Obama’s promise that if you like your current health insurance plan, then you can keep it, failed to mention that you would, of course, be heavily taxed if you chose to exercise that “keep” option. How about some truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?

How many days until Obama publicly states he “never campaigned against an excise tax”?

Obama would say anything to be President. Now as President he will do whatever his corporate masters tell him to do. He is scum.

Seconded.

How could we have not known this “flip-flop” was coming? After all, Royalty does not tax itself.

France is looking better all the time.

It’s becoming clear Obama is a DLC DINO, backed for election by Big Business, pandering to the left to get elected, though he did call his shots on FISA (should have been a warning sign), then paying his corporate backers with lax financial oversight from Treasury, increased spending on military hardware, and an eviscerated and costly health care bill for the middle class. Oh and the continuation/consolidation of the Imperial Presidency.

Time for me to tell my story again. At Netroots Nation 08, I went up to the Obama reps to complain about the FISA reversal, and the snotnosed kids sneered: “So what’s your alternative?” (He was the D candidate by then.) For me, that was a lot more than a warning sign.

Gregg, thanks for the great summary. I made this in the middle of the night and there are a couple of bad edits and I sound frazzled. That’s because I was frazzled. The video of Obama’s speeches speaks for it itself and it was painful to watch.

It’s a great piece, as your videos usually are. I think you sound appropriately exasperated.

Taxing the rich? That’s class warfare.

Burgundy is really beautiful, even at this time of year. Cheaper than Paris, but close. When do we leave?

This video is, sadly, only one of any number you could make on this subject. Obama has lied, lied, lied about healthcare reform for an entire year. He promised transparency in the process, then cut secret deals with Pharma, including a revolving door for Billy Tauzin to come and meet in secret in the White House. He promised no mandates and no excise taxes, as indicated here, and then flip-flopped on both. He promised to allow Medicare drug price negotiation, and lied about that. He promised a public option, and he lied about that. He promised basic, affordable healthcare, and lied about that. He pledged something like a 2,500 dollar premium reduction for a family of four, and he never even TRIED on that.

I’ve tried pointing this out to Obama supporters, especially in the wake of his ridiculous, Orwellian WaPo interview where he claimed he didn’t ‘campaign on’ the Public Option (something that even Ezra Klein thoguht was a ridiculous lie). Even as he said that, the campaign white paper with an entire paragraph on the public option was still up on his old campaign website; no matter. Down the memory hole.

This has been a despicable and dispiriting year, and the sellout of the American people, and the destruction of our future and our economy, is almost complete.

“So what’s your alternative?”

“Um, does ‘Rule of Law’ ring a bell? Or is that just a campaign slogan?”

For me the warning sign was him working for Kissinger Associates out of college.

Someone tried to persuade me that he was doing so in order to be a ‘mole’ against TPTB.

To which I said/say, “TTTTTTTPPPPPPPPPTTTTTTTTTBBBBBBBBBB!”

(Guess who else worked there? Tax-Cheat Timmeh G)

It’s only class warfare when the not-so-rich fight back.

To to tell the truth, in addition to the excellent content of your video your voice has a mellifluous quality well suited to the task. If you don’t already, you certainly could do professional voice-over work in addition to many other potential applications.

Why, do you know someone in French immigration?

I’m not sure I could live in France. It’s too climatically happy, all that sunshine and warmth and green, rolling hills, vineyards and so forth. I need a climate that spits in my face and tries to drive me away at least a few months of the year, I don’t want to get complacent.

Last week here in Madison, it was about -1 to -5 degrees (F), before windchill. This week we’re getting a bunch of snow. In July it’ll push triple digits with 100% humidity off the lakes. That’s the kind of weather relationship I need.

Madison only hurts me because it cares.

Love stranahans work! Loading the video now.

They meant what alternative did I have to vote for. Sorry I didn’t make that clear. I’ve told the story several times, and each time I make it shorter, this time to the point of error.

I had a bad feeling about him right from the getgo, so it didn’t take much evidence for me to go completely sour on him. I must admist that his audacity is reaching heights that surprise even me.

Don’t blame me, I voted for… ah nuts.

I think that has some slight bearing on the level of resentment I feel toward Obama. Bush was terrible but I could take some solace in knowing I had not voted for him.

Oh, well in that case I guess an appropriate response might be:

“I’ll vote my conscience by only voting for people who demonstrate they have a conscience. You’ve failed to evidence that requisite quality.”

That’s long been my standard, which is why I refused to vote for Lieberman in 2000.

I suppose that makes me a “Naderite”. . . though I didn’t vote for Nader either (nor Bush).

Would not feel so utterly betrayed by Stealth Obama if during 2008 he had run with a retinue of AHIP,Big Pharma and other allied interests surrounding him while campaigning. Those who were/are not for American healthcare being anything other than a for profit $$ river of takings,pickings and skim offs. Just call it being honest or truthful.

You know–be seen with the ones you are with.

Instead Stealth Obama based on what he said then and is doing now or who he was talking to then and who he is being advocate for now saw or sees no difference between selling a box of laundry soap or running for POTUS.

Stealth Obama and his Party of No Spines and What Principles? are not done with HCR yet to be sure.

The word contempt does not fully convey my thoughts on Stealth Obama and the No Spines Party at this point here in early 2010.

The word despise being needed as well.

This Obama mockery of HCR idea has become very insulting.

But added in with Stealths acquired and growing record on torture,Israel,the American Land Wars in Asia and the various Wall Street and Big Banking debacles the sum of it is I hope Stealth is un-elected in 2012. Stealth Obama has that coming in all four aces.

And that ain’t just another box of soap either.

If it’s any consolation, unless he changes course radically (like yesterday), he is a one-termer. Palin-Beck 2012?

What to do with one’s vote, given the awful choices, is a real dilemma.

It’s 19F in Paris, I keep the weather report on my desktop. That summer thing isn’t really part of the usual weather repertoire there, but I was there in 2003 when the temperature was 104 forever. It was so hot the brie was running.

Are you people really surprised about Obama and his lies? This guy is a lying SOB and I knew it a long time ago. Obama was selling snake oil and the American people bought it…

Obama is a one termer…. no doubt about it…

By 2000 I had concluded I could never again in good conscience vote for a major party candidate in a national election. Then Bush/Cheney happened, so I voted for Dems in ’04 and ’08. Will not happen again. Having said that, I live in a reliably blue state, so it is a pretty inconsequential symbolic protest.

I’m having my car set up so it only turns right. No need for that whole left-turn capability. Entirely superfluous…

Unions are working every house dem individually to kill the senate excise tax. Each house member has really only one constituent and that is self-preservation. House dems are elected largely thru union support. Without union support house dems are toast. So in a strange twist Obama’s full fledge support for the excise tax is going along way to killing this bill. Gooooooo Obama, kill this bill!!!

I am so tired of getting pissed off at Obama, I am sure this is not good for my health. Maybe I am pissed at myself for being so gullible and going against my insticts and voting for this man. FISA, Reverend Wright, even Hillary, warned us about this man but hope is a powerful emotion and it overcame me. Now everytime I see the man on tv I want to puke. His betrayal of those of us who worked hard to get him elected will leave a deep wound. I no longer believe that voting and getting into current day politics makes any difference. The people I chastised for not voting were right voting does not matter! I have lost face with all the union workers who wld have never voted for him but bcz I urged them to vote their pocketbooks took a chance on him, what do I tell them now? Now I want revenge and the only way I can get it is by watching a bunch of teabaggers whoop it up in 2012 bcz they are snding him home. I am still proud that our country was able to elect a black man as its president, unfortunately, we just elected the wrong one. Staying home in 2010 and 2012 and convincing as many people as I can to do the same.

Yes, Bush was terrible, but I could take some solace knowing I had not voted for him, nor contributed more money than I could afford to him, nor given my time to him. Obama has made hope dopes of us all.

Whatever you do with it, don’t let sheep bleats convince you to throw it away on the left or right wings of the War Party.

In response to ratfood @ 29:

I don’t think it is inconsequential. I didn’t feel that way when Bush/Cheney won and my vote showed up among the national count of those who rejected Gore/Lieberman and Bush/Cheney.

Having read about Operation Northwoods online in the years previous, I had no doubt that crew might attempt to revive the plan, but I figured that (a) if they did use major false-flag terrorism against the U.S. and (b) Americans were too stupid to figure it out and instead voluntarily sacrificed their rights and rallied around the concept of becoming cannon fodder, there was no hope for America anyway.

This appears to be the case.

(p.s. If Gore had been in office on 9/11, I have little doubt that the plans would’ve been expanded to include assassination and President Lieberman would have been sworn in that same day.)

OT
Something from Homeland Security, I think, prepping the waters for the undie bomber report (heard it on cspan): Mutallab was flagged for extra security processing after he landed in Detroit. Talk about too little too late.

19F would qualify as a heat-wave here, but that particular summer sounds appropriately abusive.

I appreciate the circular logic of your plan. Circular logic is best, that’s why cobbler will always play second fiddle to pie.

i dont see why they cant have their excise tax and eliminate it for anyone earning less than 250k a year.
AIG pays it.
Union worker doesnt.
simple.
make up the difference with no limit on the medicare payroll tax…and boosting it 1.2% above 250k.
the upper middle and upper had their ride under bushco.

No war but class war.

In 2009, the average employer-sponsored health insurance plan is valued at $4,824 for a single individual and $13,375 for a family.
http://www.cbpp.org/cms/index.cfm?fa=view&id=2957

The excise tax impacts employer-sponsored health insurance plans valued at
$8,500 for a single individual and $23,000 for a family.

That is quite a spread and if adjustments are made to account for regional variances and high risk occupations, which has been done, altho I am not sure as to their adequacy, I see this as a reasonable policy.

Yer gonna get a call from NASCAR over that. They like to say they turn left and lean right, not the other way round.

This is why we need to vote third party. Make them stop taking our votes for granted. Not voting doesn’t send a clear enough message and is often confused with ignorance and apathy. Take the time and vote third party to send a clear message that we are engaged and not obligated to vote for the Democratic party.

The trouble with NASCAR is the straightaways don’t include a loop de loop.

You’re right, we bought snake oil. The problem with McCain was that his bottle was clearly labeled “poison.” As far as Hillary goes, I doubt there would be any significant difference.

The kind of poison that makes you gibberingly insane and belligerent too.

Bomb bomb bomb, Bomb bomb Iran. Yeesh.

Mr. Stranahan is correct. Their certainly are side effects to mandating everyone to buy private health insurance. The side effects are the democratic base staying home in 010 and 012 which will result in Prez O being a one-termer and dramatic losses in the house and senate.
I did not have the foresight that many had. I actually believed in him. I won’t be fooled again.

Add this broken campaign promise to the already growing list of broken promises. Or I guess they were just lies. The phrase broken promises gives him a certain legitimacy. Lies are lies.

The excise tax impacts employer-sponsored health insurance plans valued at
$8,500 for a single individual and $23,000 for a family.

I need clarification, please. Have employers been paying taxes for health benefits given in lieu of wages, or is it a write-off?

Would this proposed excise tax be considered the vehicle for part of an employer mandate? Thanks.

Pointless to speculate but while I’m confident Hillary also would have been a corporatist, I think she might have had a little more backbone and political savvy. To describe Obama’s first year in office as feckless is probably giving him too much credit.

It is a write-off.

Reply to ShotoJamf January 7th, 2010 at 10:14 am @ 24

This is about the only kind of Republican ticket that would stir me to participate in 2012. Otherwise, it’s “one’s just as bad as the other”. Fool me once, shame on you . . . I won’t be fooled again by a smooth talking speech-giver. I won’t be giving money, time, support, or yard-space for campaign signage in 2012 (unless it is something as shudderingly terrible as Palin/Peck.) I feel those in the current administration believe that we (oldsters) suffer from attention-deficit . . . we’ll forget before the next election rolls around. WRONG!

When will it dawn on these people-in-power that American families are tapped out? The external social costs of many enterprises have fallen onto our social/welfare system. Almost needless to say, the system is incapable of handling these problems. The current health insurance legislation, in either House or Senate form, is unacceptable: neither addresses the core (fundamental) inequities of providing insurance, not to be confused with health care, to an increasingly unhealthy population.

Obama is a failure, not because he is not a progressive (I never thought he was), but because he is not rational. One part of the middle class is not capable of supporting the insurance of another.

Would it remain a write-off if this proposal passes?

I just emailed both my congressman and the president, telling them that if they support the excise tax, I will actively support an opposition candidate (one that puts people before party) in the both 2010 elections and 2012 presidential election. Even though I like my congressman, I feel a line must be drawn — if I don’t follow through with my pledges, how can I criticize him for not following through.

Been away for a bit. Who has Obama stabbed in the back in the last several hours?

As soon as my house sells. Which may be never.

Yes.

a little more backbone and political savvy

Got that right. Would have brought in a new generation of Clintonistas to repave the neoliberal path. The generals would have her eating out of their hands.

Yeah, Obama sold us all snake oil and he bought it from Joe Lieberman.

Isn’t that exactly what has happened under Obama?

I was only suggesting that from the outset she might have been applying more pressure to legislators to achieve her objectives. As I said, pointless to speculate.

That’s your geometry kickin’ in, right there. Good stuff…

Uh-Oh. I’ve really stepped in it now…

Something else I pointlessly speculate on is how well a candidate along the lines of Kucinich might do if we had Instant Runoff Voting. Something I certainly won’t hold my breath for, but would love to see.

I should also say that I really like the video with this post. It has some weight.

But his skin has visible amounts of melanin!

responding to Parfigliano at #3: Aren’t you just the sweetest thing… not

BTW, why does this thing so often refuse to note which post I’m responding to?

TIME FOR A PROGRESSIVE INDEPENDENT THIRD PARTY!!!! Obama is just a slime ball politician, tell any lie to get elected, sell your soul to stay in office!!!! Throw out all incumbents and vote ONLY for Progressive Independents!!!

and ?

I’ve had a LOT of issues with Lee over the last couple of years, but he and I see COMPLETELY eye to eye on Obama’s outright lies. That video is devastating.

Say what?

In the 2008 New Hampshire primary Kucinich recieved 1.35% of the vote.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Hampshire_Democratic_primary,_2008

In that case I still see this matter as primarily the fiduciary responsibility of the Congress for good or ill since Congress is responsible for the Purse.

Once a bill comes to his desk wouldn’t the President’s role would become that of a political advocate (not the sole decision maker) for the highest use of the Peoples’ tax monies; or as the executive decision-maker for negotiation of an equitable or acceptable deal for all parties at the table; i.e. administrators/providers, consumer investors (those who rarely or never utilize the benefit), patients, and practitioners; or as a de facto corporate lobbyist?

I don’t see Obama performing in the first or last categories. My concern remains the mandated payments to the third party which quite obviously do not offer the lowest administrative costs. If Congress does not submit that option, the President could not insert such. The responsibility remains with Congress in my view.

We need better Congress folk; especially on the republican side.

BTW, why does this thing so often refuse to note which post I’m responding to?

Some browsers, FF among them (since I’ve had this problem with FF), don’t show the “In Response To XXXX” if you are trying to reply before the page has completed loading.

So you just need to wait for the page to load completely to hit reply and you’ll be OK.

Next week, he appears underneath a “Mission Accomplished” banner.

It should never have gotten into the bill that a person or family of the middle-class should pay that tax. The idea was that we’re shifting wealth towards the middle-class (the reverse of the last 30 years) and the cost should come from the Rich, in general, or better yet the healthcare industry Rich who have been gobbling up so much of our nation’s wealth for no real valuable service.

Paying double what other nations do for healthcare & insurance is not sustainable, not fair and needs to be fixed.

who extracted it from Cheney.

Okay, thanks.

No longer just disappointing, President Obama has become a joke – but not a funny one – a sad one. He clearly never knew what he was talking about in his campaign, clearly does not understand the issues that are so critical to our country – how to handle them – what the answers are – that’s why he flip flops, hoping to get on the right side of the issue after one flip flop or another. This man may be intelligent, that does not mean he is wise…I think he is out to protect his own “legacy: (a la Geroge W) and in typical disgusting, hypocritical fashion, he is serving himself and his interested instead of those of the people. I voted for Obama,but now I do not trust..and do not like….this man.

Oh you can be sure that whatever bill passes, he’ll have a big showy signing ceremony celebrating his victory.

If you’re replying to me — right. The point being, even in a primary people will vote for someone they feel has a chance. Kucinich was polling much better than 1.35. Perhaps Kucinich isn’t the best example — substitute anyone much more progressive than the Dem party would normally get behind for president. I just think the average voter would welcome someone more progressive than conventional wisdom will admit, but will still tend to vote for someone they feel has a real chance. I would. IRV helps eliminate the risk of throwing away your vote.

Another reason to kill the bill. Pelosi’s dig on the prez moving away from campaign promises was priceless.

Great post Gregg. Great video Lee.

Why can’t any–ANY–of our mainstream press put something like this together? The media upon which most busy, working Americans rely is part and parcel of the corporate-owned, bipartisan center that is in control in Washington.

Plaudits to the right-wing for rebelling against the centrists in their party. Despite the ignorance underpinning their beliefs, they see the center for what it is: corporate-owned lackeys.

It’s time for rational, data-driven Americans to distinguish between progressive and Democrat, and similarly purge the party of its same lackeys. Only then will our votes in November matter.

Attack the center in the primaries. Demonstrate that empiricists outnumber ignorant right-wingers in the general. Including Barack’s seat.

I DARE you to do it Obama – you sell out with mustard seed sized mini-balls. Enjoy your one term and the millions you make.

So who will be our next choice for President? Don’t say Palin/Beck thats alot worse than Obama. Any ideas?

OK let’s try to explain the “Cadillac tax” and “mandate” flip…..When Obama was campaigning for universal health care, he wanted to pay for it by “rolling back the Bush tax cuts”…What changed? In sept, Lehman went down. Merrill and AIG were next. Morgan stanley was on deck and the other major banks would have fallen in sucession…Obama did not plan to start his term with an $800B stimulus plan. The economy dictated this. Since this was a HUGE unplanned expenditure; Obama needed to pivot because he was NOT going to be sure to count on that Bush rollback with the economy in shambles, revenues decreasing,etc…What to do? First: Adapt the individual mandate plan from Hillary. Why? Because it puts more money into the system to offset costs for expanded coverage. Second: Adapt the “Cadillac Tax” that he campaigned against. Why? It is the most efficient tax for REDUCING the overall costs by capping gold-plated plans. Sorry, but taxing the wealthy does ZERO to reign in growing healthcare costs. In other words, before the stimulus was required, Obama thought that the bush tax rollback would help offset HCR and other programs….OK, let’s summarize: Obama was looking at a $1.1TRIL 2009 deficit BEFORE he repeated “so help me God”. He did not anticipate this deficit burden, complicated by the need to spend on stimulus to compensate for the recession. Those factors changed “Healthcare reform” to “Health INSURANCE reform”….Now we can continue to bury this President based on broken promises…OR…we can accept the reality of the severity of the fiancial crisis and give the POTUS credit for carrying on with reform into the teeth of the “Great Recession”. That decision has cost Obama about 20 points from independent voters. The country’s financial depth was SIGNIFICANTLY worse than Obama was looking at as late as September 2008.