This week, a memo leaked to Politico, by DNC pollster Joel Benenson, warned that Democrats risk facing a backlash on the way they have handled Obamacare. Specifically, the polling found that independent voters were most angry with “the stagnation and the backroom deal-cutting, particularly those that benefit the constituents of key swing senators or special interests.”

Democrats are facing the same political consequences as the Republicans in 2006: The loss of the valuable middle, and for precisely the same reasons.

This is dangerous territory for the majority. Voters have reason to be upset with Pelosi’s tricky maneuvering, and they have even more reason to be furious with what’s in the bill.  Unfortunately, while most of the pundits and news media are caught up in the legislative chess match and games of political chicken, almost everyone in official Washington has lost sight of the substance of the debate — the bill does nothing to truly reform health care. 

Our country is torn apart for a bill that covers only 4% of total health care expenditures — it raises costs, taxes and balloons the deficit, all while lowering the quality of care.

What is the real goal of this health care package — to control health care costs or control the market space?  The proof is in the legislation. The Senate-passed bill increases costs and taxes by putting a policy in place that ultimately leads to a government takeover: the regulations are structured in a way that makes it nearly impossible for free enterprise to flourish.

For example, if the goal of this bill was to control costs, why would the legislation penalize younger, healthy workers with a tax when they are precisely the group that diversifies the insurance risk pool for insurance providers, which concretely lowers everyday insurance premiums?    

Not all new proposals and regulations are bad. A good litmus test for any new government initiative is this — regulations should not punish an individual or family because they (or their employer or labor union) choose to pay for premium services. Nor should an individual be punished for choosing nothing. They should be forced to face the consequences of their risky decisions.

At a time when distrust in government is at an all-time high, it is no wonder why there’s such passionate resistance to the heavy hand of government being so involved in such a critically important and personal industry. But with all the focus on process (which the president and Democrats have already lost on), let’s focus on what really matters: lower health care costs for Americans. This bill is not the solution.

I believe that I’ve finally figured out what it will take to make the liberal proponents of Government Healthcare see things from the conservative side of the argument.

Before I show you my idea though, we need to get one thing straight… conservatives are not opposed to fixing the issues that need to be fixed (i.e. helping those that truly need the help with healthcare).  What conservatives are opposed to is the eventual single payer, GOVERNMENT healthcare solution.  Conservatives don’t look to government as the first solution to every problem.

Liberals, you have a laser-like focus on passing this healthcare bill (by any means necessary). While you are focusing on that goal however, you are losing sight of something. It’s the thing that makes conservatives realize that government is not the answer to our problems.

You are not going to be in power forever - even if the current congress tries to “deem” it so. Eventually (probably starting this November) you lose your grasp of power, and the Republicans will hold the reigns. When that happens, guess who will be in charge of your healthcare decisions if the current bill is made into law.

You feel safe now, when your party is in charge.  Do you really think that the Democrats will always be in control of your day-to-day healthcare decisions?  How would you have liked government healthcare if George Bush were in charge? How about Karl Rove?  Dick Cheney?  How would you feel with a medical rationing panel made up of Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity, and Ann Coulter?

Better yet, think of the two people on the political right that just make your blood boil and your mouths foam in anger?  Now, think about this…

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One point I initially missed in my previous article on the California Senate race (Cross-posted to RedState), and only later pointed out on Twitter, was that the Democrats should be scared to death about the current polling of Babs Boxer versus the Republicans. Our worst result against her right now gives us a one in four chance to win.

One in four sounds poor, but this is California. Since Pete Wilson retired from the Senate to become Governor, we’ve failed to win a Senate race. We lost two in 92 (Boxer over Herschensohn, Feinstein over Seymour), 94 (Feinstein over Huffington), 98 (Boxer over [Fong, that'll each me for using Wikipedia one lazy evening]), 2000 (Feinstein over Campbell), 04 (Boxer over Jones), and 06 (Feinstein over Mountjoy) for a record of 0 wins and 8 losses since then. The fact that all three of our candidates are polling at least that well against Boxer, with her polling under 50 against anyone (she’d probably graze 50 against me on a good day), should have Democrats panicked that this will be Coakley v. Brown revisited.

It turns out I was right and they are scared. The national left is rushing out here to raise her some money, including the DNC and President Obama himself in April, this after Al Gore helped this month.

Barbara Boxer’s political future is in jeopardy. It’s time Republicans across the country tune in, because the Democrats already started.

Fifteen Republican Senators voted against Jim DeMint’s measure to ban earmarks in the Senate.

Those fifteen were:

1. Alexander (R-TN)
2. Bond (R-MO)
3. Bunning (R-KY)
4. Cochran (R-MS)
5. Collins (R-ME)
6. Gregg (R-NH)
7. Hutchison (R-TX)
8. Inhofe (R-OK)
9. Lugar (R-IN)
10. Murkowski (R-AK)
11. Roberts (R-KS)
12. Shelby (R-AL)
13. Snowe (R-ME)
14. Voinovich (R-OH)
15. Wicker (R-MS)

Senator Bob Bennett, who denounced the measure to a RedState contributor, did not vote at all.

Friends, we can change the Republican Caucus in the United States Senate. But we have to unite behind the real small government conservatives out there. We must get on the same page to improve our own.

Here is the list. We need these guys:

Ken Buck in Colorado
Chuck DeVore in California
Michael Williams in Texas
Marco Rubio in Florida
Rand Paul in Kentucky
Pat Toomey in Pennsylvania
Danny Tarkanian in Nevada
Marlin Stutzman in Indiana
Mike Lee in Utah

And if we can, I say we go with Ovide LaMontagne in New Hampshire and Christine O’Donnell in Delaware. Let’s go all and all in for small government conservatives. This year is our last best chance in a long time to get a slate of solid conservatives.

CitizensContstitutionalCongress.com is providing “…a powerful new non-partisan voice,” in the wake of The ObamaCare Summit held in Washington last week and the announcement by the White House Wednesday that it is moving ahead to resurrect its highly partisan health care legislation.

Philadelphia, PA (Vocus) March 5, 2010 — As The White House announced its latest initiative pushing “ObamaCare,” a new website, www.CitizensConstitutionalCongress.com today went live to provide Americans with a powerful new voice of resistance to the government’s central planners in Washington, D.C.

Claiming to be “Free Citizens Fighting To Keep America Free,” CitizensContstitutionalCongress.com says it is inspired by the American Committees of Correspondence that, beginning in 1773, enabled American colonists to successfully oppose King George. It’s a proven historic model for a successful popular uprising.

The Tipping Point. CitizensContstitutionalCongress.com is providing “…a powerful new non-partisan voice,” in the wake of The ObamaCare Summit held in Washington last week and the announcement by the White House Wednesday that it is moving ahead to resurrect its highly partisan health care legislation.

“This is a tipping point,” says Lester Jenkins, spokesperson for CitizensConstitutionalCongress.com. Inflexible party officials – the President and his Democrat leaders in Congress (Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, and Senate Majority Leader, Harry Reid) – have collectively shown themselves to be working tirelessly to promote legislation that violates Americans’ cherished Constitutional freedoms.

“We clearly see what is happening. We oppose the liberal-progressive activists in Washington continuing to dismantle individual freedoms that Americans have fought for, defended, and enjoyed for centuries. We are organizing to oppose them, utilizing modern communications tools such as polls, petitions, conventions. This is an enduring movement to defend our personal liberties – as every generation of Americans has been called to do.”

Early American colonists banded together to form Committees of Correspondence to oppose the encroachment on their individual freedoms by the English Crown. This loose confederation led to The First Continental Congress and the drafting of popular petitions – culminating in The Declaration of Independence – and a successful Revolution against the world’s strongest power. The United States of America was born, establishing the precepts of limited self-government, and guarantees of individual freedom, as enshrined in the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights.

CitizensContstitutionalCongres.com “opposes ongoing efforts to tax and restrict Americans’ personal liberties through excessive spending and legislative initiatives such as ‘ObamaCare’ and ‘Cap and Trade.’ We strongly urge a return to First Principles as articulated in the United States Constitution. We seek to organize our fellow American citizens in firm resistance with united opposition to the relentless trend among the political class toward socialism.”

The new website proposes to effect change three ways:

1. Online Polling. CitizensConstitutionalCongress.com will regularly conduct public surveys and publish findings (both scientific and inferential) in the American press.
http://citizensconstitutionalcongress.com/wp/polls/

2. Online Petitions & Summons. CitizensConstitutionalCongress.com will draft petitions, solicit signatures, and issue summons and citations to sitting U.S. officials determined, by acclamation of petition signers, to be violating personal liberties as enshrined in the United States Constitution and the Bill of Rights.
http://citizensconstitutionalcongress.com/wp/petitions/

When one million Citizen’s signatures have been secured on any Citizens’ Petitions, CitizensConstitutionalCongress.com will issue Official Summons to be directly delivered by Special Courier to the government official(s) cited.

3. Congressional Conventions. CitizensConstitutionalCongress.com will convene convention delegates (at locations outside of Washington, D.C.) to openly and publicly debate, authorize, and issue proclamations and citations in order to present government officials with the formal summons of the Citizens Constitutional Congress.
http://citizensconstitutionalcongress.com/wp/conferences/

The new website has received endorsements from The Last America Band, whose new release, “The American Freedom Trilogy” features their new video, “How Stupid Do They Think We Are?” The band is directing proceeds from the song to help support CitizensConstitutionalCongress.com. Members of the band are currently touring Ireland and Europe, and will return to the U.S. by the end of the month.

The band was formed by five American recording artists following The ObamaCare Summit and the announcement by the White House Wednesday that it was moving ahead to resurrect its highly partisan ObamaCare legislation.

“Too many have sacrificed too much over too many generations for this generation to fail to defend freedom today,” says Jenkins, speaking on behalf of the band “We won’t let it happen. This is a popular uprising. The resistance is real.”

For more information: www.citizensconstitutionalcongress.com

Posted from Yahoo! News:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/prweb/20100305/bs_prweb/prweb3689684

Tom Harkin, Barack Obama, and assorted left-wing activists are asking a simple question this week as if it is the most profound question ever asked:

“If Republicans are so sure passing health care reform will doom the Democrats in November, why not help them pass it?”

If you ask this question without any sense of irony, you have so far removed yourself from reality that we might need to commit you.

Let me ask it another way — if the Democrats were so sure the War in Iraq would doom Republicans, why not go all in and help escalate the war?

Because lives are at stake? Is that why? Well, same with the GOP helping the Democrats pass health care. We don’t want the blood on our hands.

We will not help pass bad legislation just because it helps us politically. There are greater things at stake such as freedom, individual liberty, and the American ideal. The free market system should be above politics.

The GOP will not help the Democrats pass health care reform because passing health care reform will mean destroying the country. And that is not hyperbole, that is a fact.

Credit where it is due: the Senate GOP has come up with a great strategy to combat talk of compromise on reconciliation. The Senate GOP will block any effort to strip abortion funding in reconciliation.

This may get a few pro-life groups upset and I want to be very clear here — you will be able to tell the real pro-life groups from the posers by their stand on this strategy. The real pro-life groups will support this and the posers will oppose it.

Here’s why.

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The California Republican Assembly, a 75 year old conservative group in this state, endorsed Chuck DeVore for Senate today with over 75% support on the first ballot.

“CRA must keep working and producing solid conservative candidates for office at all levels of government, and I hope that my fellow Californians will join the CRA team and get involved with a local chapter.” Ronald Reagan said that of the CRA years ago, and today the group proved itself to live up to those words still. The doubters question DeVore, even after his convincing debate victory, saying he has no name recognition, he has no fundraising, and he can’t win. The CRA stood up today and pushed back. Conservative activists know who he is, stand ready to give, and can be the backbone of a DeVore victory.

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Well my friends I’m afraid that my soul searching is over now and I’m back to reality.  I was actually fully convinced that Mr. Obama was going to be adding the GOP’s ideas for health care reform,  but I think this was just a ploy.  Politically it would have been very smart to include these ideas, because if the Republicans still said “No”, it would make them look bad.  I was fooled into thinking that Mr. Obama had people working on these possible additions since the Health Care Summit last Thursday.  Instead all that was presented was a letter.

You can read it here:

Mr. Obama’s letter to the leaders

This is a load of crap.  I think tomorrow I’m going to write a letter to by bank and let them know that I will be adding funds to my account.  They won’t have the money but they should just take my word for it.  Unless you are a complete idiot you must understand that these GOP items will never be included in this bill in full.  As for tort reform it might include funds for pilot projects in the states to explore alternatives to resolving medical malpractice disputes.   There will be no capping of malpractice awards.  Mr Obama has made it very clear that he opposes these caps.  He did seem to like the idea of conducting random undercover investigations of health care providers that receive reimbursements from Medicare.  But that sounds like a Liberal idea anyway.  My take on his response to all other issues is… SCREW YOU.  He says “I’m open to exploring ways to address this issue” and “I’m open to including language to ensure that is clear.”, let me translate this for you… SCREW YOU.

I WAS willing to accept much of the extra garbage in this bill if they included the GOP’s ideas.  And I meant really include the meat and potatoes of these ideas.  The GOP has them all written up for you to see on their website.  But after this crappy letter, I am even more against this bill than I was before.  I’m not just against it, I’m pissed off that Mr. Obama actually thinks he is being bi-partisan.  Mr. Obama you have made a very costly mistake, you could have included some very simple yet vital Republican ideas into this huge piece of legislation and in turn you would have acquired support from a great number of us.  But instead you slap us in the face with more broken promises.  We will now rally together even stronger than before against this.  You had your chance and you blew it.