Obamacare architect Jonathan Gruber billed fed and state govts at least $5.9M for advice

Daily Mail ^ | November 14, 2014 | David Martosko, US Political Editor

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Four U.S. states and the federal government have padded Obamacare architect Jonathan Gruber's wallet to the tune of $5.9 million since 2000, including millions connected to his work on the Affordable Care Act.

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology economist has been pilloried for collecting $392,600 from the Obama administration's Health and Human Services Department while the law was being written, but that was just the tip of the iceberg.

Gruber's consulting contracts give states and the feds access to a proprietary formula that can determine how changes in a health care system's structure will affect costs.

The 'Gruber Microsimulation Model' is what he sold to the White House. It helped Obama's team anticipate what the influential Congressional Budget Office (CBO) would say about various features of the final plan – and whether their costs would officially be considered 'taxes.'

[spokeshave]

The left has managed to tax us conservatives in order to pay for think tanks called universities, radio propaganda called National Public Radio, television propaganda called Public Broadcasting, endless television advertising by Public Service Unions while at the same time deploying government agencies such as the IRS to muzzle conservative organs of opinion.

Obama even has a Czarina heading up a Department of Nudge to move everyone in his direction:

The federal government is hiring what it calls a "Behavioral Insights Team" that will look for ways to subtly influence people's behavior, according to a document describing the program obtained by FoxNews.com.

Maya Shankar is a senior policy advisor at the White House Office of Science & Technology Policy. Her mandate is to supervise the organization of a federal government ‘nudge squad’ that will subtly change the behaviors of bureaucrats — and the rest of us

[MNDude]

People typically just ramp up their lifestyle when they get a really good revenue coming in. Most people do not save most of it up.

Believe me, it will be extremely painful to go from million dollar salary back down to an $80,000 salary.

[Pontiac]

Well if he is a good Democrat he should been happy to give most of that money to the government in taxes.

Right?

[Cincinatus' Wife]

The longest part of Professor Gruber’s Wikipedia page is the “controversies” section.

“......Controversies

In January 2010, after news emerged that Gruber was under a $297,000 contract with the Department of Health and Human Services, while at the same time promoting the Obama administration’s health care reform policies, some conservative commentators suggested a conflict of interest.[17][18][19] While he did disclose his HHS connections in an article for the New England Journal of Medicine, his oversight in doing this earlier was defended by Paul Krugman in The New York Times.[20]

One heavily-scrutinized part of the ACA reads that subsidies should be given to healthcare recipients who are enrolled “through an Exchange established by the State”. Some have read this to mean that subsidies can be given only in states that have chosen to create their own healthcare exchanges, and do not use the federal exchange, while the Obama administration says that the wording applies to all states. This dispute is currently part of an ongoing series of lawsuits referred to collectively as King v. Burwell. In July 2014, two separate recordings of Gruber, both from January 2012, surfaced in which he seemed to contradict the administration’s position.[5] In one, Gruber states, in response to an audience question, that “if you’re a state and you don’t set up an exchange, that means your citizens don’t get their tax credits”,[21] while in the other he says, “if your governor doesn’t set up an exchange, you’re losing hundreds of millions of dollars of tax credits to be delivered to your citizens.”[22] When these recordings emerged, Gruber called these statements mistaken, describing them as “just a speak-o — you know, like a typo”.[21]

In November 2014, a series of videos emerged of Gruber speaking about the ACA at different events, from 2010 to 2013, in ways that proved to be controversial. Many of the videos show him talking about ways in which he felt the ACA was misleadingly crafted and/or marketed in order to get the bill passed, while in some of the videos he specifically refers to American voters as ill-informed or “stupid.” In the first, most widely-publicized video taken at a panel discussion about the ACA at the University of Pennsylvania in October 2013, Gruber said the bill was deliberately written “in a tortured way” to disguise the fact that it creates a system by which “healthy people pay in and sick people get money.” He said this obfuscation was needed due to “the stupidity of the American voter” in ensuring the bill’s passage. Gruber said the bill’s inherent “lack of transparency is a huge political advantage” in selling it.[23] The comments caused significant controversy.[24][25][26][27][28] In two subsequent videos, Gruber was shown talking about the decision (which he attributed to John Kerry) to have the bill tax insurance companies instead of patients, which he called fundamentally the same thing economically but more palatable politically. In one video, he stated that “the American people are too stupid to understand the difference” between the two approaches, while in the other he said that the switch worked due to “the lack of economic understanding of the American voter.”[29] In another video, taken in 2010, Gruber expressed doubts that the ACA would significantly reduce health care costs, though he noted that lowering costs played a major part in the way the bill was promoted.[30]......”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonathan_Gruber_%28economist%29

[gasport]

“I am Herr Gruber.”

http://tinyurl.com/oo2vbyt

[Cincinatus' Wife]

“.... And now what’s #Grubering?

A new word made up by Republicans in response to Gruber’s comment. In an email this week from the Republican National Committee, they describe it as “trying to fool voters into thinking you’re doing one thing while doing something completely different.”

The hashtag has lit up social media with similar words popping up, including a “gruber” or a lie told to someone you think is dumb, as well as “grubering.”

So, no, this controversy doesn’t appear to be fading anytime soon. ....”

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/obamacare-architect-jonathan-gruber-fire/story?id=26919286&singlePage=true

[Cincinatus' Wife]

July 7, 2007

“In a conference call in January, the health-care debate within the Democratic Party played out before former senator John Edwards of North Carolina, who was in search of policy advice for his presidential campaign, and his wife, Elizabeth.

On one side was Ezekiel Emanuel, a doctor and bioethics expert and the brother of Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D-Ill.), arguing that the American health-care system is so riddled with inefficiencies that it needs to be blown up and replaced by a plan in which people can buy coverage themselves with a voucher.

On the other side was an economist from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who has become possibly the party’s most influential health-care expert and a voice of realism in its internal debates.

“Far be it for me to lecture you on politics, Senator Edwards,” Jonathan Gruber recalled saying, and then he did just that. He told Edwards that whatever the merits of Emanuel’s idea, it just would not be politically viable. Instead, Gruber argued for a more incremental approach, like the one in Massachusetts he helped write. Its central elements would be providing subsidies to people who are unable to pay for health care, increasing the number of those who are enrolled in public programs such as Medicaid and creating a public agency to help anyone ineligible for the programs buy health insurance.

A month later, when Edwards announced his health-care plan, he almost completely sided with Gruber. And he is not alone. For the first time since President Bill Clinton’s plan for health-care reform, overseen by his wife, collapsed in 1994, the leading Democratic presidential candidates are campaigning in favor of universal health care. But in developing their specific plans, they are embracing the pragmatic steps advocated by the MIT professor and a group of similar-minded policy experts, many of whose ideas were shaped by their first exposure to the perils of health-care politics 13 years ago. ..................”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/09/AR2007070902029.html

[Lacey]

So ABC finally files a Gruber story online. Why is it when something doesn’t reflect well on Obama or his minions, the story is framed by “Republicans accuse, Republicans say..” Why not “More proof surfaced today that Obamacare was built on lies and deception?”

I don’t recall something like Katrina coverage being framed as “Democrats accuse Bush of imcompetence...” It was just reported as a GIVEN that Katrina was Bush’s fault.

Or am I just seeing things through partisan glasses?

[ronnie raygun]

He has admitted his guilt and this is faud and no one is arresting or seeking to prosecute

[Cincinatus' Wife]

July 29, 2014

Oklahoma AG Cites Jonathan Gruber To Rebut Government Expert Jonathan Gruber

[swampfox101]

Exactly......!

[urbanpovertylawcenter]

“What is the difference between Jonathan Gruber and National Public Radio?”

Gruber is soon to be off the federal teat!

NPR is forever!

[Liz]

Four U.S. states and the federal government (read taxpayers) have padded Obamacare architect Jonathan Gruber's wallet to the tune of $5.9 million since 2000, including millions connected to his work on the Affordable Care Act.

We need investigations---to see how our tax dollars changed hands---and landed into Gruber's pockets. The disdainful, preening Gruber was paid tax dollars to spin his web of lies...and to reiterate his contempt for taxpayers who are footing the bills.

Even more disturbing is the massive, multi-billion-dollar slush fund the self-serving Gruber hid from "stupid" Americans in Obamacare. Gruber made dam sure it was kept hidden from us stupid taxpayers.

=========================================

The Untraceable $8 Billion ObamaCare PR Budget---truly govt fraud at its finest. Egged on by Pelosi, Democrats slavishly voted for Obamacare by an historic straignt-party line vote. But not one Democrat told Americans about Obamacare's Section 4002---which mandates an $8B untraceable fund to "promote" Obamacare (apparently b/c Boobamba had so little confidence in his signature legislation).

THE PAYOFF--WHO GETS THE MONEY? In 2010 Taxpayers are extorted $500 million, in 2011, $750 million, 2012, $1 billion, 2013, $1.25 billion, 2014, $1.5 billion, and, in 2015 and on, $2 billion

<><> Where is all that money going?

<><> Was cashing-in the incentive in getting the thing passed?

==================================================

Taxpayers demand to know ---- why Gruber/Obama/Pelosi didnt reveal that Obamacare contains a multi-billion dollar slush fund?

Exactly who is cashing in?

The sound of wire-transfers to offshore banks is almost palbable.

=========================================================

Maybe Gruber can write a new comic book entitled:

HOW TO BE A MILLIONAIRE BY HIDING A MULTI-BILLION DOLLAR SLUSH FUND IN FEDERAL LEGISLATION

[laconic]

Lying and deceit are quite profitable and the slush fund payments come out of our hides, both as taxes and in higher premiums. Self-employed, I got my bill this morning, conveniently two weeks after the election so they could push Mark Warner, the 60th vote for this mess, back into the Senate by the narrowest of margins. I have to apply quickly for a new plan that has a much higher deductible and whose premiums are TWICE what I have been paying. I am very fit, in good health, have never made a claim and have had catastrophic insurance; now I must suffer the consequences of Obamacare, which is itself catastrophic.

[22202NOVA]

You have teaching assistants to do the menial work like that. You pay them a small stipend, they teach the classes and you do the important work.

[Flick Lives]

Micro simulation. Macro billing.

[DJ MacWoW]

Donate

[DAC21]

“Gruber is soon to be off the federal teat!”

We will see just how good of an economist he is. Can he stretch that 5 million he bilked from Taxpayers now that he is down to his paltry 300k annual(est.) MIT gig?

[jsanders2001]

> Taxpayers demand to know —— why Gruber/Obama/Pelosi didnt reveal that Obamacare contains a multi-billion dollar slush fund?

Well DUH...we couldn’t see what was in it until we passed it. Of course they knew. Now we know why there was so much drooling from the Dems who kept trying to shove it down our throats. They’ll be retiring offshore away from all the chaos out of the U.S. when the SHTF with part of their Obamacare booty...

[Travis McGee]