Posted on 03/28/2010 4:31:06 PM PDT by Starman417
Were it not enough that a representative body slid a major entitlement program thru budget reconciliation rules, and on a partisan vote, Congressional thuggery tactics have soared to a new high. Powerline has copies of a letter from Henry Waxman, chair of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, demanding that AT&T, and other companies who have publicly disclosed the fiscal repercussions of O'health care, appear before the committee and bring their analyses of the fiscal impact, and any documents including emails and messages reviewed by their senior officials that support their claim of increased operating costs.
Translation? CEOs, as a result of their "disclosure", are now ordered to appear before Congress starting April 21st to prove their claims.
This accusation, tandamount to subtly calling the corporations liars, could almost be humorous... were one in possession of such sardonic temperment. It's been obvious that increased costs would result from what the Obama's WH mouthpiece, Robert Gibbs, described as merely closing a loophole just days ago in response. And, in fact, as an IBD op-ed a couple of days pointed out, Congress and the administration were warned of the effects of this legislation, as written, on their overhead early December.
In a letter to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., last Dec. 11, Deere and other signatories said the health care reform then under consideration "would negatively impact both retirees and companies."Nobody was listening.
"For months, the American Benefits Council, along with several employers and labor unions, warned that the retiree drug subsidy tax in the health care legislation would impose an enormous hit on company financial statements as soon as the bill was signed into law," said James Klein, president of the American Benefits Council, in a statement on Friday.
Besides Deere, the letter was signed by Boeing, Con-Way Freight, Exelon, Navistar, Verizon, Caterpillar, MetLife, Public Service Enterprise Group and Xerox.
Waxman's letter is the quintessential political intimidation ploy, stating such news causes them "concern". huh? If they were repeatedly warned prior to passage, how can this be a surprise "concern"?
Instead the Chair's actions, demanding some sort of proof that their unsurprising claims are correct, just seems to continue a seriously dangerous precedent of government intimidation waged on those who are not willing to sip the prozac-laden water, and who continue to criticize or resist propaganda launched.
Read more at floppingaces.net...
Securities/accounting law demand that these corporations take these charges. To not do so is accounting fraud. It’s only banks/financials that are allowed to thumb their nose at proper accounting.
Uncontrolled ignorance from the left - these corporations have to disclose or else be subject to criminal penalties! Talk to Sarbanes and Oxley about it.
this has got to stop
Tell Waxman the Pig man to go screw himself.
I’m sure any entity faced with a reduction in federal welfare would whine just as much.
Mataharley, methinks you need an editor.
“This accusation, tantamount to subtly calling the corporations liars...”
Congressional hearings are turning into interrogations and inquisitions. We are living under a thugocracy.
I don’t know how or why, but I’m shocked by this. I should know what these people are capable of by now.
One can only hope the CEOs send Waxman a three word answer, but it’d doubtful, given their lapdog status thus far. But the numbers won’t like, and they are just the tip of the iceberg.
This will blow up in Waxman’s face as the calculations will be shown perfectly correct.
Once all corporations are nationalized, Waxman and his fellow communists won’t be bothered by pesky CEO’s.
What, GM and Chrysler don’t have to abide by SOX?
I hope the Republican Party is able to make it clear that this mess is being worsened by their Big Government thuggery
govt. thugs ping...
Yes, they will.
Are these rulers of ours going to call all corporations to D.C. to testify? Bring it on you fools.
MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNIST “CONGRESSIONAL PROGRESSIVE CAUCUS”, INCLUDING, WAXMAN, LEWIS, WATT, PELOSI, SLAUGHTER, FRANK, AND CONYERS HAVE NATIONALIZED THE MEDICAL INDUSTRY, AND ARE NOW LAUNCHING A CAMPAIGN OF INTIMIDATION AGAINST ALL WHO DISSENT.
The following members of Congress are Marxists and terrorist coddlers who have rebranded themselves as “Progressives” in an attempt to hide their agenda
Nancy Pelosi was one of the original members of the “Congressional Progressive Caucus” and only left when she was named Minority Leader.
Pelosi is now Speaker of the House and 2 heartbeats away from President of the United States.
All members are members of the Democratic Party or caucus with the Democratic Party. There are currently 82 total declared Progressives including 79 voting Representatives, 2 non-voting Delegates, and 1 Senator.
The “Congressional Progressive Caucus”
[edit] Arizona
* Ed Pastor (AZ-4, Phoenix)
* Raúl Grijalva (AZ-7, Tucson) - Co-Chair
[edit] California
* Lynn Woolsey (CA-6, Santa Rosa) - Co-Chair
* George Miller (CA-7, Richmond) - Chairman, House Education and Labor Committee
* Barbara Lee (CA-9, Oakland) - Chairwoman, Congressional Black Caucus
* Pete Stark (CA-13, Fremont)
* Michael Honda (CA-15, San Jose)
* Sam Farr (CA-17, Monterey)
* Henry Waxman (CA-30, Los Angeles) - Chairman, House Energy and Commerce Committee
* Xavier Becerra (CA-31, Los Angeles)
* Judy Chu (CA-32, El Monte)
* Diane Watson (CA-33, Los Angeles)
* Lucille Roybal-Allard (CA-34, Los Angeles)
* Maxine Waters (CA-35, Inglewood)
* Laura Richardson (CA-37, Long Beach)
* Linda Sanchez (CA-39, Lakewood)
* Bob Filner (CA-51, San Diego) - Chairman, House Veterans Affairs Committee
[edit] Colorado
* Jared Polis (CO-02, Boulder)
[edit] Connecticut
* Rosa DeLauro (CT-3, New Haven)
[edit] Florida
* Corrine Brown (FL-3, Jacksonville)
* Alan Grayson (FL-8, Orlando)
* Robert Wexler (FL-19, Boca Raton)
* Alcee Hastings (FL-23, Fort Lauderdale)
[edit] Georgia
* Hank Johnson (GA-4, Lithonia)
* John Lewis (GA-5, Atlanta)
[edit] Hawaii
* Neil Abercrombie (HI-1, Honolulu)
* Mazie Hirono (HI-2, Honolulu)
[edit] Illinois
* Bobby Rush (IL-1, Chicago)
* Jesse Jackson, Jr. (IL-2, Chicago Heights)
* Luis Gutierrez (IL-4, Chicago)
* Danny Davis (IL-7, Chicago)
* Jan Schakowsky (IL-9, Chicago)
* Phil Hare (IL-17, Rock Island)
[edit] Indiana
* André Carson (IN-7, Indianapolis)
[edit] Iowa
* Dave Loebsack (IA-2, Cedar Rapids)
[edit] Maine
* Chellie Pingree (ME-1, North Haven)
[edit] Maryland
* Donna Edwards (MD-4, Fort Washington)
* Elijah Cummings (MD-7, Baltimore)
[edit] Massachusetts
* John Olver (MA-1, Amherst)
* Jim McGovern (MA-3, Worcester)
* Barney Frank (MA-4, Newton) - Chairman, House Financial Services Committee
* John Tierney (MA-6, Salem)
* Ed Markey (MA-7, Malden)
* Mike Capuano (MA-8, Boston)
[edit] Michigan
* Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick (MI-13, Detroit)
* John Conyers (MI-14, Detroit) - Chairman, House Judiciary Committee
[edit] Minnesota
* Keith Ellison (MN-5, Minneapolis)
[edit] Mississippi
* Bennie Thompson (MS-2, Bolton) - Chairman, House Homeland Security Committee
[edit] Missouri
* William Lacy Clay, Jr. (MO-1, St. Louis)
* Emanuel Cleaver (MO-5, Kansas City)
[edit] New Jersey
* Frank Pallone (NJ-06)
* Donald Payne (NJ-10, Newark)
[edit] New Mexico
* Ben R. Luján (NM-3, Santa Fe)
[edit] New York
* Jerry Nadler (NY-8, Manhattan)
* Yvette Clarke (NY-11, Brooklyn)
* Nydia Velazquez (NY-12, Brooklyn) - Chairwoman, House Small Business Committee
* Carolyn Maloney (NY-14, Manhattan)
* Charles Rangel (NY-15, Harlem) - Chairman, House Ways and Means Committee
* Jose Serrano (NY-16, Bronx)
* John Hall (NY-19, Dover Plains)
* Maurice Hinchey (NY-22, Saugerties)
* Louise Slaughter (NY-28, Rochester) - Chairwoman, House Rules Committee
* Eric Massa (NY-29, Corning)
[edit] North Carolina
* Mel Watt (NC-12, Charlotte)
[edit] Ohio
* Marcy Kaptur (OH-9, Toledo)
* Dennis Kucinich (OH-10, Cleveland)
* Marcia Fudge (OH-11, Warrensville Heights)
[edit] Oregon
* Earl Blumenauer (OR-3, Portland)
* Peter DeFazio (OR-4, Eugene)
[edit] Pennsylvania
* Bob Brady (PA-1, Philadelphia) - Chairman, House Administration Committee
* Chaka Fattah (PA-2, Philadelphia)
[edit] Tennessee
* Steve Cohen (TN-9, Memphis)
[edit] Texas
* Sheila Jackson-Lee (TX-18, Houston)
* Eddie Bernice Johnson (TX-30, Dallas)
[edit] Virginia
* Jim Moran (VA-8, Alexandria)
[edit] Vermont
* Peter Welch (VT-At Large)
[edit] Washington
* Jim McDermott (WA-7, Seattle)
[edit] Wisconsin
* Tammy Baldwin (WI-2, Madison)
* Gwen Moore (WI-4, Milwaukee)
[edit] Non-voting
* Donna M. Christensen (Virgin Islands)
* Eleanor Holmes Norton (District of Columbia)
[edit] Senate member
* Bernie Sanders (Vermont)
[edit] Former members
* Sherrod Brown (OH-13) - Elected to Senate
* Julia Carson (IN-07) - Died in December 2007
* Lane Evans (IL-17) - Retired from Congress
* Cynthia McKinney (GA-4) - Lost Congressional seat to current caucus member Hank Johnson
* Major Owens (NY-11) - Retired from Congress
* Nancy Pelosi (CA-8) - Left Caucus when Elected House Minority Leader
* Hilda Solis (CA-32) - Became Secretary of Labor in 2009
* Stephanie Tubbs Jones (OH-11) - Died in 2008
* Tom Udall (NM Senate)
* Paul Wellstone (MN Senate) - Died in plane crash in 2002
The Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC) was established in 1991 by five members of the United States House of Representatives: Representatives Ron Dellums (D-CA), Lane Evans (D-IL), Peter DeFazio (D-OR), Maxine Waters (D-CA), and Bernie Sanders (I-VT). Then-Representative Bernie Sanders was the convener and first. The founding members were concerned about the economic hardship imposed by the deepening recession, the growing inequality brought about by the timidity of the Democratic Party response at the time.
Additional House representatives joined soon, including Major Owens (D-NY), Nydia Velazquez (D-NY), David Bonior (D-MI), Bob Filner (D-CA), Barney Frank (D-MA), Maurice Hinchey (D-NY), Jim McDermott (D-WA), Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Patsy Mink (D-HI), George Miller (D-CA), Pete Stark (D-CA), John Olver (D-MA), Lynn Woolsey (D-CA), and Nancy Pelosi (D-CA).
Tell Waxman to shove it up his Obama.
He has a particularly big one...smelly, too.
Really, tell him to shove it big time.
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