Frightening GOP Candidate

Rachel Maddow noted that a Republican candidate for Senate has questionable ties. Mother Jones had previously written an article about Chris McDaniel.

MotherJones:

Chris McDaniel is taking the "GOP Civil War" to a new level. Two months ago, the tea party-backed Mississippi Senate candidate addressed a neo-Confederate conference and costume ball hosted by a group that promotes the work of present-day secessionists and contends the wrong side won the "war of southern independence." Other speakers at the event included a historian who believes Lincoln was a Marxist and Ryan Walters, a PhD candidate who worked on McDaniel's first political campaign and wrote recently that the "controversy" over President Barack Obama's birth certificate "hasn't really been solved."

...With their endorsements of McDaniel, the Senate Conservatives Fund and the Club for Growth have shown just how far they are willing to go in terms of embracing the far right to prosecute their war for the soul of the party. In August, McDaniel addressed a neo-Confederate conference in Laurel, Miss., near his hometown of Ellisville. A local chapter of the Sons of Confederate Veterans (SCV), the Jones County Rosin Heels, hosted the two-day event, which the group described in invitations as a "Southern Heritage Conference" for "politically incorrect folks." Attendees were advised to dress in "Confederate uniforms and antebellum ball gowns or wee kilties." McDaniel's appearance at the Rosin Heels heritage conference was not a one-off occurrence; weeks earlier he was the keynote speaker at a separate event in Jackson.

The Rosin Heels does more than regret the outcome of the Civil War. Its monthly newsletter routinely features articles and essays advocating for present-day secession....
Yes, folks, these Republicans have taken a far turn to the right. It is frightening.

Health Insurance

The Healthcare.gov website is probably the most popular one in the nation. The Republicans are trying to discredit it because they never supported it and they know that Americans will love the program once it is fully implemented.


The reason some insurance providers must change their policies is because now there are standards that they must meet within a given policy. They must provide certain exams, procedures, etc. In the past insurance companies were only worried about making profits--- now they will have to provide real services to their subscribers.

Cutting Their Schedule?

Politico has an interesting tidbit that will get a lot of people upset about the Republican controlled House of Representatives:

For the first time in months, House Republicans are facing no immediate cataclysmic deadlines, and GOP leaders are struggling to come up with an agenda to fill the 19 legislative days that are left in 2013.
Need evidence? The House votes Monday evening and will finish its work week Wednesday. After that, the House is out of session until Nov. 12. Internally, Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and senior Republicans aren’t discussing coming back early from the scheduled recess, but instead, they are wondering if they’ll cancel some of the remaining days in session....

Rachel Maddow noted that this House of Representatives is on schedule to be the least active in recent history with less bills passed than previous sessions. I guess the Republicans are running out of post offices to name.

**** Rachel also noted that Rand Paul's speech in Virginia today was plagiarized from the Wikipedia entry on Gattaca (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gattaca).

He Supported the Shutdown

It appears that U.S. Rep. Bill Johnson (OH-6th) is feeling a little heat from his constituents concerning his support of the Republican shutdown of the government.

AthensNews:

....During the partial shutdown, House Republicans repeatedly moved their goal post, going from calls to defund Obamacare, to calls to delay it, to calls to remove a medical device tax from the legislation, to calls to delay that tax, to calls to eliminate government employer subsidies for congressional staff health-care plans, which Johnson referenced above as a "special pass," though employer health-care subsidies are common in the United States in both the private and public sector. His other "special pass" reference was to a one-year administrative delay in the mandate for businesses with over 50 employees to provide health-care coverage.

"I'm also deeply troubled that this legislation increases America's debt limit, but does nothing to address the main driver of the debt - Washington's out-of-control spending," Johnson said explaining his vote. "The American people have had to tighten their belts in this weak economy, and Washington should be forced to do the same."

....Today the national deficit stands at 4 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) after peaking at 10 percent in 2009. That 4 percent figure is projected to shrink to 2 percent by 2015, the CBO reports. The U.S. has maintained a 3.3 percent average deficit-to-GDP ratio over the past 30 years....

It is too bad that Bill Johnson is unable to use his own words to justify his vote. Johnson just keeps repeating the same old lies and talking points.  

Where are the jobs that Boehner and Johnson promised to create?  They've spent too much time trying to deny healthcare for the poor instead of funding infrastructure repairs that would have employed hundreds of thousands of workers. 

In case you are interested, Bill Johnson has been endorsed by various tea party groups, and continues to carry out their agenda.  

Incredible

HuffingtonPost:

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) told his Democratic caucus last week in a private meeting that a top House Republican said to President Barack Obama, "I cannot even stand to look at you," according to two Democratic senators who were present, and confirmed by two Senate Democratic aides who said they independently learned of the exchange from two other senators.....

....The alleged incident took place in the throes of the government shutdown, when Obama was meeting with different factions of lawmakers to try to find a resolution to the debacle. The White House aide told Democratic leaders that the lawmaker who couldn't stand to look at the president was Rep. Pete Sessions (R-Texas), the chairman of the House Rules Committee, the two senators told HuffPost.

One of the two Democratic senators who spoke to HuffPost said that Reid told the caucus about the incident last Tuesday and named Sessions. He also told the caucus that he was “sorry” to have to tell them about it, per this senator, but gave Obama credit for his “dignified” response to Sessions. Reid reportedly told the caucus that Obama responded to Sessions by saying he understood that they disagreed on many issues and he respected their differences.....

Shame on Rep. Pete Sessions! You can let him know what you think of his disrespectful remark by contacting him: Phone: (202) 225-9191
                                      Fax: (202) 225-6763
                                      Rules.RS@mail.house.gov
                                      Twitter: @PeteSessions

Still Need Help With ACA????

If you still need help at Healthcare.gov, there are several ways to apply for health coverage. Visit this link or call this number: 1-800-318-2596, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week (TTY: 1-855-889-4325).

******

* Tea party members always talk about "personal responsibility" but apparently it doesn't apply to them. Daily Kos has a post about the leader of the Oregon Tea Party, John Kuzmanich, and the fact that he has not paid his mortgage----in three years:

Washington County court records show Kuzmanich is more than three years behind in mortgage payments on a Beaverton duplex. The lender, the Federal National Mortgage Association, better known as Fannie Mae, has gone to extraordinary lengths—unsuccessfully, so far—to find Kuzmanich and serve him with court papers.....
 
Sounds like an example of "do as I say, not as I do."

- - - - -

As you may have heard, the football team at Grambling State refused to play their scheduled game this past week due to the conditions of their practice facility, program cuts, the increase of staph infections, and funding cuts at their school. The BleacherReport has the details along with pictures of what these young men have to work with in their facility.

ESPN notes:

....State funding for the school has been cut 57 percent since 2007-08, according to the school's fundraising literature. Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal and the state legislature have cut $269 million from higher education since 2009, the year Jindal turned down federal stimulus funds......

Bob Jindal and the rest of the Republican governors just don't want higher education to be funded because they don't like highly educated people.

Cry me a river!

Sen. Lindsey Graham, Republican from South Carolina, wants you to feel sorry for his friend.

RawStory:

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) said on Sunday that he opposed President Barack Obama’s health care law because a “friend” would have to pay more to insure the employees at his 52 Wendy’s restaurants — but the South Carolina Republican did not offer another solution to provide heath care for the 60 percent of those workers that did not currently have insurance.....

This is yet another example of the Republicans caring more for their wealthy friends than the hardworking Americans, especially the working poor. Lindsey Graham and the rest of the Republicans have no idea how messed up their priorities are. In the next election, Americans need to get to the polls and let the Republicans know that we are not interested in their prehistoric ideas.

Not One Woman?

Americans have become disgusted at the antics of the Republicans in the House of Representatives in the shutdown of the government. Speaker of the House John Boehner is viewed by many as weak and ineffective, especially in his inability to push back the radicals in his party.  There are people that are advising Boehner. In a post at YahooNews, the National Journal lists those that are part of Boehner's closest confidants:


...Reps. Tom Latham of Iowa, Pat Tiberi of Ohio, and Mike Simpson of Idaho—House veterans, but not household names—are on the list. Notably absent are Majority Leader Eric Cantor of Virginia and Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy of California, both of whom are allies but also represent rival power centers in the famously fractious chamber....

...there remains no official membership list. And if there was one, says LaTourette, there would be layers to it.

For instance, he named Tiberi, Simpson, Latham, and Sens. Saxby Chambliss of Georgia and Richard Burr of North Carolina, both former representatives. Boehner also counts on Rep. Greg Walden of Oregon, his appointed National Republican Campaign Committee chairman, and Rep. Pete Sessions, R-Texas, the previous NRCC chairman and now Rules Committee chairman, to advise him about the political scene. And there is Boehner’s “Ohio Mafia,” including Reps. Steve Stivers and Bob Latta.

Beyond these members, LaTourette, lawmakers, and aides also list Reps. Charles Boustany of Louisiana; Doc Hastings of Washington; Frank Lucas of Oklahoma; Frank LoBiondo of New Jersey; and Michael McCaul and Sam Johnson of Texas. There are also newer members, such as Rep. Rick Crawford of Arkansas.....

Steve Stivers? Pat Tiberi? Bob Latta? Do you know what is missing? There is not one elected female member of the House in Boehner's inner circle, and not one member of a minority.

You might notice that Boehner tries to include Republican Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers in every news conference or photo op, but clearly she is not part of the group advising Boehner--- she is just there for the picture.

Where are the jobs????

Ohio continues to lose jobs. Warn notices continue to appear at the ODJFS website. Here is just October's list, as of this morning---

Date Rec'd	Company	City/County	Potential Number Affected	Layoff Date(s)	Phone Number	Union	Notice ID
10-07-2013	Hilex Poly	Elyria/Lorain	48	10-01-2013 Last day worked (Administrative Leave until 11-29-2013)	419-678-8700 ext 105	N/A	004-13-024
10-07-2013	Ben Venue Laboratories	Bedford/Cuyahoga	1150	12-27-2013; Additional from 01-2014 through 06-2014	440-201-3239	N/A	003-13-023
10-02-2013	Call Henry, Inc	Cleveland/Cuyahoga	99	11-30-2013	321-267-9808	IBEW Local 38 and IAM	003-13-022

It is apparent that Gov. John Kasich's JobsOhio is failing to bring in jobs. As a matter of fact, JobsOhio has caused some major problems in many counties because of a lack of communication and accusations of conflicts of interest, according to a post at Plunderbund:

...A must-read story from Sunday’s Journal News documents the disaster in Hamilton and surrounding counties.  According to the piece, local  economic development directors are pissed off at JobsOhio and its region partner, the Cincinnati USA Partnership, “because they aren’t getting the job-generating leads and attention from the agency that they used to before JobsOhio entered the picture.”

...There is also concern that JobsOhio’s involvement has brought about – surprise! – conflicts of interest within the Cincinnati USA Partnership because the group accepts donations from “investors” that include “private corporations and local governments.”   According to the Journal News piece, the Partnership continues its policy of providing access to information and events based on  the amount of money a company or city donates to the group.   At the same time, the partnership is directly responsible for recommending which companies will receive loans, grants and/or tax credit from the state......

....That’s right, one of the guys Kasich’s JobsOhio has entrusted with preserving and creating more jobs in Ohio threatened to move his own company out of Ohio if JobsOhio and the Kasich Administration didn’t give him over $10 Million.....

Some corporate people appear to be making money from JobsOhio. Unfortunately, the people of Ohio are not seeing jobs or any economic benefits from Kasich's pet project.

Steve Chabot

Republican Rep. Steve Chabot (OH-1st) was one of the original signers of the letter that supports defunding ObamaCare during the budget legislation. Chabot says most of the phone calls his office receives supports his efforts to defund the Affordable Care Act. Really?  Take a moment to call or email or send a message to Steve Chabot and tell him to stop holding the country hostage---- Pass a clean CR.

Contact Steve Chabot:
Twitter @SteveChabot 
Washington, DC: (202) 225-2216  FAX (202) 225-3012
Warren Co. office: (513) 421-8704
Cincinnati office:  (513) 684-2723
campaign office: stevechabot.com or (513) 662-8000

Why does Steve Chabot want millions of Americans to go without health insurance and health care?

Insane Republican Idea

Ohio Republicans seem to hatch the craziest ideas. A few years ago, Ohio had SB5 which would have taken protections away from workers.  A new proposal from an Ohio Republican would put health care for the poor into to the hands of unlicensed medical trainees.

Plunderbund:

Republican State Rep John Becker has a solution to Ohio’s healthcare woes and it goes something like this:
1.  Pick one hospital in every urban area to be “designated for indigent care”
2.  Staff the hospital with low-paid “interns, volunteers, students and trainees”
3.  Give all of the hospital workers “immunity from malpractice litigation”
4.  Force all poor people to ”be transferred to their designated” indigent hospital....


....Ohio already has one of the highest infant mortality rates in the country for African American children, and the fourth highest rate in the country.   And neighborhoods around the hospitals Becker suggests we designate indigent-only facilities have rates that are off the charts; rates higher than countries like Vietnam and Libya.

Becker’s plan would most certainly result in even higher infant mortality rates, especially when combined with a another bill Becker introduced in August (HB 255) that would kick thousands of Ohio’s pregnant women and low income families off Medicaid and into the type of care Becker hopes will now be performed by interns, students and trainees.....

The bill sponsored by Becker is HB 271. Plunderbund has more information on the bill.  John Becker seems to be tossing the poor out in the garbage.

State Rep. John Becker has also added his two cents after a ruling from U.S. District Court Judge Timothy Black.
CityBeat:

....Republican Rep. John Becker is pretty upset that a terminally ill gay man has earned the right to die in peace, and now it’s become a very real possibility that other gay Ohioans might also get to die (and live) in peace. And, just like my brother, he’s kind of trying to ruin the game for everyone just because he’s losing....

.....In his ruling, Black called the case “not complicated,” explaining that he’d allow the marriage to be legalized on Arthur’s death certificate because it was likely a constitutional violation that the state of Ohio treated lawful out-of-state same-sex marriages differently than lawful out-of-state same-sex marriages.....

....Becker..... wrote U.S. Rep. Brad Wenstrup and called for Black to be impeached for “malfeasance and abuse of power,” which apparently made him really concerned about the “federal government’s ever growing propensity to violate state sovereignty.”   

As City Beat notes, "...U.S. District Court judges are appointed for life... "  

Ohioans are tired of these self-righteous Republicans who call themselves religious, but are against the poor, children, decency, and equality.  It is time to throw the Republican bums out of office here in Ohio and in Congress---especially those that promote tea party Republican ideology.