Repeal Of Obamacare Gaining Steam
Written by Stephen Rhodes on August 1, 2010 - 
3 Comments
More than three-quarters of the needed members of the U.S. House of Representatives have signed onto a measure to have a new vote on Obamacare that essentially would allow the chamber to withdraw its approval of the law and begin the process of banishing it from American shores.
But another effort has enabled some 31,000 voices across America – so far – to offer their encouragement to members of the House who have yet to sign the discharge petition offered by Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa.
The campaign is a petition drive that urges members of Congress to repeal Obamacare because of several problems:
- Whereas, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, approved by a narrow vote of the House of Representatives earlier this year, threatens to transform the U.S. health-care system from its roots in free enterprise and personal choice;
- Whereas, the act is unconstitutional because of its unprecedented requirement that Americans purchase a service;
- Whereas, the system the law would create is financially unsustainable, places personal medical decisions in the hands of bureaucrats and is likely to lead to rationing of health-care options;
- Whereas, the act is likely to result in forcing some 87 million Americans to drop their current health-care coverage;
- Whereas, the costs involved in complying with the law are likely to cost more Americans their jobs, inhibit the creation of new employment opportunities and suppress wages…
The petition drive was launched by Joseph Farah, founder and CEO of WorldNetDaily, who said the results are worthy of note already.
“This is a very impressive petition, but it will be much more impressive at 100,000 or 200,000 or 1 million,” he said. “We need people signing and spreading the news about this effort – news that has not been reported anywhere else expect at WND.”
The newest signatures added to the House discharge petition are Steven C. Latourette of Ohio, Dean Heller of Nevada and Peter T. King of New York.
“Who would have thought we might have a chance to repeal Obamacare – this term?” said Farah.
Farah’s public petition drive is intended to coalesce support for King’s measure.
The petition, with the addition of the newest three names, has 165 signatures of the 218 it would need to advance – even in the face of continued opposition from Obamacare promoter House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Under the provisions of the discharge procedures in the House, such a move is required to have the support of 218 members, a majority, of the 435-member chamber before moving forward.
But since it requires a majority, it is virtually assured of approval once it reaches the point of being advanced.
King has told WND the entire GOP leadership team in the House is on board, as well as the full delegations from California and Texas. He’s working on obtaining the last few GOP signatures before turning his attention to the Democrats.
All of the GOP representatives and 34 Democrats opposed Obamacare when it was passed on a narrow 219-212 vote earlier this year. King said 212 representatives, at least, should be in favor of overturning it, since they opposed it before.
Then it will be up to the four, five or six Democrat votes that would be needed to turn from endorsement to rejection for it to advance.
“This is starting to come together,” King told WND just days ago. “All the Republicans [earlier] voted no. We should all be for repeal.”
He said he’s counting on the 34 Democrats who voted no to “demonstrate the courage of their convictions” by supporting a repeal plan.
Many will be running for re-election, King noted, in districts where the majority of voters want the law repealed. And there are Democrats who voted for Obamacare who face election challenges in a field of voters irritated by the law’s new taxes and intrusions into their lives.
King told WND that if the discharge petition is successful, it will be a “resounding message” to Pelosi, who said Congress would have to vote for the health-care plan before people could know what was in it.
King’s plan is to “pull out by the roots” the legislation that, among other things, will require citizens to provide their “body-mass index” rating to the government and purchase “government-approved” health insurance whether they want it or not.
The proposal states:
“Pursuant to clause 2 of rule XV, I, Steve King of Iowa, move to discharge the Committees on Energy and Commerce, Ways and Means, Education and Labor, the Judiciary, Natural Resources, Rules, House Administration and Appropriations from the consideration of the bill (H.R. 4972) to repeal the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, which was referred to said committees on March 25, 2010, in support of which motion the undersigned Members of the House of Representatives affix their signatures.”
Its target is the $940 billion, or greater, bill adopted by the Democrat-controlled Congress in March.
Advocates say constituents need to call their representatives to tell them to get on board right away so that the petition is positioned to move forward whether or not the GOP becomes the majority in the House after the 2010 fall elections.
King has explained, “Republicans are the proponents of limited government, personal responsibility and constitutional liberties, principles which ‘Obamacare’ violates. Recognizing this fact, every House Republican voted against ‘Obamacare’ just three months ago. Now that our repeal effort has been endorsed by House GOP leadership, House Republicans should stand by their votes by signing onto discharge petition No. 11.”
He said, “The American people did not want Obamacare passed, and they have consistently called for their representatives to show that they stand with them by repealing the legislation. Our discharge petition provides an avenue for repeal that even Speaker Pelosi cannot block. Republicans recognize that a clean, 100-percent repeal bill is the best strategy for uprooting ‘Obamacare’ lock, stock and barrel, and will continue to show their commitment to Obamacare’s repeal by quickly signing our discharge petition.”
Congressional officials said Pelosi, an adamant advocate for government-controlled health care, never would allow a vote on a plan to overturn Obamacare. But through the discharge-petition process in the House, if a majority of members sign on, she cannot stop it. It still would need to be moved through the Senate and, ultimately, the Oval Office, possibly by a veto override.
An inside congressional source told WND the pressure also will be on all other members as the November 2010 elections approach, since poll after poll has indicated a significant majority of Americans dislike Obamacare to the point of seeking its repeal.
The issue is expected to play a role in the elections, with voters, especially supporters of tea-party principles, calling on their representatives to stand up against what a multitude of lawsuits already are describing as an unconstitutional power grab by Democrats.
Both Democrats and Republicans will have to answer to voters on the issue, the source said.
And, whether the Republicans or the Democrats are in a majority after the fall elections, the petition will put the issue in a position to be forwarded immediately.
“This isn’t a battle we want to give up on,” the source told WND. “Obamacare needs to get pulled out by the roots.”
House members who previously endorsed King’s plan are:
WND also reported recently when House Minority Leader John Boehner gave Obamacare a failing grade for its first three months due to evidence of billions in new taxes, job losses it will trigger, its increase of the deficit and other impacts Americans now are discovering.
It’s being revealed that nearly another half a billion dollars in taxes for Obama’s plan will come from charity-based 501(c)(3) hospitals and a whopping $70 billion will come from those who don’t buy “government-approved” health insurance or in some other way fail to comply with the law’s demands.
A recent poll by the Obama-friendly CNN revealed 56 percent of the public disapproves of the law.
“While rushing their massive government takeover of health care through Congress, President Obama and congressional Democrats promised it would create jobs, lower costs, reduce the deficit, allow Americans to keep their health care, protect seniors’ coverage, prohibit taxpayer-funded abortion and, of course, gain the support of the American people,” Boehner’s report said.
“It isn’t just that none of these promises or predictions have turned out to be true. In every instance, Obamacare has made matters worse,” the report said.
Among the study’s conclusions:
- “Some of the nation’s largest employers have announced they will be forced to make cutbacks as a result of Obamacare’s job-killing mandates.”
- “Two independent government entities … have confirmed that the new law fails to lower health-care costs and reduce the deficit.”
- “Obamacare includes at least a dozen violations of President Obama’s pledge to not raise taxes on middle-class families.”
- “The government has confirmed that the new law’s massive Medicare cuts will fall squarely on the backs of seniors, millions of whom will be forced off their current Medicare coverage.”
The report also said Obama officials have confirmed their new law “will force some 87 million Americans to drop their current coverage despite President Obama’s promise that Americans would be able to keep the coverage that they have.”
The report further states Obama has done nothing to implement his executive order that was supposed to prevent taxpayer funding of abortions.
The result is that people like it no better now – or even less – than before they knew many of the details. Dozens of states also have revolted against the plan.
“This report chronicles Obamacare’s broken promises in the three months since it became law,” Boehner said. “The American people remain squarely opposed to this government takeover of health care that has already failed to live up to specific promises made by President Obama and Washington Democrats.
“Republicans are listening to the American people, and fighting to repeal Obamacare so we can replace it with common-sense reforms focused on lowering costs and protecting jobs,” he said.
According to the plan, some $400 million will hit nonprofit hospitals, $17 billion will come from those “who do not purchase government-approved health insurance,” another $52 billion will hit workers “who fail to fully comply with government health-insurance mandates,” and a tax hike for Medicare will pull another $210 billion from the grocery budgets of Americans.
More than 130 top economists also submitted a document, according to the report, that “the health-care bill contains a number of provisions that will eliminate jobs, reduce hours and wages and limit future job creation.”
Obama’s law is facing a number of lawsuits contesting its constitutionality, claiming the federal government has no right to require consumers to participate in a business transaction – the purchase of health insurance – if they choose not to.
Well there you have it, folks. Do you want to ensure that Obamacare, in its current form, gets repealed? All you have to do is sign a petition that will go to the House of Representatives. Click here to sign the petition.
Filed under: The Sermon
