Seems to me – and the vast majority of US citizens – that jobs and the economy should be a higher priority than the health care legislation that President Obama and Congress wants to cram down our throats. Scott Brown seems to agree.

It looks like the Democrats are going ahead with taking the health care bill to a reconciliation vote. They claimed on Thursday that they couldn’t strike a compromise on rules in terms of abortion (read: the government will pay for abortions) and gambling that they can secure the votes necessary to turn this legislation into law, with the vote taking place presumably some time next week.

Of course, the decidedly left-leaning Democraps (typo intentional) are targeting the centrists (Blue Dog Democrats and moderate Republicans), with the preferred method of convincing being the twisting of arms and rumored offering of jobs and aid to the states of the undecided representatives.

Regardless of the methods, there is a lot at stake here.

Firstly, the president’s call to expand health care to about 30 million uninsured Americans and to prohibit insurance company practices such as denying coverage to individuals who have pre-existing conditions.

And without a doubt, the vast majority of us would be affected by the current piece of legislation, which would change the way we receive and pay for health care, from the most basic checkup to the most expensive, lifesaving medical treatment. And what is probably the most disturbing part of this piece of crap? Americans, should this be signed into law, would be required by law to purchase health coverage.

And that, folks, is in my humble opinion unconstitutional. A power grab by the federal government, namely the Obama administration.

Oh, by the way, there will be taxes that will be hiked in order to finance this scheme. One that is beng proposed is a new excise tax, beginning in 2018, which would levy a tax on employer-provided health care plans worth more than $10,200 for individuals and $27,500 for families.

When the voting day comes around, you can almost rest assured that the Republicans will use every legal tactic available to them to delay the passage of the Democratic package, even if they cannot successfully kill it.

What is certain is this. There are Democrats who are sittin on their hands making this decision as they realize that their political careers ride on the vote that they cast on this health care legislation. How they vote will speak volumes into their character of the representatives who vote as much as it says about Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, co-ringmasters of the health care agenda.

Is government-ran health care around the corner? If you want this legislation to die a certain death both in the House and Senate, do yourself a favor – contact the representatives who represent your district and voice your displeasure.

If you choose not to, they will intrepret that as indifference (hell, the Democrats are doing that already) and voter accordingly.

Senator Jim DeMint says that Democrats are in more of an allegiance with President Obama than they are with their own constituents which explains their hurry to pass a government takeover of health care.

Former Democratic leader Howard Dean dealt a blow to Senate Democrats today when Greg Sargent at The Plum Line reported that Mr. Dean called for the Senate health care bill to be killed. The interview was conducted on Vermont Public Radio with host Bob Kinzel.

According to Dean:

“This is essentially the collapse of health care reform in the United States Senate. And, honestly, the best thing to do right now is kill the Senate bill and go back to the House and start the reconciliation process, where you only need 51 votes and it would be a much simpler bill.”

Dean defended using this alternative budget approach for a policy bill. He argues it’s been used more than 20 times by recent presidents. Added Dean:

“The American people don’t care how we get this, as long as we get a decent process. The Republicans in the Senate will moan and groan, but they’re out of touch with where America really is. You have the vast majority of Americans want the choices, they want real choices. They don’t have them in this bill. This is not health care reform and it’s not close to health care reform.”

“There are some good things in this bill, but they’re small, and let’s have a small bill for this $32 billion. Doesn’t sound like a small amount, but compared to a trillion dollars – 27 percent of which is going to go to the insurance companies’ pockets, it’s a small price to pay to help community health care centers and prevention and wellness programs.”

In recent months, Dean has emerged as a leading liberal advocate for health care reform and his comments to kill the current bill could encourage some progressive members of the Senate to rethink their support for the legislation.

Senator Dianne Feinstein, D – Calif., was taken aback by Mr. Dean’s comments and responded to the idea of killing the health care bill this evening to the Washington Times:

“Well I think that would be a tragedy. This is our one chance, and if we miss it, it’s gone and you can always do technical corrections and additions later, but there is so much in this bill that is good for people. To ignore the opportunity to pass it, to me, is just catastrophic. It won’t come up again for a long time.”

Senator James Inhofe, R – OK, noted that the former Vermont governor’s idea for reconciliation would be a real problem for Democrats.

By using the process of reconciliation, Democrats can break a GOP filibuster by passing a bill with just 51 votes. Using this process, there could be enough Democrats who support a public option. However, reconciliation can only be used for bills dealing with budgetary issues, so other reforms and regulations would have to pass as well.

In the meantime, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D – NV,  has yet to reach a sixty vote threshold for support on the health care bill to break a filibuster on the Senate floor.

In California, like in a lot of places across the U.S., young adults are the most likely to be uninsured.

Over 30 percent of those between the ages of 18 and 34 in the Golden State have no health insurance coverage, according to the New America Foundation.

The healthcare bill recently passed by the House has a big surprise for younger folks who may want to avoid the expense of costly health coverage: Buy the Democratic version of insurance or go to jail for five years.

A letter from the non-partisan Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) obtained by the office of Republican House member Dave Camp confirmed that the failure to comply with the individual mandate to buy health insurance contained in the Pelosi healthcare bill (H.R. 3962, as amended) could land you behind bars.

The letter says that citizens who don’t have “acceptable health insurance coverage” and who choose not to pay the individual mandate tax (generally 2.5 percent of income) can be slapped with civil and criminal penalties, including criminal fines of up to $250,000 and five years in jail.

I will say this again, for the sake of being repetitive: contact your local Congressman/woman and Senator and inform them that you do not approve of Pelosi’s health care bill. If you don’t, trust me – the U.S. Senate will ensure that you get stuck with taxpayer-financed universal health coverage. Another instance of the federal government in a power grab.

President Obama has used bait-and-switch tactics first to get elected and now to push his healthcare proposal, according to Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty.

During the campaign, Obama portrayed himself as a centrist but has governed as a “movement liberal,” says Pawlenty, who is widely seen as preparing for a presidential bid and has started Freedom First PAC to raise funds for Republican candidates in next year’s elections.

“His solutions are federalization of policy, spending way beyond anything we’ve seen in terms of deficit or debt levels, spending the country into bankruptcy,” Pawlenty says. “And what’s behind it is a philosophy that government knows best, a nanny-state mentality on domestic issues that will ultimately be corrosive to the other pillars of our country — to markets, private enterprise, individual responsibility, freedom and liberty.”

On the national security front, “History proves that it is weakness, not strength, that tempts our enemies,” observes Pawlenty. “And he is projecting potential weakness, and enemies may see that and their respect may be reduced as a result of that, or worse.”

Obama sold his healthcare proposal as a way to reduce costs and help the economy. But, Pawlenty says, “I think it’s going to go down as one of the biggest bait-and-switch acts in history, in the sense that the diagnosis of the problem for the healthcare delivery system in the country was supposed to be cost-containment. In other words, we need to make it more affordable for individuals and families, businesses, and governmental entities. But instead they are now focused substantially on expanding access.”

While that is an admirable goal, “They have lost sight of the need first and foremost to contain costs and reduce the price of the overall system,” Pawlenty says. ”It’s going to cost more, not less.”

As a way to reduce healthcare costs, Pawlenty notes that he has proposed allowing residents of Minnesota to buy health insurance from companies based in other states, encouraging competition.

“We’re also beginning the effort to try to organize other states to join us in a compact that would allow states who voluntarily join the compact to be able to purchase insurance from other compact member states,” Pawlenty says. “This is a model that’s worked real well for life insurance. But even without a compact, individual states like Minnesota can authorize their citizens to buy insurance in other states.

“I propose to be the first state in the union to allow that and am asking my legislature to change the law in Minnesota to allow it.”

Pawlenty sees Obama’s war on Fox News as an example of his partisanship.

“You have Republicans who are willing to go on MSNBC and other outlets,” Pawlenty says. “I don’t think it’s helpful for either side to just talk to their own.

“If you’re going to be trying to grow market share, grow the party, reach out to others, it’s important to talk not just to people who already agree with you, but it’s important to get the message out to others who maybe haven’t heard it yet, or that you need to appeal to.”

In fact, Pawlenty says, “He’s turned out to be extremely partisan in his approaches, and this healthcare bill is going to be another example of jamming something through that is almost completely lacking in Republican support.

“President Obama has governed in an extremely liberal way, and he hasn’t accomplished many major initiatives, but the few that he has have been almost exclusively partisan. That defies what he said during the campaign and doesn’t live up to that promise.”

Ava sent this in:

Be enlightened and educated. Look for the Democrats’ underhandedness in Rogers’ statements.