Senator Charles Grassley is the ranking member on the Senate Finance Committee and the chief Republican negotiator in efforts to produce a bipartisan health care bill. By now you may have seen that Sen. Grassley has jumped on the health care crazy bandwagon, endorsing the notion that his constituents should fear the House bill over what Sarah Palin termed "Obama's `death panel.'"
At an Iowa event yesterday, he said, ""In the House bill there is counseling for end of life...and from that standpoint you have every right to fear...we should not have a government program that determines you're going to pull the plug on grandma." If you haven't seen the video yet, check it out here:
Of course as a significant player in the health care debate, Senator Grassley knows full well that H.R. 3200 simply pays for voluntary end of life counseling from a doctor. As countless independent organizations and media outlets have stated, there is no "death panel" or any such thing in the health care bill.
My first thought after watching video of Grassley's statements is that he has now disqualified himself from participation in further Senate Finance Committee negotiations. How can someone act as a good-faith negotiator on a critical and complex issue while simultaneously stoking fear and spreading bald-faced lies about the content of the leading legislation on the topic? And why should Democratic Senators take him seriously and continue to engage him? Bipartisanship is helpful; but at what cost?
Progressive Future will be sending a letter to Senator Grassley requesting that he recuse himself from further negotiations, and we're inviting concerned citizens to sign on. The letter says simply:
To: Sen. Charles Grassley
I am writing to ask you to step down from all further Senate Finance Committee health care negotiations.
On Aug. 12, you told a crowd in your home state that "In the House bill there is counseling for end of life...and from that standpoint you have every right to fear...we should not have a government program that determines you're going to pull the plug on grandma." You know full well that H.R. 3200 simply pays for VOLUNTARY end of life counseling with a doctor.
You cannot act as a good-faith negotiator on health care once you have endorsed the lies and scare tactics of those who will stop at nothing to defeat reform. You have disqualified yourself from productive conversation on this topic.
I'm posting this diary on behalf of Dan Smith. We got to know Dan while fighting back against the Mortgage Bankers Association opposition to foreclosure assistance. This is what he has to say...
My name is Dan Smith, and I'm an electrician with IBEW Local 952 in Ventura, California. I lost my home because my mortgage broker lied to me about my interest rate. I'm working with Progressive Future to take on the Mortgage Bankers Association and urge Congress to save millions of homes. You can help by clicking here.
My wife and I sold the comfortable condo for which we had saved for years. We had figured out that we could afford to pay $2700 per month to share a bigger home with our one-year old daughter, with plans to have another child. Our third month, we got a bill for $3600--33% more than we signed up for. I called my broker and he said "didn't I tell you that you had a `teaser rate' that would go up?" No, he hadn't told me. I was angry, but stuck--whatever they'd buried in the fine print was threatening everything I'd worked for.
After selling my truck and camper, working 80-hour weeks, and struggling to pay the increased rate for 16 months, I lost my home, I was left with a mountain of debt, and I ended up declaring bankruptcy. I went in with a great credit score and a shot at the American dream. I ended up deep in debt, bankrupt, with my credit shot. You can view my full story here.
But, I'm not just sitting back. I'm working with Progressive Future to confront the Mortgage Bankers Association and help make sure other families like mine don't end up out on the street.
The House recently passed a bill--at President Obama's request--to allow bankruptcy judges to adjust the terms of troubled mortgages. Experts estimate this common-sense solution could save nearly 2 million homes--and I know it could have saved mine.
We all know our economy is shedding jobs at a scary clip. President Obama's recovery package was a good start to get us back on track, but we need to do more.
And, of course, the recession has hit our most vulnerable populations hardest--minorities, folks laid off from the manufacturing sector, and disadvantaged youth.
The Clean Energy Corps will create 600,000 jobs increasing the energy efficiency of 15 million buildings. Given that buildings account for nearly half of our energy use--more than all those gas-guzzling SUVs we hear so much about--this will save lots of money and put a serious dent in global warming pollution.
The Clean Energy Corps also provides job training to make sure that unemployed Americans have access to the new clean energy economy. And, it will engage millions of Americans in green service opportunities. This will help poor youth take the first step onto the green career ladder.
You can help by signing our petition to Congress calling for green jobs and a Clean Energy Corps.
That's how many families are losing their homes to foreclosure. More than 8 million families are at risk.[2]
And, this is no accident. In Brave New Foundation's provocative new film on the housing crisis, a California mortgage broker admits on tape that he was "trained to mislead borrowers" and get them into the most expensive loans.
President Obama knows that we need to tackle this crisis head on -- that putting hardworking families out on the street doesn't just hurt them, but drags down housing prices across the board and keeps our entire economy in a rut.
In February, President Obama announced a plan of action, and asked Congress to send him legislation allowing bankruptcy judges to modify the terms of troubled mortgages. The House of Representatives is answering Obama's call, and will vote on the proposal tomorrow.
Judges already have this power for boats, cars, and investments -- just not for people's primary homes. Experts estimate that this common-sense solution could save nearly 2 million homes.[3]
But, the very people who got us into this mess are fighting President Obama's efforts to get us out. Even though Citigroup and other big lenders who once opposed allowing bankruptcy judges to help have come around,[4] the Mortgage Bankers Association won't budge.
Telling the bankers what we think will also send a strong message to our elected leaders: we want action to save our homes now. This is critical because while we expect the measure to pass the House tomorrow, Republicans are likely to try to block Obama's proposal in the Senate.
Americans are struggling. We all know that foreclosures are up. More Americans are losing their jobs. And everyone feels the constant anxiety caused by our current healthcare system.
But sometimes the scope and depth of our nation's suffering don't hit home until tragedy strikes us, a friend or loved one. And sometimes, if everything is still going well for us personally, the exhilaration of these final days before the election can lead us to forget all the reasons why this fight is so important.
To help all of us remember, Progressive Future has just launched a somber but beautiful ad that focuses on our nation's economic challenges.
jeromearmstrong Our Polarized and Money-Driven Congress: Created Over 25 Years By Republicans (and Quickly Imitated by Democrats http://bit.ly/ewXlXI #bblue
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