Many Congressmen, including Alan Mollohan (D-WV 1), Ohio Representatives Charlie Wilson, (D-OH 6) and Zachary Space, (D-OH 18), are telling their constituents that illegal aliens will not be covered by the Health Care bill being considered in Washington. Even President Obama has publicly made these claims. These elected officials are being dishonest.

On July 30 the House Energy and Commerce Committee voted on an amendment by Representative Nathan Deal, Republican from Georgia. The amendment would have required eligibility verification in an effort to reduce fraud and to keep people who are not citizens from taking advantage of the health care bill. The Deal amendment was voted down along party lines with 18 Republicans voting for it and 19 Democrats voting against it including Congressman Zachary Space.

The very next day Congressman Space offered a deceptive amendment (Section 246) to give himself and other local Congressman some cover with their constituents. Charlie Wilson has sited this amendment as proof that illegal aliens will not be covered. According to the Heritage Foundation, “The House bill not only makes a major expansion of Medicaid eligibility but also restricts (in Section 1702) inquiries about immigration status.”

The Space amendment (Section 246) actually guaranteed that people who are not citizens, including illegal aliens, would be able to access free health care.  The Space amendment states:

“Nothing in this title shall change current prohibitions against Federal Medicaid and CHIP payments under titles XIX and XXI of the Social Security Act on behalf of individuals who are not lawfully present in the United States.”

The problem with Space’s amendment is: It is a complete sham. According the Heritage Foundation, “H.R. 3200 contains gaping loopholes that will allow illegal immigrants to receive taxpayer-funded benefits. And these loopholes are no accident. The legislation contains no verification mechanism to ensure that illegal immigrants do not apply for benefits”

Dr. James Edwards, co-author of The Congressional Politics of Immigration Reform puts it this way, “If lawmakers wanted enrolling agents, including bureaucrats at new Health Choices Administration, to use the Systematic Alienage Verification for Entitlements SAVE system, the bill should include a reference and authorize SAVE’s application to this government program”. Not mentioning SAVE was deviously deliberate since the language left out of a bill often dictates the application of a program and defines eligibility. You might call this process permission by omission providing politicians with deniability while keeping their constituents in the dark.

Lost in the complex legal language is the fact that illegal aliens are already using the health care system everyday under the current laws sited by Congressman Space. Dr. Edwards further states, “the silence of H.R. 3200 regarding SAVE and mandatory verification makes Section 246 (Space’s amendment) just empty words.”

The Center for Immigration Studies (CIS), a non-partisan, independent Washington research organization recently released analysis of a report by Dr. Edwards on Health Reform Legislation and Immigration, the CIS states:

“Even legal immigrants whose sponsors are supposed to provide them financial support would be eligible for taxpayer-funded subsidies. Certain legal immigrants who qualify for premium subsidies or expanded Medicaid would also be able to sponsor new immigrants, whom they would have to pledge to support.”

The CIS analysis also reported; “Illegal immigrants would be exempt from the legal mandate to have health insurance, but they’d still receive taxpayer-funded medical services at health clinics and hospitals required to serve all those presenting with medical emergences.” However, American citizens will not be exempt from the legal health insurance mandate thereby giving non-citizens more rights than Americans have. The Space amendment is meaningless in the context of H.R. 3200, but very meaningful in the context of constituent deception.

The deception runs deeper than giving health care to existing non citizens and lying about it. This bill also lays the ground work for millions of new illegal aliens to access our health care system as soon as they arrive in the United States.

There is little concern in Washington about not having a verification system because Congress and the Administration have another plan to cover non-citizens. The CIS analysis summed it up this way; “Of course, the reason the lack of a vetting system is not important to the Obama Administration is that next year’s supposed amnesty would render illegal aliens eligible for the health care anyhow, or as President Obama puts it,” “create a situation where we’re dealing with illegal immigration, so that we don’t have illegal immigrants.”

Providing free health care to illegal aliens in addition to wide spread fraud in the Medicaid and Medicare system is contributing significantly to the high cost of health care in America today. The CIS analysis concludes, “Unless Congress makes every effort to reduce the strain on our health care system caused by illegal immigration any overhaul will be unworkable and unsustainable.”

How could Congressman Space believe he could get away with a stunt like this? With this kind of Congressional deception in play it is very clear the American people need to stand up and make some changes in Washington come election time.

Earth to Republican Party…Come in Republican Party.

Many people have serious concerns about the direction of the Republican Party during this election cycle. One problem is that it is difficult to understand the wisdom of having no stated goals, direction or leadership. A large number of my personal friends have indicated they are growing weary of being called upon for votes and money but left out of the conversation about the direction of our Party. One can hardly disagree with that sentiment.

Many Republicans are deeply offended by the out-of-control spending by our Party and the failure of the President to defend his own war policies not to mention the immigration fiasco. For that matter, he has failed to defend any Republican principle against the Democrats political attacks on his or the Party’s credibility. It is mind boggling that he does not understand, or care, that no response to these attacks is the equivalent of accepting them as true. His strategy works well for the Democrats.

Does he not understand that the minute the Democrats take the White House his war policy goes into the trash along with any possibility of completing the daunting task of winning in Iraq? Please don’t try to tell us that John McCain is the answer, as his political activity, over the past four years, has been a major reason why the Republican Party is disintegrating before our very eyes.

We have been ignored on the issues that define the Republican Party. These issues hold the answers as to why we, the Republicans, lost the House and Senate and will likely soon lose the White House. The President and the Party leadership failed to notice that the 2006 election would have a direct bearing on the current Presidential election. They just decided to set that one out.

It is imperative to offer inspirational leadership and an uplifting future for America in order to win the White House and take back the Senate. It also helps to be on the same page as the American people on issues like illegal immigration. Clearly John McCain and George Bush are far adrift from the main stream American people on this critical issue.

On immigration, John McCain can save his breath with his talking point, “I got the message” as he clearly did not get the message.  He intends to implement his/Kennedy comprehensive immigration plan in the shadow of pretending to secure the border. In case anyone cares the messages were “no new path to citizenship”, and, provide verifiable security along with a solid wall fence that politicians can not remove when no one is looking.

Please accept my apology for stating the obvious but I want to see some inspirational leadership and hope for our children infused into this election. I do not believe John McCain is the go-to-guy for inspiration or leadership. Don’t be surprised when the fans don’t show up for the game when their team has been disloyal to them. I suggest you offer some direction and reasons for people to get back in the game. And, you better be quick about it. The Press has already declared victory for the Democrats. Good luck.
BobNews

Mr. and Mrs. Clinton have enriched themselves by dividing constituents of color from the rest of the population and supporting Affirmative Action, a government racial quota system. By telling African American and Hispanic people that white people, or more accurately white Republican people are holding African American and Hispanic people down, the Clintons have become multi- millionaires and gained great power.

Affirmative Action is really about preferential treatment for constituents of color and without doubt the most important political piling of the Democrat Party. Nearly ninety percent of black people vote for Democrat Presidential Candidates regardless of who the candidate is or what they believe. Democrats can not win National elections without this essential constituent.

Race has been injected into the Democrat primary by the Clintons as they hold true to their history of using race to gain power. The New York Times recently stated, “Recent comments by Bill and Hillary Rodham Clinton that have drawn criticism from African-Americans just as the presidential primary campaign reached Southern states with significant numbers of black voters.”

The big issue now facing Mrs. Clinton is how can she deal the race card to the African American and Hispanic community at the same time? Both groups have been manipulated by Democrats and now expect preferential treatment based on race. Most Americans find this kind of political race baiting to be unacceptable but it is a glaring reality in this Democrat primary election.

When politicians use racial manipulation to gain power it harms the entire society but none more than the minority being manipulated. Shelby Steele, author The Content of Our Character, states in his book, “I think affirmative action has shown itself to be more bad than good and that blacks now stand to lose more from it than they gain.” Ward Connerly, author of Creating Equal, has been at the forefront of ending Affirmative Action for the same reasons and has gone toe to toe with the Clintons on the issue.

Many black people have taken exception to racial politics. In a July of 2006 Thomas Sowell, author and syndicated columnist wrote, “For the majority of blacks, Democrats have little to offer besides rhetoric on the things that matter most to them -- their children's education, their personal safety and their moral values. In all these key things, Democrats are not part of the solution, but part of the problem.”

While Mrs. Clinton is not the first politician to use race to obtain power, she is the first to run for Commander-in-Chief and face the dreaded Affirmative Action Quagmire. She has long believed it was good politics to support racial preferences in employment and education for minorities as long as it didn’t affect her.

She now has a problem running for Commander-in-Chief as her opponent is Barack Hussein Obama, a black man, who wants the same job she wants. Mrs. Clinton and her spouse and former President have angered some people because they used race in their efforts to stop the first black man to oppose her. The Clintons great compassion for black people and the need for Affirmative Action is no where in sight.

To compound the problem she has been using the same race-for-power game on the Hispanic people. Mrs. Clinton hired a Hispanic campaign manager, Ms. Solis Doyle, to help her convince Hispanics to place their votes in the Clinton corner. After all, by using a Hispanic woman as a proxy, Mrs. Clinton can play the same race card she uses to control other minority votes on Election Day.

It was recently reported that Mrs. Clinton has now removed Ms. Solis Doyle from her job and replaced her with Maggie Williams, an African-American and a former Clinton adviser. Could it be that this change of race managers has something to do with the fact that Mr. Obama has pulled the black vote to his corner?

Two prominent Hispanic Officials, Senator Rev. Ruben Diaz and Assemblyman Jose Peralta sent a letter demanding answers about Ms. Solis Doyle’s departure from the campaign. The letter said, “It is hard to understand how the Hispanic community that has been there to keep your campaign alive could remain in your corner when the first Hispanic woman to serve as your presidential campaign manager has resigned from her post.”

The Hispanic community is angered by this decision to change out a Hispanic for an African American and they made it very clear, “we would like you to realize that it will be very troubling to many if somehow we later find that she left her post under pressure”. This overt political warning demonstrates just how deep the fissure is when it comes to the racial tension within the party of diversity.

The New York Times, a defender of all things liberal, tried to take the edge off the Affirmative Action divide in reference to the rumblings within the Democrat Party when they recently published this statement referring to the infighting. “But they also provided an early glimpse at the complex set of tradeoffs facing party leaders, from their desire to make their own influence felt to their worries about offending the candidates and particular constituencies.”

One would think it hypocritical of Mrs. Clinton to insist on quotas through Affirmative Action or diversity for others but not herself. For anyone, other than Mrs. Clinton, to believe they are more qualified for a job than a black man is considered a racist act in her political party.

You can’t win without a leader…

I am so sorry to see the current state of affairs with the Republican Party. I am even sorrier that the Republican establishment does not understand what a huge error in judgment they have made with John McCain and scamnesty. While no one wants to see the Democrats in power at this critical time, it appears to be inevitable because the National Republican Party has failed to lead or provide a leader.

I predict there will be huge defections of Republicans leaving the Party for Independent status. I don’t think the base is going to buy the guilt trip of owning responsibility for the Democrats taking over the Whitehouse and all of the disasters that will follow. I don’t believe the base is responsible for the miserable job the Republican Party and President Bush did in the last election resulting in handing the House and Senate to the loony left without a fight.

Sadly, as I see it, the only person responsible for this power hand over is the President with the help of the Republican Party establishment. The Party nor the President understands you can not kick your base in the face and expect to win elections. To win elections you have to have an inspirational leader who can communicate clear ideas and fight off the attacks from the left.

There has been virtually no defense of Republican values by the President or the Republican establishment for the last six years. Neither the President nor the Republican Party has stood up to the left on our vital interest in the Middle East or anywhere for that matter.

Unfortunately, when I think of inspirational leaders the name John McCain does not come to mind. Unless the Republican Party steps up with an inspirational leader with some ideas and spirit the outcome of the next election is already cast in cement and the blame belongs to the Republican National Party and President George W. Bush. That is the truth.