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Six Republicans

SENATE REPUBLICAN HEALTH CARE NEGOTIATORS REMIND US OF THE RIVER KWAI

By Lewis K. Uhler

Remember the classic movie, “Bridge on the River Kwai?” The great actor Alec Guiness played the commander of allied forces captured by the Japanese in southeast Asia during WWII. To keep his men in shape and the prisoners’ command structure intact, he agreed to build a railroad bridge the Japanese needed to move men and material. When the bridge was completed and about to be used for enemy purposes, the prisoners planned to blow up the bridge. But the bridge had become an end in itself to the commander. He refused to blow it up and fought his own men as they finally succeeded in denying it to the enemy.

The three Republican Senators who are negotiating for a compromise health care “reform” bill in the Senate Finance Committee, and three others working with them, remind us of the Kwai commander. They have become blinded by their pursuit of bipartisanship and trying to be across-the-aisle- “statesmen”. Just as the bridge could only serve the enemy, and needed to be destroyed, the socialized-medicine scheme, whether presented straightforwardly as a “public option”, or camouflaged as a “private co-op”, cannot be reshaped into a market-oriented, doctor-patient-relationship-friendly, cost contained, non-health-rationing, user-friendly design that these Senators profess to support.

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GRASSROOTS CAMPAIGN LAUNCHED URGING REPUBLICAN SENATORS STOP NEGOTIATING OBAMACARE COMPROMISE

“Obama” Health Care reform is an “endangered species,” unless a handful of Senate Republicans provide life support in the form of a negotiated compromise,” said Lewis K. Uhler, President of the National Tax Limitation Committee, one of America’s oldest and largest grassroots taxpayer organizations.

“Citizen reactions in town hall meetings across the nation have put Obama/Reid/Pelosi/Waxman socialized medicine schemes on the ropes. House “Blue Dog” Allan Boyd has said we should stop this effort and start over. Many of his colleagues may not have said it, but feel the same. Democratic leaders have threatened to “go it alone”, ignoring unified Republican opposition, even threatening to use reconciliation in the Senate, rather than honoring procedural votes that require a 60 vote margin.

“Desperation is now the name of their game- UNLESS they get the cooperation of the six negotiating Senators; Grassley (IA), Enzi (WY), Snowe (ME), Graham (SC), Collins (ME) and Bennett (UT) who could snatch defeat from the jaws of victory for concerned citizens across America. In the name of vacuous bipartisanship they could do us in. They are like the allied commander in World War II who built the bridge on the River Kwai. They have so fallen in love with bipartisan compromise as an end in itself, that they have refused to stop negotiating on a socialized medicine scheme for America.

“NTLC, as well as many other organizations and Tea Party participants, will engage in a massive national email/activist campaign to STOP the Negotiating. There is no way to reshape the 1000+ page Health Care political viper into a market-orientated, doctor-patient-relationship-friendly, cost contained, non-health rationing, user-friendly design that these Senators profess to support,” concluded Uhler.

Tell them "NO" to Obamacare!


Chuck Grassley
United States Senator, Iowa

Washington Office
135 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510-1501

(202) 224-3744 (O)
(202) 224-6020 (F)






Olympia J. Snowe
United States Senator, Maine

Washington DC Office
154 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510

(202) 224-5344 (O)
(800) 432-1599 (O)
(202) 224-1946 (F)





Susan Collins
United States Senator, Maine

Washinton DC Office
413 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510

(202) 224-2523 (O)
(202) 224-2693 (F)






Michael Enzi
United States Senator, Wyoming

Washington D.C. Office:
379A Senate Russell Office Building
Washington, DC 20510

(202) 224-3424 (O)
(202) 228-0359 (F)
(888) 250-1879 (O)





Lindsey Graham
United States Senator, South Carolina

Washington Office
290 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510

(202) 224-5972 (O)
(202) 224-3808 (F)






Bob Bennett
United States Senator, Utah

431 Dirksen Building
Washington, DC 20510-4403

(202) 224-5444 (O)
(202) 228-1168 (F)










Cato Institute
Government Run Healthcare





OBAMACARE/Baucus Bill
Talking Points on “Obama Care”

By Lewis K. Uhler

THE BAUCUS BILL IS A MAJOR TAX INCREASE –The bill creates a new entitlement that the Congressional budget office (CBO) estimates will grow over the longer term at a rate of 8% annually, which is much faster than the growth rate of the economy or tax revenues. There is a 40% excise tax on “Cadillac” insurance plans, plus additional taxes on drug and medical device manufactures and hospitals.

OBAMACARE TRAUMAIZED MANY DOCTORS - According to Investors’ Business Daily polls: 65% of doctors oppose the proposed health care plan, 45% would consider quitting medicine if the bill passes.

INDIVIDUAL MANDATES - A mandate that each American purchase health insurance is unconstitutional and is totally unacceptable. You will be required by law to carry health care insurance, like it or not. There will be health police and up to $ 25,000 in fines and a year in jail for non - compliance. The government will decide what kind of health insurance you MUST BUY. If you are a health 18 - 25 year old, you should have the choice to spend your money in other ways.

STATE HEALTH CARE PLANS ‘BREAK THE BANK’
–We already have real life examples of Obamacare’s effects in several states. NOT CONJECTURE OR THEORY! The combination of “guaranteed issue” (pre - existing condition), community rating (the same premiums regardless of health status, age or sex and mandated coverage for unwanted and unnecessary services have dramatically increased premiums and rationed services in Massachusetts, Maine, Tennessee, New York and Washington state.

GOVERNMENT CONTROL OF HEALTH CARE IS INEVITABLE - Businesses are likely to find it cheaper to pay into the “pool” than continue to buy health insurance for their employees. Thus will assure the “single payer/public option” result: Total government takeover of our health care system.

NO TRANSPARENCY OR TIME TO READ THE BILL
- The Baucus bill is not legislation. Liberal Senators Reid, Harkin and Obama’s COS Rahm Emanuel will put the Kennedy and Baucus bills into final language and will try NOT to give any Senator or you – a chance to read or understand the Bill. The Baucus bill not unlike the house bill is over 1000 pages. The summary alone is 260+ pages that should speak volumes.

ILLEGAL ALIENS WILL GET HEALTHCARE UNDER OBAMACARE - Constitutional scholars, Judge Andrew Napolitano and Shannon Goessling, Director of the Southeastern Legal Foundation, appeared on Fox News ‘O - Reilly Factor’ contending that the 14th amendment equal protection clause will entitle illegal aliens to healthcare. The U.S. Supreme court ruled recently in a Texas case that illegals couldn’t be denied education - the Constitution protects persons, legal or illegal, with respect to social ‘benefits’. Constitutional precedents will dictate that any public option or mandate must include illegal aliens.

NO MEDICAL MALPRACTICE REFORM - ‘Defensive medicine’ costs us over $200 BILLION a year. NONE of the 3 versions of Obamacare include any tort reform, why? Trial lawyers are the 2nd biggest contributors to the Democratic Party ($ 127 Million to Congressional candidates in the 08 cycle).

A Call To Action:  No Negotiating on Obamacare!


GRASSROOTS CAMPAIGN LAUNCHED URGING REPUBLICAN SENATORS STOP NEGOTIATING OBAMACARE COMPROMISE



Healthcare Solutions

Health Care Battle Takes New Turn – The President takes it Personally
By Lewis K. Uhler, President NTLC

Health care “combat” has taken a New Turn – the President is taking it personally. He sees his political future riding on the outcome…so he is intent on jamming health care “reform” down the nation’s throat.

Health Care - an inherently personal matter between doctor and patient should not be controlled by Washington. There is not one word in the U.S. Constitution about a federal role or responsibility for individual’s wellness. The federal government’s unauthorized intervention into health care has been the source of problems - and high costs - not the solution.

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Americans Must Derail the Obama Care Express

Talking Points Addressed by Lewis K. Uhler, President NTLC

U.S. has best health care system in the world- no rationing, no waiting in line, best and latest technology, best medicines, best techniques. Don’t risk it with government takeover- Do you want your health care delivered by the Post Office, the IRS or your local DMV?

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World Healthcare Conference 2009
Steven Burd, Safeway CEO




The Ethics of Health Care Reform
by Merrill Matthews, Ph.D, Institute for Policy Innovation

Winston Churchill once famously commented, “Democracy is the worst form of government except all those others that have been tried from time to time.

Something similar to Churchill’s quote might be said of health care systems: That a consumer driven health care system is the worst form, except for all the others that have been tried.

There appears to be a widespread assumption, held both by liberals and many in the media, that a government-run health care system that provides universal coverage is the most ethical. Yet every health care system struggles with issues of access, cost containment, quality and patients’ rights—every system. And every one struggles with some of those issues more than others.

So what does it mean for a health care system to be considered ethical? What principles should—“should” being a “normative,” or ethical, term—guide that system? And which of the available models comes closest to meeting the criteria?

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Republicans and Health Care
by Richard E. Ralston

At their National Convention, Republicans complained of John Kerry's habit of complicating complex issues with even more complex and mutually exclusive solutions. On the issue of health care, however, the Democratic Platform has clear and straight-forward proposals. Everyone has a "right" to healthcare, no matter what it costs--and the government should expropriate needed funds plus the lives of health care professionals to provide and regulate health care for all. Americans who want to turn ownership of their bodies over to the federal government and trust Uncle Sam to meet all of their needs at least have something to go on here.

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