Zero hour for prescription drugs

The Washington Times ^ | 11/05/03 | Op-Ed Piece

[the target]

Last week, President Bush pressed the House and Senate to reach a speedy agreement on a prescription-drug subsidy for seniors. "Now is the time to finish the work," he said. One deadline for crafting a deal by mid-October was missed, and there are only three weeks left before Congress leaves for Thanksgiving, which had been the target date for completing all legislative business this year. Failure to pass a prescription-drug bill would be political bad news for Republicans, who control both houses of Congress and the White House.

[the target]

Why is this so important for the Republicans? The bill itself is rediculously flawed. Plus, the pork attached to this bill will affect millions. i.e.- elimnination of physician investment in specialty hosptials, w/o a shread of eveidence that any person/community has been harmed. This is nothing more than pork for Frist and his HCA connections.

[meenie]

I would think by now President Bush would realize that he has spent about enough for the time being. Even more important than drugs is a stable economy and monetary system. Both are in danger due to his excessive spending proposals. I am beginning to question his judgement on spending matters even though he is supposed to hold an MBA from Harvard. Has the program at Harvard deteriorated this badly?

[the target]

How can I find out who is on the conference committee for this bill? I know Thomas, Frist, Delay, Stark...?

[putupon]

GOP-selling us out everywhere you turn. RINO socialists just can't keep their hands out of our pockets.

More pork for farmers here sponsored by Roberts of Kansas.

Another link for the Liberal GOP has sold me out list:

Downpayment Aid OK'd for Poor Families(More Income Confiscation, Wealth Redistribution)
Bush aides anger GOP lawmakers on consular Ids(Open Borders for All)
UNESCO Welcomes US, For a Few Dollars More (Undoing Reagan)
$15b Sought to Fight AIDS(Bribes for African Dictators)
Lay off Arafat, Powell tells Israel(Double standard terrorism enablers)
Steel Tariffs Cost Jobs(Free trade party? Ha!)
The Sky’s the Limit: Medicare’s Upwardly Mobile Drug Cost Projections(Socialized Medicine, HillaryCare Lite)
Estrada withdraws name from court consideration(no support from GOP Senators)
'Bush totally against scrapping H1-B visas'

[CHUCKfromCAL]

I have a prescription drug plan for seniors that will cost the taxpayers nothing. Have them buy their drugs from Canada.

I save about 2/3 of the cost of my medications by doing that.

[nospinzone]

Failure to pass a prescription-drug bill would be political bad news for Republicans, who control both houses of Congress and the White House.

And passing an expensive socialist perscription drug benefit for all seniors REGARDLESS OF WHETHER THEY NEED IT and will likely cause millions of seniors to be dropped from private health plans will be politically good news for the Republicans? Democrats would never have given them credit for it anyway, so the whole enterprise would be in vain. A lesson for the GOP: Putting pandering over principle will get you nowhere.

[alrea]

http://www.investors.com/editorial/issues.asp?v=11/15