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What do you call people who use their power to line their own pockets by taking from people who can’t protect themselves? “Bullies?” “Thieves?”
What if they also lie about it and attempt to cover their tracks with irrational nonsense that would make Jabberwocky seem like a reference manual? Would they be “liars?” “Thieving liars?” How about “lying, thieving bullies?”
Judging by what’s happening today in American politics, the answer is inescapable . . . we’d all be forced to just call them Republicans.
Congressman Paul Ryan, the new chairman of the House Budget Committee recently released the Republican budget for 2012, and it subsequently passed through the House with all but four Republican members voting in its favor. Labeled the “Path to Prosperity,” the Ryan plan is touted to cut $6.2 trillion from President Obama’s budget over the next decade. But while this may sound promising on the surface, even a cursory look at the details leaves a person asking, “To whose prosperity does this path lead?
According to Ryan, the Republican proposal is “guided by the timeless principles of the American idea,” but unless he was referring to the principles upheld by the Robber Barons of the 19th Century, Ryan must be talking about another America. If the congressman was indeed talking about the United States, a nation that was founded on the notion of a government empowered by the “consent of the governed” to “form a more perfect union” that would “promote the general welfare,” then the only explanation is that the man is either ignorant of the facts of our founding, or he’s just an unethical self-serving liar!
The fact of the matter is that Ryan’s “Path to Prosperity” is a full frontal assault on working Americans. It makes a mockery of our Constitution by subverting the federal government for the benefit of the wealthy at the expense of everyone else. In short, the proposal that Ryan refers to as the “new House majority’s answer to history’s call,” will end Medicare as we know it, replace Medicaid with block grants, make the Bush tax cuts permanent, and lower both the top individual and corporate tax rate to 25%.
Indeed, Ryan and the other social cannibals of the Republican Party like to talk about being adults while paying lip service to shared sacrifice, but as is evidenced by their budget proposal, the truth of their actions is a different matter. The Republican plan not only attempts to slash social programs to pay on the debt created by years of excess military spending, tax cuts for the rich, and banker bailouts, but it does so by first making matters worse.
In what has become SOP for the GOP, the Ryan plan will trim the tax bill of the wealthy by 29%, bringing it to its lowest level since 1931, and it will attempt to cover the loss in revenue by hacking at the discretionary services relied upon by everyone else.
So, the Republican plan is to address spending by gutting education, allowing our infrastructure to further decay, and slashing $1.6 trillion total from domestic discretionary spending, while shifting the burden for the high costs of healthcare onto seniors instead of addressing the root causes, and also ripping the heart out of Medicaid, which expends 87% of its costs to serve children, the elderly and the disabled. All told, the Ryan budget will reduce spending by $4.3 trillion over 10 years, but even though the justification for all of these draconian cuts is based on the deficit, Ryan and the snake oil peddling Republicans will actually give $4.2 trillion of that total back in tax cuts.
That’s right, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, the Ryan plan will reduce the deficit by all of $155 billion over 10 years. But what the heck, the deficit is really nothing but a policy bludgeon created and used by Republicans anyway. Since Ronald Reagan took office, the Republicans have been dedicated to increasing military spending, while cutting taxes, and as a result consistently ignoring the deficit and adding to the debt. The Ryan budget is no exception.
Just why the beltway press has referred to Ryan as “courageous” for proposing what appears to be standard fare for the Republican Party is more than a little curious. The truth of the matter is that the release of the Ryan plan may have been much more “careless” than it was “courageous.” Like the realtor who inadvertently reveals that the field behind that bargain-priced Tudor is slated for a chemical factory, the Ryan budget leaves no doubt regarding the true motives of the Republican Party.
Fortunately, this time around, people are paying attention. Blinded by their own lack of integrity, Republicans evidently believed that by grandfathering everyone 55 and over into the traditional Medicare system, they wouldn’t receive much pushback at their attempt to screw everyone else. But they were wrong. As it turns out, seniors who have learned that the Ryan plan will replace Medicare with a voucher system that will cause future retirees to reach into their own pockets for an estimated $12,500 each year for insurance, have reacted as if the change affected them personally.
Hurray for American seniors! In one town hall meeting after another, Republicans returning to their home constituencies are getting an earful about their illicit attempt to stuff their pockets with money gained by throwing future retirees to the wolves that run the profit-rich medical insurers.
Of course, the big-money Republican damage control apparatus is already underway trying to spin the dismantling of Medicare. Spending millions on bullshit television ads, the voucher system that Paul Ryan euphemistically refers to as “premium support,” is now being presented as a Republican attempt to “preserve Medicare.” Sadly, that preservation would be in name only, preserving the program in much the same way as a classic car is preserved by sending it through a car crusher. But hey, in the Bizarro World of Republican spin doctoring — rhetoric is reality.
So, where does this go from here? Nowhere. There is absolutely zero chance that the Ryan plan will pass the Senate and be signed by the president, which makes it all the more painfully obvious how ridiculously disconnected the Republican Party is from the reality of life in America. Why House Republicans would actually reveal their true agenda, knowing that it would never become law, is anybody’s guess. It’s like a thief giving his victim advanced warning — in writing. But be that as it may, the genie is out of the bottle, and he’s got “Republican doom” tattooed on his forehead.
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It appears that House Republicans may soon be launching an attempt to privatize Medicare. House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-WI) is testing support for his idea to replace Medicare with a so-called “voucher” system that would require recipients to purchase coverage through a private medical plan.
According to Michael Steel, spokesman for Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) — as of Thursday, “No decisions have been made . . . there are a lot of ideas out there.” So, we’ll have to stay tuned to see where this goes, but in the meantime, a closer look at the situation is definitely in order.
So, let’s see: the problem is that we have rapidly escalating healthcare costs and a growing population of elderly who will be reliant upon Medicare. Either situation would present a major economic issue by itself, but taken together the impact is of historical proportions.
Looking at the cost of healthcare, we have soaring premiums, deductibles, and copayments. Premiums alone nearly doubled between 2000 and 2008, and the total out-of-pocket for the average family climbed by more than 30% just between 2001 and 2006. The problem is so large that healthcare spending as a portion of GDP jumped to 17.3% in 2008 — the largest increase since 1960 — and it’s expected to climb to over 19% within the decade. We’ll be spending nearly $1 out of every $5 on healthcare.
Meanwhile, in spite of spending levels that are more than twice the OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) average ($7,538 per capita in 2008) we trail most other developed countries in health outcomes. OECD data shows the U.S. ranking 26th amongst 34 nations in life expectancy and 30th for infant mortality. We may have the best healthcare available for those who are either wealthy or well-insured, but for the rest of us, we simply pay more and get less.
But alas the news isn’t all bad. All that money we’re spending is providing a great deal of benefit . . . for the bank accounts of the medical insurers and pharmaceutical companies. The 10 largest insurers are reaping a plentiful harvest. They’ve seen their profits soar over 250% from 2000 to 2009. In fact, they’re doing so well that despite a struggling economy, the top 5 insurers still managed to book a 56% jump in profits during 2009 alone.
So, what’s the GOP solution for this mess?
Well, we need look no further than the last major healthcare legislation authored and passed by Republicans to understand their priorities and strategy. That effort brought us Medicare Part D as part of the Medicare Modernization Act of 2003. The bill was passed with the support of only 11 Democrats in the Senate and 16 in the House. It was completely unfunded, and in fact piled on the deficit only a few months after the second round of Bush tax cuts were passed by an even slimmer partisan margin.
Medicare Part D has obviously had its positive impact, providing much-needed prescription drugs to America’s seniors. But with expenditures of nearly $50 billion in 2008 and projected expenditures in the next decade of around $1 trillion, it is without doubt a major source of our nation’s expansion of unfunded liabilities. The sad truth is that these costs could have been contained, but not without price controls. And with corporate profits being sacrosanct to Republicans, the program was designed to prohibit the federal government from negotiating prices with the drug companies. The result is that Medicare Part D pays a 58% average premium on the same drugs purchased by the Veterans Administration, which is allowed to negotiate prices.
So, with anything that might reduce corporate profits off the table, there’s really little latitude for alternative action. Since the federal deficit has already been ballooned to record levels in order to save Wall Street profits, another Medicare Part D unfunded gift to the healthcare industry won’t fly. Add in the strict Republican prohibition against any tax increases that could increase revenues, and the GOP is left with but a single path of action — reduce services.
Vouchers are the answer for maximizing government funding of healthcare industry profits without increasing expenditures. It’s the GOP’s way of saying, “Here you go Cigna. Uncle Sam just can’t afford anymore, but we’ll make sure you get every penny available.”
Of course, the countervailing message to America’s elderly is akin to “Thanks for your contribution. You’re on your own now. We hope you won’t become ill, but if you do, may you die quickly.” But, oh well, that’s life; resources are limited and somebody has to make a sacrifice.
As with most things, the choices we make usually depend on our priorities, and healthcare in America is no exception. There are those who believe that a person who has worked their entire life deserves for the society they’ve supported to reciprocate with this most basic of humanitarian services. These people believe that one of the other variables, corporate profits or tax revenues, should be adjusted to fulfill this duty. Their belief is that we are not only the United States but also a united people.
Then there are others who don’t see American society as a union of all the people. They believe in division instead of unity, in winners and losers. For these people, there is no shame in runaway corporate profits or the skyrocketing wealth of the top 1%, because that’s the way the game is played. They view society as a competition, not a brotherhood. Exploitation is the path to victory, and to the victor belong the spoils.
Everyone understands that healthcare in America is on an unsustainable path. We’re in desperate needs of solutions, and whatever they are, sacrifice will be required. The decision to be made is who will bear the burden. Will we as a nation ask for the wealthy to give out of their abundance or will we take from those least able to fend for themselves?
The answer is all about priorities: people or profits. And we all have to answer for ourselves which side we’re on.
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It’s like Biblical Egypt all over again, complete with the plague of the frogs, only this time — the frogs are Us. The United States of America is in dire straits, the most dire in my lifetime. Years of party politics and pandering to special interests has left our country afloat on a sea of rising problems. Pick your issue, be it banks who rob us, insurance companies who only insure for their profits, needless wars that kill our young and stuff the pockets of the defense industry, jobs, energy, taxes, it doesn’t matter; rudderless and without a destination, America continues to sail on troubled waters. The issues are many, the stakes historical, the arguments heated near a boil, and still too many Americans don’t fully comprehend that gravity of the situation — it truly is a slow burn, and We the People ARE the frogs in the kettle.
Witness the raging debate over healthcare. Are we any better off now that the “reform” bill has passed? Are we any worse? Democrats are optimistic that we’ve moved forward on the need to provide care for more Americans, and that we’ve done so in a fiscally responsible way. Republicans insists that the bill was forced down the people’s throat; that it’s a drastic move toward socialism that will surely trigger Armageddon. Who’s correct? Left? Right?
The truth that America can’t seem to handle is that they’re both right . . . and they’re both wrong. This is a dibilitating core problem in American politics. Our present political system functions more and more like a sporting event. Sides are chosen, and it’s winner take all. This is great for entertainment value, but it totally sucks for addressing the complex issues that face our nation. Our democracy has become completely dysfunctional.
The healthcare legislation is just one example; one for which I’ve already shared my opinion. I sincerely wish it was the only example, but that’s far from the case. The process witnessed during the healthcare debate is simply the latest instance of partisan bickering and diametric opposition to exemplify our broken government. This slam dance is now standard operating procedure, and it guarantees that the real issues will never be addressed.
There is no doubt that this dynamic has crippled our democracy’s ability to serve the needs of the people. But of even greater concern is the irresponsible outcome insured by the marriage of the two warring factions. The net result of the Democrat push for increased social benefits, coupled with the Republican mantra of tax reduction, not only ensures that effective solutions are never instituted, but also serves to keep the public’s attention trained on the diversion and away from the elephant in the room.
This is nothing new for Washington politics, but the gravity of the consequences hits new levels with every passing day. The “more services/less revenue” tango has left America in denial. Little conversation occurs regarding our economic elephant. This Godzilla like beast to which I refer is the deep dark financial hole our illustrious leaders so zealously feed — a hole totaling some $56 trillion dollars as of September 30, 2008, and growing.
That’s right, $56 trillion, with a “T.” That’s nearly a half million dollars for every American household. In the words of David M. Walker, former Comptroller General of the U.S., this is like having, “a huge second or possibly third mortgage, amounting to almost ten times your annual household income.” For the moment, we do still have the World’s largest economy, but even our $14 trillion GDP pales when compared to this mounting debt and liabilities. And when you consider that the budget deficit was $1.42 trillion for fiscal 2009, a full 9.9 percent of that GDP, you get a feel for how we’re feeding our giant reptile.
Recent bailouts and the new healthcare legislation certainly add to the problem, but they alone are not the culprits. The real core issue is complete fiscal irresponsibility on the part of conservatives and liberals alike, and the bottom line is that neither side has the courage to face the music. Though, I guess this is somewhat understandable, since the song they need to play is a dirge, and the lyrics should go something like, “We’re so sorry we sold you down the river for our own personal gain.”
Yes, my fellow Americans, regardless of political affiliations, we’ve all been sold a bad bill of goods. It’s time to stop playing like ostriches, pull our heads out of the sand and take a serious look at our financial mess. Like teenagers with a new credit card, our elected officials have strapped us with a federal debt now over $12 trillion dollars, and that’s not the worst of it. It’s actually more like the tip of the iceberg. The plot sickens much further when you take a look at our unfunded obligations.
As of September 30, 2008, our unfunded obligations, consisting of Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security totaled nearly $43 trillion. And since the Congress refuses to address the issue and instead continues to add to the balance, the $56 trillion hole (federal debt plus unfunded obligations) for 2008 is expected to bulge to $63 trillion for 2009.
Just in case these numbers don’t grab your attention, you might want to consider that when George W. Bush took office, the hole was a comparatively manageable $20 trillion. During his two terms as President, we had three tax cuts, started two wars, bolstered homeland security and added an extremely expensive prescription drug benefit to Medicare. The combined result of this wisdom enlarged the hole by 176 percent to the $56 trillion number that President Obama stepped into. This is what’s commonly referred to as a snowball effect, and the really scary part is that it’s just getting going.
Indeed, if left unaddressed, the GAO (Government Accountability Office) forecasts that within the next 12 years, interest payments on the federal debt will become the single largest line item in the federal budget. If left until 2040, all federal revenues would cover only the payment of said interest and Medicare/Medicaid. We’d have nothing left for defense, much less Social Security or anything else. Put another way, in order to cover the bills in 2030, our average federal tax rate of 21 percent will have to swell to as much as 45 percent. By 2040, it would be 53 percent, and that’s only the federal slice.
Needless to say, this paints a sorry picture for all of us, but left unchecked it could prove devastating to our children and grand children. All Americans should be absolutely ashamed that we’ve allowed the situation to grow so very bleak. Everybody knows that we’ve been building a house of cards, that you can’t continually reduce federal revenues (cut taxes) and at the same time increase spending (wars and services) and expect things to balance. Our elected official’s intentional obfuscation of the facts may have clouded issues, but in the end, it’s really every American who’s responsible. We’ve spent 30 years in denial and it’s high time to stand straight and face the facts.
The facts are that, contrary to common assertions, we can’t grow or inflate our way out of this big ugly. Yet, unless we want to just subscribe to the contemporary American IBG (I’ll Be Gone) ethic, we need to do our best to address the issues and to do so with some haste. Things will only get worse until we do.
Resolution obviously won’t be easy, but the good news is that we can make it happen, and we’ll all be stronger for the wear. Real patriots will take this challenge in the spirit that created our great nation. They will demand that our politicians immediately stop the destructive rhetoric, cease their incessant partisan bickering, and open a meaningful dialog to address this real and pertinent issue. And they will also accept that the way out will require that we all make sacrifices.
Thankfully, I’m not a politician, and I don’t have to worry about getting reelected, so I can tell it like it is. The fact is that big holes need big shovels, and we’ve done a lot of digging. Our way out is going to be painful. So conservatives, suck it up, because we’re going to need to raise taxes, and liberals, bite your tongues, because social programs will have to see cuts. Social Security and Medicare have to be reformed and the defense budget will need a serious overhaul. It’s time for transformational change, change that will require nonpartisan solutions. I’m sure that recovery will provide plenty to piss off every American, but the only alternative to some scorched buttocks is to just sit in the kettle and be cooked. You’ll have to make your choice. I’ve already made mine.
If you’re interested in more information, please take the time to watch I.O.U.S.A. And when you’re finished, please do get involved. You can start by taking action and writing Congress.
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