Child health insurance bill

[Soldier4Christ]

Child health insurance bill faces White House veto

WASHINGTON - The Bush administration said Saturday that senior advisers would recommend the president veto Senate legislation that would substantially increase funds for children's health insurance.

The legislation calls for a 61-cent increase in the federal excise tax on a pack of cigarettes. The revenue would be used to subsidize health insurance for children and some adults with incomes too high to qualify for Medicaid but not enough to afford insurance on their own. Members of the Senate Finance Committee brokered a bipartisan agreement Friday that would add $35 billion to the program over the next five years. The Bush administration had instead recommend $5 billion.

The Senate legislation expands the State Children's Health Insurance Program beyond the original intent of the program, said White House Spokesman Tony Fratto.

"It's clear that it will have the effect of encouraging many to drop private coverage - purchased either through their employer or with their own resources - to go on the government-subsidized program," Fratto said. "Tax increases are neither necessary nor advisable to appropriately fund SCHIP."

Congress is considering renewing the program before it expires Sept. 30. When Congress approved the program in 1997, it provided $40 billion over 10 years. States use the money, along with their own dollars, to subsidize the cost of health insurance. The federal government covers about 70 percent of the cost.

"Congress needs to deliver a bill the president can sign or they need to send him an extension so that people don't worry about losing their current coverage," Fratto said. "It's important that Congress understands the serious consequences of delaying this or sending the president legislation that he clearly cannot sign."

Fratto also called on the Senate Finance Committee to consider the president's recommendation to tax employees on the health insurance premiums paid by their employers. The president would offset the increased taxes by giving taxpayers a deduction or credit. The result would be a tax cut for most families, but not for those with the highest-priced insurance plans.

"We believe that these proposals would mean that as many as 20 million others who have no health insurance would purchase basic coverage," Fratto said.

Sens. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, and Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, had called on the president Thursday to step back from veto threats of legislation that had not been finalized yet.

Grassley and Hatch said they would like to consider the president's proposals to change how tax law treats health insurance. Such changes could make insurance more affordable for many families, but now is not the time, they said.

"Not taking that (tax proposal) on is a missed opportunity, but it's not realistic given the lack of bipartisan support," the senators said.

Grassley and Hatch were among the lawmakers that backed the agreement reached late Friday with key Democrats on the Senate Finance Committee. Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., the committee's chairman, said the proposal would lead to more than 3 million uninsured children obtaining health coverage. But others said that estimate is high because they believe some families that would sign up for the program would have already been getting their coverage through the private sector.

[Soldier4Christ]

Bush wields vetoes to block democrats

President Bush, who didn't veto a bill for nearly six years, is now embracing the power to constrain the Democratic-controlled Congress even as his popularity remains low.

The strategy has blocked Congress from forcing troop drawdowns in Iraq and given Bush substantial leverage on children's health policies, federal spending and other issues.

But some say it carries a political risk. By thwarting congressional efforts to wind down the war and redirect spending to popular domestic programs, Bush could help Democrats portray Republicans as out of step with voters in the 2008 elections.

"The president's stubbornness is like an anchor around the Republican Party," said Rep. Al Wynn, D-Md.

The White House says Bush himself has issued 39 veto threats since Democrats took over the House and Senate in January. Top presidential aides have hinted at possible vetoes of several other bills.

Bush last week renewed his pledge to veto Congress' proposed expansion of the State Children's Health Insurance Program, set to expire Sept. 30. House and Senate negotiators want to add $35 billion over five years to the program. That would insure about 4 million more children from modest-income households.

Bush says the plan is too costly and would cover families that can afford private insurance. But some congressional Republicans disagree, and see the veto threat as obstinance that could threaten their party.

"I'm very, very disappointed," said Sen. Gordon Smith, R-Ore., who faces a tough re-election fight next year.

Democrats see such veto threats as a boon to their 2008 hopes.

Bush is trying to establish that he's a fiscal conservative after overseeing a sharp rise in the deficit, said Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill.

"I think he has picked the wrong issues," Durbin said. "If he wants to fight over children's health insurance, I'm sorry but we're ready."

But Bush said lawmakers "are putting health coverage for poor children at risk so they can score political points in Washington." He and his aides have threatened vetoes on several other matters as well, including House representation for the District of Columbia and subsidized insurance against terrorist acts.

Bush also has threatened to veto nine of the 12 appropriations bills that would fund the government for the fiscal year beginning Oct. 1.

Overrides of presidential vetoes are seldom achieved. They require a two-thirds majority vote in both chambers of Congress.

Bush first used his veto power last summer, blocking expanded federal research using embryonic stem cells. His May 1 veto of a spending bill that would have required troop withdrawals from Iraq established his ability to block any substantial Democratic effort to restructure the war.

Bush allies say his embrace of the veto became more a necessity than choice after Democrats took over Congress in the 2006 elections.

Democratic-led efforts to change policies in Iraq and elsewhere "are a direct result of losing control of the Congress," said Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., "and the only tool available to the president is to veto or threaten to veto."

Republicans "have our own base problems," added Graham, referring to conservative voters' disenchantment with Bush over large spending and deficit levels.

Republican Rep. Ray LaHood of Illinois also sees partisan motives in the veto strategy.

GOP leaders in Congress and the administration, he said, have decided "to put the veto threat out there, primarily on spending bills. We're trying to get our brand name back, which is 'fiscal conservatives.'"

Some lawmakers liken the veto showdowns to 1995, when Democratic President Bill Clinton and a GOP-controlled Congress reached an impasse over spending. It led to a partial government shutdown that angry voters blamed mostly on Congress.

Leaders of both parties say another shutdown is extremely unlikely, and Congress and the administration will somehow resolve their spending differences.

But Republicans say Bush will continue to wield veto threats for policy and political reasons, and Clinton may serve as a role model.

After huge electoral setbacks in 1994, Clinton used his veto powers "to claw his way back into relevance and re-election," said Rep. Tom Davis, R-Va. Bush will try the same tactic, but the deep unpopularity of the war may prove too high a hurdle, Davis said.

"The test is, will Bush be as effective as Clinton, or is he so badly handicapped because of the war and other limitations?" said Davis, a well-regarded GOP strategist. "We don't know."

[Soldier4Christ]

Bush vetoes child health insurance bill

WASHINGTON - President Bush, in a sharp confrontation with Congress, on Wednesday vetoed a bipartisan bill that would have dramatically expanded children's health insurance.

It was only the fourth veto of Bush's presidency, and one that some Republicans feared could carry steep risks for their party in next year's elections. The Senate approved the bill with enough votes to override the veto, but the margin in the House fell short of the required number.

Democrats unleashed a stream of harsh rhetoric, as they geared up for a battle to both improve their chances of winning a veto override and score political points against Republicans who oppose the expansion.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., decried Bush's action as a "heartless veto."

"Never has it been clearer how detached President Bush is from the priorities of the American people," Reid said in a statement. "By vetoing a bipartisan bill to renew the successful Children's Health Insurance Program, President Bush is denying health care to millions of low-income kids in America."

Democratic congressional leaders said they may put off the override attempt for as long as two weeks to maximize pressure on Republican House members whose votes will be critical.

"We remain committed to making SCHIP into law - with or without the president's support," said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., referring to the full name of the State Children's Health Insurance Program.

The White House sought little attention for Bush's action, with the president casting his veto behind closed doors without any fanfare or news coverage. He defended it later Wednesday during a budget speech in Lancaster, Pa., addressing a welcoming audience organized by the Lancaster Chamber of Commerce and Industry in GOP-friendly Pennsylvania Dutch country.

"Poor kids first," Bush said. "Secondly, I believe in private medicine, not the federal government running the health care system."

But he seemed eager to avert a full-scale showdown over the difficult issue, offering that he is "more than willing" to negotiate with lawmakers "if they need a little more money in the bill to help us meet the objective of getting help for poor children."

The program is a joint state-federal effort that subsidizes health coverage for 6.6 million people, mostly children, from families that earn too much to qualify for Medicaid but not enough to afford their own private coverage.

The Democrats who control Congress, with significant support from Republicans, passed the legislation to add $35 billion over five years to allow an additional 4 million children into the program. It would be funded by raising the federal cigarette tax by 61 cents to $1 per pack.

The president argued that the Democratic bill was too costly, took the program too far beyond its original intent of helping the poor, and would entice people now covered in the private sector to switch to government coverage. He has proposed only a $5 billion increase in funding.

Democrats deny Bush's charge that their plan is a move toward socialized medicine that short-changes the poor, saying their goal is to cover more of the millions of uninsured children and noting that the bill provides financial incentives for states to cover their lowest-income children first. Of the over 43 million people nationwide who lack health insurance, over 6 million are under 18 years old. That's over 9 percent of all children.

Eighteen Republicans joined Democrats in the Senate, enough to override Bush's veto. But in the House, supporters of the bill are about two dozen votes short of a successful override, despite sizable Republican support. A two-thirds majority in both chambers is needed.

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., said Democrats were imploring 15 House Republicans to switch positions but had received no agreements so far.

House Minority Whip Roy Blunt, R-Mo., said he was "absolutely confident" that the House would be able to sustain Bush's expected veto.

Senate Minority Whip Trent Lott, R-Miss., said Congress should be able to reach a compromise with Bush once he vetoes the bill. "We should not allow it to be expanded to higher and higher income levels, and to adults. This is about poor children," he said. "But we can work it out."

It took Bush six years to veto his first bill, when he blocked expanded federal research using embryonic stem cells last summer. In May, he vetoed a spending bill that would have required troop withdrawals from Iraq. In June, he vetoed another bill to ease restraints on federally funded stem cell research.

In the case of the health insurance program, the veto is a bit of a high-stakes gambit for Bush, pitting him against both the Democrats who have controlled both houses of Congress since January, but also many members of his own party and the public.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee launched radio ads Monday attacking eight GOP House members who voted against the bill and face potentially tough re-election campaigns next year.

And Gerald McEntee, president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees union, said a coalition of liberal groups was staging more than 200 events throughout the nation on Thursday to highlight the issue. The group, which includes MoveOn.org, and several unions, also has a goal of more than 1 million contacts to Congress through calls, letters and e-mails demanding that lawmakers override Bush's veto. The coalition is spending $3 million to $5 million on the effort.

[Soldier4Christ]

Dems want to override Bush's veto of children's health bill

CAPITOL HILL- Democratic leaders of Congress say they'll fight hard to get the votes needed to override President Bush's veto of a children's health insurance measure.

They've scheduled the showdown for October 18th, allowing time to pressure on House Republicans who voted against the program. Political groups are already budgeting for ads to try to influence the outcome.

Democrats, joined by many Republicans, say the 35-billion-dollar expansion would provide insurance to millions more children who need it.

But some Republicans agree with the president that it's a step toward federalized health care. They think they'll have enough "no" votes in the House to make the veto stick.

Bush is suggesting there could still be a compromise, but only to achieve the program's original intent of helping poor children.

[Soldier4Christ]

SCHIP showdown set for October 18

House Republicans say they have enough votes to sustain President Bush's veto of a proposed $35 billion expansion of the state children's health insurance program.

A contingent of House members 151-strong that includes a few Democrats has pledged to sustain the president's veto of SCHIP (H.R. 3162). If all members are present, 146 votes are needed to make the veto stick. According to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, "It's going to be a hard vote for Republicans" on October 18.

However, Congresswoman Mary Fallin (R-Oklahoma) says it will not be a difficult one for her. "My opinion is that it is taking the first step to moving the population towards a government-run socialized medical system," she says. In addition, she argues it was not the original intent of the SCHIP to expand the insurance to cover middle-class families, and even some adults, up to 400 percent of poverty level in some cases.

Representative Kevin Brady (R-Texas) has stated his support of the president's veto, calling the bill "terribly flawed" because it does not cover poor children first, is "only half-paid for," and allows "the worst abuses in this program to continue." For example, he notes that illegal aliens would be able to obtain medical coverage under the SCHIP plan.

"The Social Security Administration warned Congress last week with this new bill that people who have overstayed their visas and those who fraudulently use other people's Social Security cards will be eligible for these benefits -- and these are serious loopholes, all that need to be closed," the Texas lawmaker points out.

Brady notes that some states are covering families making over $80,000 a year, and even adults without children. Meanwhile, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nevada) has called President Bush's veto of the SCHIP "heartless."

[Soldier4Christ]

The “Not So Poor” 12 Year Old Voice of SCHIP

The lefties and the media piled on when Bush used his veto pen on this one. They tried to drop the absolute moral authority bomb on it big time. Looks like a little backfire is on the horizon.

On September 29th, 12 year old Graeme Frost of Maryland got to do the Democrats’ radio address, in which he told his story of how he and his sister were seriously injured in a car accident, and if it hadn’t been for SCHIP, they wouldn’t be here today. So who is this 12 year old? The Baltimore Sun did a story on the family, in which it stated the family couldn’t get health insurance through their work. But the article left out quite a few important, and interesting, bits of information.

First, Mr. Halsey Frost, Graeme’s father, owns his own woodworking design studio, Frostworks, so his claim that he can’t get health insurance through work is shockingly deceptive. He chooses not to get health care for his family. Second, Graeme and his sister Gemma attend the very exclusive Park School, which has a tuition of $20,000 a year, per child. Third, they live in a 3,000+ square foot home in a neighborhood with smaller homes that are selling for at least $400,000.

Yet, hardworking taxpayers who sacrifice many things such as expensive private schools and expensive houses in order to buy their own health care for their families are supposed to subsidize this family’s health insurance premiums.

[Soldier4Christ]

SCHIP bill gets final vote today

Congress is expected to fail today in an attempt to override President Bush's veto of a proposed $35 billion expansion of the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP).



The president has called for a five-year, $5 billion increase in SCHIP, but has said he is "more than willing to work with members of both parties from both Houses" on a compromise. Congressman Tim Walberg (R-Michigan), who plans to uphold Bush's veto, says the proposed SCHIP expansion is an effort to foist government-run healthcare on America.

"Oh, it's absolutely a backdoor attempt, but it's become a front door," he asserts. "It's 'Hillary Care' in its first stages. It's something that she has, in fact, pushed and encouraged over the years and now, according to the plan, moving that direction -- starting first with children," he explains. "Because how in the world can you, in your right mind, vote against children? And that's how it's being played and the gotcha mentality is out there."

Walberg says as the general public gets more information about SCHIP, they will understand it is a "blatant attempt to not only get the camel's nose, but its head under the tent to start socialized medicine."

The Michigan Republican also points to the "flawed" plan to fund the expanded SCHIP with a tax increase on tobacco products. "We know that what you tax, you get less of. Ultimately they've said that you'll need 22 million more smokers in the next ten years in order to fund it. A tax will discourage that," he says.

According to Walberg, if the expanded SCHIP program veto is overturned, Americans will be hit with another program that cannot fund itself.

[Brother Jerry]

I know people who are relying on this.  They are dear friends of mine.
But you know what...I would veto anything that gave the gment more money and no accountability for that money.  I would rather keep the money I personally will have to put into that from taxes, and give it to this family who is in need of insurance.

[Soldier4Christ]

House fails to reverse child health veto 
Democrats in pre-election year effort to expand insurance program

 House Democrats failed Thursday to override President Bush's veto of their pre-election year effort to expand a popular government health insurance program to cover 10 million children.

The bill had bipartisan support but the 273-156 roll call was 13 votes short of the two-thirds majority supporters needed to enact the bill into law despite Bush's objections. The bill had passed the Senate with a bigger than two-thirds majority.

House Democrats failed Thursday to override President Bush's veto of their pre-election year effort to expand a popular government health insurance program to cover 10 million children.

The bill had bipartisan support but the 273-156 roll call was nine votes of the two-thirds majority supporters needed to enact the bill into law despite Bush's objections. The bill had passed the Senate with a bigger than two-thirds majority.

[Soldier4Christ]

Bush says he'll veto health bill again

WASHINGTON - President Bush accused Democratic lawmakers on Friday of wasting time by passing legislation to expand children's health coverage, knowing that he would veto it again. At the same time, he criticized Congress for failing to approve spending bills to keep the government running.

Bush said Congress had "set a record they should not be proud of: October 26 is the latest date in 20 years that Congress has failed to get a single annual appropriations bill to the president's desk."

He also complained that Congress had failed to pass a permanent extension of a moratorium on state and local taxes on Internet access, and that the Senate had not yet confirmed Michael Mukasey as attorney general. Further, he chided Congress for failing to approve more money for Iraq and Afghanistan.

The Senate on Thursday night approved a seven-year extension of the Internet tax moratorium; differences with a House-passed version still have to be worked out.

Bush made his comments to reporters in the Roosevelt Room a day after the House passed new legislation to expand children's health coverage. Bush vetoed an earlier version, and Republicans argued the latest bill was little changed from the earlier measure. The bill - approved with less than the two-thirds majority needed to overturn another veto - now goes to the Senate. The House vote was 265-142.

Bush said that Congress needs to "stop wasting time and get essential work done on behalf of the American people."

Democrats said Republicans were making a mistake in opposing the children's health bill.

"They won't take yes for an answer," Rep. Rahm Emanuel, D-Ill., said of Republicans.

He said that in the week since they failed to override Bush's first veto, Democrats had systematically addressed earlier complaints that the bill failed to place a priority on low-income children, did not effectively bar illegal immigrants from qualifying for benefits and was overly generous to adults.

A White House spokesman, Tony Fratto, mocked the suggestion that Democrats - and Emanuel in particular - were acting on principle. "I think the last principal Rahm Emanuel knew was in high school." Told of the remark, Emanuel chuckled.

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer of Maryland raised the possibility that additional changes were possible before the bill would be sent to the White House.

At the same time, he added, "I don't want to be strung along" by Republicans merely feigning an interest in bipartisan compromise.

Senate passage is highly likely, particularly with senior Republican Sens. Chuck Grassley of Iowa and Orrin Hatch of Utah among the bill's most persistent supporters.

The legislation is designed chiefly to provide coverage for children whose families make too much money to qualify for Medicaid but not enough to purchase private insurance.

In general, supporters said it would extend coverage to children of families making up to 300 percent of the federal poverty level, or about $62,000 for a family of four.

At that level, congressional officials said, it would cover about 4 million children who now go without, raising the total for the program overall to 10 million kids. The $35 billion cost over five years would be covered by an increase in the tobacco tax of 61 cents a pack.

The vote unfolded one week after the House failed to override Bush's earlier veto, and indicated that the changes Democrats had made failed to attract much, if any, additional support.

The 265 votes cast for the measure came up seven shy of the two-thirds majority needed to override a veto. In addition, 14 Republicans who voted to sustain Bush's original veto were absent.

Public opinion polls show widespread support for the issue, and the political subtext was never far from the surface on a day of acrimony.