Left And Right Politics

Interesting article from Investors.com. A poll of 1,376 practicing physicians, chosen randomly throughout the country, said they oppose the medical overhaul plan and would think about shutting down their practices or retiring early if universal health care were passes.

“The poll contradicts the claims of not only the White House, but also doctors’ own lobby — the powerful American Medical Association — both of which suggest the medical profession is behind the proposed overhaul. It also calls into question whether an overhaul is even doable; 72% of the doctors polled disagree with the administration’s claim that the government can cover 47 million more people with better-quality care at lower cost.”

“More than seven in 10 doctors answered “no” when asked if they believed “the government can cover 47 million more people and that it will cost less money and the quality of care will be better.”

“This response is consistent with critics who complain that the administration and congressional Democrats have yet to explain how, even with the current number of physicians and nurses, they can cover more people and lower the cost at the same time.

The only way, the critics contend, is by rationing care — giving it to some and denying it to others. That cuts against another claim by plan supporters — that care would be better”.

Read the rest of the article at the link above.

From PUMA:

Stand up to the White House’s menacingly misguided attempt to monitor the free speech of American citizens.

From ABC’s The Note:

“Yesterday, White House director of new media Macon Phillips wrote a blog post urging readers to flag questionable claims about health care proposals.”

As Republican Senator John Cornyn wrote in an email to the president urging him to end the Big Brother program,

“By requesting that citizens send “fishy” emails to the White House, it is inevitable that the names, email addresses, IP addresses, and private speech of U.S. citizens will be reported to the White House. You should not be surprised that these actions taken by your White House staff raise the specter of a data collection program. As Congress debates health care reform and other critical policy matters, citizen engagement must not be chilled by fear of government monitoring the exercise of free speech rights.”

Read more here:
http://pumapac.org/2009/08/06/the-first-amendment/

This program is menacing and wrong, and it calls for action. Please send an email to the White House instructing them to brush up on their Constitution.

1. Send an email to Macon Phillips, aka Minister of Information, at flag@whitehouse.gov

2. Copy these emails into the BCC of your email: prowl@pumapac.org, hardball@msnbc.com, caffertyfile@cnn.com, comments@mclaughlin.com, Cavuto@foxnews.com, LouDobbs@cnn.com, hemmer@foxnews.com, headlinenews@cnn.com, Hannity@foxnews.com, gretawire@fox.com, charlierose@pbs.org

3. Encourage your friends, family, and co-workers to send an email.

Use this email, or edit it as you see fit.If you are not a PUMA member, please delete that line. Be sure to include the text of the First Amendment in your email. Short, sweet, and to the point.

Dear White House Minister of Information,

I am writing as a very concerned American citizen. I am also a member of Puma PAC, People United Means Action (http://pumapac.org). After reading about your program encouraging Americans to report instances of “fishy” speech by their sister and fellow Americans, we realized you had perhaps forgotten to read this before you got to the White House:

The First Amendment to the United States Constitution:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

Please brush up on the United States Constitution. It’s a rather important document, and it is especially crucial that people in your line of work are familiar with it.

Sincerely,
Your Name and State
Puma PAC Member

Daniel Henninger of the Wall Street Journal asks the question “What is the point and purpose of the President’s orations”?

Six months into his presidency, with more surely to come, it is an appropriate moment to ask: What is the point and purpose of Barack Obama‘s speeches?……He seems to be on TV every day, talking.

Mr. Obama is not the nation’s Speaker in Chief. He’s not a senator, and he’s no longer a candidate. He’s the president. A president’s major speeches are different than those of anyone else. That high office imposes demands beyond the power of a podium. Inspiration matters, but the office also requires acts of leadership. A U.S. president’s words must be connected to something beyond sentiment and eloquence. Too much of the time, Barack Obama’s big speeches don’t seem to be connected to anything other than his own interesting thoughts on some subject.

You can read Daniel’s article at the link above. Also, read some of the comments if you get a chance. Here’s a few I thought were right on the spot:

“It is megalomania, pure and simple that drives this talking head of a president. His ideas are old and vacuous, and as the author points out, rest on a tissue of foundation.”

“Just like a top 40 song that everyone hums along to when it first comes out after excessive airplay people begin to just change the channel and soon enough it is out of radio rotation. The American public is already beginning to change the channel; what will happen when he announces a major speech and only Keith Olberman shows up?”

“I certainly can’t see why anyone thinks his speeches are worthy of any praise. Seeing the media fawn over his oratory reminds me of pre-school parents ooo’ing and ah’ing over their precious little ones fingerpainting……He may be spouting roses and laurel but what I hear in my head resembles the sound all adults make in “Charlie Brown” features. What he lacks in sincerity he makes up for in deceit.”

From Politico:

In a potentially alarming trend for the White House, independent voters are deserting President Barack Obama nationally and especially in key swing states, recent polls suggest. Obama’s job approval rating hit a low of 56 percent in the Gallup Poll on Wednesday. And pollsters are debating whether Obama’s expansive and expensive policy proposals or the ground-level realities of a still-faltering economy are driving the falling numbers.

But a source of the shift appears to be independent voters, who seem to be responding to Republican complaints of excessive spending and government control.

“This is a huge sea change that is playing itself out in American politics,” said Democratic pollster Doug Schoen. “Independents who had become effectively operational Democrats in 2006 and 2008 are now up for grabs and are trending Republican. “They’re saying, ‘Costing too much, no results, see the downside, not sure of the upside,’” he said.

As we posted earlier, Libertarians said the same thing back in May.