All we ever hear about Senate rules, is how some obscure rule is holding up something good. Senate rules were started by Southern Democrats looking for ways to block abolitionist legislation before the Civil War. Southern democrats carried on this disgraceful tradition in the 1950's looking for ways to block civil rights legislation. Then the "rules" were expanded to block Supreme Court appointments, all federal judge appointments, and pretty much anything. It got so bad that they couldn't muster the votes to pass the federal budget. Harry Reid (former Democrat Senate majority leader) had to create a new "rule" called reconciliation to allow the budget to pass on a simple majority, rather getting hung up going for 60 votes. Today the Republicans are trying to use "reconciliation" to repeal Obamacare by a simple majority. Which is why they didn't put interstate sale of insurance in it. "Reconciliation" can only be used for budget matters Later Harry created another rule allowing appointments ( except Supreme Court) to pass on a simple majority. And the Senate has "rules" requiring 60 votes in order to bring a bill to the floor, and then 60 votes to pass it. In short the Senate spends half it's votes, voting to have a vote. Senators can vote one way on one vote, the other way on the other vote, and tell their constituents that he voted their way, for or against, what ever the voter wants to hear. And there are secret "blackball" rules that allow a single Senator to blackball a nomination to anything. They keep Senator Blackball's name secret too.
Let's scrap all the existing Senate rules. Every Senator gets to submit one (or maybe more) bills, that will come to the floor for debate and a vote. All votes are simple majority. Every nomination comes to the floor for a vote within 14 days of the nomination. Senator's may no longer talk on the floor as long as they please.
Friday, March 10, 2017
Thursday, March 9, 2017
NHPR calls president Trump crazy.
Just this morning I heard this. On FM radio. To cloak their position, NHPR said they were quoting a Democratic Congressman from California. "California" is a land of fruits and nuts, "Democratic" is a party of lefty greenies, neither adjective lends credence to the Congressman's words. They did mention the Congressman's name (once) but I didn't catch it.
Congressman didn't right out call the president crazy, instead he spoke in psycho-babble, but I have been hearing psycho-babble for years and years and know how to understand it. He was calling president Trump crazy.
Which is an extreme thing to say about an elected US president.
It's also pretty extreme for NHPR to carry the story.
Congressman didn't right out call the president crazy, instead he spoke in psycho-babble, but I have been hearing psycho-babble for years and years and know how to understand it. He was calling president Trump crazy.
Which is an extreme thing to say about an elected US president.
It's also pretty extreme for NHPR to carry the story.
Wednesday, March 8, 2017
NHPR quoting UNH. There is no electricity shortage in NH
Heard on my clock radio this morning. A UNH study claims that we don't need to bring down the NH electric rate in order to grow business. They made the further claim that NH electric rates were no worse than the national average. And we didn't need more pipelines to bring in natural gas.
The greenies love this kind of "stuff".
Pure poppycock. My residential electric rate is 25 cents a kilowatt-hour, the nation average is 10 cents a kilowatt hour. Lack of gas pipeline capacity causes radical prices spikes in the cost of natural gas. Which in addition to ripping off those who heat with natural gas, causes price spikes in electric rates, because most electricity is generated by natural gas. When natural gas prices go crazy in a cold January, the electric rates do the same.
Did UNH actually run this study? Or did NHPR misquote them? Who knows? Both groups have enough greenies in them, to support any amount of greenie propaganda.
But that was this morning's news on FM radio.
The greenies love this kind of "stuff".
Pure poppycock. My residential electric rate is 25 cents a kilowatt-hour, the nation average is 10 cents a kilowatt hour. Lack of gas pipeline capacity causes radical prices spikes in the cost of natural gas. Which in addition to ripping off those who heat with natural gas, causes price spikes in electric rates, because most electricity is generated by natural gas. When natural gas prices go crazy in a cold January, the electric rates do the same.
Did UNH actually run this study? Or did NHPR misquote them? Who knows? Both groups have enough greenies in them, to support any amount of greenie propaganda.
But that was this morning's news on FM radio.
I taped over the camera on my laptop
I did it a year ago or more. After seeing posts about some PA school that was spying the their students, via school supplied laptops, I put a square of masking tape on the camera lens of my laptop. If I was really serious about it, I would find the microphone and tape that over too.
Tuesday, March 7, 2017
The "replace" plan is out this morning.
It's ONLY 120 pages, which makes it possible to read, unlike the thousand pages of Obamacare. I haven't read it myself, so what I am writing here I get off the TV. The bill keeps the ban on preexisting conditions, and kids up to 26 years old can stay on there parents insurance.
It offers "Tax Credits", presumably for buying insurance, possibly for paying medical bills. If I remember my IRS form 1040, tax credits are better than deductions. A deduction reduces your taxable income (adjusted gross income) whereas a credit reduces your tax. For example, a $100 deduction reduces your tax bill by your tax rate times the deduction, usually amounting to $20-$30. A $100 credit reduces your tax bill by $100. This is a good idea. It levels the playing field between most of us, who get our health insurance tax free thru our employers, and the self employed who get no kind of tax break at all.
On the other hand, half the population of the country is so low on the economic ladder that they owe no income tax at all. Tax credits don't do you any good if you don't owe any income tax.
The plan fails to allow sale of health insurance across state lines, a measure that would increase competition
and lower costs. Everybody except the insurance companies is in favor of interstate sale. Failing to put it in is a squishy soft cave in to the insurance companies. Insurance companies don't vote, nobody likes them much, but they have a lot of money to buy Congressmen with. Looks like they bought themselves a lot of Congressmen on this one. Congressmen go for cheap this year.
The bill also fails to require Medicare and Medicaid to bargain with big pharma over drug prices. Again everybody (even insurance companies) thinks this is a good idea. Nobody likes big pharma much and they don't have the vote. But big pharma does have money, same general amount as the insurance companies, and they have bought themselves plenty of low priced Congressmen.
The bill fails to do anything to reduce the cost of health care, like clamping down on malpractice suits (lawyers like malpractice and nearly all Congressmen are lawyers). It doesn't allow duty free import of drugs from any reasonable first world country, which would do a lot to lower drug prices. It doesn't rein in the ever growing FDA requirements for more and more testing of new drugs. It does nothing to rein in the outrageous marketing expenditures by big pharma.
It offers "Tax Credits", presumably for buying insurance, possibly for paying medical bills. If I remember my IRS form 1040, tax credits are better than deductions. A deduction reduces your taxable income (adjusted gross income) whereas a credit reduces your tax. For example, a $100 deduction reduces your tax bill by your tax rate times the deduction, usually amounting to $20-$30. A $100 credit reduces your tax bill by $100. This is a good idea. It levels the playing field between most of us, who get our health insurance tax free thru our employers, and the self employed who get no kind of tax break at all.
On the other hand, half the population of the country is so low on the economic ladder that they owe no income tax at all. Tax credits don't do you any good if you don't owe any income tax.
The plan fails to allow sale of health insurance across state lines, a measure that would increase competition
and lower costs. Everybody except the insurance companies is in favor of interstate sale. Failing to put it in is a squishy soft cave in to the insurance companies. Insurance companies don't vote, nobody likes them much, but they have a lot of money to buy Congressmen with. Looks like they bought themselves a lot of Congressmen on this one. Congressmen go for cheap this year.
The bill also fails to require Medicare and Medicaid to bargain with big pharma over drug prices. Again everybody (even insurance companies) thinks this is a good idea. Nobody likes big pharma much and they don't have the vote. But big pharma does have money, same general amount as the insurance companies, and they have bought themselves plenty of low priced Congressmen.
The bill fails to do anything to reduce the cost of health care, like clamping down on malpractice suits (lawyers like malpractice and nearly all Congressmen are lawyers). It doesn't allow duty free import of drugs from any reasonable first world country, which would do a lot to lower drug prices. It doesn't rein in the ever growing FDA requirements for more and more testing of new drugs. It does nothing to rein in the outrageous marketing expenditures by big pharma.
Monday, March 6, 2017
The buck stops here
So Obama is claiming that HE never authorized a tap on Trump's phone. He failed to say that Trump's phone was never tapped, he just said he didn't do it. Old Harry Truman would not have seen it that way. If any government agency tapped Trump's phone, then Obambi is responsible, at least as long as he was in office. There is a report out on TV saying that the rubber stamp FISA court DID issue a warrant to tap Trump's phone. Nobody has denied that report, yet. If the report is true, then Trump's charge of wiretapping is true. And Obambi is doing a weasel. As usual.
TV is doing a long song and dance about the FISA court and what it can or cannot do, aimed to showing that the court won't do a wiretap on just the president's sayso. Since the court meets in secret, the justices are secret, and the records are secret, it can do anything it wants. And probably has.
TV is doing a long song and dance about the FISA court and what it can or cannot do, aimed to showing that the court won't do a wiretap on just the president's sayso. Since the court meets in secret, the justices are secret, and the records are secret, it can do anything it wants. And probably has.
Why the Republicans haven't announced a "replace" plan.
It's due out this morning according to the TV. Democrats have been sniping at it, claiming that the Republicans should have a replace plan already.
I'm pretty sure that actually the Republicans have a plan. In fact they must have a dozen plans. Problem is, they cannot get everyone (or even 51%) to agree on WHICH plan they are going to support. Health care is a gravy train for patients, doctors, big pharma, insurance companies, hospitals, medical device makers, ambulance drivers, ambulance chasers, state governments. Health care is 19% of the US GNP, that's a huge amount of money. With that much gravy the spread around, no wonder everyone wants their fair share, and more if they can get it.
To pass anything at all, the Republicans need nearly every single Republican vote. The Republican margin is thin, and in the Senate, a mere three defectors could sink anything. I'm thinking that they won't keep their party in line, or even attract a few Democratic defectors, without president Trump getting behind ONE replace option and pushing it hard. Which he hasn't done yet.
I'm pretty sure that actually the Republicans have a plan. In fact they must have a dozen plans. Problem is, they cannot get everyone (or even 51%) to agree on WHICH plan they are going to support. Health care is a gravy train for patients, doctors, big pharma, insurance companies, hospitals, medical device makers, ambulance drivers, ambulance chasers, state governments. Health care is 19% of the US GNP, that's a huge amount of money. With that much gravy the spread around, no wonder everyone wants their fair share, and more if they can get it.
To pass anything at all, the Republicans need nearly every single Republican vote. The Republican margin is thin, and in the Senate, a mere three defectors could sink anything. I'm thinking that they won't keep their party in line, or even attract a few Democratic defectors, without president Trump getting behind ONE replace option and pushing it hard. Which he hasn't done yet.
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