Senate: The Deal Looks Done on Health Care

KT, how’s the snow? Huge congratulations on your WW guest hosting. Will you do more hosting / face time? Do you have a video for those who missed it? I was most interested in Bernanke discussion, but you didn’t get a proper introduction. It should’ve been, “…and now, here’s KT, TIME Magazine’s award-winning international media starlet.” You looked poised and elegant and kept the chat moving. I didn’t see quivering water glasses / puddles from shaking knees or gripping table edges, so hopefully you’re weren’t too nervous. Great job.

…as for Nelson, pardon my realpolitk cynicism but I wonder if Nelson gave in to NOT become a Liebermanesque pariah. Or perhaps there’s pressure to primary him out next elect., risk losing projects / funding for his state if he votes no, etc.? (I’m not a morning person but am up early with others to get final gifts soon. Is your shopping done, or will you buy yourself something for your excellent guest hosting?)

Thanks KT. I Look forward to reading your comments after review.

So, deconstructiva, what’s “WW” ? Both print and broadcast media have so thoroughly disgusted me with their pathetic performance that I have stopped reading/watching most of them (and I still claim to be a news/info junkie).

As for Nelson, I’ll believe his support *after* his yea vote is tallied. I think he’s going to do a Lieberman.

“Washington Week”, Gwen Ifell’s PBS show. KT hosted it last night and was magnificent. Maybe the High Sheriffs can use CNN ties to create a swampwomen news hour – KT, Amy, Jay, and Kate each host a night on fave topics (to not take up too much time from reporting) and then all gather on friday for week review / gossipy stuff. It’ll wipe Beck off the air.

I’m just glad it will soon be over.
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Fellow dems (particularly POTUS & co!):
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Do you think, at some point in time, we can stop running from the dreaded F word?
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Just imagine what could have been done had we not had to try for the big six-oh on every bill…

“Nelson gave in to NOT become a Liebermanesque pariah. Or perhaps there’s pressure to primary him out next elect., risk losing projects / funding for his state if he votes no, etc.? (I’m not a morning person but am up early with others to get final gifts soon. Is your shopping done, or will you buy yourself something for your excellent guest hosting?)
deconstructiva
December 19, 2009
at 10:03 am

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From my reading thus far, he “gave in” because Abortions are not allowed to be funded with Government Funds. It basically says, a woman can have an abortion, but funding from federal dollars must be kept separate by individual insurance companies. P. 41 Manager’s report
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Ms. Tumulty,

This is good news. However this bill has been a study in the mecurial nature of politicians and their continued unpredictability in discussing this issue.

Does it look like everything is working out, yes. However, when it is signed into law, I will finally take a much needed sigh of relief.

Great piece. Thanks.

PS: Now at last, maybe the press and country can focus on other pertinent issues that affect the American way of life– especially a needed
pro activity on National Security issues.

I wrote a comment on your article “Enemies as home”.

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Below is an excerpt from a comment I made on your “Enemies at Home” article:

“Oh please, we keep reading about these US citizens and their plans to do harm to the government. My experience has shown me that the core problem is here at home.

If Nigerian con men —Network Security specialists — have now sharpened their technology enough to orchestrate multi million payoffs from legitimate companies using the newest form of industrial espionage to orchestrate these deals, then I say the US government has way more to be concerned about that people they can track and see .

I am not minimizing terror, I am simply stating that pointing out these “straw men” is as redundant as Sheriff Joe (whom I like, by the way) displaying 13 illegal Mexicans as his “catch”. These little feel good stories do not even begin to slice the surface of the endemic problem faced by individuals and the security services alike.

Okay for ex., An IMSI catcher forces the a cellphone user to a “man in the middle” attack posing as a legitimate base station– AND provides the strongest signals in the vicinity to the phones searching for legitimate base stations (phones are programed to look for the strongest signals). The phone MUST authenticate its self to the network using its International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI) but the network does NOT have to do the same.

This loophole used by law enforcement is used by criminals as well.

So am I to believe that with all the technology available and criminals who are so adroit in manipulating the Internet, this is really the best news we could be provided?? There are people whose sole job in life is to cover their tracks and exploit loop holes in our National security system for financial and even National security exploitation reasons.

The discourse is still about email scams when the real scams are technologically COMPLEX, extensive, lengthy and in-depth– weaving uninformed targets into an abyss of confusion……..

LM

http://theblindspotsofgod.wordpress.com/2009/12/18/technology-savvy-criminals-are-the-greatest-threat-to-national-security/

Thanks! It was very exciting to see what the world looks like from Gwen’s chair. I have a new appreciation for how very complicated it is to moderate a show on live TV, juggling the guests and the teleprompter and the instructions you are getting from the control room. It’s much easier to just sit there and wait to be asked a question. But the folks at Washington Week were incredibly nice and supportive and understanding. And my panelists–all pros at this–were terrific.

This is an excerpt from an article on my blog about the new Nigerian con man. I am also of Nigerian extraction.
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Yes, these technology savvy criminals are people who can crash planes and commit acts of terror against innocent citizens.

While the FBI is running around warning people about Nigerian Scam artists, the new breed of Network technology Security Savvy Nigerian con men are infiltrating companies like “Apple Technology” and getting their company’s acquired by these legitimate organizations! Read here for one of the ways used by these con men >> HERE

Nigerian con men are not just the fraud laden email senders anymore.. they hack, rob, break, wiretap and alter legitimate information reserves. The Department of Homeland Security and the NSA?? Where are they?? Your guess is as good as mine!

These con men have given IDENTITY THEFT an absolutely new and UNBELIEVABLY CRIMINAL DEPTH. This depth includes extensive digital histories coupled with alteration of legitimate government records. They even create picture and video history for these fabricated persons they create….

I was reading one of their sites recently complete with the designation of “Master of Cryptography” for one of their fraudulent con creations. A “man” who is widely published and renowned?????? Huh?

The CEO, the initial so called “funding companies” for that group (acquired by Apple) and so many officials of the company most recently acquired by APPLE exist in extensive digital and other records but in real-time and life, they are the creations of these technology skilled con men.

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“Until good old “gum shoe” FBI and police work is employed to scrutinize, prosecute and incarcerate these criminals, Americans are backing up the wrong horses. Sitting behind a computer and reading fabricated news releases to do some sort of fact checking is a waste of time…………”

LM

http://theblindspotsofgod.wordpress.com/2009/12/16/technology-savvy-criminals-are-the-greatest-threat-to-national-security/

I’m glad to know everything worked out well. I hope you get many more offers to host shows.

[...] [...]

…rusty, maybe that’s all he wanted, but I still believe something else is in play. I’ll look forward to either KT or Amy finding out and posting here (perhaps with an interview). Amy appeared to be skeptical about him in her 12/17 post.

Reid speaking. Looks exhausted. The other senators seem to genuinely admire Reid and look to him as their “quarterback.” It sure is interesting how his colleagues and the public have such disparate views of him.

Today’s amendment about insurance companies needing to spend a minimum amount of premiums on health care seems like a big deal. Is it?

“You’ll find a number of states are treated differently from other states. That’s what legislation is all about…compromise.” Reid

How ironic that they won’t be able to leave today even after they vote. I bet there are a lot of Republican senators that would just as soon bug out of there and not wait for the vote, now that Nelson is voting aye. (Nelson saying he reserves the right to vote against cloture if the conference bill is substantively different from this bill. well of course he does)

KT – I’ll second deconstructiva about last night’s Washington week. You looked great and sounded as good.

It reruns on many pbs station, so folks should check that out. It ran at 1:00am this morning and reruns at 6:30 Sunday morning on my local PBS World station. You might get PBS World too,

Pardon my cynicism, but I can’t take this at face value just yet, because of one person: Lieberman. It’s like he waits for the moment where people think ‘FINALLY, we get this damn thing to a vote, it’s about time’, before running in like a spiteful ex charging in to object to the wedding on account of the bride being a whore.

I’ll believe this thing is settled when we actually get to a vote.

KT: McConnell is complaining that Nebraska and Vermont get special treatment. Vermont?? My guess is this is an easy target for conservatives, because we all know how terribly liberal we are up here. But we have also been pretty generous with Medicaid payments, and the bill as it was written wasn’t going to give us equivalent payments that other states were going to get because we wouldn’t be increasing our Medicaid coverage, since we’ve already done that. Is that what this is about? If we’re going to get the payments that other states are going to get, even though it took a special provision in the bill, that’s a very good thing.

I’m going to have McConnell off. Can not take it. Not sure how he can look at himself in the mirror after saying some of these things.

And kryptik: I’m with you on this. And then they have to pass it after conference.

[...] Karen Tumulty at Swampland at Time: Multiple sources are now reporting that Nebraska’s Ben Nelson, the last Democratic holdout, is now saying he will support the latest version of the health care bill. That makes 60 votes, enough to overcome a fillibuster. [...]

You were a total star, KT.
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You looked, sounded great, were possessed of a wonderful enthusiasm that subtly infused the program, were professionalism incarnate as always.
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Well done.
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Do it again.
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Honestly, I’d rather watch/listen/respond to you than Ifill…come to think of it, you might succeed as a moderator at debates, too.
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I can’t tell you how much Ceci Connolly offends the senses as a news consumer. I just love, for example, how, after Howard Dean suggests a new Senate bill is in order, she immediately groans in campaign 2000 voce:

“You mean to say we just wasted a year of our lives covering this?!”

For people who’ve been as frustrated with the general press corps coverage the health care debate, in which copy from supposed professionals gets more and more nonsensical and convoluted as the months wear on, It makes one want to shout at the television:

“No, Ceci, you just wasted a year of our lives failing to make sense of anything except horse-race, gossip, he said/she said and Beltway personality-squabbles again! Fantastic job screwing up another truly important story that you had literally a year to get right, Ceci. I’m sure your paper’s subscription rates jumped through the roof after another such magnificent performance. There’s an award for you somewhere, I’m sure.”

How dare this person have the effrontery to be exhausted by this story! How dare Ceci Connolly be tired n’ bored having to come up with new stories about this monumentally significant process that will –for better or for worse– affect the lives of tens of millions of people to whom she supposedly has a duty to inform.
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How dare the privileged, pampered Ceci roll her eyes, and do her very best Villager-at-the-end-of-her-ennui-stricken-rope routine! People’s lives are at stake: if she had any respect for the title “correspondent” at all, she would shut up and do her job like a gum-shoe reporter should.
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Instead, we get the eye-rolling, sighing and barely concealed contempt of a bored courtier who has no new gossip to whisper.
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“But Dahlings…everybody is just too, too tired to even speak about it anymore…Can’t we just get on to something more exciting, Dahlings? Can’t we?”
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Villagers like Ceci truly have no self-awareness whatsoever; it’s incredible to witness –and offensive in the extreme to those not consumed with striking our best “objective reporter” pose for the cameras.
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But I digress…
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Lovely show, KT. Honestly, even the execrable Ceci Connelly couldn’t possible ruin this gig for you. I look forward to more of you running the conversation.
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I hope the producers of WW realize what a talent they had in Ifill’s chair last evening!

Maybe the High Sheriffs can use CNN ties to create a swampwomen news hour

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That’s an excellent idea.

kathy:

If we’re going to get the payments that other states are going to get, even though it took a special provision in the bill, that’s a very good thing.

That’s a very good question.
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Anybody know?

This is the link to Washington Week in Review with Karen Tumulty from last evening: link to KT star power

For those who didn’t DVR, here is the link to Washington Week in Review with Karen Tumulty from last evening: link to KT star power

“You mean we just……………”. when I heard that from Ceci I threw my slipper at the T.V.

Stuart, thanks for the links. In spite of my best efforts all the drama associated with getting my dinner party together made me forget to set the DVR.
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Just watched and what a great job KT did! Look forward to seeing her more.

[...] Senate: The Deal Looks Done on Health Care - Swampland See all 145 blogs. December 19th, 2009 | Category: Uncategorized [...]

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Valeriy Kharchenko, son of Mary Chumachenko father Vladimir Kharchenko. Kirovograd region, Dolinsky district, village Vasylivka.

city DNIPROPETROVSK 49029
Street. Заміська 39-1
phone mobile 380985052947
home 38056 7166470

UKRAINE xarchenko2009@meta.ua

“Starting immediately children cannot be denied health coverage due to pre-existing conditions”

So, adults will continue to be denied health care based on pre-existing conditions. How can anyone call this legislation “reform” when we couldn’t even accomplish getting rid of pre-existing conditions prohibitions.

Lobbyist rule our country and our lives. Our democracy is sick and will soon die. Greed is the cancer feeding on our nation’s body and soul.

[...] Senate: The Deal Looks Done on Health Care - Swampland See all 164 blogs. December 19th, 2009 | Category: news [...]

‘Lovely show, KT. Honestly, even the execrable Ceci Connelly couldn’t possible ruin this gig for you.’
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I just saw a rebroadcast of the show. Congratulations on a fine job KT.
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And yes, Ceci Connelly is truly execrable .

Ben Nelson Sold Us Out

Ben Nelson’s largest contributors are from these industries insurance-$1.3M, healthcare-$1.1M, finance $1.1M, and real estate-$363,561. So, it’s no wonder he doesn’t support true healthcare reform or regulating the finance and banking industries. Over his career has received over $13 million in campaign contributions from big business and corporate interests. In return those businesses and corporations make hundreds of billions of dollars, and sometimes trillions of dollars, off of the American taxpayers.

I know we all have resigned ourselves to the fact that this is just the way politics works. But, it illustrates that Ben Nelson and most members of Congress are corrupt and organized money has corrupted the entire democratic process.

[...] Senate: The Deal Looks Done on Health Care - Swampland [...]

As we understood it, the best thing about this bill, before today, was that it would prohibit insurance companies from denying coverage to all people on account of pre-existing conditions. Now, suddenly, this benefit is denied to adults until 2014. We hope that the House-Senate conference will make it immediately illegal for insurance companies to deny coverage to any American on account of a pre-existing condition.

[...] Senate: The Deal Looks Done on Health Care - Swampland See all 193 blogs. December 20th, 2009 | Category: Uncategorized [...]

It’s my understanding that adults can’t be denied coverage for preexisting conditions beginning in 2014, but the latest amendment changed that to immediately for children.

Stuart – I did hear that this is in fact the special provision for Vermont. It really would have been penalizing Vermont for having “prematurely” raised the eligibility level for Medicaid, if this provision hadn’t gone in. And yes, it was the price paid for getting Bernie to play. (and/or, Bernie – realizing this was a need – said yoohoo I’m not going to play). Sort of makes you wonder how any legislation gets passed. What about all those poor saps who agreed to the legislation without holding out?
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I hadn’t seen your link above (wasn’t red) (and I don’t have functional speakers, so I can’t catch it online.)

[...] Senate: The Deal Looks Done on Health Care - Swampland See all 57 blogs. December 20th, 2009 | Category: news [...]

[...] Senate: The Deal Looks Done on Health Care - Swampland See all 214 blogs. December 20th, 2009 | Category: news [...]