Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Cohen may support national lottery to relieve national debt (Harold Ford seat winner)
WMC Channel 5 ^ | 11/13/06 | WMC

Posted on 11/13/2006 4:28:50 AM PST by Sybeck1

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) - The author of the bill that created the Tennessee Lottery says he may consider working on a bill to create a national lottery to pay of the national debt when he heads to Congress.

Democratic state Senator Steve Cohen will succeed Congressman Harold Ford Junior in Tennessee's 9th District.

He also has plans to support a raise in the minimum wage and a Medicaid waiver to allow more home health care for senior citizens and those with disabilities.

Cohen says he wants to become the first white member of the Congressional Black Caucus and a member of the House Progressive Caucus, but he has no plans of joining the fiscally conservative Blue Dog Democrat Caucus with colleagues John Tanner, Jim Cooper and Lincoln Davis.

Cohen says he'd also like to see the rarely used Pyramid arena in Memphis become a mid-America annex of the Smithsonian Institute.

(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)


TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; Front Page News; Government; US: Tennessee
KEYWORDS: cohen; lottery; nationallottery
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-36 last
To: Farmer Dean

Right on, and what about countries like Mexico (and others), that have had lotteries for many decades. Why aren't they prospering? Gee, this is so difficult...


21 posted on 11/13/2006 5:38:15 AM PST by brushcop (Men of B-Co 2/69 3ID, do you now feel betrayed after all your efforts & sacrifices in Iraq?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 13 | View Replies]

To: C210N

Well, at least he won't be able to promise what he'll do with "the money left over."

Cohen brought TN the most awkwardly worded constitutional amendment. I might have voted for the amendment if it hadn't been worded like it was. Basically our state constitution sounds like double talk now.

I suppose there may be a subtle legal reason why he insisted on keeping the prohibition against lotteries in the state constitution and changing the period to a comma followed by a lot of gobbledygook. I for one thought Cohen himself should have been the first recipient of the scholarship -- he should go back to school and learn how to write.

Cohen made a ton of promises on what he'd do with "the money left over," well before we'll know if there's going to be any money left over. The amendment calls for funding college scholarships and then funding K-12 if there's money left over. Of course your lottery is going to show a profit if only freshmen are drawing scholarships, but what about when freshmen through seniors are drawing scholarships and the novelty of the buying lottery tickets wears off?

Here's the original text of the amendment, followed by a portion of Cohen's amendment to the amendment in brackets. It's Article XI, Section 5 of the TN state constitution if anyone cares to look it up.



The Legislature shall have no power to authorize lotteries for any purpose, and shall pass laws to prohibit the sale of lottery tickets in this state [,except that the legislature may authorize a state lottery ....]


22 posted on 11/13/2006 5:42:49 AM PST by scrabblehack
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 19 | View Replies]

To: Sybeck1
I see the father of the TN lottery is at it again...one horse tune cohen.

Help save our fabric source!

Save our Fabric Dept Thread I make lap quilts for the VA Hospital spinal cord unit. in Memphis and Wal-Mart is the only source of fabric in Millington, TN...as a widow my income is very limited I can't afford to drive 20-30 minutes to the next 2 sources and pay $2.00 more per yard for fabric.

Quilting is my only hobby. I've made 10 lap quilts so far this year for the VA Hospital spinal cord unit.

For many rural women Wal-Mart is the ONLY source available for fabric.

Better yet call 800 Wal Mart and talk to a live person.

23 posted on 11/13/2006 6:01:05 AM PST by GailA (Proud to admit I'm a quilt-a-holic.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: WildWeasel

Why not a Telethon for America... we could call it Americathon!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Americathon

Americathon (also known as Amercathon 1998) is a 1979 comedy starring John Ritter, Fred Willard, Peter Riegert and Harvey Korman, based on a play by Firesign Theatre alumni Phil Proctor and Peter Bergman.

The premise of the film was that, sometime in the then-near future (actually 1998), the USA has run out of oil, and many Americans are literally living in their (now stationary) cars and either jog or ride bicycles to travel. The federal government, housed in "The Western White House" (a sub-leased condo in Marina del Rey, California), is near bankruptcy and in danger of being foreclosed by a cartel of Native Americans in control of Nike Inc. (which has been renamed "National Indian Knitting Enterprises"). President Chet Roosevelt, played by Ritter, decides that the only way he can raise money to prevent this from happening is to run a telethon.


24 posted on 11/13/2006 6:04:11 AM PST by Neidermeyer
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 9 | View Replies]

To: goldstategop

Great....its a good way to get our welfare money back...


25 posted on 11/13/2006 6:17:09 AM PST by Youngman442002
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 3 | View Replies]

To: Brilliant
You wonder why the Dems are so infatuated with lotteries, don't you? All they do is transfer money from the poor to the rich.

Socialists love lotteries not because of their regressive nature, but rather because they reinforce the idea that success is due to chance rather than integrity, excellence and good ideas.

26 posted on 11/13/2006 6:24:24 AM PST by oblomov (Join the FR Folding@Home Team (#36120) keyword: folding@home)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: Sybeck1
Cohen says he wants to become the first white member of the Congressional Black Caucus

Huh? I think they must mean THIS Cohen...


27 posted on 11/13/2006 6:24:53 AM PST by montag813
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: oblomov

My suspicion is that the real reason they like lotteries is because they need unequal distribution of wealth in order to demogogue their particular brand of politics. The last thing the Dems would want is to solve the problem of poverty. It would put them out of business.


28 posted on 11/13/2006 6:30:17 AM PST by Brilliant
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 26 | View Replies]

To: Sybeck1

If we do it for the homeless we will have to do it for the illegals too. You know, fair and balanced.


29 posted on 11/13/2006 7:10:37 AM PST by conservative blonde (Conservative Blonde)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Farmer Dean

IA's need not apply !, however , there must be some kind of work in orbit that astronauts etc . won't do !


30 posted on 11/13/2006 7:10:47 AM PST by Renegade
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 15 | View Replies]

To: mariabush

Cohen is a flaming lib and will be welcomed into the Black Congressional Caucus. He will attempt to earn the highest ratings from every Anti-American, baby-killing group out there. Voters of the 9th district did us all a disservice by not electing Jr.'s little brother, Jake.


31 posted on 11/13/2006 7:35:40 AM PST by thelastvirgil (Lest ye put all your faith in the government to provide for you, check their track record.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies]

To: Youngman442002
Great....its a good way to get our welfare money back...

What an idea. I never thought of it that way. Hell yes, give it to them with one hand and take it away with the other.

For efficiency we could probably have a checkoff box on their welfare statements where they could designate the number of tickets that they choose instead of money.

32 posted on 11/13/2006 8:27:05 AM PST by USS Alaska (Nuke the terrorist savages - In Honor of Standing Wolf)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 25 | View Replies]

To: Sybeck1
Ah yes, reinstate a state lottery so the government can pay off their debt while the poor working class goes into crippling debt from gambling- Brilliant! The Gov. Just outlawed online gambling (like poker playing) because they were 'concerned about the citizens' (meaning they didn't want them going into debt) But the government kept it legal to place bets on horses over the net & kept their state lotteries- BOTH of which are governed by the governments who get their kickbacks form these forms of gambling. The REAL issue was that the government wasn't able to tax online poker rooms because they operate offshore & not in U.S jurisdictions- The government was blatantly lying about 'being concerned' for the citizens. Now they are going to reinstate the lottery to pay off their debts racked up by governmental spending junkies? That's despicable and pathetic- What a stinkin corrupt institution they've become-

Christian news and commentary at: sacredscoop.com ...

33 posted on 11/13/2006 9:32:52 AM PST by CottShop (http://sacredscoop.com)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Sybeck1
Cohen says he wants to become the first white member of the Congressional Black Caucus

I thought Bill Clinton held this distinction.

34 posted on 11/13/2006 3:24:56 PM PST by taxesareforever (Never forget Matt Maupin)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Brilliant

Republican economic policies have done so much for helping the poor in The United States that the Democrats need to import poor people from Mexico.


35 posted on 11/13/2006 5:14:34 PM PST by reg45
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 28 | View Replies]

To: Sybeck1
...Cohen says he wants to become the first white member of the Congressional Black Caucus...

It's going to be interesting to see how welcome he's in the CBC.

36 posted on 11/13/2006 5:18:20 PM PST by Aikonaa
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-36 last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson