Echoing Insurance Industry, Lieberman Says He Doesn’t Support Baucus Bill
Echoing Insurance Industry, Lieberman Says He Doesn’t Support Baucus Bill
In August, Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) told CNN that he believed it was the wrong time for President Obama and Congress to attempt health care reform. “I’m afraid we’ve got to think about putting a lot of that off until the economy is out of recession,” said Lieberman. “There’s no reason we have to do it all now.”
Asked by radio host Don Imus today what aspects of the Senate Finance Committee’s health care bill he supported, Lieberman struck a negative tone, saying, “I’m concerned that there’s a danger that we’re trying to do too much”:
LIEBERMAN: I’ve been saying for a couple of months now that I’m concerned, that I’m concerned that there’s a danger that we’re trying to do too much here and the president is trying to do two good things. But doing them at once in the middle of a recession may be hard to pull off. And the two good things are to bend the cost of health care down by changing a lot of the ways health care is delivered. The second thing is to cover some of the people, millions of people, who are not covered with insurance. So, this puts us in the position where you say, on the one hand, what we’re about to do in adopting health care reform will, will reduce the cost of health insurance from what it would otherwise be and the other hand you say, oh incidentally, we’re going to raise your taxes or cut your Medicare to the tune of $900 billion or a trillion. And people are beginning to think that maybe they’d do better holding on to what they have now.
Lieberman added that he thinks “we should really focus on what’s being called health care delivery reform.” Asked later by Imus if he specifically supported Sen. Max Baucus’ (D-MT) health care reform bill, Lieberman said, “no”:
IMUS: Do you support the Baucus bill?
LIEBERMAN: Not, not, no. I mean, not the way it is now.
IMUS: Ok, what about it don’t you like?
LIEBERMAN: Well, here’s my concern, as I watch the way it took shape. And it goes back to these two things we’re trying to do at once. I’m afraid that in the end, the Baucus bill is actually going to raise the price of insurance for most of the people in the country because most of the people in our country have health insurance, either private or Medicare or Medicaid or veteran’s benefits.
Watch it:
Though Lieberman said he didn’t necessarily “buy” the “exact numbers” released yesterday by the insurance industry, he supported their disingenuous argument that reform will increase insurance premiums for all Americans. “You don’t have to be an economist to figure out that if you raise people’s taxes, the company’s taxes by three or four hundred billion dollars, they’re not going to eat it themselves. They’re going to pass it on.”
The Wonk Room’s Igor Volsky rebuts Lieberman and the insurance industry’s argument about increased insurance premiums here.
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Echoing Insurance Industry, Lieberman Says He Doesn’t Support Baucus Bill
Well , that’s not exactly a surprise ; there are no REPUBLICANS that do …………
October 13th, 2009 at 10:37 amHeh…O.T.
– - Missed this earlier:
“They’re a shameless bunch of lying, distorting, propagandists, which I respect, and I don’t know what MSNBC would do without them,” Michael Goldfarb, on the liberal bloggers of Think Progress.
My italics.
October 13th, 2009 at 10:38 amDid we really expect any different from LIEberman? I hope they find a candidate to topple him. He’s just another Zell Miller…
October 13th, 2009 at 10:39 amIt figures that Droopy Dawg would still be shilling for the insurance companies.
Bastard.
October 13th, 2009 at 10:40 am“wrong time to attempt health care reform”
Hey Joe, if not now, just WHEN?!
October 13th, 2009 at 10:42 amFamilies are going bankrupt wholesale from just one injury or illness. People can NOT wait!
Get Holey Joe out of the Senate and Insurance companies out of Health Care. Neither add anything of value.
October 13th, 2009 at 10:43 amIf these congress critters actually had to scrounge around to find suitable health insurance that they could afford for themselves and their families, things would be far different.
I think that we have been far too accommodating as taxpayers to these clowns.
They all expect a free lunch and free health care, paid for by us, NOT by their corporate clients, and yet they can’t even give us the time of day.
No matter what finally happens with the health care reform package, I believe that we need to start a movement to remove some of the perks for these lazy
do-nothing corporate whores who masaquerade as citizen-legislators.
I’m way past fed up with scoundrels like Grassley, Liebermann and the like.
October 13th, 2009 at 10:44 amLieberman’s argument that its wrong to do “two good things” at the same time during a recession makes no sense. When both good things save us money, why wouldn’t we do them at the same time?
October 13th, 2009 at 10:45 amAnd you couldn’t even see the insurance industry flack’s lips moving when Lieberman ’spoke’… pretty slick…
October 13th, 2009 at 10:46 amSaying that we shouldn’t deal with health care reform until after the recession is like saying we shouldn’t plant crops until after the famine.
The screwed up health care system and the health insurance industry greedheads are at toward the top of the culprit list. As long as people are forking over ginormous percentages of their income for health insurance, as long as companies are having to decide between giving their employees raises or continue giving them health benefits, and as long as families are getting wiped out financially when one member gets sick, our economy will never recover, let alone thrive.
October 13th, 2009 at 10:46 amWhat purpose on earth does Lieberman serve other than listening to his own nasal whine of a voice? Isn’t there a rest home for aged, useless, sanctimonious blowhards? Sure he has a big enough pile of money from his corporate masters to see him through the end of his useless days.
October 13th, 2009 at 10:54 amOh Joe say it it`s so>>>>>>>>>>>>
i would have been shocked if you were to support any thing good. the question is have you ever supported your consistences every?
or have you just played along and talked sound bites your whole career?
jerk-off
October 13th, 2009 at 10:54 amNo surprise to anyone.
This wimp bothers me more than most Republicans.
We really need to vote his butt out of office.
October 13th, 2009 at 10:56 amDooshnozzle LIEberman says: “…And people are beginning to think that maybe they’d do better holding on to what they have now.”
What does one hold onto when they don’t have any insurance to start with?
October 13th, 2009 at 10:56 amJoe just proved my point that most people would see the threat of insurance raising premiums more as clear need for true reform, but Congress takes it as a sign that any reform will hurt and they make every effort to retain the status quo.
‘Single-payer’, ‘public option’, ‘universal coverage’, whatever term they should’ve used, the phrase ‘non-profit’ would have had the most impact toward true reform.
October 13th, 2009 at 10:57 amDelay, delay, Delay? The Hammer is back with fractured feet? The Democrats are back with feet of clay. ObamaRhama will wear this one, though, no doubt about it! The American voter has no real alternatives–oh what a world, what a world–we’re melting!
October 13th, 2009 at 10:57 amHe’s a republican – what do you expect?? He’s also a scum-bag so nobody feels left out…
AND the leadership of Congress is STUPID enough to put him in charge of getting DADT repealed?? I don’t think so…ONE call from ANY republican and Lierwocky folds like an old deck of cards…
October 13th, 2009 at 11:05 amTraitor Joe.
October 13th, 2009 at 11:05 amIt’s interesting since Lieberman is so Pro Israel….
“In Israel, the National Health Insurance Law (or National Health Insurance Act) is the legal framework which enables and facilitates basic, compulsory universal health care. ”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_health_care#Israel
I guess he just doesn’t want the best coverage and something that works for the citizens of his own country.
October 13th, 2009 at 11:07 amJoe, you represent the 200 million policy holders not the thousands of policy issuers sockpuppet people.
October 13th, 2009 at 11:07 amWendell Potter will be a guest on Cspan, Washington Journal, Wednesday morning.
October 13th, 2009 at 11:08 amTexas Rick: “We really need to vote his butt out of office.”
We? You’re in Texas and I’m in Cali. We’ve got nothing to do with it.
Lieberman was never going to be one of the 50 Senators voting for a bill with a public option. The ONLY question is whether he’ll support a filibuster or vote for cloture. Remember, he loses his committee seats under Reid if he helps Repubs block any bill. Then, if they come back with marginal moves here and there, he wouldn’t even be on a committee to debate it. He knows that.
October 13th, 2009 at 11:08 amevangenital says:
If these congress critters actually had to scrounge around to find suitable health insurance that they could afford for themselves and their families, things would be far different.
I think that we have been far too accommodating as taxpayers to these clowns.
They all expect a free lunch and free health care, paid for by us, NOT by their corporate clients, and yet they can’t even give us the time of day.
No matter what finally happens with the health care reform package, I believe that we need to start a movement to remove some of the perks for these lazy
do-nothing corporate whores who masaquerade as citizen-legislators.
I’m way past fed up with scoundrels like Grassley, Liebermann and the like.
_____________________________________________________________
You said it so well, I wanted it repeated. Too many of our “citizen-legislators” from both parties have lived their entire lives in a bubble of privilege and their only skill is gaming the broken system. Maybe Mao was right to make everybody do some hard labor.
October 13th, 2009 at 11:09 amHe really should just give it up, run as a GOP in 2012…and get his sadsack ass thrown out of office.
October 13th, 2009 at 11:14 amAmazing that the same folks who were complaining about an insurance mandate are now backing the insurers who say there needs to be an even tougher mandate.
And what else Lieberman fails to recognize is that the “$900 billion” he talks about in “new taxes” etc. is actually waste currently being paid out by the government. This is simply extra cash being generated or given to the insurance companies for absolutely nothing.
Lieberman doesn’t want that practice to end? He doesn’t want the government to save money? I thought he was such a fiscal conservative?
http://www.political-buzz.com/
October 13th, 2009 at 11:15 amPhuck Joe, don’t vote for him. And phuck the insurance companies, cancel your policy, save the money that would have gone to the leeches and fly to any third world country to get good affordable health care.
October 13th, 2009 at 11:16 amHe sounds just like his Repubuddies. On the one hand he agrees that reform is needed to control costs and help offer insurance to those without. On the other hand he says that what we should do to achieve this is…well, nothing. This turncoat should have been stripped of every committee that he sits on. He should have absolutely no leadership role in any capacity. Hobble the whiney bastid and you’ll see how fast he loses his next election. Tell you what Joe…the people chose the “schvartzer” over your buddy McCranky (who you betrayed your Party to support) so you have zero credibility in today’s America you putrid little weasle.
October 13th, 2009 at 11:18 amWell, ‘non-profit’ would only have an impact if there were really legions of ‘pro-life’ people, only if ‘pro-life’ meant more than anti-abortion. How can one claim ‘right to life’ but say that health care is a privilege?
This is why you don’t hear ‘pro-life’ when talking health care. The only time it’s come up was to make sure no funding went toward abortions. Proof that the phrase is only good for one wedge issue, not a concept to consistently pursue.
October 13th, 2009 at 11:20 amLieberman is shilling for the insurance companies. When have they ever cared about the public and the government debt? They are only concerned with how much they are going to make. The idea that this shouldn’t be done because of the economy is the same song Republicans have been singing since Social Security was enacted.
October 13th, 2009 at 11:22 amTranslation of Senator Lieberman’s Remarks;
“blah blah blah yada excuse excuse blah yada rationalization blah yap yap I useta be an insurance company whore but I got promoted to pimp on a past election cycle blah yada yap wheez sniff … Vote fer Joe he’ll fix ya up with a hot program heh heh … yap wheez … got some snake oil over here too …”
October 13th, 2009 at 11:24 amAm I the only progressive that hates the Baucus bill too? It’s nothing but a handout to the insurance companies. The government is going to mandate that we pay money to insurance companies, THEY WANT TO MANDATE WE GIVE MONEY TO THE SAME THIEVES WHO ARE PROMISING TO EXTORT US, PRIVATE INSURANCE THUGS!
The ironic thing is that conservatives (Lieberman included) should love this bill, without a robust public option it does NOTHING, ZERO, ZIP, NADA to help average Americans. It is nothing more than the status quo mandated.
Baucus said he “can count” and that a bill with a public option will not get 60 votes. Well can a bill without a public option get 60 votes? If I were a Democratic Senator I would act like Grayson over in the House and call everyone out on this. No progressive Senator should vote for this bill, it is awful.
Give me single payer or give me death, because that is what the insurance companies will do, kill people.
I’ll settle for a decent Public Option.
October 13th, 2009 at 11:25 am@ 30. Correction.
Virtual Pebble says: Translation of Senator Lieberman’s Remarks, while reaching out to the brain dead on the Don Imus schlock jock radio program;
“blah blah blah yada excuse excuse blah yada rationalization blah yap yap I useta be an insurance company whore but I got promoted to pimp on a past election cycle blah yada yap wheez sniff … Vote fer Joe he’ll fix ya up with a hot program heh heh … yap wheez … got some snake oil over here too …”
October 13th, 2009 at 11:24 am
Whew…
October 13th, 2009 at 11:28 amMost people, when they see “Joe Lieberman (I – CT)” figure the “I” stans for “Israel”. But we know it actually stands for “Insurance Industry”.
Way to go, Joe. You’re proven to give good value to your employers — Aetna and the rest of the Hartford Mafia.
October 13th, 2009 at 11:30 amHe is just ridiculous to say the least. Healthcare reform cannot wait, for cryin’ out loud. I want to hear him tell that to the working uninsured.
October 13th, 2009 at 11:36 am#22 ninerfan…You’re right and I agree with your point, but by saying “we” I intend that to mean all of us collectively.
I have not hesitated in sending his office emails and I have done so several times. I think it’s important to let him know what we think as Americans.
October 13th, 2009 at 11:37 amI don’t understand what the insurance companies and their pawns in Congress are doing. Everyone knows the Baucus bill is a gigantic subsidy to the insurance industry, and it is the best legislation they are going to get. Yet, even this boondoggle isn’t enough for them. I am very happy that they are shooting themselves in the foot by fighting against that piece of crap, and showing everyone what sacks of sh!t they are by threatening to double their highway robbery.
Their insane greed is going to give us a public option.
October 13th, 2009 at 11:40 amYou’re right, Rick. I just wish the voters in Connecticut would get their heads screwed on straight and get rid of this charlatan.
October 13th, 2009 at 11:49 amshoeless says:
Their insane greed is going to give us a public option.
You are being idealistic. That is not how Congress works. The people in government are being lobbied by various corporate interests. Those lobbyists spend a lot of money on Congress with campaign contributions and the like. The only thing that stops lobbyists is public opinion because Congress fears the voters more than the lobbyists.
October 13th, 2009 at 11:49 amHe’s gonna wait until the republicans tell him what to think.
October 13th, 2009 at 11:57 amSo much for the idiots who said that Lieberman is with us on “everything except the war” :-((
October 13th, 2009 at 12:10 pmAnd in a few years he and the other old mercenaries will be out of office and/or will die rich, and the rest of us will be paying higher and higher health care costs and dying poor for many years.
October 13th, 2009 at 12:13 pmLieberman says, “There’s no reason we have to do it all now.”
I guess that’s what makes him an independent. He’s not part of the Party of No, he’s the Party of Slow.
October 13th, 2009 at 12:15 pmHow many of you have called your congresscritters today?
If you haven’t, WHY NOT?!
October 13th, 2009 at 12:17 pmCrush of cancer, medical bills snares family
A study published in the June issue of the American Journal of Medicine found that in 2007, 62 percent of personal bankruptcies were because of medical debts. The same study indicated that in 1981, only 8 percent of bankruptcy filings could be traced to medical bills.
LINK
And don’t think for one minute this scenario couldn’t happen to anyone of us overnight.
Fcuking terrifying thought.
October 13th, 2009 at 12:36 pmIn other words, the insurance industry gives Joe $2 for every potential voter.
October 13th, 2009 at 12:41 pm.
Last Call… for Weiner and Kucinich Amendments
http://capwiz.com/pdamerica/issues/alert/?alertid=14168901
VOTES THIS WEEK!!!
.
October 13th, 2009 at 12:41 pmHow often does Joe Lieberman have to say, “F.U.” for the Democratic caucus to believe that he’s saying it?
This has degenerated to a bad joke, growing more stale with each repetition. I can hardly believe that the dweeb can restrain himself from laughing out loud as he tweaks the Dems, one day on foreign policy and the need for us to kill Islamic people, and the next day in defense of corporate larceny.
This s.o.b. doesn’t need to be turned out of the Democratic caucus, he needs to be beaten down and bum rushed through the door; if for no other reason than to temper the glee he derives from being such a miserable quisling.
October 13th, 2009 at 12:54 pmThat’s an almost verbatim of Dubbie’s position on taxes, which expresses the Righty version of the Golden Rule – he with the gold makes the rules.
“The mega-rich are always going to get and do exactly what they want, so you peons better just leave them alone, or they’ll punish you with higher prices for everything.”
Welcome to the Hostage Economy, America. Your Plutocrats will be along shortly to tell you where to send your money, and where to stand in line to try to get some more money to give to them. Don’t try anything funny, or they’ll bankrupt you.
October 13th, 2009 at 12:54 pmI am still amazed at the repeated meme about ‘free’ healthcare. The people who are on Medicare now have been paying for it, in advance, their entire working lives.
If we take what every employer and every employee is presently paying to feed the insurance vultures and put it into Medicare, problem solved and no one has to pay out one cent they aren’t already.
Then we can concentrate on clearing out the paperwork nightmare of health care providers having to deal with multiple, recalcitrant insurance companies and get down to the serious business of streamlining our health care processes.
Time to just clear out the deadwood.
October 13th, 2009 at 1:02 pmThat’s right, Dems! Throw that bastard out of the caucus and let him moulder away his career on a back bench with no committee chairmanships to call his own. A damned Republican isn’t supposed to be holding a chairmanship with a Democratic majority.
October 13th, 2009 at 1:09 pmLieberman has accepted millions in bribe money and bows to the will of his corporate overlords. He is a criminal and he belongs in prison.
Mr. Holder, indict this criminal and get him out of our government.
October 13th, 2009 at 1:15 pmLieberman is going to support a Republican fillibuster and singlehandedly sink the world!
If Reid does not strip him of all those committee positions he got to keep then they both must fry!
October 13th, 2009 at 1:21 pmIf you need a procedure done or a diagnostic performed, who is more likely to reject you, Medicare or the evil insurance companies? Analysis says: Medicare.
Which costs are rising faster, Medicare or those profit loving insurance companies? Analysis says: Medicare.
If profits are such a large portion of insurance premiums, why do non-profit insurance companies have the same or higher premiums than those evil profit loving insurance companies?
If as Obama says, the major reason costs are so high are because doctors order unneccessary tests and procedures to enrich themselves, why do HMO’s which pay doctors a flat salary have premiums as high as other health insurance companies? Why aren’t their costs substantially lower?
October 13th, 2009 at 1:29 pmThe only reason Lieberman keeps his committee chairmanship is because he is the 60th vote needed. If the 2010 elections result in the Dems not having enough seats to make close to 60, then Lieberman becomes unnecessary. There are more than enough Dems in the Senate who will benefit if Lieberman is tossed by the Dems. A new chair in one committee will open new chairs in other committees. Lieberman should think twice about double crossing the Dems. If he does, then Reid will be under intense pressure to dump Lieberman.
October 13th, 2009 at 1:34 pm53. Oops says:
If as Obama says, the major reason costs are so high are because doctors order unneccessary tests and procedures to enrich themselves, why do HMO’s which pay doctors a flat salary have premiums as high as other health insurance companies? Why aren’t their costs substantially lower?
Ask the CEO’s who take those extra premiums home in their paychecks and stock options.
October 13th, 2009 at 1:49 pmCompare how Medicare performs as compared to private insurance companies:
http://newsbusters.org/blogs/tom-blumer/2009/10/06/deny-guess-who-has-highest-medical-claim-rejection-rate
October 13th, 2009 at 1:49 pm55 If what you said is true, the CEO’s of HMO’s would be getting higher salaries than the profit loving evil insurance companies. They don’t. Their salaries are comparable.
Evidently doctors ordering tests to enrich themselves is NOT a major component of health care costs. Otherwise HMO’s would either have lower premiums, higher profits or higher CEO salaries. None of which are true.
Nice try. Try again.
October 13th, 2009 at 1:56 pmWill someone please WAKE UP!!!!!
If the inusurance industry makes a statement like…”everyones rates will go up if we have a public option” Well, then lets allow people to drop out of private insurance and join the public option at a affordable rate.
LET THEM (THE INSURANCE COMPANIES)RAISE THERE RATES AS HIGH AS THEY WANT….AS LONG AS PEOPLE ARE ALLOWED TO OP OUT OF PRIVATE INSURANCE AND JOIN PUBLIC OPTION.
LET THEM CREATE THERE OWN DEATH…FROM OVER CHARGING!!!
October 13th, 2009 at 2:07 pmOops,
it’s reassuring to know the insurance companies are so worried about their share prices they’d send a pr flak to a blog to sprinkle links…
thanks just the same – this is a universal, single-payer crowd.
October 13th, 2009 at 2:15 pmJoe leeches off the Insurance Companies that leech off the public. We would certainly be more healthy without either.
October 13th, 2009 at 2:17 pm59 If you can’t answer basic questions I guess this is the feel good, too dumb to know Obamabot crowd. Nice to know the White house is wasting taxpayer dollars paying someone to post on this blog
October 13th, 2009 at 2:23 pmOops,
If there weren’t already a more than convincing amount of empirical evidence that privatization, deregulation, and de-taxation are completely failed policy objectives, you’d be getting somewhere.
Instead, you’re not.
October 13th, 2009 at 2:30 pmHow about we compare who Medicare insures, vs. the private insurers?
Or would that be too “apples to apples” for you?
October 13th, 2009 at 2:45 pm62 How much government ownership, regulation and taxation is too much? Regulation of banks has sure worked well. Government agencies of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae buying all worthless mortgages anyone can provide sure worked out well.
Is a 50, 60, 90% taxation policy good enough for you? How about the highest tax rates for corporations than any other industrial nation as well as virtually all communist governments? Is that too much?
How about putting people in jail for anyone who doesn’t want to buy into this healthcare? Is this your idea of freedom?
October 13th, 2009 at 3:01 pm63 Medicare covers virtually all people over 65. While it is true older people require more medical attention, can you explain why the percentage of rejections is higher?
Isn’t a higher rate of rejection a form of health care rationing?
October 13th, 2009 at 3:13 pmOops says:
Not too much exaggeration there, eh?
October 13th, 2009 at 4:01 pmisn’t recission really a “death panel”?
demonstrate how a health insurance company adds value to the health care delivery equation in 500 words or less.
October 13th, 2009 at 4:25 pm64,
is paying more and getting less your idea of freedom?
October 13th, 2009 at 4:26 pm67 and 68, why answer any of your questions when you don’t answer mine?
And yes, freedom to choose or choose not to is a freedom. When choice is taken away you lose freedom.
October 13th, 2009 at 7:15 pmIt doesn’t say he will join a Republican filibuster, though. vajina estetigi
October 17th, 2009 at 4:35 amThank you for your sharing.!
October 17th, 2009 at 11:02 am