Independent Journalism

In the State of the Union Address, the President was all fired up over lost jobs, high debt, and the banking industry.   Did you notice he forgot to also get fired up over the “Cornhusker” kickback or the Louisiana Purchase?

The “Cornhusker” Kickback:

After holding out for weeks, Senator Ben Nelson of Nebraska (D), was promised $45 million. “In exchange for Nelson’s vote on the $871 billion health bill — the key 60th vote needed to overcome unanimous Republican opposition — Democratic leaders guaranteed the federal government would pay the full price of expanded Medicaid coverage in Nebraska.” (Brenden Scott, “GOP Blast ‘Kickback” Health Fix,” New York Post, 12/22/09)

Louisiana Purchase:

Before a closed vote last month, Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) got an estimated $300 million in extra federal spending for here state… she now supports Obama’s Universal Health care.

“And so it came to pass that Landrieu walked onto the Senate floor mid-afternoon Saturday to announce her aye vote — and to trumpet the financial “fix” she had arranged for Louisiana. ‘I am not going to be defensive,’ she declared. ‘And it’s not a $100 million fix. It’s a $300 million fix.’” (Dana Milbank, “Sweeteners For The South,” Washington Post, 11/22/09)

And The Cost To California… $2 Billion – $8 Billion:

With Staggering Deficits, Where Will The Money Come From? Higher Taxes? “The Schwarzenegger administration estimates this would cost California a staggering $8 billion. This is an enormous problem. The plunge in revenue due to the deep recession has left the state utterly strapped for money. The 2009-10 budget approved in late July is easily the leanest in at least a decade.  So where would this money come from? The most likely answer is from a hodgepodge of tax increases — higher sales, gasoline and income levies and more. In other words, from every Californian, in every income bracket.”  (Editorial, “Health Care Bill Has Huge Tab For State Taxpayers,” San Diego Union Tribune, 10/8/09)

“If you put everybody on Medicaid at 133 percent of the federal poverty rate, the cost to the state is $2 billion,” Feinstein said. “Where does the state get that money when it’s got a $15 billion shortfall next year and probably for many years after that?” (Carolyn Lochead, “Feinstein Skeptical About Health Care Costs,” San Francisco Chronicle, 9/12/09)

It is important to note that Sen. Feinstein has now changed her stance on this failed government takeover- she now supports the government run health care, but has not provided any information on how the state of California will pay for it.