Various reports about the latest outrage out of Washington.
One of the early reports came from Politico:
The Office of Personnel Management, under heavy pressure from Capitol Hill, will issue a ruling that says the government can continue to make a contribution to the health care premiums of members of Congress and their aides, according to several Hill sources.
A White House official confirmed the deal and said the proposed regulations will be issued next week.
From Katie Pavlich writing at Townhall:
Lets break this down: First, lawmakers on the Hill voted for a terrible bill that a majority of people didn’t want. Now three years later, those same lawmakers have exempted themselves from Obamacare rate shock in order to save their own wallets while the rest of America suffers from skyrocketing healthcare premiums. . . .
To make things worse, despite the Obama administration delaying parts of Obamacare for corporations while individuals pay a heavy price for a piece of legislation that isn’t ready for primetime, cowards on both sides of aisle don’t have the guts to defund the bill in its entirety.
Gary Bauer writing at Campaign for Working Families:
When Obamacare was being drafted, Senator Charles Grassley (R-IA) successfully added an amendment requiring members of Congress and their staff members to lead by example by participating in the insurance exchange program that Democrats were creating for the rest of us.
The White House stood by the Grassley amendment earlier this year saying, “Members of Congress will not receive anything that is not available to the public. They are going to get insurance on the marketplace, just like individuals who are uninsured and small businesses.”
Late last night, the White House broke that promise (like so many other Obamacare promises) and announced it would issue new regulations exempting Congress from participating in those exchanges.
Democrat congressmen who rammed Obamacare through, and their staffers can now breathe easy. President Obama has saved the day. They will be shielded from the onerous aspects of the president’s “BFD” * healthcare law which they have imposed on the rest of America. Taxpayers will take care of them of course.
After Democrats touted the wonders of Obamacare, Congress has become concerned that if the requirements the law imposes on other Americans were to apply to Congresspeople and their staffers, they couldn’t afford it and all that “talent” might leave Washington for jobs somewhere else.
Ohh! The humanity!! **
The president has “solved” this one, by commanding that taxpayers shall increase their payroll subsidies making Congressional employees immune from the immediate costs of the bill they decided was so beneficial to everyone else. Now he can turn his attention to fixing another “problem”: The unions don’t want to be affected by Obamacare either!
Will Mr. Obama take care of that one too? Does Michele enjoy exotic, expensive vacations on somebody else’s bill?
(As observers of the corruption rampant today in Washington often say, “you can’t make this stuff up”). Don H.
Managing Editor chimes in: This action by Obama and Democrat leadership is so outrageous (focusing ill will on Washington) that it raises the suspicion that it could be a “rope-a-dope” gambit. Republicans should use this information to further undermine Obamacare and stop implementation funding. Or will Republicans thump their chests over this matter, presume to stop Obama in this particulate action, all the while with a wink and nod to staffers that they will be taken care of in other ways in due course) . Republicans save a tree and let the forest collapse. They then go on to finance Obamacare in general. When it comes to the cast of characters anything is possible. R Mall
Great post guys I agree totally. Speaking of the “BFD” and looking at the picture, sometimes I feel like ole’ Joe is being held in the WH basement for months on end.