Free Republic

WASHINGTON, May 19 (Reuters) - President Barack Obama chastised his Republican opponents on Monday for focusing criticism on the events surrounding the deaths of four Americans in Benghazi, Libya, and on his signature healthcare law."The debate we're having now is about what, Benghazi? Obamacare? And it becomes this endless loop. It's not serious. It's not speaking to the real concerns that people have," Obama said.He was speaking to more than 60 people at a fundraising dinner for Democratic candidates for the House of Representatives.The event took place at a physician's home in the Washington suburb of Potomac, Maryland, as Obama...

It's just not a proper scandal party until we've got alleged retaliation against whistleblowers. The Coloradoan brings us such a story from Fort Collins, one of several hospitals and clinics involved in the VA scandal: The whistleblower behind the federal investigation of the Fort Collins Veterans Affairs clinic said she was put on two-week unpaid leave for not "cooking the books" when scheduling appointments. Lisa Lee, a former Navy reservist now on active duty in Hawaii, told the Coloradoan she and another scheduler were transferred from Fort Collins in March 2013 for refusing to hide wait times between desired appointment...

For every hot product launch in 2013, there has also been a high-profile launch that was a miserable failure. MarketWatch's Jim Jelter takes a look at the top five of the flops.

An exhaustive study by three congressional committees delivers startling news about the dire effects of Obamacare: President Barack Obama’s signature legislation could increase health insurance premiums by over 200 percent and render insurance coverage unaffordable for millions of Americans. Broadly, the new report declares that Obamacare “breaks its core promise” to make healthcare coverage affordable. The report, “The Price of Obamacare’s Broken Promises,” was prepared by the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, Majority Staff; Senate Committee on Finance, Minority Staff; and Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, Minority Staff. “Studies and analyses from the Congressional Budget Office,...

The Good Lord Blessed us with an overcast sky so the heat was bearable. About 300 were there, which is pretty good considering there was only about a 3 or 4 day notice. One thing I noticed was that there were a lot more young folks attending than usual and I've been to most of the rallys here since 2009. I have some pics, but need educated on how to post them.

The federal health care law will still leave about 21 million Americans uninsured by 2019, will cost more than $2.7 trillion and add $352 billion to the national debt over 10 years of full implementation, says an expert at a public policy think tank. Michael Tanner, a senior fellow with the Cato Institute, makes these claims in his book, "Bad Medicine: A Guide to the Real Costs and Consequences of the New Health Care Law." It went on sale Monday. "It is a pretty significant failure," Tanner said of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Many of Tanner's findings...

If Massachusetts is the laboratory for ObamaCare, consider this an explosion. The Boston Globe reports that employers have begun doing precisely what everyone knew they would do when insurance prices spiked: dump health plans. Companies that used to offer health-care coverage are paying the fines and saving money by dumping their employees into state-run coverage (via Newsalert): The relentlessly rising cost of health insurance is prompting some small Massachusetts companies to drop coverage for their workers and encourage them to sign up for state-subsidized care instead, a trend that, some analysts say, could eventually weigh heavily on the stateÂ’s already-stressed...

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama is working to reclaim the initiative from critics of his health care initiative and boost momentum to push his chief domestic priority through Congress. Obama kept up a steady weekend drumbeat of cheerleading for his health care plan in a campaign-style rally, on the radio and Internet, and on network television. He planned to continue the pace with more events designed to seize control of the health care debate following his address to Congress last week in which he urged Democrats and Republicans to come together. *** "I will not accept the status quo. Not...

His health care bill should include an incentive for old people to go to the great beyond without wasting taxpayers money with costly medical treatments. The way to do this is simple. If the person is over 75 his closet relative would be paid $4,500.00 if the elder opts out of life early for the good of the collective. Henceforth to be referred to as the "Fatherland". If the person is over 85 his closet relative would get $3,500.00 if the elder opts out of life early for the good of the collective. Henceforth to be referred to as the...

President Obama on Monday rejected a claim that stopping health care reform could mark his "Waterloo," accusing his critics of peddling the "politics of delay and defeat" in an effort to preserve the status quo. Obama's statements were the latest in a health care reform blitz undertaken by the administration, as it presses lawmakers to produce a palatable overhaul before the perceived window of opportunity passes. Recent poll numbers show the American public is losing confidence in the administration's health care efforts as lawmakers in both parties raise concerns about the eye-popping costs of the plans on the table, and...

ABC's White House special struggled for viewers President Obama's town hall meeting on health care delivered a sickly rating Wednesday evening. The one-hour ABC News special "Primetime: Questions for the President: Prescription for America" (4.7 million viewers, 1.1 preliminary adults 18-49 rating) had the fewest viewers in the 10 p.m. hour. The special tied some 8 p.m. comedy repeats as the lowest-rated program on a major broadcast network. The special was shot at the White House and featured the president answering questions about his health care plan. The president's primary message was that those who like their current insurance will...