COMMENT: DO NOT miss a word of this analysis!  Then tighten your seat belts -- we are in for a fight in the US Senate and we will need 'all hands on deck'.  Another thing we need is to have more people go HERE to register for our email network.  The more people we can educate and engage, the more successful we can be.  Who will YOU recruit??
For highlights of bill, go HERE.

No surprise here: Democrats Won't Commit to Keeping Stupak Amendment to Stop Abortion Funding

Go HERE to see a great breakdown of the vote across the country withan interactive map.  See WHERE the 'Yes' votes were.

The Lords of Entitlement

Every medical insurance decision will be subject to rationing by politics.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi defied policy logic and public opinion late Saturday night, ramming through the House a nearly 2,000-page health-care leviathan that counts as the biggest expansion of the federal government since the New Deal. As President Obama likes to say, this was a "teachable moment" about our current government.

The lone Republican, Joseph Cao, represents a Democratic-leaning Louisiana district and extracted a promise that Mr. Obama would increase Medicaid payments to his state, and even then he only voted after Democrats had already hit 218. Let no one suggest this was the "bipartisan" health reform that Mr. Obama has long promised.

The bill is instead a breathtaking display of illiberal ambition, intended to make the middle class more dependent on government through the umbilical cord of "universal health care." It creates a vast new entitlement, financed by European levels of taxation on business and individuals. The 20% corner of Medicare open to private competition is slashed, while fiscally strapped states are saddled with new Medicaid burdens. The insurance industry will have to vet every policy with Washington, which will regulate who it must cover, what it can offer, and how much it can charge.

We have little sympathy for the insurers, or for that matter most of the other medical providers who signed on to this process only to claim now to be appalled by the result. The insurance lobby—led by Aetna CEO Ron Williams—made the Faustian bet that it could trade new regulations for more new subsidized customers who would face a tax penalty if they didn't buy their insurance. The Pelosi bill includes the regulation but guts the tax penalty because it's unpopular. Insurers will thus have to cover more sick people with fewer dollars, as healthy folk opt out of coverage until they are sick.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

Mrs. Pelosi's craftiest political turn was a last-minute compromise to strip federal funds from insurance plans that cover abortions. The deal—negotiated by Michigan Democrat Bart Stupak and supported by the National Right to Life Committee—gave cover to 40-some Democrats to support the larger bill.

However, as subsidized costs soar, government will have no choice but to ration medical care, starting with the aged and grievously ill. Is pre-natal life more valuable than the elderly? We're reminded of the way pro-lifers supported Anthony Kennedy over Laurence Silberman for the Supreme Court in 1987 merely because Mr. Kennedy was a Catholic who claimed to personally oppose abortion. Mr. Stupak played the right-to-lifers like a Stradavarius.

Perhaps the most unsurprising news in this drama was the collapse of the Blue Dog "deficit hawks." Enough of them always cave in the end to give Mrs. Pelosi her way. It's nonetheless worth noting the surrender of that most vocal scourge of deficits, Tennessee's Jim Cooper, who voted aye on grounds that the bill can be improved in the Senate.

Well, Obama, Pelosi and the Democrats pulled off the deal late last night and are probably gloating big-time this morning.  The US Constitution was 'folded, spindled and mutilated' by 220 US Congressmen when they VIOLATED their oath and voted for this legislation that will mandate health care, fine those who don't buy it, cost American many jobs, will limit care, allows ACORN involvement, provides for 13 tax increases--go
HERE for more details.

The final vote was 220-215: 219 democrats and one Republican (GOP Rep. Anh (Joseph) Cao of Louisiana) voting YES; 39 Democrats and 176 Republicans voting NO.

From Michelle Malkin:  Cao is the one who took over corruptocrat Democrat William Jefferson’s seat. I had reservations about him on election night because of his soft-on-immigration views. But I gave him the benefit of the doubt. If he could stand strong on limited government and fiscal conservatism, it would be worth it.
Well, since he was elected, Cao has backed the S-CHIP expansion, the $108 billion IMF bailout, and the omni-waste spending bill. And he voted to rebuke GOP Rep. Joe Wilson for calling out President Obama on his health care lies. Read more here.

The House passed the Affordable Health Care for America Act, H.R. 3962, by a vote of 220 to 215. Thanks to lobbying efforts by the Human Rights Campaign and leadership from Representative Jim McDermott, several LGBT provisions were included in the legislation. According to a statement from the Human Rights Campaign: Read more here.

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) (AP photo)

COMMENT:  Well, folks, the 'health care beast' is up and moving again. Sen. Harry Reid is pushing his bill that he now says will include the 'Public Option'. However, 'Public Option' has become so tainted that Nancy Peolsi thinks it needs a new name and is suggesting 'consumer option', as if that would change the objection to the concept.  "A rose by any other name....." 

Happily Sen. Lieberman is NOT happy!  Another 'happy' is that four Democrat senators remain uncommitted on the health care bill that Sen. Majority Leader Harry Reid will try to bring to the floor. Sens. Ben Nelson of Nebraska, Mary Landrieu of Louisiana, Evan Bayh of Indiana and Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas all declined to say on Tuesday how they would vote. Leaked memo is encouraging too.  TN Governor Bresdsen has said the cost federal health care legislation could exceed $3 billion.
Abortion funding is still in debate (see final article).

On Monday, I received a call expressing concern that the grassroots opposition to ObamaCare seems to have declined.
We CANNOT let that happen.  Our JOB is to keep the pressure on, especially now while there is so much chaos in DC.
The rallies, the Tea Parties, the Town Hall meetings were all wonderful, but it is sustained engagement that gets the job done. "Do not be weary in well doing,  for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.

ACTION:  Go HERE to send you senators and congressman an email.  Go HERE to find phone numbers.
Out-of-state subscribers go HERE to find your Senators; go HERE to find your congressman.

Leaked Internal House Leadership Whip Count Shows 47 Dems at No, 8 Leaning No and 12 Undecided


Senate on Verge of Health Bill

Measure With Stiffer Penalties on Employers and Public Plan Could Come This Week

WASHINGTON -- Top Senate Democrats are close to finalizing their health bill and could unveil a measure as soon as early this week that would include stiffer penalties on employers who fail to provide health coverage.
Senate leaders plan to submit the bill to the Congressional Budget Office for a cost estimate as soon as Monday, and make the legislation public as soon as Tuesday, according to a person familiar with the negotiations.
Details of the legislation could change, but its broad outlines are becoming clear. Employers with more than 50 workers wouldn't be required to provide health insurance, but they would face fines of up to $750 per employee if even part of their work force received a government subsidy to buy health insurance, this person said. A bill passed by the Senate Finance Committee had a lower fine of up to $400 per employee.
The bill to be brought to the Senate floor would create a new public health-insurance plan, but would give states the choice of opting out of participating in it, a proposal that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada backed last week.

Harrycare Buckles to Government Option

The 'Public Plan' Delusion

WASHINGTON -- In the health care debate, the "public plan" is all things to all people. For supporters, it would discipline greedy private insurers and make health coverage affordable. For detractors, it's a way station on the path to a single-payer insurance system of government-run health care. In reality, the public plan is mostly an exercise in political avoidance: It pretends to control costs and improve access to quality care when it doesn't.
As originally conceived by Yale political scientist Jacob Hacker, the public plan would be a government-created, nonprofit insurance company providing Medicare-like coverage to the under-65 population. But unlike Medicare, benefits would be paid for mainly by premiums -- not taxes. Americans could buy coverage from the public plan or a private insurer.
Competition and choice would increase, say liberals. Facing the low-cost public plan, private insurers would hold down their own premiums, the argument goes. Health care costs for everyone would moderate. Government subsidies to provide universal coverage would be cheaper. By some estimates, Medicare's administrative costs are only 3 percent of spending compared with 13 percent or more for private insurers. A new public plan is widely presumed to enjoy an advantage in overhead. Read more here.

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.)

COMMENT:  If have said it before and I will continue to say it, we ignore this situation to our peril. We must take EVERY opportunity to education ourselves on what is happening in this country right under our noses.

Book below can be ordered HERE.

CAIR’s Inner Workings Exposed

The Council on American-Islamic Relations has, since its founding in 1994, served as the Islamist movement in North America’s most high-profile, belligerent, manipulative, and aggressive agency. From its headquarters in Washington, D.C., CAIR also sets the agenda and tone for the entire Wahhabi lobby.

A substantial body of criticism about CAIR exists, some of it by me, but until now, the group’s smash-mouths and extremists have managed to survive all revelations about its record. The publication this week of Muslim Mafia: Inside the Secret Underworld That’s Conspiring to Islamize America (WND Books) may, however, change the equation.

Written by P. David Gaubatz and Paul Sperry, the investigation is based largely on the undercover work of Gaubatz’s son Chris who spent six months as an intern at CAIR’s D.C. headquarters in 2008. In that capacity, he acquired 12,000 pages of documentation and took 300 hours of video.

Chris Gaubatz’s information reveals much that the secretive CAIR wants hidden, including its strategy, finances, membership, and internal disputes, thereby exposing its shady and possibly illegal methods. As the book contains too much new information to summarize in small compass, I shall focus here on one dimension – the organization’s inner workings, where the data shows that CAIR’s claims amount to crude deceptions.

Claim 1: According to Ibrahim Hooper, the organization’s communications director, “CAIR has some 50,000 members.” Fact: An internal memo prepared in June 2007 for a staff meeting reports that the organization had precisely 5,133 members, about one-tenth Hooper’s exaggerated number.

Claim 2: CAIR is a “grass-roots organization” that depends financially on its members. Fact: According to an internal 2002 board meeting report, the organization received $33,000 in dues and $1,071,000 in donations. In other words, under 3 percent of its income derives from membership dues.

Claim 3: CAIR receives “no support from any overseas group or government.” Fact: Gaubatz and Sperry report that 60 percent of CAIR’s income derives from two dozen donors, most of whom live outside the United States. Specifically: $978,000 from the ruler of Dubai in 2002 in exchange for controlling interest in its headquarters property on New Jersey Avenue, a $500,000 gift from Saudi prince al-Waleed bin Talal and $112,000 in 2007 from Saudi prince Abdullah bin Mosa’ad, at least $300,000 from the Saudi-based Organization of the Islamic Conference, $250,000 from the Islamic Development Bank, and at least $17,000 from the American office of the Saudi-based International Islamic Relief Organization.

Claim 4: CAIR is an independent, domestic human rights group “similar to a Muslim NAACP.” Fact: In a desperate search for funding, CAIR has offered its services to forward the commercial interests of foreign firms. This came to light in the aftermath of Dubai Ports World’s failed effort to purchase six U.S. harbors in 2006 due to security fears. In response, CAIR’s chairman traveled to Dubai and suggested to businessmen there: “Do not think about your contributions [to CAIR] as donations. Think about it from the perspective of rate of return. The investment of $50 million will give you billions of dollars in return for fifty years.”  Read more here.

Rep. Myrick Launches ‘Wake Up America’ 2.0 National Security and Counterterrorism Agenda

CAIR attempts to torpedo Capitol press conference

House anti-terror caucus wants CAIR probed

COMMENT: President Obama was the keynote speaker at the Human Rights Commission held its dinner in Washington DC on Saturday evening [text of speech here] and the National Equality March was held on Sunday.   They even had special events for young people.





1. Obama's 'Gay' Speech

President Obama renewed his pledge to end the military’s ban on homosexuals at a fund-raising dinner in Washington Saturday night.  His speech was designed to buy more time from the impatient gay community that aggressively supported his bid for the presidency.

“I will end ‘don’t ask, don’t tell,’” Obama promised 3,000 supporters of the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), a far-left group that promotes forcing Americans to embrace homosexual behavior.  The commander-in-chief said “That’s my commitment to you” but he offered no timetable.

He assured the cheering audience “I’m here with a simple message: I’m here with you in that fight.”  Then Obama said “Do not doubt the direction we are headed and the destination we will reach” and “my commitment to you is unwavering.”

He reviewed his campaign pledge to be “a fierce advocate for gay and lesbian Americans” and then outlined evidence of his pro-homosexual accomplishments and the way-ahead.

Obama reminded those at the $250-a-plate black tie event that his administration has extended benefits to the spouses of homosexual federal employees, hosted a “Gay Pride” month celebration and distributed tickets to gay “families” to attend the annual White House Easter Egg Roll.  He also appointed John Berry to serve as Director of the Office of Personnel Management, the highest-ranking openly homosexual official in U.S. history. Read more here.

3. Gay rights advocates march on DC, divided on Obama

Rainbow flags and homemade signs dotted the crowds filling Pennsylvania Avenue in front of the White House as people chanted "Hey, Obama, let mama marry mama" and "We're out, we're proud, we won't back down." Many children were also among the protesters. A few counter-protesters had also joined the crowd, which stretched several blocks by the afternoon..........

Keynote speaker Julian Bond, chairman of the NAACP, firmly linked the gay rights struggle to the Civil Rights movement, saying gays and lesbians should be free from discrimination.

"Black people of all people should not oppose equality, and that is what marriage is all about," he said. "We have a lot of real and serious problems in this country, and same-sex marriage is not one of them. Good things don't come to those who wait, but they come to those who agitate."

Some participants in the National Equality March woke up energized by Obama's blunt pledge to end the ban on gays serving openly in the military during a speech to the nation's largest gay rights group Saturday night. Read more here.

IMPORTANT -- VIEW THIS BRIEF VIDEO: Stop Hiding Behind Hyde

Not a Death Panel, a Death Mandate

If you are someone who believes killing unborn children is a right that should be legally protected and made available to all pregnant women, and that the government should eventually take over the U.S. health care system, then you must believe that the government should get into the business of killing unborn babies.

And if you believe that, then you believe that the law must compel certain government officials to cooperate in the killing of innocents.

In a government-run or government-funded health care system that guarantees access to abortion, there must be people in government responsible for making sure unborn babies get killed.

In fact, the health care bill that the Senate Finance Committee finished amending last week specifically assigns just such a duty to the secretary of health and human services.

The Senate Finance Committee proposal would create an "exchange" in each state where people can buy health insurance from companies offering government-approved insurance plans. Americans making up to 300 percent of the federal poverty level would be eligible for a "refundable tax credit" to buy insurance -- but they could only use this credit to buy insurance from a company offering a government-approved plan in the exchange. People making 300 percent to 400 percent of poverty would also be eligible for a credit if their insurance costs more than 12 percent of their income and they purchased a government-approved plan in the exchange.

The government would not pay the credit to the individual but would pay it instead directly to the government-approved insurance plan.

"The Treasury would pay the premium credit amount to the insurance plan in which the individual is enrolled," explains the summary of the bill published by the Finance Committee. "The individual would then pay to the plan in which he or she enrolled the dollar difference between the premium credit amount and the premium charged for the plan."

Here's where the government's need to have an official who is complicit in abortions comes in.

Page 33 of the summary of the bill posted on the Senate Finance Committee's Website carries the subheading: "Rules Regarding Coverage of and Tax Credits for Specified Services." Under this subheading it says: "The Secretary would ensure that in each state exchange, at least one plan provides coverage of abortions beyond those for which Federal funds appropriated for the Department of Health and Human Services are permitted."

1. The Lesson of State Health-Care Reforms

The major provisions of ObamaCare already have been tried. They've led to increased costs and reduced access to care.

Like participants in a national science fair, state governments have tested variants on most of the major components of the health-care reform plans currently being considered in Congress. The results have been dramatically increased premiums in the individual market, spiraling public health-care costs, and reduced access to care. In other words: The reforms have failed.

New York is exhibit A. In 1993, the state prohibited insurers from declining to cover individuals with pre-existing health conditions ("guaranteed issue"). New York also required insurers to charge those enrolled in their plans the same premium, regardless of health status, age or sex ("community rating"). The goal was to reduce the number of uninsured by making health insurance more accessible, particularly to those who don't have employer-provided insurance.

It hasn't worked out very well, according to a Manhattan Institute study released last month by Stephen T. Parente, a professor of finance at the University of Minnesota and Tarren Bragdon, CEO of the Maine Heritage Policy Center. In 1994, there were just under 752,000 individuals enrolled in individual insurance plans, or about 4.7% of the nonelderly population. This put New York roughly in line with the rest of the U.S. Today, that percentage has dropped to just 0.2% of the state's nonelderly. In contrast, between 1994 and 2007, the total number of people insured in the individual market across the U.S. rose to 5.5% from 4.5%. Read more here

• The analysis is preliminary. As the letter points out, the analysis is still not based on legislative language. Moreover, Senate Leaders have to merge the bill with the HELP Committee bill before the bill comes to the floor. Therefore, it is highly unlikely that the current analysis will be relevant to the debate much past the upcoming Finance Committee vote.
• Cost. The projected $829 billion ten year cost is no guarantee of anything. Virtually all cost estimates of government programs underestimate the true cost. Take for example Medicare. In 1965, it was projected to cost $12 billion in 1990, but its actual cost in 1990 was over $100 billion. Just recently, the SCHIP program with a fixed 10 year budget of $40 billion was reauthorized for five years at a new price tag of close to $70 billion. A long term cost projection is a missing, but important component to understanding the true cost of a proposal.Read more here.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) (AP Photo)

Leaders in the House and Senate have a plan to pass President Barack Obama’s sweeping health care plan by Thanksgiving without any significant participation by the American public. CNS News has confirmed the details in our September 22nd titled “Passing a Shell of A Bill: Congress’ Secret Plan to Ram Through Health Care Reform.” Nicholas Ballasy reports “a senior aide to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) told CNSNews.com that it is ‘likely’ that Reid will use H.R. 1586—a bill passed by the House in March to impose a 90-percent tax on bonuses paid to employees of certain bailed-out financial institutions—as a ‘shell’ for enacting the final version of the Senate’s health care bill, which Reid is responsible for crafting.”

This story confirms the four part scenario that would railroad the bill through the Senate using a very unusual closed door procedure to craft the bill with no input from the American people.

The four stage plan to pass Obamacare has been publicly confirmed and is ready to be implemented. The following is a comprehensive update:

Step One: “The Senate Finance Committee will finish work on the marking up of Senator Max Baucus’ (D-MT) conceptual framework for legislation by this Friday.” Progress on this had been stalled and the bill was not passed by the end of last week. Foxnews.com is reporting that the Congressional Budget Office score of the bill will be released later today and a high score may further stall progress on the Committee’s Vapor Bill.  Senate Finance Committee’s progress on passing something out of committee – INCOMPLETE.

Step Two: Next, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid will take the final product of the Senate Finance Committee and merge it with the product of the Senate Health, Education, Labor & Pensions (HELP) Committee. CNSnews.com has confirmed that “the actual final text of the legislation will be determined by Reid himself, who will consolidate the legislation approved by the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee and the still-unapproved legislation from the Senate Finance Committee. Reid will be able to draft and insert textual language that was not expressly approved by either committee.” Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid will write the final version of Obamacare to be considered in the Senate with no input from the American people. This is an extremely complex procedure that will not be done in public, or in the form of a hearing, or a public conference committee, and only Senator Harry Reid, some other Senators chosen by Reid and Obama Administration officials will be allowed to read the bill before the Senate debate starts. Merger of the bills – IN PROGRESS.

Step Three: Senator Reid will then move to proceed to H.R. 1586, a bill to impose a tax on bonuses received by certain TARP recipients. A senior aid to Senate Majority Leader Ried has confirmed that he will move to proceed to Senate Calendar Number 36, H.R. 1586, or another House passed tax measure, so the Senate can avoid the Constitutional mandate that tax bills originate in the House. Proceed to tax shell of a bill – CONFIRMED.

Step Four: This scenario would most likely be implemented after the Massachusetts state legislature gives Governor Deval Patrick the power to appoint a new Senator and that Senator is seated by the Senate. The Senate swore in new Massachusetts Senator Paul Kirk on September 25th. Change Law of Massachusetts to allow for interim Senator – COMPLETE.

The final step in this plan is for the House to take up Obama care, without amending the legislation, and then sending that bill directly to the President for his signature. Matt Cover at CNSnews.com reports “House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) won’t rule out having the House vote on the Senate health-care bill without making any changes in it, which would allow the bill to go directly to President Barack Obama without having to pass through a House-Senate conference committee and another round of votes in the House and Senate–and a longer period of public scrutiny of what the text of the proposed law actually says.” This scenario is in the process of being implemented and, if successful, it will result in Obamacare being on the President’s desk in time for Thansgiving with minimal participation of the American public.

The San Francisco Examiner published an editorial today that exposed the fact that the American people can’t see the bill. “When then-Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama promised not to sign major legislation until it had been posted on the Internet for public reading at least five days, trusting voters took him at his word. Now they know better. Not only is the actual language of what is likely to become the main legislative vehicle for Obama’s signature health care reform not available on the Internet, it hasn’t been given to members of the key Senate committees or the Congressional Budget Office.” The procedure being used, in addition to the exclusion of the American people from the process, should be of grave concern to all who want to participate in democracy and have a say in Congress’ health care reforms that will touch 1/6th of the American economy.
SOURCE HERE

COMMENT:  We all know how much this administration loves 'staging' (remember how much money they spent on it during the campaign?).  Well, the meeting with the doctors to push ObamaCare was no exception.  For effect, they wanted the docs in their white coats which some did not bring.  No problem, aides were able to find a 'prop' closet somewhere and provide the desired garment. 
Now about that claim rejection rate -- many would think that those 'evil' private insurance companies would be guilty.  You may be surprised!! With private insurance if you don't like your carrier, you can make a change, if a government option is the only choice, you are stuck!
Oh, and that Senate bill -- it looks like it will only raise taxes by $29B as Bill Frist and other weigh in.
AP is reporting that opposition to ObamaCare is waning. Fall is upon us and people are back into their regular busy schedules, but we CANNOT become 'weary in well doing'.  We must continue to make those contacts -- no matter how many times you have done that before! Government run health care is NOT an option!



1.  Those White Coats In the Rose Garden
2.  GOP Doctor scoffs at O White-coat Photo stunt
3.  Guess who has the Highest Medical Claim Rejection Rate?
4.  Senate Health Bill Imposes $29B More in Taxes

1.Those White Coats In The Rose Garden

Posted 10/06/2009 07:10 PM ET

Politics: The administration stages a photo-op with handpicked doctors who support its health care reform. Fortunately, most doctors still believe that the first rule of medicine is to do no harm.

It would seem some doctors still make house calls. Some 150 of them made one at the White House Monday in an attempt to give a booster shot to the administration's chaotic and stalled health care reform drive.

Rather than a grass-roots uprising of physicians, this was a classic case of AstroTurfing.

Attendance was by invitation only, and 40 of the 150 were said to be members of Doctors for America, a reincarnation of the Doctors for Obama arm of the Obama campaign that boasts of having more than 15,000 members.

The physicians were told to bring their white lab coats with them to make sure the TV cameras to capture the proper image. Those who just showed up wearing suits or dresses were provided with lab coats hastily rustled up.

White House spokesman Reid Cherlin insisted that the doctors "were not invited based on their support for a public option." We'd like a second opinion on that. Doctors for America as an organization embraces a government-run insurance option.

"It just appears that the president of the United States, at this point, is choosing to meet only those who support his agenda," said Dr. Margaret Flowers, a Maryland pediatrician and congressional fellow for Physicians for a National Health Program, a group not invited.

Perhaps the reason is statements such as Dr. Flowers' that the "current health reform being written in Congress, particularly that being put together in the Senate Finance Committee (by Sen. Max Baucus), will not be universal and will not control health costs. ... It will not produce a health care system that uses our health care dollars wisely."

The fact is, most doctors are not happy with either the House bill or the Baucus bill. "This is war," Dr. George Watson, a Kansas physician and president-elect of the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons, told FoxNews.com. "This is a bureaucratic boondoggle to grab control of health care. Everything that has been proposed in the 1,018-page bill will contribute to the ruination of medicine."

Dr. Jane Orient, executive director of the AAPS, told the Washington Examiner: "Promised coverage is not the same thing as care. All you're getting is a place in the waiting lines."

A survey last fall of 270,000 primary care physicians by the Physicians Foundation found that if health care reform passes, 30% expect to see fewer patients, 13% will find something that does not involve patient care and 11% plan to retire altogether.
Read more here.

By CARL CAMPANILE

Last Updated: 5:36 AM, October 7, 2009

Posted: 4:05 AM, October 7, 2009

A Republican doctor-congressman mocked President Obama yesterday -- by waving his white lab coat in the air on the House floor as he lambasted a staged White House photo op with friendly doctors.

Georgia Rep. Phil Gingrey skewered the massive photo op on Monday -- highlighted in The Post yesterday -- in which White House staffers handed out white coats to physicians to visually show MD support for Obama's controversial health-care overhaul.

Gingrey said a dozen GOP House doctors requested a meeting with Obama last month to discuss health care -- but got no response.

Tongue firmly in cheek, Gingrey said he didn't know that wearing a white coat was a requirement to meet with the president.

"If these voices are not enough to get his attention" Gingrey said, "my white coat will."

Gingrey -- who stood next to a large photo of White House aides handing out white coats to the doctors -- held his medical smock in the air on the House floor. Read more here.

3.  Deny This: Guess Who Has the Highest Medical Claim Rejection Rate?

Oh, the establishment press will just loooooove this -- not.

From BigGovernment.com (HT Mark Levin over the airwaves this evening):

Beverly Gossage, Research Fellow for Show-Me Institute and founder of HSA Benefits Consulting wondered which insurance companies rejected the most claims. She found her answer in the AMA’s own 2008 National Health Insurer Report Card (fairly large PDF).

I'm curious. Was it Aetna? Humana?

A chart showing the major carriers and how Medicare compared to them in the study follows:

Well, well.

The Medicare denial rate found in the study was, on a weighted average basis, roughly 1.7 times that of all of the private carriers combined (99,025 divided by 2,447,216 is 4.05%; 6.85% divided by 4.05% =1.69). 
Read more here

4. Senate Health Bill Imposes $29B More in Taxes

Congressional tax experts reported that the bill would impose more taxes on health care industries than originally thought -- levies that could be passed on to consumers

The new Republican support for Obama's top domestic priority came as a potential setback emerged for Senate health legislation: Congressional tax experts reported that the bill would impose $29 billion more in taxes on health care industries than originally thought -- levies that could be passed on to consumers in the form of higher premiums.

That could be troublesome news for an overhaul bill facing a crucial vote in the Senate Finance Committee this week, and with Republican senators already complaining that the legislation contains too many taxes.

Schwarzenegger, who two years ago tried but failed to pass a universal health care plan in California, said in a statement that he appreciated Obama's partnership with the states and his effort to hold down costs and improve quality. He urged lawmakers from both parties to "move forward and accomplish these vital goals for the American people."

Congressional Republicans responded that they have been calling for health care improvements for months -- just not the kind that Democrats are offering. Read more here.

Glenn Beck: What Is The "Apollo Alliance" & Why Did They Write Obama's Stimulus Package Bill?

Radicals Wrote Failed Stimulus

Posted 09/21/2009 07:05 PM ET

Policymaking: If the stimulus isn't working, perhaps it's because it was largely written by a collection of leftist interest groups called the Apollo Alliance that counts among its directors a co-founder of the Weather Underground.

The Labor Department reported Friday that 42 states lost more jobs than they gained in August, and that 14 plus Washington, D.C., reported unemployment rates of 10% or more.

Michigan's rate rose to 15.2%, highest in the nation. Nevada, represented by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, is second with 13.2%. California, home of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, is tied for fourth with Oregon at 12.2%.

Clearly, the stimulus bill that no congressman read is not working. As it turns out, no congressman may have written it either. It's largely the creation of a coalition of leftist organizations called the Apollo Alliance, whose primary interests are saving the Earth, environmental justice and redistributing wealth. They are not friends of job-creating capitalism.

On Apollo's Web site, Sen. Reid, whose state also leads in foreclosures, is quoted praising the group of which former green czar Van Jones was a board member.

"We've talked about moving forward on these ideas for decades," Reid is quoted as saying. "The Apollo Alliance has been an important factor in helping us develop and execute a strategy that makes great progress on these goals and in motivating the public to support them."

Jones, the former Oakland, Calif., community organizer and self-avowed communist, was on the board of the Apollo Alliance when he accepted the position in the Obama administration as green jobs czar.

Wade Rathke, founder of Acorn, was also on the Apollo board, as is Gerald Hudson, vice president of the Service Employees International Union, which provides the shock troops in the movement to pass government-run health care.

John Podesta, former chief of staff to President Clinton and now president of the leftist Center for American Progress, also sits on the Apollo board. Each day his group sends out talking points to the left side of the blogosphere. Mark Lloyd, diversity czar at the Federal Communications Commission, was a senior fellow at CAP. Read more here.

The Apollo Alliance for Good Jobs and Clean Energy

The United Steelworkers is one of the founding leaders of the Apollo Alliance and our members play central roles in a number of state affiliate projects. The New York State Apollo Alliance (NYSAA), for instance, was convened by the Sierra Club, the USW and the Environmental Business Association of New York State to fight for good jobs, clean energy and New York’s energy independent future. USW Associate Members are encouraged to participate in Apollo Alliance projects and events and to carry the principles of the alliance into their other work across the country.
Source: http://www.fightbackamerica.net/apolloalliance.asp

Obama heads for the high grass.

Only one of the five television networks that interviewed President Obama for their Sunday shows bothered to ask him about Acorn, the left-wing community organizing group whose federal funding was cut off last week by an overwhelming vote in Congress.
"Frankly, it's not something I've followed closely," Mr. Obama claimed, adding he wasn't even aware the group had been the recipient of significant federal funding. "This is not the biggest issue facing the country. It's not something I'm paying a lot of attention to," he said.
Mr. Obama added that an investigation of Acorn was appropriate after an amateur hidden-camera investigation had found Acorn offices willing to abet prostitution, but he carefully declined to say whether he would approve a federal cutoff of funds to the group.
Mr. Obama took great pains to act as if he barely knew about Acorn. In fact, his association goes back almost 20 years. In 1991, he took time off from his law firm to run a voter-registration drive for Project Vote, an Acorn partner that was soon fully absorbed under the Acorn umbrella. The drive registered 135,000 voters and was considered a major factor in the upset victory of Democrat Carol Moseley Braun over incumbent Democratic Senator Alan Dixon in the 1992 Democratic Senate primary.
Mr. Obama's success made him a hot commodity on the community organizing circuit. He became a top trainer at Acorn's Chicago conferences. In 1995, he became Acorn's attorney, participating in a landmark case to force the state of Illinois to implement the federal Motor Voter Law. That law's loose voter registration requirements would later be exploited by Acorn employees in an effort to flood voter rolls with fake names.Read more here.

A Review of ACORN CEO Bertha Lewis’s Rolodex Suggests Strong White House Ties

On Sunday, Barack Obama played ignorant on the situation with ACORN. Obama told ABC’s George Stephanopoulos, “Frankly, it’s not really something I’ve followed closely. I didn’t even know that ACORN was getting a whole lot of federal money.” Never mind that Barack Obama used to work for ACORN.
Based on information obtained by RedState, we think Barack Obama may live to regret those words.
With everybody focused on ACORN these days, what if we could dig around and see who in the Obama administration shows up in Bertha Lewis’s rolodex? Bertha Lewis is the CEO of ACORN.
Bertha Lewis is considered one of the 100 most influential women in New York according to Crain’s New York Business. She is an activist, organizer, and radical of the far left. When she calls, union bosses and others pick up the phone.
It’s not that hard to look into her contacts. RedState has seen a list of Bertha Lewis’s contacts. We did not seek it out. It just showed up one day unsolicited. We did not ask for it. We did not expect to get it. But now that we have it, we should see who is in there.
The contacts came from a credible source who is no fan of ACORN. An ACORN employee gave it to him. Having examined the file for a week and after consulting with others, we believe the list is legitimate. It fits a recent pattern of leaks out of ACORN as the rats scramble from the sinking ship.
Read more here.

ACORN Circles the Wagons: Our Staffers 'Are Victims'

Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., ranking Republican on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, had pressed chief organizer Bertha Lewis to prove her commitment to reforming the community activist group by showing more transparency.
"The bottom line is there's no transparency in ACORN," Issa said on "FOX News Sunday."
The pressure comes in the wake of controversy over a series of hidden-camera videotapes showing the organization's employees offering advice to undercover filmmakers posing as a pimp and prostitute. ACORN has pledged to investigate its offices and workers.
"Internally, let's have some reform," Lewis said. "It's indefensible what I saw (in the tapes)."
But she refused to answer Issa's request to come before his committee. Read more here.

Before latest crisis, ACORN was imperiled by scandal

By Carol Leonnig And Alexi Mostrous
The Washington Post

COMMENT: By now, you have no doubt heard about the student in New Jersey being taught a 'rap' praising Barack Hussein Obama.  Well, as Paul Harvey used to say, here is the 'rest of the story.'

Lyrics: Songs About President Obama

When the White House announced plans for the president's nationwide address to schoolchildren two weeks ago, worried parents were dismissed as "kooks." We pointed to the subtext of "social justice" activism rampant in American classrooms. It's time for a big fat Told You So.
Out of the spotlight, politicized lessons continue to supplant core academics.
Earlier this year, at the B. Bernice Young Elementary School in Burlington Township, N.J., schoolchildren were instructed to memorize a paean to Barack Obama. A video uploaded to the YouTube account of Charisse Carney-Nunes, author of the children's book "I Am Barack Obama" and a self-described Harvard Law "schoolmate" of the president's, showed students lined up in the auditorium snapping their fingers and chanting in unison Read more here.

N.J. Principal Unapologetic for Videotape of Kids Praising Obama, Parents Say

The principal of a New Jersey elementary school where young students were videotaped singing the praises of President Obama is making no apologies for the videotape and says she would allow the performance again if she could, according to parents who spoke with her Thursday night.

Three parents told FOXNews.com that Dr. Denise King, principal of B. Bernice Young Elementary School in Burlington, N.J., defended the controversial performance, which was videotaped and posted on YouTube, when they approached her during a "Back to School" event.

Parent Jim Angelillo said King told him the lesson was merely part of Black History month, and not an attempt to indoctrinate students, as critics have charged. He said he believes teachers have the freedom to express their political views, but not in the classroom.

"Freedom of speech, not freedom to teach," Angelillo told FOXNews.com.

King has long been a fan of Obama, hanging pictures of the president in her school's hallways and touting her trip to his inauguration in the school yearbook.

Included in the full-page yearbook spread were Obama campaign slogans ("Yes we can! Yes we did!") and photos King took in Washington on Jan. 20, when she attended the inauguration.

There also were photos taken at the school depicting students doing Obama-themed activities about their "hopes for the future," featuring posters of Obama. According to the yearbook, students watched the inauguration in class.

Parents said Elvira James, the teacher of the class that was videotaped, also seemed to be promoting Obama.

"She praised him, she put pictures on the walls," said Jim Pronchick, whose 8-year-old son, Jimmy, was in James' class last year. "When he won (the election) they really went off."
Read more here.

New Jersey School District Is No Stranger to National Spotlight

COMMENT:  Just more evidence that we live in perilous times. Thankfully, this potential plot was exposed.  I think there should be continued prayer that the 'hidden things be revealed' -- we can add to that -- by discovery or revelation!

New York City Terror Plot and the Post-9/11 Catch-22

Last week’s raids on a number of apartments in New York City and the subsequent questioning of an Afghan immigrant serve once again to remind us that our nation is at war — and that the war is not limited to the battlefields abroad. The threat of terror attacks against targets in the homeland remains high.

The case raises important questions about how domestic terrorism should be fought. Should law enforcement wait until a threat becomes “imminent” before acting? If not, then at what point should law enforcement intervene given that much of a plot’s details may remain unknown?

It also raises important questions about just how much faith law enforcement can place in the cooperation of some Muslim clerics in terrorism-related cases.

If press accounts can be trusted, here’s what we know about the case. FBI agents had been monitoring the movements of Najibullah Zazi, the son of Afghan immigrants living in Colorado, for over a year. He had traveled back and forth to both Pakistan and Afghanistan, where he is alleged to have met with al-Qaeda agents. Depending on the press you read, Zazi has now either confirmed that he has “ties” to al-Qaeda or has directly denied these “ties.”

Zazi lives with his parents in suburban Aurora, Colorado, and works as a shuttle driver at the Denver airport. Zazi also had close ties with a group of Afghan and Pakistani immigrants in New York City, where he worked for a time as a coffee cart vendor. This circle of friends may have sympathies with Islamic extremists.

Zazi had driven to New York with a rented car to visit these friends when the raids occurred. On his way into the city, Zazi was stopped by the police. His lawyer says the police told Zazi that it was a “routine drug inspection.” But two days later Zazi’s car was towed and searched, and the computer he had left in it was “cloned” by the FBI.

Both the “routine” stop and towing of the car now appear to have been excuses for the FBI to fill in the gaps on just what Zazi was up to.

It’s not clear what exactly triggered the raids in the wee hours of the morning of September 14. It may have been the fact that several of Zazi’s New York circle of friends had attempted (and failed) to rent a large truck on the very day before Zazi was scheduled to arrive. (Rented trucks were used in the first attack on the World Trade Center in 1993.)

Or it may have been the fact that the computer “cloned” by the FBI contained plans for making homemade bombs similar to the ones used in the 2005 London tube terrorist attacks. Or that the FBI had intercepted cryptic text messages between Zazi and his NYC friends saying “the wedding cake was ready” — a code similar to the ones used in previous bombings, meaning the preparations for the attack were near completion.

Whatever the proximate reason for acting when they did, members of the New York Joint Terrorism Task Force raided several residences in the heavily immigrant Flushing neighborhood of Queens on that night. Agents searched these premises looking for bomb-making materials and then began casing the entire neighborhood asking residents for information about the suspect and his associates. No bomb-making materials were uncovered, but new backpacks similar to those used in the London bombings were found. Read more here.

Bomb raid at home visited by 'associate'

By MURRAY WEISS, KATI CORNELL, RICH CALDER and CHUCK BENNETT, AP

Last Updated: 3:25 PM, September 15, 2009

Posted: 4:52 AM, September 15, 2009

Armed anti-terror agents yesterday stormed three Queens homes hunting for bomb-making materials allegedly sought by a suspected "al Qaeda associate" -- a dragnet sparked by President Obama's visit, law-enforcement sources said.

The suspect -- described as a Queens-born man in his late 20s who has an Afghani father -- had been under surveillance by the FBI in Denver, where he lives. But the investigation quickly turned to New York as intelligence indicated he was heading here to obtain bomb-making materials, sources said.

Hiking concerns was the suspected terrorist sympathizer's sudden, suspicious drive in a rental car from Denver to Flushing to visit local contacts as Obama hit town, the sources said.

The man had been in New York for about a week when the raids were unleashed -- and he suddenly hot-footed it back to Denver by plane out of La Guardia, sources said.

Still, Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY), who received a classified briefing of the events, said, "There was nothing imminent," and denied that the raids were tied to Obama's visit.

One New York man was arrested as the emergency search warrants were executed.

The man, whose name was withheld, had allegedly notified an imam that the FBI was looking for their Denver pal, and the Muslim leader, in turn, contacted the suspect's family to have them warn him.

Authorities believe the people whom the "al Qaeda associate" met with locally share Osama bin Laden's hard-core anti-American and radical Islamist ideology, sources said.

Akhari Amanullah said agents busted down the door to the apartment on 41st Avenue in Flushing that he shares with several other Afghani immigrants at around 2:30 a.m. Read more here.

Terror suspect: 'Our phone call is being monitored'

• Defendant warned a co-defendant phone call being monitored, court papers say
  
• Najibullah Zazi, father, another man taken into custody late Saturday
  
• Zazi had been questioned about alleged bomb plot in United States
  
• According to affidavit, agents found information about bomb-making on Zazi's laptop

FBI agents included what they said was a transcript of the intercepted call in affidavits supporting the charges against Najibullah Zazi, his father Mohammed Wali Zazi and Ahmad Wais Afzali. All three face court appearances Monday in a case that the Justice Department said stretches from Colorado and New York to Pakistan.

"I was exposed to something yesterday from the authorities," Afzali told Najibullah Zazi in a September 11 call. "And they came to ask me about your characters. They asked me about you guys ... I told them that they are innocent, law-abiding."

Afzali said, however, called the questions from police "a good sign."

Queens bust in Qaeda probe

By KATI CORNELL and LEONARD GREENE

Last Updated: 10:19 AM, September 21, 2009

Posted: 5:49 AM, September 21, 2009

A Queens funeral director linked to alleged al Qaeda bomb-maker Najibullah Zazi was charged yesterday in a frightening terror plot that may have targeted New York stadiums, authorities said.

Ahmad Wais Afzali, 37, an imam at a Flushing mosque, was a double-crossing government informant who lied to his handlers after his contact with Zazi, authorities charged yesterday.

He was peppered with questions from the FBI and NYPD after Zazi, 24, drove from Colorado to Queens.

Cops asked Afzali questions about Zazi, and showed him pictures of him.

A search of Zazi's rental car in New York uncovered a digital image of notes, which authorities said appeared to be in Zazi's handwriting, detailing instructions on handling and constructing explosives, federal officials said.

Authorities found on his laptop references to Fashion Week in Bryant Park and several sports stadiums, sources said.

Feds also found Zazi's fingerprints on batteries and a scale in a Queens home they raided, authorities said.

The government later intercepted calls among Afzali, Zazi and Zazi's father, Mohammed, during which the men allegedly discussed Afzali's conversation with authorities. The men were later arrested for lying about the wiretapped calls, officials said.

"I was exposed to something yesterday from the authorities," Afzali told Zazi, according to an affidavit. "And they came to ask me about your characters. They asked me about you guys."

Afzali has worked as an informant for more than a year, officials said. His lawyer, Ron Kuby, said his client knew his conversations with Zazi and his father were being recorded. Read more here.

1. Senate Bill Sets Lines for Health Showdown
2. Seven Fatal Flaws of Baucus Bill
3. Obama targets Medicare Advantage
4. Obama: Legalize illegals to get them healthcare
5.  Read the healthcare union label

National Right to Life: The Baucus bill and abortion

News Flash: Baucus Changes Health Bill Over Dem Outcry

1. Senate Bill Sets Lines for Health Showdown

By GREG HITT, JANET ADAMY and JONATHAN WEISMAN

The major new health-care overhaul bill that landed in the Senate on Wednesday sets the lines for a fall showdown over taxes, spending and coverage for millions of uninsured Americans.

The bill, by Sen. Max Baucus, chairman of the Finance Committee, breaks a logjam and is likely to form the core of a bill in the full Senate.

The biggest beneficiaries of the Baucus bill would be people who lack insurance now, especially older people who have trouble buying coverage on their own. The Baucus plan would require insurers to accept all comers, even those who are already sick, and establish subsidies for lower- and middle-income Americans to buy insurance.

For Americans who already have coverage through their employers or Medicare -- by far the majority -- not much would change immediately in most cases. The biggest losers would include those who have especially generous health plans, which would be subject to a new tax aimed at insurers but that could be passed onto consumers.

The bill proposes to create a network of nonprofit cooperatives to compete with private insurers, not the government-run health plan liberals want and President Barack Obama has endorsed.

The price, put at $774 billion over 10 years by the Congressional Budget Office, and new taxes on health-care companies aroused opposition. Republicans denounced the bill as a big-government boondoggle, and it drew fire from the left as well. Labor unions slammed it as too harsh on middle-income Americans, who would have to pay up to $3,800 in penalties if they failed to buy insurance.
Read more here.

2. Seven Fatal Flaws of Baucus Bill

A public plan disguised as a co-op, individual and employer mandates, massive federal regulation over insurance and benefits, and massive Medicaid expansion—the Baucus bill has them all. These are the same features plaguing the other bills in Congress and that Americans have routinely dismissed for months.

Seven Fatal Flaws

1) Middle Class Tax Hike: The Baucus bill would impose a new sales tax on drugs and medical devices and a new federal excise tax on insurance plans that exceed $8,000 for an individual and $21,000 for a family. These taxes will ultimately be passed down to the consumer, putting many middle class families on the receiving end of a tax hike

2) An Individual Mandate: In 2013, almost everyone would be required to purchase health insurance that complies with new federal standards. Those making more than three times the poverty level would face a tax penalty of $950

(maxing out at $3,800 per family) and $750 (maxing out at $1,500 per family) for those below 300 percent poverty. This penalty could apply to individuals with incomes as low as $10,831 a year.

3) No Privacy: In order to enforce the tax penalty provisions, the government would be forced to collect detailed health insurance information on Americans, reducing patient privacy and adding significant administrative costs to employers and insurers.

4) A Pay-or-Play Employer Mandate: Employers with more than 50 employees that don’t offer health coverage would have to pay a penalty for each employee who qualifies for new federal subsidizes under the bill. Inevitably, low-income workers will be hurt the most as employers would simply downsize or cut wages. Read more here.

3. Obama Targets Medicare Advantage

Seniors would lose with health 'reform,' and seniors vote.

By KARL ROVE

President Barack Obama was wise to vacation this week on Martha's Vineyard. Not because it's one of the few places in America where his health-care plan is still popular, but because by getting out of Washington he gave staff time to repair his vaunted message machine, which was starting to break down.
Two weeks ago, White House Senior Adviser David Axelrod said in a now legendary "viral" email that, "It's a myth that health insurance reform would be financed by cutting Medicare benefits." This was sent out the day before Mr. Obama told a Montana town hall that he'd pay for health-care reform by "eliminating . . . about $177 billion over 10 years" for "what's called Medicare Advantage." And it was two days before Mr. Obama told a Colorado town hall he'd cover "two-thirds" of the "roughly $900 billion" of his plan's cost by "eliminating waste," again citing Medicare Advantage.
Who's right? As a former senior adviser, I can tell you who: the president. What's more, according to a White House fact sheet titled "Paying for Health Care Reform," Mr. Axelrod was misleading his readers. It notes the administration would cut $622 billion from Medicare and Medicaid, with a big chunk coming from Medicare Advantage, to pay for overhauling health care. Mr. Obama heralded these cuts as "common sense" in his June 13 radio address.
Medicare Advantage was enacted in 2003 to allow seniors to use Medicare funds to buy private insurance plans that fit their needs and their budgets. They get better care and better value for their money. Read more here.

4. Obama: Legalize illegals to get them health care

Republicans see a backdoor move toward 'amnesty'
President Obama said this week that his health care plan won't cover illegal immigrants, but argued that's all the more reason to legalize them and ensure they eventually do get coverage.
He also staked out a position that anyone in the country legally should be covered - a major break with the 1996 welfare reform bill, which limited most federal public assistance programs only to citizens and longtime immigrants.
"Even though I do not believe we can extend coverage to those who are here illegally, I also don't simply believe we can simply ignore the fact that our immigration system is broken," Mr. Obama said Wednesday evening in a speech to the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute. "That's why I strongly support making sure folks who are here legally have access to affordable, quality health insurance under this plan, just like everybody else.
Mr. Obama added, "If anything, this debate underscores the necessity of passing comprehensive immigration reform and resolving the issue of 12 million undocumented people living and working in this country once and for all."
Republicans said that amounts to an amnesty, calling it a backdoor effort to make sure current illegal immigrants get health care.
"It is ironic that the president told the American people that illegal immigrants should not be covered by the health care bill, but now just days later he's talking about letting them in the back door," said Rep. Lamar Smith of Texas, the top Republican on the Judiciary Committee.
"If the American people do not want to provide government health care for illegal immigrants, why would they support giving them citizenship, the highest honor America can bestow?" Mr. Smith said.
Read more here.

5. Read the Union Health-Care Label  

Get ready for Detroit-style labor relations in our hospitals. n the heated debates on health-care reform, not enough attention is being paid to the huge financial windfalls ObamaCare will dole out to unions—or to the provisions in the various bills in Congress that will help bring about the forced unionization of the health-care industry. 

Tucked away in thousands of pages of complex new rules, regulations and mandates are special privileges and giveaways that could have devastating consequences for the health-care sector and the American economy at large.
The Senate version opens the door to implement forced unionization schemes pursued by former Govs. Rod Blagojevich of Illinois in 2005 and Gray Davis of California in 1999. Both men repaid tremendous political debts to Andy Stern and his Service Employees International Union (SEIU) by reclassifying state-reimbursed in-home health-care (and child-care) contractors as state employees—and forcing them to pay union dues.
Following this playbook, the Senate bill creates a "personal care attendants workforce advisory panel" that will likely impose union affiliation to qualify for a newly created "community living assistance services and support (class)" reimbursement plan.
The current House version of ObamaCare (H.R. 3200) goes much further. Section 225(A) grants Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius tremendous discretionary authority to regulate health-care workers "under the public health insurance option." Monopoly bargaining and compulsory union dues may quickly become a required standard resulting in potentially hundreds of thousands of doctors and nurses across the country being forced into unions. Read more here.

Thursday was Constitution Day which should be a time of celebration of the foundational document our our nation.
(You might want to see A More Perfect Union, or do something similar to mark the day with your children.) 

So this is the perfect day to send out this email alerting you to the the coming activities in DC-- the gathering of Muslims and the counter demonstration.  STOP THE ISLAMIZATION OF AMERICA(SIOA) is a new organization that has been formed to raise awareness about the doctrine of Islam, jihad and Sharia (Islamic law). Please see article at the end of this email.

Obviously, because of the Constitutional FREEDOMS in our country, the Muslims have the 'right' to gather in our Nation's Capitol (Can you imagine Christians being allowed to hold such gathering in an Islamic country?) but one does wonder about the theme, "Our Time Has Come." 

With the damage that the incremental implementation of Sharia law in Europe has done and with what we are seeing happen in this nation, we have every right to be concerned at the intent. If you want to know more about Sharia law, try this link: 'Stop Sharia Now'. Another good resource for background information is Political Islam and ACT for America.

This is definitely a matter for prayer AND action.

In their graphic below, notice that the Constitution is pictured:



See:  Islam on Capitol Hill

50,000 Muslims expected for Islamic prayer on Capitol Hill

It won’t be the first “jummah” on Capitol Hill either – as we’ve reported here and here.

Details are emerging on the mass outdoor Islamic prayer event that will turn Capitol Hill into a giant outdoor mosque. The Star Ledger out of New Jersey reports the mosque organizing the event is the Dar-ul-Islam* mosque in Elizabeth, New Jersey and the event has a website.

September 25 ,2009 Jummah Prayer

On Capitol Hill

50,000 believers in the Greatness of Allah praying for the greater good of all people.

OUR TIME HAS COME

The Athan will be chanted on Capitol Hill, echoing off of the Lincoln Memorial, the Washington Monument and other great edifices that surround Capitol Hill

Elizabeth mosque organizes national prayer event in D.C.

A mosque in Elizabeth, Dar-ul-Islam, is spearheading a national prayer gathering next month in Washington, D.C., that organizers are billing as the first event of its kind -- organized prayer for tens of thousands of Muslims outside the U.S. Capitol building.

The event will not include political speeches or placards, just prayer, said Hassen Abdellah, president of Dar-ul-Islam and a main organizer of the event, which is scheduled for Sept. 25.

"Most of the time, when Muslims go to Washington, D.C., they go there to protest some type of event," Abdellah said. "This is not a protest. Never has the Islamic community prayed on Capitol Hill for the soul of America. We're Americans. We need to change the face of Islam so people don't feel every Muslim believes America is "the great Satan,' because we love America."

A permit from the Capitol Hill police, granted July 28, allows access to the area by the West Front of the Capitol building from 4 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Sept. 25, but the main gathering will occur at 1 p.m., for the Friday prayer service.

Abdellah said he expects 50,000 people to attend, from mosques around the country, though non-Muslims are welcome, too. About 400 people are expected from his own mosque, which is raising money from donors to help pay the cost of the event, expected to surpass $200,000.

The gathering will occur by the site where presidents have been inaugurated since 1981. In fact, it was President Obama's words at his inauguration in January, and then his speech in Egypt in June, that led Abdellah and an area imam, Abdul Malik, to begin discussing the idea, Abdellah said.
Read more here.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

SIOA- Stop Islamization of America
Daniel Adams

Human rights and the right to freedom of religion are foundational
concepts in our American democracy. Our national character is one of
inclusiveness and tolerance. There are ideologies that do not share our
concepts of freedom, tolerance, or human rights but we are tolerant to
them nonetheless.

A new organization, Stop Islamization of America (SIOA) has been formed in
the United States. The purpose of this group is to raise awareness about
the doctrine of Islam, jihad, and Sharia (Islamic law). Islamic law and
jihad are brutal, misogynist, and fundamentally contrary to our
Constitution and to our concepts of human rights and freedom. Tolerance
for ideologies that are opposed to our principles of individual freedoms
and Constitution is difficult to defend.

Muslims say that they want to live under Sharia law. If this is their
choice that is up to them; the problem is is that adherents of Islam (as
per the doctrine of Islam) want us to live under Sharia law, too and that
is not acceptable.

In fact, those who leave Islam are considered apostates and can be killed.
One cannot leave Islam; this denial of the right to choose one's beliefs
and religion is fundamentally contrary to our concepts of civilization,
decency, individual freedoms, and Constitutional law.

Stop Islamization of America will have a formal launch event in
Washington, DC on September 25th. This is the same day an all-day event of
public Muslim prayers from 4am to 7pm will occur at the Capitol. The
organizers of the prayer event say that 50,000 adherents of Islam are
expected to attend this clearly political event in support of the growth
of Islam in America.

The mission of Eagle Forum is to protect our freedoms and defend our
Constitution and society from enemies both foreign and domestic. Stop
Islamization of America shares our mission and goals.

Please consider attending the launch of Stop Islamization of America
(SIOA) in Washington. If you would like to donate to this worthy cause,
please consider making a donation to this organization.

COMMENT:  ACORN finally did something so absurd that it cannot be ignored. The Senate denies funds after a videotape surfaced catching them red handed telling folks how to lie to the IRS. The Census Bureau severs ties with ACORN (this is REALLY great news).  Shocked, Shocked I tell you -- the main stream media is ignoring this BIG story.  Trial for illegally paying canvassers to register voters is going forward and ACORN that Obama knows explained.
It is a good day for America.

U.S. Senate vote to deny funds was  83 to 7. Both Senator Alexander and Corker voted for this important bill.

1.  U.S. Senate denies funds for poverty group.
2.  ACORN Officials Videotaped Telling 'Pimp,' 'Prostitute' How to Lie to IRS
3.  Census Bureau Severs Ties With ACORN in 2010 Count
4.  ACORN Story Grows But Mainstream Media Refuse to Cover it [Imagine that!!!]
5.  Ex-ACORN Vegas director to testify against group
5.  The ACORN Obama Knows

1. U.S. Senate denies funds for poverty group

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A poverty-rights group that has drawn the ire of conservatives suffered another setback in Washington on Monday when the U.S. Senate voted overwhelmingly to deny it access to federal housing funds.
The Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, which helps poor people fight foreclosures and fix tax problems, has received more than $53 million in U.S. funds since 1994, but conservatives' charges of widespread fraud have begun to impact its reputation in the capital.
Last week, the U.S. Census Bureau told the group it did not want its help boosting participation in next year's census.
The Senate measure, which passed 83 to 7 in the Democratic-led chamber, was included in a must-pass spending bill that funds housing and transportation programs for the fiscal year that starts October 1.
"This is an opportunity for the United States Senate to stand up and say 'Enough is enough' just as the Census Bureau did," said Republican Senator Mike Johanns, the measure's sponsor. Read more here.
 

4. ACORN Story Grows But Mainstream Media Refuse to Cover It

 This story has everything you could ever want – corruption, sleazy actions at tax-funded organizations, firings, government ties, sex, hookers. It is a network news director’s dream. Imagine the ratings. But almost no one is covering it
Bruce Springsteen once wrote: “From Small Things (Big Things One Day Come).” I doubt he expected that story of love gone wrong would become ideal political commentary for the group known as ACORN. 

The small scandal showing an embarrassing video of Baltimore ACORN staffers looking like they were giving tax advice on how to set up a brothel, is now national news. -- This story has everything you could ever want – corruption, sleazy actions at tax-funded organizations, firings, government ties, sex, hookers. It is a network news director’s dream. Imagine the ratings!
Only almost no one is covering it.
This is the news media in the era of Van Jones and President Obama. The major outlets cover what they want and create the themes they want. When they find something inconvenient, they let it pass. They didn’t like the Van Jones story, so they ignored it. The network news media liked the financial entity known as Fannie Mae, so they ignored that scandalous organization for years. ACORN is getting the same treatment.
But it isn’t working any more. The ACORN fiasco has now impacted three offices – Baltimore, Washington and New York – with laugh-out-loud videos reminiscent of the hookers and pimps from the 1970s “Starsky and Hutch” show. Huggy Bear returns! Four employees have been fired, with more likely to come. And the controversy was so laughably bad that the Census Bureau cut off all ties to the group known formally as the "Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now." -- They called it the “tipping point” to shed themselves of ACORN. More nuts for someone else, I guess. Read more here.

LAS VEGAS — A former Las Vegas director for a political advocacy group accused of illegally paying canvassers to register voters during last year's presidential campaign has pleaded guilty to a reduced charge and agreed to testify against the group and another employee.
Christopher Edwards pleaded guilty this week to two gross misdemeanor counts of conspiracy to commit the crime of compensation for registration of voters. He agreed to testify against the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, known as ACORN, and Amy Busefink, a former regional voter registration director.
The case threatens the group's ability to operate in Nevada, with the possibility that the group could have its status as a nonprofit corporation revoked, said Conrad Hafen, chief deputy attorney general for Nevada.
Hafen's said Edwards' testimony strengthens the state's case against ACORN and Busefink.
"It adds to the evidence that we already have," Hafen said Wednesday. "It makes a strong case that much stronger."
Busefink's lawyer, Kevin Stolworthy, said she plans to fight the charges. A lawyer for ACORN did not immediately return a phone call seeking comment from The Associated Press.
Prosecutors said in court documents that Edwards, Busefink and ACORN created a bonus incentive program that paid canvassers an extra $5 per shift if they turned in at least 21 voter registration cards at the end of the day. Prosecutors said violates state laws that prevent a system that pays workers based on the number of registrations they turn in. Read more here.

6. The ACORN Obama Knows

If you don't know what ACORN (the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now) is all about, you better bone up. This left-wing group takes in 40 percent of its revenues from American taxpayers -- you and me -- and has leveraged nearly four decades of government subsidies to fund affiliates that promote the welfare state and undermine capitalism and self-reliance, some of which have been implicated in perpetuating illegal immigration and encouraging voter fraud. A new whistleblower report from the Consumer Rights League claims that Chicago-based ACORN has commingled public tax dollars with political projects.

Who in Washington will fight to ensure that your money isn't being spent on these radical activities?

Don't bother asking Barack Obama. He cut his ideological teeth working with ACORN as a "community organizer" and legal representative. Naturally, ACORN's political action committee has warmly endorsed his presidential candidacy. ACORN head Maude Hurd gushes that Obama is the candidate who "best understands and can affect change on the issues ACORN cares about" -- like ensuring their massive pipeline to your hard-earned money. Let's take a closer look at the ACORN Obama knows.

Last July, ACORN settled the largest case of voter fraud in the history of Washington State. Seven ACORN workers had submitted nearly 2,000 bogus voter registration forms. According to case records, they flipped through phone books for names to use on the forms, including "Leon Spinks," "Frekkie Magoal" and "Fruto Boy Crispila." Three ACORN election hoaxers pleaded guilty in October. A King County prosecutor called ACORN's criminal sabotage "an act of vandalism upon the voter rolls."

The group's vandalism on electoral integrity is systemic. ACORN has been implicated in similar voter fraud schemes in Missouri, Ohio and at least 12 other states. The Wall Street Journal noted: "In Ohio in 2004, a worker for one affiliate was given crack cocaine in exchange for fraudulent registrations that included underage voters, dead voters and pillars of the community named Mary Poppins, Dick Tracy and Jive Turkey. During a congressional hearing in Ohio in the aftermath of the 2004 election, officials from several counties in the state explained ACORN's practice of dumping thousands of registration forms in their lap on the submission deadline, even though the forms had been collected months earlier." In March, Philadelphia elections officials accused the nonprofit advocacy group of filing fraudulent voter registrations in advance of the April 22nd Pennsylvania primary. The charges have been forwarded to the city district attorney's office.

COMMENT: "I pledge to be a servant to my president and all mankind"????  "Sell my clunker, not use plastic bags..." 
To be forewarned is to be forearmed!!
It seems that this video was developed back in January to celebrate Obama's inauguration; however this piece of pure propaganda was shown in a public school in Utah in August where parents were horrified.  Utah Eagle Forum President Gayle Ruzicka added her condemnation to its use in the classroom.  Parents, if your children are in public school, you must be watchful about what they are exposed to -- like propaganda videos, lesson plans developed by the White House and Dept. of Ed., etc.

See pledge video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51kAw4OTlA0

by Phyllis Schlafly

Speaker Nancy Pelosi said one correct thing: health care legislation is our "opportunity, not of a lifetime, but of the century." Passage of the bill she supports would put us forever on the road to trillions of dollars in debt, bankruptcy, and European mistakes; defeat of the bill will safeguard the unique American recipe for liberty and prosperity.

• Health Care Reform

COMMENT: Now I ask you -- reading the information below, is there any doubt that the government would propose to 'counsel' seniors about 'end of life' choices.  I have heard people call in on radio shows wondering what is wrong with this and that it is being done now.  Yes, but..... What is being done now is between the doctor, the patient, and the family on an individual basis--it is NOT being required by nor paid for by the federal government that would have a vested interest in reducing the cost of health care toward the end of a person's life. There is a HUGE difference in that!!


Click here to read "Your Life, Your Choices" guide.

The guide, called 'Your Life, Your Choices,' was suspended under the Bush administration but has been revived under the current Department of Veterans Affairs. 

The guide, called "Your Life, Your Choices," was suspended under the Bush administration but has been revived under the current Department of Veterans Affairs.
Jim Towey, former director of the White House Office of Faith-Based Initiatives, told "FOX News Sunday" that the document makes injured veterans feel like a burden, encourages the severely injured to die and should be tossed out.
Asked about the document, Specter, a member of the Veterans' Affairs Committee, said it raises "a lot of questions" and that he would call for hearings immediately.
"I think consideration ought to be given right now to suspending it pending hearings," Specter, D-Pa., told "FOX News Sunday."
Towey first wrote about the revival of the manual last week in The Wall Street Journal.  Read more here.

The Death Book for Veterans

Ex-soldiers don't need to be told they're a burden to society.

If President Obama wants to better understand why America's discomfort with end-of-life discussions threatens to derail his health-care reform, he might begin with his own Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). He will quickly discover how government bureaucrats are greasing the slippery slope that can start with cost containment but quickly become a systematic denial of care.

Last year, bureaucrats at the VA's National Center for Ethics in Health Care advocated a 52-page end-of-life planning document, "Your Life, Your Choices." It was first published in 1997 and later promoted as the VA's preferred living will throughout its vast network of hospitals and nursing homes. After the Bush White House took a look at how this document was treating complex health and moral issues, the VA suspended its use. Unfortunately, under President Obama, the VA has now resuscitated "Your Life, Your Choices."

Who is the primary author of this workbook? Dr. Robert Pearlman, chief of ethics evaluation for the center, a man who in 1996 advocated for physician-assisted suicide in Vacco v. Quill before the U.S. Supreme Court and is known for his support of health-care rationing.

"Your Life, Your Choices" presents end-of-life choices in a way aimed at steering users toward predetermined conclusions, much like a political "push poll." For example, a worksheet on page 21 lists various scenarios and asks users to then decide whether their own life would be "not worth living."

When the government can steer vulnerable individuals to conclude for themselves that life is not worth living, who needs a death panel?

One can only imagine a soldier surviving the war in Iraq and returning without all of his limbs only to encounter a veteran's health-care system that seems intent on his surrender.

I was not surprised to learn that the VA panel of experts that sought to update "Your Life, Your Choices" between 2007-2008 did not include any representatives of faith groups or disability rights advocates. And as you might guess, only one organization was listed in the new version as a resource on advance directives: the Hemlock Society (now euphemistically known as "Compassion and Choices").  Read more here.

COMMENT:  There is an old debate trick -- if you can't defend your position on the merits of the issue, you attack and try to demean your opponent.  The name-calling we are hearing now-- "AstroTurf" (as opposed to a genuine grassroots movement, which this is), evil-mongers, brownshirts--mean just one thing -- just one thing, we are making a difference. Check out the articles below and, by the way, don't forget -- whether or not you can see your law maker at a meeting of any sort, you can still contact him or her by email.  The liberals are now preparing 'counter attacks' to those who oppose seeing the government take over 16% of the Gross Domestic Product.

Let's continue to contribute to House website overload!!  For encouragement, just remember, no one thought the 2007 immigration bill could be stopped, but it was when THE PEOPLE continued to make their voices heard.

Out-of-state Subscribers, go HERE to find your Senator; go HERE to find your congressman.
Tennesseans:  go HERE for phone numbers; go HERE to send emails.

1.  Reid: Protesters are 'evil-mongers'
2. Grassley: Town halls could force senator to start over on healthcare
3. [Senate] Finance Committee drops end-of-life provision
4.  E-mails from public overload House Web site
5.  Town hall face-offs erode health support
6.  Health care views take sympathetic tilt

1. Reid: Protesters are 'evil-mongers'

2. Grassley: Town halls could force senators to start over on healthcare

3.Finance Committee drops end-of-life provision

6. Health care views take sympathetic tilt
WASHINGTON — The raucous protests at congressional town-hall-style meetings have succeeded in fueling opposition to proposed health care bills among some Americans, a USA TODAY/Gallup Poll finds — particularly among the independents who tend to be at the center of political debates.
BOEHNER VIEW: Americans aren't going to buy health care spin

By Phyllis Schlafly

The National Education Association (NEA), which usually passes a dozen or more pro-homosexual resolutions every year at its annual national convention, this year in San Diego went all-out in support of same-sex marriage. This emphasis on advocacy for homosexuals was spelled out in a five-point New Business Item E.

Point #1 tells its union affiliates to support state legislation that registers same-sex couples in a way that mimics marriage. This registration would cover taxes, inheritance, adoptions, medical decisions, and even immigration.

Point #2 says that states can call this same-sex registration marriage or civil union or domestic partnership so long as same-sex relationships are treated like marriage.

In Point #3, the NEA promises to "support its affiliates" in opposing state constitutional amendments and laws that "could have the effect" of differentiating between homosexual and heterosexual couples. The NEA's California affiliate spent $1.25 million of teachers' dues money on the campaign to defeat Proposition 8 last year.

In Point #4, the NEA supports repeal of federal laws and regulations such as the very popular 1996 Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which defines marriage as the union of one man and one woman. According to the Government Accountability Office's (GAO) list of laws that use DOMA's definition of marriage, repeal of this law would create new Social Security and joint income tax benefits for homosexual partners.

The NEA's only concession to those who disagree with these goals is Point #5, which acknowledges that churches have a First Amendment right not to perform same-sex marriages.

In the limited floor debate, delegates were booed if they mentioned that marriage should be between a man and a woman. New Business Item E was approved by a voice vote of about 60 percent to 40 percent.

The long list of policy resolutions approved by the nation's most powerful teachers union included many references to "sexual orientation," "gender identification," and "diversity." Since the NEA is the largest and most powerful teachers union, it is reasonable to assume that these attitudes will follow the teachers into the classroom.

Every year, the NEA convention passes a resolution endorsing "family planning, including the right to reproductive freedom," which everybody understands specifically means abortion. And every year, some pro-life delegates try to pass a motion stating that the NEA takes "no position on abortion."

The abortion-neutral motion has always been decisively defeated, never getting as much as 25 percent of the vote, and sometimes it is even ruled out of order by the chairman. This year, something remarkable happened.

The pro-lifers introduced their motion as a bylaw amendment instead of as a resolution, a procedure that calls for a secret, written ballot instead of a voice vote. Although the abortion-neutral motion failed, mirabile dictu, the secret ballot produced an amazing 39.4 percent voting for the abortion-neutral measure.

The swan-song speech of the NEA's retiring general counsel, Bob Chanin, showcased the NEA's animosity toward parents and others who don't agree with the NEA's leftwing views. Chanin, who served the NEA for 41 years, pitched his speech to respond to his own question: "Why are these conservative and right-wing bastards picking on NEA and its affiliates?"  

Such arrogance! The NEA would have a small fraction of its power and bank account if it had to depend on teachers "willing to pay" dues.

In many states, teachers pay union dues because it is a condition of their employment. Many of the NEA's contracts require school districts to promptly fire any teacher who fails to pay dues.

Some of these "right-wing bastards" identified by Chanin included Fox News, the Wall Street Journal, Forbes Magazine, and the Bush Administration's Department of Education. He added: "We are not paranoid, someone really is after us."

Chanin is correct. Conservatives are after the NEA. Since this powerful organization has effective control of the public schools, spends millions of taxpayers' dollars to indoctrinate schoolchildren, and spends millions of its own money to lobby for leftwing goals, the NEA deserves to be subjected to citizen surveillance and criticism.

For many years, the NEA nestled behind its status as a professional "association"; after all, that's its name. But Chanin now unapologetically played up the NEA as a union, saying, "NEA and its affiliates should never lose sight of the fact that they are unions."

One final Item of note: the NEA convention voted down New Business Item 66, which would have required the union to make public the salaries and benefits received by its executives.

See online: http://www.eagleforum.org/column/2009/aug09/09-08-07.html

Further reading:

• National Education Association