candidate "to get a majority" – never mind what that majority will do once in power.

But when a conservative is in a position to win, the GOP liberals demand they change their positions, adopt stands that are an anathema to the base and generally hand over power before ever taking their seats.

Well, if New York 23 had any lesson for Republicans it is this: the shell game is over. Present candidates who represent core values who respectfully ask for support and explain their positions or lose the votes of millions.

And yes, there will be times and places where there are enough liberal Republicans to serve as a fifth column for the radical Left. But far more times than not, these people will simply not be a factor. There just aren't enough of them.

So what lessons do the two wings of the "Government Party" learn from yesterday's vote? The Democrat wing needs to learn the hard truth that their policies and thug-tactics are increasingly hated by the American people. Without substantial change in their proposals they risk a humiliating defeat across the nation.

For the Republican wing, the lesson is equally clear cut. Find core values that all elements of the GOP coalition can agree on – reduced taxes, greatly reduced spending, and absolute reductions in the powers of government – and demand all candidates adhere to those core values.

Treating the millions of Americans who took to the streets across America this year and in Upstate New York last week with respect would be a good start.

Bill Wilson is the President of Americans for Limited Government.

http://blog.getliberty.org/default.asp?Display=1723

Not About Me

ALG Editor's Note: William Warren's award-winning cartoons published at GetLiberty.org are a free service of ALG News Bureau. They may be reused and redistributed free of charge.

http://blog.getliberty.org/default.asp?Display=1722

Conservative Bloggers Target Top Obama Advisor

By Adam Bitely

A growing movement in the blogosphere is focusing laser attention on the questionable role Valerie Jarrett has played in the Obama Administration—and her backroom wheeling and dealing as a Chicago power broker before she made her journey eastward.

The evidence is mounting that in the Obama White House, Valerie Jarrett is, indeed, the éminence grise—the power behind the throne. She currently serves as Senior Advisor and Assistant to the President for Intergovernmental Affairs and Public Liaison. But subsumed under that labyrinthinan title is a Rovian role that much of the mainstream has chosen to ignore.

In fact, in just the first months of the Obama Administration, she has been a part of the most bizarre and radical decisions that have been made. And the conservative blogosphere is now taking the lead in piecing them together and making them public.

Foremost among these, Jarrett used her position in the White House to promote Chicago's Olympic bid, and simultaneously sought to use the Olympics to pay off Chicago bigwigs, as noted by top blogger Michelle Malkin. Those who donated to Democrat causes would be rewarded with taxpayer subsidies allocated to 'finance' the Games—a pay-to-play grab bag of unprecedented proportions.

The trouble is, Jarrett had served as vice-chair of the Chicago 2016 Olympics campaign prior to her White House appointment. Since then, she was appointed to head the White House Office of Olympic, Paralympic and Youth Sport in an apparent conflict of interest to funnel money to favored political elites.

It does not stop there. While using her White House office apparatus to pay off political debts, Jarrett, the blogosphere has revealed, may also have been orchestrating a massive, under-the-table public relations campaign on the Administration's behalf at taxpayer expense

According to American Daughter blogger Nancy Matthis, Jarrett's White House Office of Public Engagement, along with 2 other government agencies, took part in an August 10th conference call where taxpayer-funded artists were invited to "to help lay a new foundation for growth, focusing on core areas of the recovery agenda – health care, energy and environment, safety and security, education, community renewal."

It turns out, Jarrett had gone along with the White House using the National Endowment for the Arts to recruit artists to a "national service" program to promote the Administration's political agenda. She was willing to let tax dollars go to partisan propaganda.

It goes on—with the conservative blogosphere tracking Jarrett's every step.

As revealed by the American Spectator author, The Prowler, Jarrett also played a key role in the radical nominations of Van Jones, who believed that the government was complicit in the horrific attacks of September 11th, 2001; Kevin Jennings, who wants to use public education to promote the homosexual agenda; and Cass Sunstein, who believes that animals should be allowed to sue humans in court.

Overall, Jarrett has been coming under increasing blogger scrutiny as of late. And while there have been bits and pieces of the Jarrett story already reported in part, it is the conservative blogosphere that is bringing the full story to light—and revealing the full extent of the Jarrett role in the White House.

For example, in a story that went largely unnoticed in 2008, Jarrett was revealed to be a slumlord. As reported by the Boston Globe, Jarrett was "the chief executive of Habitat Co., which managed Grove Parc Plaza [a horrific public house slum] from 2001 until this winter and co-managed an even larger subsidized complex in Chicago that was seized by the federal government in 2006, after city inspectors found widespread problems."

Those problems included unsafe and uninhabitable living conditions that were, frankly, inhumane. According to the Globe, "About 99 of the units are vacant, many rendered uninhabitable by unfixed problems, such as collapsed roofs and fire damage. Mice scamper through the halls. Battered mailboxes hang open. Sewage backs up into kitchen sinks. In 2006, federal inspectors graded the condition of the complex an 11 on a 100-point scale - a score so bad the buildings now face demolition."

The Globe deserves credit for breaking the story, of course, in the middle of the Obama campaign for the presidency. But, shockingly enough, the mainstream media either ignored or covered up the story. And it was allowed to remain under wraps until investigative reporters in the conservative blogosphere unearthed it just two weeks ago.

Conservative bloggers have also now begun reexamining Jarrett's role as the Chairman of the Board of Trustees for the University of Chicago Medical Center from 2006-2009. During her time as chair, she worked closely with Michelle Obama, and also was involved in a patient dumping scandal.

All of which, according to sources within the blogosphere, is just the tip of the iceberg. More of these stories will undoubtedly emerge in the blogosphere in the days and weeks ahead. That is why NetRight Nation (NRN) launched StopJarrett.com.

The truth is, the American people are just learning about Valerie Jarrett—what she has done, and what she may be capable of doing as Obama's top advisor, of whom Michelle Obama has said, "She's always one of the people he and I talk to when we're about to make a move."

And they have a reasonable expectation that the mainstream media will join conservative bloggers in shining some much-needed sunlight onto her actions as Barack Obama's top confidant.

Adam Bitely is the Executive Editor of NetRightNation.com.

http://blog.getliberty.org/default.asp?Display=1721

Barack, You Have a Problem

Anyone who has yet to visit the site of the new Washington News Observer independent broadcast news bureau is missing some of the most unique and revealing on-camera interviews coming out of the Nation's Capitol.

And amazingly enough, they are available absolutely free to broadcasters, bloggers, and newspapers (which, of course, explains why ALG News makes such liberal – if we can use that word – use of them).

One of the more revealing WNO soundbites in recent days was its interview with DC delegate to Congress Eleanor Holmes Norton. Not only did Norton – a close Obama associate – warn that "in our zeal to get a [healthcare] bill," Congress may shift the cost to the middle class, she admitted that -- Obama's assertions to the contrary -- there are no "revenues" to pay for the costly bill:

So, What Does He Do With His Time?

As Election Night 2009 turned into a deepening disaster for Barack Obama, his Communications Office hastened to put out the word that he had little interest in the returns and was not even bothering to watch the TV coverage.

It reminded O-Zone observers of his response to last summer's Tax Day Tea Parties when millions of Americans took to the streets to demonstrate against the Obama agenda. According the White House Press Office, he was off doing his own thing and was "unaware of tea parties."

So, one is left to wonder: What does this President do while his constituents are taking to the streets and flocking to the polls to tell him how little they like his handiwork?

Perhaps inadvertently, White House pressies revealed the truth late last week when they released the picture below (which mainstream media Obamatons somehow neglected to share with their viewing audiences):

The only question remaining now is: What, exactly, were Barack, Michelle, and their palies watching in the White House bijou? Currently, the top 3D movies are Journey to the Center of the Earth, Beowulf, Spacehunters: Adventures in the Forbidden Zone, and My Bloody Valentine.

One can only hope it was Beowulf. And that he took special note of the epic's timely warning, "Incline not to arrogance, famous warrior."

A Simple Truth Too Often Ignored

While most Washington insiders' eyes were turned to Virginia, New Jersey, and NY23, a relative handful of voters in the town of Manchester, New Hampshire, cast a vote that bespoke the spirit of voters nationwide.

By nearly 2,000 votes, out of 16,000 cast, the residents of Manchester approved a ballot initiative that capped local government spending. Under the new cap, spending will be limited to the rate of inflation plus growth, unless two-thirds of the Board of Mayor and Aldermen votes to override the cap.

The popular New Hampshire citizens' organization reported the victory thusly:

"Their message was loud and clear; low taxes are the result of low spending."

Now, the message simply needs to wind its way south to either end of Pennsylvania Avenue.

http://blog.getliberty.org/default.asp?Display=1720

ALG Editor's Note: In the following featured commentary from the Washington Examiner, New Media Director Adam Bitely is featured on the StopJarrett movement and website.

Point and click: Bloggers digging dirt on Obama adviser Jarrett

By: Nikki Schwab and Tara Palmeri

Valerie Jarrett

Now, who said the GOP didn't have an online presence?

Sure, the Republic National Committee's Web site pushes all the kitschy elements of a choreographed social networking strategy with its YouTube, Facebook and Twitter links to target that coveted 18-to-40 crowd, but maybe the party's grass-roots core has an agenda of its own.

Fresh off the victory of the recently resigned Obama administration Special Adviser for Green Jobs Van Jones, conservative bloggers have set their sights on another of President Obama's longtime pals.

"I'm not sure what set it off," said Adam Bitely, executive director of NetRightNation.com, "but I do know that the rumblings in the blogosphere tell me that Valerie Jarrett is fast becoming a liability."

Bitely, who monitors the Web site's daily publication "Overnights," noticed in late October bloggers began prodding at Jarrett, who is Obama's senior adviser and assistant for public engagement and intergovernmental affairs.

According a statement released by the organization, StopJarrett.com has drawn record hits for NetRightNation.

And Jarrett's recent appearances on the Sunday talk show circuit have fueled the underground resentment.

This past Sunday, Jarrett fired back at ABC's "This Week" host George Stephanopoulos when he asked her about the partisan divide on President Obama's proposals to Congress.

"Well, you should ask that question to the Republican Party," Jarrett said.

Bitely said bloggers were onto Jarrett and were bringing together the elements of a scandal in the Oval Office.

"We're collecting it all at StopJarrett.com, and it is growing at a rapid pace every single day," Bitely said.

Um, OK. We'll be checking our inbox to see how that goes.

 http://blog.getliberty.org/default.asp?Display=1719

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