Reply to Lugar (long post...sorry)
Aug 19, 2009 8:59:04 GMT -5
Post by the1badger on Aug 19, 2009 8:59:04 GMT -5
I wanted to share with each of you my reply to Senator Lugar. I had contacted him several times and received a computer generated response which was nothing more than a statement he made already. I have also included at the bottom of this post the statement he sent to me.
I cannot state strongly enough...if you have not yet contacted your representatives in the house and the senate you need to TODAY. In fact if you have...do it again. The lights are finally starting to come on. The clue bunny is making his rounds!
We must not let up. I know each of you love your Republic and want to save it. This battle that we are in right now on healthcare is crucial. Obama and his friends want total control of YOUR life. Do not let them have it. Once they have it we will not get it back.
Tim
Senator Lugar,
I received your email in reply to my concerns on the current series of discussions on healthcare reform. Thank you for taking the time to respond. I must say however based on the response that you sent me that I do not feel like I was clear in my message.
Myself and most of people where I live in Indiana are strongly and completely opposed to the healthcare reform currently being presented. We are tired of the folks in Washington, D.C. whom we sent to represent us spending money we do not have and taking more of our freedoms in the process.
We are not fools. We know that AARP and other “representative” entities are just a front for you and the insurance companies. I pay dearly for my health coverage and because I do my physician and I will decide the course of my healthcare and treatment. Yes, my healthcare coverage is expensive…but it is mine and by using my economic purchasing power I will determine who serves me. The company that provides the services I need at the price I am willing and able to pay will get my business. I like my doctor. I trust my doctor. I do not trust you.
Myself and most of the people where I live support PRO gun legislation. You recently voted against a bill which would allowed for greater gun freedoms. There is no need to interpret the meaning behind the Second Amendment. Our founding fathers were pretty smart folks and they were breaking free of a corrupt and power hungry government body. See any similarities there? The American people have purchased 1.6 BILLION rounds of ammunition since November of last year. I am confident that the American people will defend and protect the Constitution of the United States.
Myself and most of the people where I live were very vocal and let you know that we opposed the nomination of Sotomayor. It was VERY clear that justice would not be blind in her decisions. Her work record CLEARLY indicated that she was not fit to serve as a justice on the Supreme Court. You supported her openly and in so doing your violated your oath to uphold the Constitution of the United States.
Myself and most of the people where I live do not appreciate the Obama administration using their power and clout to rob us of our constitutional rights. No more czars. Cabinet positions are appointed for a reason. Congressional representatives cancelling town hall meetings so that they do not have to answer to their constituents is not okay. Please refer to the First Amendment. We do have the right to speak our minds. We also have the right to vote for whomever we choose. Your chances of getting my vote again are at exactly zero.
I must ask you again Sir, who are you representing in Washington, D.C.? Your votes and your actions do not reflect that you are representing the population of the State of Indiana where I reside.
I want you to clearly understand that as my representative I am asking you to please represent me. This is why I voted for you. I expect that you will publicly and vocally object to the current reforms being forced down our throats. I expect that you will read legislation being presented and know what your constituents want. I expect that you will represent by your votes myself and the constituents of the State of Indiana.
* LUGAR STATMENT *
Dear Mr. Stoner:
Thank you for contacting me with your views on health care reform. I share many of your concerns.
I would like to share with you a statement that I made regarding the health reform debate in Congress:
"A majority of the Members of Congress share President Obama's humane goal that millions more Americans might enjoy health insurance coverage and that medical care to all Americans might be substantially improved. For the moment, however, President Obama and the Congress must recognize that the overwhelming demand of most Americans is that presidential and congressional leadership should focus each day on restoration of jobs, strengthening of housing opportunities, new growth in small business and large industries, and banks that are not only solvent but confident of normal lending. In essence, the task facing national leadership is truly monumental. A national and international recession has not ended and many economists predict that unemployment in the United States will grow in coming months.
The President and the current Congress have come into office in the midst of a fiscal year that has already suffered a budget deficit of $1.086 trillion with a final deficit for fiscal 2009 predicted around $1.8 trillion. The appropriation bills that the Congress is considering, and that will make up the next fiscal year's expenditures, are predicted to result in another annual deficit of more than $1 trillion. In the first nine months of this fiscal year, Medicaid spending has increased by 23 percent to $186 billion. Spending on food stamps has increased 36.8 percent to $40 billion. Unemployment benefits have increased 165 percent to $77 billion. The current budget deficit can be equated at $8,500 per American family with similar spending projected ahead for the coming year.
Republicans and Democrats may feel that passing comprehensive health legislation before the summer recess or adjournment in the fall is crucial to the success or failure of the Obama administration and/or party leadership in the Congress.
But I would suggest that successful leadership will be defined, now and historically, by success in bringing a horrendous economic recession to an end, bringing new strength to our economy, and providing vital leadership in international relations as we hope to bring conflicts under control and in some cases, to conclusion.
I appreciate that President Obama has strongly argued that comprehensive health care legislation is an important component to reducing federal deficit spending. He has contended that failure to pass this legislation will increase deficits now and for many years to come. I disagree with the President.
After the economic recession in our country comes to a conclusion, a high priority may be extension of health insurance coverage and reform of many health care practices. When such changes occur, they are likely to be expensive and Americans will need to debate, even then, their priority in comparison to many other national goals. One reason why health care is likely to remain expensive is that major advances in surgical procedures, prescription drugs, and other health care practices have prolonged the lives of tens of millions of Americans and improved the quality of those additional years. The Washington Post, in a front-page story on July 26, 2009, mentioned that "the fight against heart disease has been slow and incremental. It's also been extremely expensive and wildly successful." Americans should not take for granted all of the advances in health care that have enriched our lives, but we sometimes forget that we require and even pray for much more medical progress in years to come, which is likely to be expensive.
After the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office reported that current legislative proposals might increase health costs by more than $1 trillion during the next ten years, several Members of Congress have suggested new forms of taxation, reduction of payments to doctors and hospitals, and curtailment of certain types of insurance coverage. These and other suggestions may temporarily bring about cost reduction but will also have some after-effects in the overall economy. In fact, strong financial incentives may be needed to enlist men and women to enter the medical field. Failure to enlist a sufficient number of doctors could lead to rationing of service and longer lines to find someone who will give humane attention.
In the meanwhile, it is possible that the President and Members of Congress might find some inexpensive, incremental improvements that could result in a greater number of Americans being served through health insurance and more efficiently operating health care institutions. The strong desire that most of us have to continue discussing these issues and make improvements need not be postponed even as President Obama and the Congress strive for victory over a devastating national economic recession.
Because our federal spending deficits have risen so much and are predicted to rise even more, all substantive discussions on health care and other important issues will be conducted during many years of planning and, finally, decisive action to reduce deficit spending and preserve the value and integrity of the dollar as we continue to borrow hundreds of billions of dollars in the form of U.S. Treasury Bonds sold to governments and citizens of other countries. They, too, are counting on the integrity of our dollar and our financial system to preserve the value of their financial reserves.
Starting with President Obama and extending to all Members of Congress, we wish that we had inherited a neutral, peaceful playing field. We have not been so fortunate. Our responsibility now is to recognize the extraordinary financial tragedy that has befallen our country and to recognize the unprecedented opportunity that we have to stop the momentum of that tragedy. We must provide valid hope of constructive vision, idealism, and change in the future. I look forward to working with the President and my colleagues to tackle first things first."
Thank you, again, for sharing your thoughts with me.
Sincerely,
Richard G. Lugar
United States Senator