Daily Archives: 9 July 2013

Obamacare Fail. Again.

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President Barack Obama has admitted that another critical aspect of his Obamacare is a dismal failure.  This time he’s

delaying a requirement that verifies the income levels of those seeking taxpayer subsidies until after the 2014 midterm elections.

Instead, the new insurance marketplaces operated by states and the District of Columbia will take the consumer’s word that they qualify for the subsidies[.]

And

Timothy Jost, a law professor at Washington and Lee University in Lexington, VA, and a consumer advocate, said it’s not unprecedented for the government to use the honor system, and compared it to reporting cash tips to the Internal Revenue Service.

It’s also like the 21%-25% of Earned Income Tax Credits that go to people who aren’t eligible (according to Treasury’s Inspector General) because their eligibility is self-verified, too.

Or rather than an admission of failure, is this just another administration excuse for lax pay outs of monies that aren’t deserved, even under the law?  As the Wall Street Journal puts it,

[A]nyone can receive subsidies tied to income without judging the income they declare against the income data the Internal Revenue Service collects.

Of course, a third alternative also includes none of this as abject failure.  These cynical (say I) delays simply are for building the dependency of Americans on government largesse, trapping us into voting for the Progressive party.

Silent No More

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Rafael Cruz had some thoughts.  You know Mr Cruz: Senator Ted Cruz’ (R, TX) Cuban-born father.  Here’s some of what he had to say, via The Daily Caller.

[A]s a teenager I found myself involved in a revolution.  I remember during that time, a young charismatic leader rose up talking about “hope and change.”  His name was Fidel Castro.

That same man who had been talking before about hope and change, now was talking about how the rich are evil, about how they oppress the people, and about the need to redistribute the wealth.  He began attacking the press, curtail freedom of the press, attacking religion, confiscating property.  Then he began instituting socialized medicine, and imposing wage-and-price controls.  Basically reducing everybody’s salary to a least common denominator.
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I think the most ominous words I’ve ever heard was in the last two State of the Union addresses, when our president said, “If Congress does not act, I will act unilaterally.”  Not much different than that old bearded friend that I left behind in Cuba.  Government by decree, by executive order, just like a dictator—like Fidel Castro.
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When I faced oppression in Cuba, I had a place to come to.  If we lose our freedoms here, where are we going to go?  There is no place to go.
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I feel so offended when our president goes around the world apologizing for America and negating our American exceptionalism.  But the truth is, this country is exceptional and unique in the world….  And you know, when we see the intrusion on our liberties; when we see—whether it is looking at our emails, or listening to our telephone calls—or we see the IRS targeting tea party groups—freedom-loving groups—for their political ideology, I say we can remain silent no more.  Silent no more.

What he said.