Obamacare - No Advantages for Seniors

Summing It Up:
1. Obamacare cuts $156 billion from Medicare Advantage (MA) Plans
2. Up to half of the 14 million Seniors with MA's could need new health care plans as MA's are dropped or have fewer benefits at greater costs
3. AARP will reap windfall profits as it sells a competing insurance plan
4. President Obama illegally took $8 billion to avoid MA cuts hitting Senior's in October and hurting his re-election
Read on for the full details...
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Until the past week I have felt like the prophet shouting doom in the wilderness which no one heard. I tried to tell everyone how unfair Obamacare was. That it paid for the uninsured by taking away from Seniors and the disabled. No one listened. Until now. The Romney Ryan ticket is finally getting the hypocrisy of Obamacare out in the open. Here are the facts, yes, actual facts about one facet of Obamacare.


The claim that you can keep your insurance under Obamacare is not true for the 14 million people who have Medicare Advantage (MA) Plans. President Obama intends to partly pay for Obamacare by gutting $156 billion from MA's over the next ten years. He claims the cuts are against the greedy doctors, hospitals and insurance companies, not Seniors. How stupid does he think we are? All cuts will of course be passed down to Seniors. Both left and right agree that these cuts will impact Seniors, they only disagree on how badly it will hurt Seniors.


What are MA's? They are a pay per use health plan through private insurance companies ranging from inexpensive HMO's to more expensive PPO's. Nearly one-fourth of all Seniors have this plan from a variety of private insurance companies competing for them. When I became disabled I quickly learned that the 20% copay under Medicare added up to more than I could afford. So I bought an annual MA plan with Humana, getting their PPO for just for $80 a month. I get to keep all my specialists and pay from $5-$35 on average per visit. Hospital stays and at home care are reasonable and if I were fit I could even use a free gym membership. I love my MA, which says a lot considering how much I need and use it.


Yet once Obamacare cuts start, analysts expects enrollments in MA's to drop by up to half of the 14 million people currently using these plans. Some insurance companies will stop offering MA's while other plans will offer less benefits yet become prohibitively expensive. There goes President Obama's claim that if you like your health care you will get to keep it. Wrong! Not only does Obama know this but he is lying to us about it and I do not use the word lightly.



The cuts were to start in January, but as you sign up for MA's in October then Senior's would see the impact of the cuts right before the election. That could lose the election for Obama. To prevent this, the president raided $8 billion from a fund to be used for something else. The Government of Accounting came out and said this was an illegal usage of this money. But once again the president is getting away with a clearly unconstitutional act for the sole reason of trying to fool Americans in order to get re-elected.




Here's another fact not discussed. Once cuts take affect and Seniors lose their current MA's or find them too costly they will look for new health insurance. Guess who does not sell MA's but does sell competing insurance plans and expects to make a huge windfall profit from Seniors replacing their MA's? AARP! Now do you understand why they support Obamacare? I just heard Obama's campaign manager say that Obamacare must be good if AARP supports it. Bullshit. Of course AARP loves Obamacare! AARP will make millions in profit from new members who move away from the decimated MA's. If AARP truly cared about Seniors they would be against this plan which hurts the 14 million Seniors on Medicare Advantage Plans.




One final fact. You must be 65 to qualify for most other plans, including AARP's. So once Obamacare starts cutting Medicare Advantage Plans, then as a 54 year old disabled person, I am screwed. Yes a few insurance companies will sell another plan to me but at a cost ranging from $350 to $1200 a month! It is rough enough coping with my disabilities but now I am truly afraid of the future when Obamacare raids my Medicare Advantage Plan. If my MA is dropped then I am back to just the 20% copay with Medicare, which is terrifying.
Without my Medicare Advantage Plan, my choices become bankruptcy, or to postpone or even not have medical care, including operations to save my limbs or even my life. Overly dramatic? Not really.




In 2009, for example, I needed four separate operations adding up to medical expenses of just over $500,000 for the year! Through my MA, I paid $12k, a lot, but reasonable, since if I only had Medicare I would have owed 20% or $100,000! The April surgery saved my right leg, two others were to save my left leg, is keeping them worth bankruptcy? People might be forced to ask questions just like this under Obamacare. So I have every reason to fear the cuts to this wonderful MA health insurance plan. And to wonder in what world is it right that Obamacare is paid for at the expense of disabled Americans, the very people who depend on health care the most?




Now compare Obamacare to the proposed Romney/Ryan plan. First and most importantly, they say it will not impact anyone over 55, unlike Obamacare which is paid for by taking funds from the Senior's Medicare Advantage Plans. Then I just read that the Republican plan using vouchers will actually be very similar to my Medicare Advantage Plan. They feel that offering it to more people will create more competition and therefore lower prices to the consumer. So instead of ruining this wonderful insurance plan, as Obamacare does, Romney will offer MA's to everyone! And you will love it!




But regardless of the Republican plan, I am just very grateful that Romney and Ryan are finally calling the president on his lies about Obamacare. Now we can begin to have a real debate with facts about what Obamacare will do to Seniors. Not what it might do but what it will do. And what Obamacare will do is hurt old and disabled Americans, the very people Medicare was created to help.

A Lack of Leadership

If we were in England, Obama, who just a year ago was riding high, would be facing a vote of no confidence right about now. Instead, we have the Health Care bill which has morphed into more than simply an up and down vote on this issue. It has become a test of Obama’s leadership skills and his ability to get something, anything, done in his friendly Democratically controlled Congress. The only problem, however, is that in order to prove he is a leader and can get something done, he must ask his party to vote on a bill that is unpopular with a public who no longer even want it. (The most recent Rasmussen poll shows that 53% are opposed to the bill and 57% believe it will be harmful to our economy.)

The question that Democrat Reps are facing is this - do they fall on their sword by voting on this issue as a show of their support of their party and their President but knowing that a "Yes" vote will alienate their district resulting in their being voted out of their office in the fall? I truly feel sorry for the first term Congressmen and women who know full well that they will not be re-elected if they vote for the bill. And yet imagine the pressure they must be under to do just that! Congressman Massa may be a nutcase but I’m sure there is an element of truth to his statement about pressure to vote Yes from Rahm, Obama’s hitman. Add to that the calls from Nancy Pelosi and even from the president, and life is very uncomfortable for the Democrats who plan to vote against the health care bill.

You read that Obama’s leadership is at stake because of this bill yet I feel that he showed his complete lack of leadership skills by letting himself get into this position in the first place. If he had actually turned to the economy and creating jobs, as he promised in his State of the Union, he not only might have helped the country but his approval rating might be on the upturn for once. Instead he has completely squandered the country’s goodwill towards him.

The numbers clearly tell the story of Obama’s downfall:

The President’s approval ratings have been in freefall. The Rasmussen poll shows a swing of 23 percentage points from a positive 16 difference between Strongly Approve vs. Strongly Disapprove to a negative 6 percentage points. As bad as this is, the negatives for Speaker Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Reid are even worse! Sixty-four percent view Pelosi unfavorably while 56% dislike Reid. A recent remark by Pelosi is so outrageous that it is almost impossible to believe she said it. But she actually did say this: "We have to pass the bill so that you can find out what is in it." Wow. No wonder people are in such contempt of Congress.

So what is going to happen? If they had the votes, Pelosi would have called for a vote on Monday. But they are still a handful short of even a simple majority to pass the health care bill. To add further pressure, Obama just postponed leaving for his big trip by a few days. One assumes he will use this time to call the recalcitrant Congressmen and women into his office to apply the greatest pressure of all – Presidential appeal and probably bribery. I truly hope that these Representatives, including my own, Suzanne Kosmos (d), can continue to stand by their first vote of no but I can understand how difficult it must be when faced by an irate President in the Oval Office. Yet in the long run I don’t think it will matter.

If the President and Pelosi are successful in passing this bill there will be a major upheaval as irate blue dog Democrats, Independents and Conservatives vote in Republican candidates en masse this fall. The primary campaigning point will have been to overturn the health care bill and once in office I am sure that they will find some way to do this. Or there is still a chance that the Democrats will not obtain the votes needed to pass the bill. Either way, within a year the Obama, Reid, Pelosi health care bill will not exist. Hopefully the next President, be he (or she) Democrat or Republican, will have finally learned that in order to succeed, a health care bill must be a joint venture with input from both sides and not a complete overhaul of our system by one side only.

As for Obama, if he is unable to pass bills when both the House and the Senate is controlled by Democrats then the rest of his term will be abysmal if the Republicans win big this fall. His legacy will revolve around how he squandered the nation's goodwill, wasted time during an economic crisis on a health care bill the public didn't want and showed that his retractors were right - Obama knows how to campaign and run for an office but once there he has no idea how to lead.

Stage Struck President

The Phantom of the Opera is one of the best, if not the best, show ever to hit Broadway. To prepare for this role of a lifetime, the lead actor spends two hours each day in makeup. And yet, the Phantom is only on stage for 40 minutes. That’s all. If you’ve ever seen the show you would have sworn that the Phantom appeared for more than 40 minutes of the two and half hour show. That is the mystic of the Phantom that even when he isn’t on stage you are still aware of him, his power, his feelings, his desires.

Obama needs to take a few lessons from the Phantom for this President seems to be on stage 24-7. He’s always delivering speeches, holding town hall meetings or giving in-depth interviews to the mainstream media. Every night we see him espousing on the crisis of the day. And his exposure isn’t limited to just here in the states. He’s already taken a number of trips where once again he can be found reading from that teleprompter as he apologizes for our behavior, talks about things he really doesn’t understand and telling other nations how to behave.

Unlike past Presidents, Obama seems unable to delegate tasks or speeches to the people working for him. OK, I can understand why he doesn’t want Biden talking for him but he has hired other experienced professional staffers. So why not let them do their jobs? Is he that insecure that he must constantly be in the limelight? Maybe, but I think it is also the sign of someone who has no experience as a manager. Obama has never run a business, oversaw staff, been required to meet a budget, produced a product or made a profit. A president needs to be able to do all of these things. Instead we have a man who is a politician/professor with no managerial experience at all. And if, like Reagan, you aren’t a manager then you need to delegate, which Reagan did, but which Obama seems incapable of doing.

Obama is a great politician and he probably was a good law professor but he is clueless when it comes to running a business, much less our country. A review of his first few months clearly shows that he has acted more like a professor or politician and not like the President of the US of A. For example, the most important aspect to being a good politician or professor is the ability to get money; the former from the public and the latter in grants (also ultimately from the public).Being a good politician/professor the first thing Obama has done is to grab money, lots and lots of money, with few strings attached. What happens with this money is secondary. Obama can’t be bothered with those details. He only knows how to reach out and take as much money as possible.

Another important part of being either a politician or a professor is to be published. And Obama has become a prolific author. Guess how many books Amazon.com shows have been released with Obama as the “author” since the first of the year? Would you believe there are ten books! This country is falling apart, people are hurting yet still Obama found time to produce nine books with a tenth due out in September. Even if it is compilation of his speeches or updating past books, this man is such a perfectionist, never speaking unless he has that teleprompter, he had to have had spent some time reviewing each of his ten books. But our president should be running the country, not writing books! The public should be outraged at this waste of presidential time when there are so many crisis and problems he should be concentrating on instead of books! This isn’t how a president should act!

It is rare to find either a politician or a professor who likes big business or even small business. They despise business managers and owners believing that they pollute the earth, abuse and exploit the little people who work for them and produce useless products. Professors and politicians are always for the little people, yet in private they jeer these workers with their guns and bibles and hold them in utter contempt. They despise the average Joe while at the same time show unending “love” for those who refuse to work and are dependent on the largess of the politician.

Obama is now trying to realize the dreams of every liberal politician and far left professor. He is trying to redistribute the wealth by going after the rich who don’t agree with him and handing their money to the idle poor who voted for him, while destroying the middle class who never have completely swallowed his kool ade. He is also systematically destroying business in America. He has taken over our car industry and our financial industry and is trying to take down energy businesses. Again like any politician or professor, Obama is now telling these industries what the end product should be but with no regard as to how to actually produce those products. Those details are beneath him and that’s what those business people should figure out. As for making a profit, well, business leaders have been too greedy in the past and don’t need to make profits.

The world is a scary place and we need a President not a politician/professor and definitely not a narcistic actor clamoring for more time on stage. The mystic of the Phantom is enhanced by the fact that he is seen in less than half the show. So President Obama needs to back off, to not have constant interviews, give endless speeches or even be seen going out on Saturday night dates. Obama keeps telling us he is President now it is about time he begins to act like one and not like a politician/professor or a stage struck actor. Otherwise we will find one who does.

When Fiction Become Fact

When I was in college I discovered the books written by Allen Drury. Many may have heard of his Pulitzer Prize winning 1950’s novel Advise and Consent. However, most do not realize that this novel was just the start of a series of books regarding Washington politics*. I loved those books for they opened my eyes to so many issues and were one of the reasons I became a Republican.

Much of this Drury series were leading up to a major presidential election. The series then ended in a very unique way. There were two “final” books; one in which the very naïve and idealistic liberal candidate becomes President and in the alternate ending the staunch Conservative became president. Each book then reflected how the winning President dealt with the Communist threats facing America during the 60’s and 70’s.

The ending with the naive President was a warning to the liberals who believed that the Communist regime was really not as bad as Conservatives make them out to be. Even after enemy aggression, this liberal President still counseled talk and not war. In their naivety, the liberals also believed that the UN would step in and do the honorable thing of helping us. Instead the UN members gloated at what they perceived to be US weakness and condemned us. I also liked Drury’s treatment of the media. Drury portrayed the press as being the first to write glowing stories about the liberal President while ignoring his weaknesses. But after the Communists took over the first freedoms to be revoked were our Freedom of Speech and the Freedom of the Press. By the time the journalists realized they had been wrong it was far too late.

The parallel last book showed the Conservative candidate becoming President. In this book, the Conservative President was demonized by the media as he continued to take a strong stance against our enemies. I loved the part where the US had met with the Soviet Union to try to reach a détente. If my memory serves me correctly, earlier in the series, the Russian Premier started to rant and rave and blame America for all the ills in the world. Instead of listening to him or even try to reason with him, the Republican President simply walked out of the room and to Air Force One and flew home. Yes!

I hadn’t thought of these books in years until I read a number of recent headlines in the Drudge Report; “Iran sends six Warships To International Waters”, “Ahmadinejad rejects Western Nuclear Proposal”, and “N. Korea fires more Rockets, Says USA Hostile”. These actions and threats remind me of what faced the new President in Drury’s book. And I can’t help but wonder if fact is like fiction and that our enemies are now testing our new liberal President.

In the book, the naïve President who’s platform had been peace not war, did nothing when threatened because he was afraid that if he retaliated he might “offend” our enemy and that the confrontation could escalate into war. But by not retaliating, the enemy became bolder and more aggressive while the new President, who was encouraged by the press, continued to back down rather than go to war. In spite of the truth, that the enemy really did want to destroy us, this President continued to think that if he could just sit down and talk they could find an answer. Sound familiar?

Today we, too, have a new liberal President who is adored by the media and far left groups. Like the naive President in the book, Obama also urges peace at all costs and believes the propoganda spread by those who hate this country. For example, Obama didn’t even wait for the enemy to blame us for the problems of the world – he did it himself with all of his sickening apologies! He is also going forward with the naive idea that we can talk to those who truly want to destroy us - such as Hugo Chavez whom he recently shook hands with. And what message is sent by the President of the USA bowing to another leader? How much harm has he already caused by denigrating the position of the greatest leader of the free world?

So how will Obama react to the blatantly aggressive action by Iran and N. Korea? Will he ignore it and let them continue on this aggressive course because he and the media are afraid of war? Will he continue to say that the answer is to sit across the table from them and talk? Or will he stand firm against our enemies? I can only hope that Obama does no lasting harm to my country and that in four years we can have our own alternate ending with a Conservative President.



* These books are no longer in print. However, you should be able to find them in used book stores and they are also available through Amazon.com. The books, in order, are: Advice and Consent, A Shade of Difference, Capable of Honor, Preserve and Protect and then the two final books”: Come Ninevah, Come Tyre and The Promise of Joy.

Going Tharn

In Richard Adam’s magical book Watership Down he describes the rabbit’s freezing when caught in the headlights of an approaching car as going tharn. I think a lot of moderates, both Democrats and Republicans, have gone tharn in the light of what is happening in Washington. The recent acts by Obama and his administration have been so unbelievable with one major change after another that many people who initially voted for the man have just frozen and gone tharn. For some it is simply too hard to comprehend how quickly our country is being changed. I can now almost understand how Nazi Germany came to be. The good Germans and Jews simply went tharn in disbelief.

Thank God that Conservatives have not been immobilized by the menace to our country which is emanating from Obama and his cronies. Instead, they have answered swiftly with the most damning response of all – true grass roots rebellion. I think it has shaken the far left liberals to see how quickly large groups of citizens are gathering to express their outrage at what Obama is doing to our country. I don’t think anyone could have predicted the way this fury has spread like fire around the country. What people forget is that yes, Obama won, but look at the map of red vs. blue counties. Once you get outside of the urban big cities you find the rest of the country is red. And it is getting redder every day that Obama has been in office.

But a funny thing is starting to happen. Remember those moderates who had gone tharn, frozen in disbelief at what they had done? Well, Obama is playing his hand too cockily. His Chicago strong arm tactics, his determination to silence anyone who is against him and his utter disrespect of our history is starting to backfire on him. Middle of the road Democrats who have been standing in place are beginning to jump – and to the right. Moderate Democrats are now saying “wait a minute” to adding trillions more in debt with his budget. They are beginning to think the government went too far when Obama fired GM’s CEO. That Obama’s international behavior, chumming up to our enemies while insulting our friends is no longer campaign gimmicks but a terrifying reality. They are finding their voice and are beginning to stand up and say “slow down” and even “no” to their President.

And what has been Obama’s reaction when these middle of the road Democrats start to voice their concerns? Democrat Rep. Peter DeFazio was one of those moderates who voted against Obama’s stimulus package. And Obama’s response according to today’s article by Karl Rove was “ ‘Don't think we're not keeping score, brother.’ That's what President Barack Obama said to Rep. Peter DeFazio in a closed-door meeting of the House Democratic Caucus last week, according to the Associated Press.” Wow.

Sure you could say it’s his own fault for voting him in but I can’t help but feel sorry for Rep. DeFazio and the other moderate Democrats. They had been so excited that one of their own won the presidency. And not just anyone but they had voted for a very charismatic man who was also the first African American running for the office. How very thrilling the inauguration must have been for they really believed that Obama would bring hope back to Washington. But then suddenly so many things went wrong and Obama’s actions became more and more dangerous to our country.

Until finally these moderates found that they could no longer support their President. How difficult that decision was. It must be incredibly hard to stand up to a President from your own party. But perhaps they thought that maybe by not voting for his bill this new President might realize he is going too far and too fast for a large part of his constituency. Perhaps they thought that their no vote would be a signal to the President to slow down a little bit. Instead their President threatens them! Wow. Talk about a wake up call!

So Conservatives, in addition to your tea parties, show your support for these moderate Democrats. For it is no longer a Republican vs. Democrat thing. No, this is something deeper, something more akin to liberty vs. tyranny. Send Peter DeFazio a note telling him that you appreciate the stand he has taken. Tell the moderate Democrats that Obama has made his biggest mistake yet when he threatened you and that we will stand with you against the President and his minions like MoveOn.org when they come after you. And you know they will for it is already happening.

Now maybe it is in the human spirit but I like to think that one of the uniquely American traits is that we don’t react well to being threatened. Sure we may have gone tharn initially but that is due to our innate goodness and naivety. We simply can’t believe this is happening. But once we shake off that frozen feeling instead of backing down to threats we fight them. Our country is filled with story after story of average men and women who have stood up to tyrants. Hell, America was born because of rebels like that. A lot may have changed in the past 250 years but thank God that is still true. For if it is not, if we no longer have the integrity and guts to stand up for what is good then you might as well start to write our country’s obituary.

Short Retort

Have you heard about the Teleprompter blog? A very clever person has created a blog done in the first person from Obama's teleprompter. Yes, his teleprompter. Obama is so dependent on his teleprompter that it has quickly become a joke. So now his teleprompter is speaking out about his new best friend. Perhaps what makes this so funny is that it is the first time since Obama has begun campaigning that anyone has come close to rediculing the man. Up until this, it has been almost taboo to say anything bad about the President much less to make fun of him. So it is refreshing, although illiminating, that the first person to poke redicule at Obama is doing so under the cover of his teleprompter. So if you haven't seen this and need to start off the weekend with a chuckle try out this website which I have now posted at the rightside along with the other recommended blogs.

Audacity to Tell the Truth

I had never listened much to Rush Limbaugh and must admit I wasn’t sure if I really liked the man. But after this weekend and all the uproar over his speech at the CPAC convention I decided I should see or rather hear for myself what he said. So I found a video on line and listened to his speech.

Wow. I apologize to Mr. Limbaugh for after listening to him I realized that I agreed with almost everything he said. There were quite a few things he discussed that hit home for me which I will probably be referring to over the next couple of weeks. Today, though, I want to give my 2 cents worth on the whole wanting Obama to fail hoopla.

Of course when the Main Stream Media (MSM) shows a clip of Limbaugh they always take it out of context and this was especially true about his remark on Obama failing. Make no mistake, Rush did bluntly state that he wanted Obama to fail. But it was the follow up that few people, other than those in his audience, heard.

First he said that he believed that if Obama’s economic policies succeeded it would mean, well, let me explain it in his own words. After reminding everyone that the Democrats made no secret that they wanted the Iraq war to fail, he went on to say “So what is so strange about being honest to say that I want Barack Obama to fail if his mission is to restructure and reform this country so that capitalism and individual liberty are not its foundation? Why would I want that to succeed?”

He continued to explain his point of view by saying that he wants the country to survive and how the country is under assault and that Republicans need to stand together and fight for what we believe in. It was all very stirring while at the same time rather scary. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to stand and cheer or go out and buy a gun like so many people are doing today.

So I found myself agreeing with Limbaugh on his, well, you could put it as Rush’s audacity to hope that Obama fails. Except I wish he hadn’t said it out loud. For now, if or rather when, Obama’s economic stimulus plan not only fails to stimulate anything but drags our economy further down it will all be Rush’s fault, not Obama’s.

Obama is our rain man. In the old days a rain man was a charlatan who went from town to town promising a draught struck countryside he could make it rain. And if he couldn’t produce rain, most of these small towns didn’t string him up and run him out of town. No, because he brainwashed them into believing that it was their fault for not believing in him enough. That if even one person doubted that it would rain then it was the unbeliever’s fault, not his, that the skies remained clear and cloudless.

Can’t you just see the same thing happening here? Every time Obama announces something, such as his stimulus package or his budget, the stock market responds by dropping to lows unseen in more than a decade. But you know what? It isn’t Obama’s fault. It’s not that his nearly trillion dollar stimulus package won’t work; it’s that people and businesses don’t believe in it. And that’s all Rush Limbaugh’s fault for being so negative about these plans.

Come to think of it, maybe Obama’s doing a con job on America from the start. Argue that he didn’t have any experience? Argue about his questionable friends? Ask for details of what he wants to “change”? All these questions were retorted by being told you have to hope, to forget the facts, just believe in him. And now, Obama is leading this country with nothing concrete, no evidence at all that supports his “hope” that his outrageous stimulus package and budget will work. Once again the American people are told to turn their backs on evidence and facts and instead be governed by hope, by instinct, by what “everybody believes in”. The list of things you should believe in is endless; climate change and clean coal and open hands to our enemies, even now negotiating with Putin in “good faith” etc. etc. It is scary and frustrating and sometimes you feel like the world has gone insane. No one wants to be bothered with facts and evidence not when they are in contrast to their beliefs. Why else would Congress vote on a 1000+ page bill without even reading it? They just “knew” it was good.

So there stood Rush actually speaking cold hard facts. Even worse is that Rush dares to admit he isn’t a believer in Obama and wants him to fail. OMG. He actually realized the emperor is not wearing any clothes and then had the audacity to… not hope but to tell the truth. No wonder Obama has to squash Rush immediately for if he gets people to doubt Obama, to start demanding the truth then more will see Obama for what he is, a con man, and a fraud. The MSM has already been compromised so we need Rush, Hannity, Beck, O’Reilly and all the other men and women like them to stand up and tell the truth. And we, the citizens, should demand the truth from our government and media and stop accepting their lies, half truths and hopes.

It Is What It Is

Conservatives are having hissy fits over this stimulus bill. I suppose I could add my voice to the ranting and ravings but what is the point? After the election when Democrats took over every branch of government we knew there were going to be changes which went against everything we believe in, like the stimulus bill. This bill was a major platform of Obama’s and in spite of some bickering, Reid and Pelosi quickly rallied their troops to give the President what he wanted, when he wanted it. Come on folks, was anybody at all surprised by this?

Yet a glance at the headlines on Drudge, Politico, Townhall or any other conservative website will show excitable, angry, outrageous headlines of which the award for most over the top column would go to Ann Coulter who wrote an article titled Goodbye America, It Was Fun While It Lasted: http://townhall.com/columnists/AnnCoulter/2009/02/11/goodbye,_america!_it_was_fun_while_it_lasted. Then there are the radio talk show hosts. Oh my. Yes they are normally rather excitable but you should hear them now. They are running out of words to describe how despicable Congress is and nearly frothing at the mouth in indignation over this stimulus bill.

My take on it is a line from work that became overused but which expresses my feeling on the whole thing: It is what it is. Maybe that’s a fatalistic point of view but why bother getting all worked up over something you have no control over? Or as Obama likes to remind everyone; he won and we lost and I would state it as “he won, we lost so deal with it!”. Histrionics will get you nowhere. Actually it will make Republicans look like poor losers, something that American’s despise. We already have a trust issue with half of America and so we need to change tactics going forward.

We need to regain the nation’s confidence, respect and become the party of ideas and reasonableness. It really shouldn’t be too difficult to portray Reid and Pelosi for what they are; far left, demanding, odious, old time politicians. So instead of becoming hysterical over every little thing they do we need to calmly explain why a bill is harmful to the nation, how much it will cost the average working tax payer and then present to the nation alternatives. Of course Congress will never look at our ideas much less enact anything from the right side of the House and Senate. But over the next few years people would begin to trust and respect Republicans if they calmly and logically explain to the country how they would have handled an issue rather than the current ranting and ravings and shouting “No” and screaming that it is the end of the world or at least the end of America.

Of course I am afraid of what the tyrannical trinity of Obama, Reid and Pelosi will do to my country. Unfortunately they have the votes in the House and there will always be a few turncoats in the Senate so that they will be able to do what they want. Yes it is frustrating and infuriating and most of all very scary to see all these changes. Although it is what it is we actually can deal with it by trying to change the situation using a two prong attack. First, as I have suggested, Republicans need to rationally explain why the liberals are not only wrong but dangerous to the country and then give an alternative idea. My second point is that we must begin to target vulnerable districts where Republicans have a chance of beating the current Democrat Congressmen in two years. Then all of us need to help with money and support in order to elect more Republic Congressmen in 2010. This quiet support to defeat Democrats in two years will go a lot further towards ending the Democrat stronghold in DC than any rantings and ravings ever will.

Inaugaration Day

Today I am going to act like a typical blogger by constantly updating throughout the day. I realized that most of you will be working and thus not free to watch the historic events today. So for all of you at work, I will be your eyes and ears and as the day progresses I will add to this posting with my thoughts on what I am seeing and hearing.

9:00 am This morning I saw the sun rising above the Capital, bathing the area in bright yellow hues. It was absolutely breathtaking (made more so by new HDTV of course) and I couldn’t help but want to think about the dawning of a brand new day.

The crowds, dear God, the crowds were already unimaginable at just 8 am. Even the hard core journalists are overwhelmed by the masses gathering, especially realizing that most of the “spectators” will not see anything but the backs and heads of the people around them. The potential, though, for disaster hits you for as they closely pack in the people you worry as to how they could leave the area if they had to. And you realize they couldn’t so you pray that there are no disasters, no problems and that it all goes smoothly.

I am flipping between CNN and Fox to get varying points of view. I was surprised, then, when everyone seems to be in agreement. They both talk of Obama being a “blank slate” on which people projected what they wanted him to be. The pundits believed that Obama’s winning campaign of “hope and change” was free from specifics so voters believed that his changes were the ones they wanted. No one quite put it this way but he basically bluffed his way into office without ever showing his hand. Now that he has to show his cards it is starting to seem as if he is more centrist than anyone, left or right, realized. There is much talk of potential problems he might have down the road with the far left Pelosi and Reid. But everyone also agrees that today is not the day to talk of that.

Today is a day to celebrate America. Yes you get tired of hearing about it but still…. This country elected an African American when less than 50 years ago blacks couldn’t eat in a restaurant with whites or drink from the same water fountain or sit in the same theater seats as whites. And yet today we peacefully elected a black to be our 44th President of the United States. Huh. Only 44 men have lived in the White House. That truly is not very many and now this next one is half black. And his name is Barack Hussein Obama. The enormity of what is happening perhaps explains why hundreds of thousands are willing to stand for hours in the cold without seeing much of anything. They simply want to be a part of history.

There will be a lot of talk of unity and coming together as one. The cynic in me wants to ask why was diversity good during a Republican Presidency but now we are told we have to be one people; that we are even un-American for disagreeing when the country has so many problems. Although that whole concept scares me, perhaps just for one day maybe even I can put aside partisan politics. And it is almost impossible not to be affected by the optimistic mood seen by the crowds who apparently don’t mind standing and waiting in the cold.

Oh, I just saw my first glimpse of Obama as he goes to church (and running 15 minutes behind). As he gets into that fancy new presidential car you could see him and no surprise that Obama has a huge grin on his face. And that says it all for now.

Swearing In – Power. That’s my first thought as the dignitaries are being seated. There are the current powerful men and women in the form of the Supreme Court Justices plus Senate and House leaders and members. There are faces which are just starting to be familiar such as Rahm Emanuel, Obama’s Chief of Staff. Then there are the men who use to rule this country, former Vice Presidents and Presidents; Carter, Bush 41 who is looking very frail, Clinton, and soon one more man is about to join the ranks of former Presidents, Bush 43. You can’t help but be proud of America and wonder in what other country could there be a peaceful gathering of so many powerful men and women? Some were bitter rivals, other are friends but all were savvy political operatives who at one point were elected to our highest office and know what it is like to be President of the United States. Shortly one more will join their ranks. For most of all, there is the man himself, Barack Obama, the President Elect who is about to be sworn in as our 44th President.

Joe Biden was sworn in. As I watched him I just realized that I have not seen an inauguration before as I was always at work. The actual swearing in was quite short and simple and over in a moment. I doubt if it will be much different for Obama. Yet I think there should also be a swearing out ceremony; a brief thank you and goodbye to the outgoing President and VP. But I guess not although I wonder at the relief he must feel as the burden of the office is lifted off of his shoulders now. By the way I love the musical interlude between Biden’s swearing in and Obama’s.

Barack Obama is officially our President. His nerves are getting to him as he messed up one of the lines. But he got through it and is President Obama now. As the crowds are cheering I can’t help but wonder what have we done?

Now his speech… The crowds are quiet. In fact I just realized that they rarely applaud for most of the speech. This speech is not what they were expecting. There was no gloating or even quiet exultation. No promising of easy things or immediate relief. Instead Obama is lecturing us on how bad things are, how we are in the dark winter of time. He speaks of us having to work to meet the challenges with hope and virtue. He reminded us of old values of hard work and we need to do this to remake America. Remake America, that line scares me. He said we shouldn’t argue if government is too big or too small but rather if it works. And if it didn’t work then we should end that program. He said we need to watch over the market and mentioned being accountable for what is spent. As for other nations, he said he will help them but we will still protect our way of life. He clearly alluded to obeying the laws and not allowing torture. But he wraps up his speech by again lecturing us to go back to the old values of “honesty and hard work, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism” and who can argue with that?

I think President Obama’s speech surprised the hundreds of thousands listening to him. I’m sure they remember his more sweeping, dramatic speeches such as the first major one he did four years ago at the Democratic National Convention. Instead they got a more stringent, almost harsh speech. I heard a pundit describe this speech as being hard edged. Another said it was masculine. That’s a good way to put it for there was nothing soft, comforting or maternal about this speech. Instead it was more of a tough, roll up your sleeve and get to work kind of speech.

George W. Bush is getting on the helicopter to leave. Like the man, it is done quietly, with no pomp and circumstance. Much will be written over the years about this man and his presidency. But I think all will agree that he is a nice guy. His common courtesy, a trait which is rapidly disappearing in our nation today, was most evident in the recent transition. Bush went out of his way to help Obama and his team step into their new roles and begin to lead the nation today. Compare that to the abominable treatment of Clinton’s team who literally wrecked offices in the White House when they left. But most of all we should thank President Bush for keeping us safe. Let us hope Obama will now.

The Parades – After the luncheon there was the parade. It seemed as if President Obama’s limo was creeping down the parade route for hours leaving the poor announcers trying to fill the time by wondering when the President was going to get out of the limo and walk. At some point during this titillating discussion I fell asleep. Oops. Then I had to scramble to get ready and leave for a 6:00pm meeting. By now the actual parade was happening and unlike the fake parades on Thanksgiving Day this was an honest to God old fashioned parade. I was sorry to miss it. But my last look showed poor Obama glancing at his watch and wondering how much longer would he be stuck standing in the cold and sure to be even colder as the sun sets. Michelle probably wasn’t too happy either as I am sure she would much rather have a few minutes rest before donning her evening ball gown and attending God knows how many balls tonight. They may now be the first couple but I bet they envy me my nap!

All in all it has been a good day. No problems other than a slight misspeaking of the oath and Teddy Kennedy's episode at the luncheon but he is supposedly during better. Amazing that all those people gathering on the mall were orderly and peaceful. Hopefully they will be so again tonight although the bitter cold is probably keeping people indoors.

So now we have our new President, our first African American President, the man with the funny name, President Barack Obama. I wish him luck. I truly do. And I may not always agree with him but I think he will try to govern responsibly. With a few exceptions, his speech gives me hope that maybe he will. For he is not a stupid man. It may be absurd to think of this now but he probably is already thinking of a second term. And if he wants his eight years then he must appeal to more than just the far left if he wishes to be re-elected. Plus if he has a disasterous presidency then he knows we will not elect another African American for a long long time. A lot has fallen on his shoulders tonight. At some point after the last dance has been danced, when he is at his new home, the White House, perhaps the first time he sits alone in the Oval Office, it will hit him - he is our new President. And that is when his Presidency will truly begin.

Let's Do Lunch

Wouldn’t you just love to be in the White House today? Our four living presidents: Jimmy Carter, George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and George Bush, and President elect Barack Obama are meeting today for a luncheon at the White House. How fascinating will that be?

The dynamics between our past, current and future Presidents would be very interesting to watch. Obviously the father and son Bush’s get along, or you would suppose they would. A few years ago Bush 43 tapped Bill Clinton to work closely with Bush 41 and apparently they all became friends in spite of their political differences. And as the new kid on the block I assume that everyone wants to talk to Obama or give him advice and he should be listening to the experiences of his predecessors. So that leaves Jimmy Carter. Neither of the Bush’s have reason to like him nor could I see Carter and Clinton having much in common other than being the two past Democrat Presidents. Besides, Jimmy should be feeling a bit embarrassed again about that Nobel Peace Prize for the Middle East and his Habitat for Humanity houses falling apart.

I sure would like to be a fly on the wall to listen in to these men who are in the most exclusive club in the world; United States Presidents. Then again, instead of discussing current events they could simply be telling Obama about hidden rooms in the White House or comparing golf tips. (Isn’t it interesting that all last year the MSM touted Obama as being a basketball player, a very hip urban sport, but waited until after he was elected to mention that he was also an avid golfer, a country club sport associated with Republicans!)

Anyway, I wonder how many other countries could have all of their past living leaders meet with the upcoming leader without bloodshed? In spite of everything that is wrong with this country we still must be doing something right!

Power Play

If elected Barack Obama will be a very weak and indecisive president. How did I arrive at this conclusion? By watching the current power play over the past week in which Obama abdicated his leadership role to the Democrat leaders of Congress. It is not often that the public can see such a ruthless play for power but that is exactly what is happening over the financial bailout.

First, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority leader, Harry Reid, said they had come up with a plan. Only after getting maximum press coverage, where they looked like the heroes of the hour, was it revealed that they had not vetted it with anyone else. Then when anyone (such as the House Republicans or a good part of the nation) disagreed with their idea the dissenters were portrayed as deal breakers when in fact there never had been a deal satisfactory to enough people to pass a vote.

When McCain said he and Obama should be there to work on a bailout rather than getting ready for a debate, these Democrat leaders said that this issue was not a place for “presidential politics”. Excuse me? Since one of these men will be responsible for this country in just a few months and tasked with implementing the solution then they should definitely have a role in this. As for “politics” few people are more political than Pelosi and Reid. Their entire role seems to be less in finding a workable solution and more in claiming they were the ones who had a solution and blaming McCain for derailing their “deal”. However, even setting aside “presidential politics” Obama and McCain are Senators who should be there in that role.

This week Obama showed his inexperience and weakness by abdicating his leadership to Pelosi and Reid. Instead of asserting his role as the next potential president he bowed to their wishes and initially stayed away from Washington. Perhaps this is also a reflection of Obama’s history of avoiding making decisions by either not being there or by avoiding either a nay or aye vote. Whatever his reasons, by staying away he turned over his leadership role to Pelosi and Reid. Only a call from Bush finally got Obama back to Washington.

As I write this on Friday morning, Reid has just had another press conference. Again he said that “outsiders should stay out of it” which is a swipe at McCain and yes, even Obama. He also insinuated that a deal would have been reached if McCain had stayed away. You could see that Reid was clearly angry that his deal was shot down by the House Republicans. How dare anyone go against him! Reid even admitted that he is getting angry calls from his constituents but that Congress knows best and even though people are unhappy with it, the deal is good for Wall Street and Main Street. What hubris!

I don’t know how this whole financial mess will ultimately be resolved. What I do know is that Pelosi and Reid are already trying to flex their political muscles. This past week Obama has already set precedence by not only letting Pelosi and Reid tell him what to do but even worse by then doing their bidding. Instead of acting “presidential” he showed he was weak and could easily be controlled by Pelosi and Reid. This bodes a difficult presidency for Obama and an even worse four years for the rest of the country. For if Obama wins then Pelosi and Reid just might end up as the real leaders