Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Politics : American Presidential Politics and foreign affairs -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: sandintoes who wrote (37813)	10/19/2009 9:02:00 AM
From: Peter Dierks	Respond to of 71588

He is a reflection of Obama.

To: sandintoes who wrote (37813)	10/19/2009 10:39:04 AM
From: Peter Dierks	2 Recommendations Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 71588

Gag Order Admission Humana gets a slap on the wrist for disseminating true information. OCTOBER 18, 2009, 7:26 P.M. ET. There's nothing like a Friday evening news release to hide a Washington embarrassment. In last week's episode, President Obama's health appointees lifted their outrageous gag order against health insurers for the sin of informing their customers about how ObamaCare would affect their insurance. In September, Humana Inc. sent a mailer to some 900,000 enrollees in its Medicare Advantage plans, the program that gives seniors a choice of private insurance options, warning that spending cuts would result in reduced benefits and some people losing their coverage. The Congressional Budget Office has said the same thing, but the Obama apparat went nuclear. At the behest of Senate Finance Chairman Max Baucus, Medicare's administrators menaced Humana with fines and regulatory punishments, and even told all insurers participating in Advantage to shut up too—or else. In its Friday ruling, Medicare slapped Humana on the wrist for disseminating information that it claimed was "misleading to beneficiaries"—even though it was perfectly true—but also lifted the gag order. Insurers will be allowed to communicate with enrollees, provided they get permission. This is basically a concession that the critics are right, especially considering that Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius defended the policy as recently as two weeks ago while refusing to answer questions about this raw political coercion from a supposedly impartial federal bureaucracy. Meanwhile, the Administration is now threatening to strip the insurance industry of its decades-long exemption from antitrust law. This would blow a hole in the industry's profitability, as would ObamaCare for different reasons. The industry now faces a choice of playing ball with Democrats and getting punished, or trying to defeat the bill and being brutalized as an act of political revenge. This is the industry's reward for spending millions to promote "reform" in the hopes of not becoming a political target. It's still a target, and now it's poised to lose the policy fight too. online.wsj.com

To: sandintoes who wrote (37813)	10/21/2009 11:31:47 PM
From: Peter Dierks	1 Recommendation Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 71588

Sen. Alexander Accuses Obama of Using Nixon-Style Tactics on Critics Sen. Lamar Alexander took to the Senate floor Wednesday to urge President Obama and his aides to dial back their attacks on White House critics. FOXNews.com Wednesday, October 21, 2009 A top Republican senator accused the Obama White House on Wednesday of using Nixon-style tactics to vilify political opponents and members of the media, suggesting the administration is on the brink of compiling its own "enemies list." Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., took to the Senate floor to urge President Obama and his aides to dial back their attacks on White House critics. Alexander, who later was joined by Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H., cited a litany of instances where he said Obama was inappropriately targeting groups -- from the Chamber of Commerce to Fox News -- just as President Nixon did four decades ago. "I have an uneasy feeling only 10 months into this new administration that we're beginning to see the symptoms of this same kind of animus developing in the Obama administration," Alexander said. Gregg also expressed concerns and suggested Obama was "Nixifying" the White House. Alexander, chairman of the Senate Republican Conference, pointed to the administration's public criticism of the health insurance industry, Republicans in Congress, the Chamber of Commerce and Fox News. White House advisers have gone on several other channels to accuse Fox News of going to bat for the Republican Party and to urge other networks to ignore Fox's coverage. "Mr. President -- this behavior is typical of street brawls and political campaign consultants. It's a mistake," Alexander said. foxnews.com