Hillary and Obama - Alone At Last!
by Ron Corvus
Tonight's "debate" is hard evidence of Democratic Party unification - against We The People!
Iraq
Obama said the war was a "strategic mistake" and "I want to end the mindset that got us into war in the first place," but then said he was willing to send troops worldwide to "fight al Qaeda" at will. This is typical Obama "doublespeak." Such acts are a categorical continuation of the illegal Bush Doctrine of pre-emptive strikes. Hillary tried again for the umpteenth time to "explain away" her vote on the Iraqi War resolution by saying she was "surprised" by Bush's attack - Hillary claimed she had no idea Bush was going to attack Iraq, despite the title of the resolution: "Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution of 2002." btw, Hillary voted AGAINST the alternate amendment requiring Bush to send U.N. weapons inspectors into Iraq before using force.
Hillary virtually repeated BushCo. pre-war talking points as her excuse for voting for the Iraq Use of Force resolution. Obama claimed to have opposed the war from the start, despite the fact Obama voted to continue funding the war several times - to fund war is to approve war - to defund war is to end war - each time Obama voted to fund the war, Obama reauthorized the war. Hillary reauthorized the war over 15 times. Neither candidate cited the attack, invasion and military occupation of Iraq as unlawful and unconstitutional.
Healthcare
Hillary and Obama both believe the best way to provide healthcare to everyone is to encourage "free competition" between the insurance companies, HMOs and pharms. This is one of the oldest lies in the lobbyist playbook. Hillary likened her healthcare plan to Edwards' healthcare plan - which is no universal healthcare at all - just corporate welfare. Obama said: "About 95% of our plans are similiar." Both promise to make healthcare "affordable," which is French for "Americans continuing to make cash payments to insurance companies, HMOs and pharmaceuticals." Such is NOT single-payer universal healthcare. True universal healthcare means NO PAYMENTS! JUST SERVICE!
Hillary wants to take $55 billion in Bush tax cuts and put them into corporate subsidies Hillary's plan offers.
The bottom line is, Hillary and Obama are unwilling to CONVERT our current "FOR-PROFIT" healthcare systen to a "NON-PROFIT" healthcare system, as the rest of the civilized world has done. In other words, We The People are ALREADY PAYING FOR universal healthcare - we're just not getting it. Americans pay in approx. $2.3 trillion dollars annually into Medicare/Medicaid, yet almost two-thirds of that budget goes to the "FOR-PROFIT" corporations, whose board of directors have a duty by law to maximize profits for their stockholders - Hillary and Obama do NOTHING to ELIMINATE those greedy fatcat executive salaries and bonuses from our nation's healthcare budget. If we redirected profits away from those insurance companies, HMOs and pharmaceuticals - instead using those funds to pay for the actual cost of healthcare provided, that would be more than enough money to pay for all the healthcare needs you and your family will ever need. Hillary and Obama prefer to SUBSIDIZE those greedy corporations with more tax dollars for corporate welfare. When asked what about the 15 million Americans who cannot afford to make more insurance payments? If we provide those 15 million people enough subsidizies they will purchase it.
Obama wondered aloud what is Hillary going to do to the Americans who do not comply with Hillary's mandate to purchase corporate healthcare insurance? Fine them? Lock them up? What is she going to do? Hillary argues her plan will lower those insurance company premiums - FAT CHANCE! Hillary is AGAINST single-payer universal healthcare. Hillary calls her plan "shared responsibility." Obama said he wants to penalize Americans who go to the emergency room, who do not purchase healthcare insurance, with back premiums.
Illegal Immigration
Hillary and Obama both shamelessly went after the Latino vote, promising amnesty for all 14 million illegal aliens; both Hillary and Obama support free college education for illegal aliens; Obama supports giving driver's licenses to illegal aliens. Neither said a word about repairing the damage Bush did to Social Security and Americans by allowing illegal aliens to collect Social Security after paying in only 18 months while Americans have to pay in for TEN YEARS before being allowed to draw Social Security.
Obama said he's tired of folks blaming illegal aliens for the loss of jobs in America, characterizing the claim of loss of jobs in the inner cities to immigrants as scapegoating. When I heard this, it made me sick, since it is a known fact Americans have been losing jobs to illegal aliens - not because Americans won't work, but because illegal aliens will work for less pay. Is Obama too high in his ivory tower to know American communities are suffering from the effects of illegal immigration? Disgusting. Illegal aliens continue to have a negligible effect on Americans and our economy. One thing's for sure: over four million illegal aliens will continue to pour across our borders and reduce wages for the middle class American worker. Both the Democratic and Republican parties support an open borders policy. Disgusting. This is HARD PROOF they don't give a DAMN about American middle class workers. Obama said "Illegals don't come here to drive - they come here to work." What a really stupid thing to say, considering once you give illegal aliens drivers licenses, then employers can insure illegal alien delivery drivers - they can take American delivery/truck drivers' paychecks out of their mouths. And yes, illegal aliens drive to work in a car or truck.
Neither said a single, serious word about STOPPING THE FLOW of four million illegal aliens annually across our Southerm border; in other words, Hillary nor Obama will build a true security barrier to PREVENT illegal aliens from crossing our border. The MSM and both parties have conned the American people into to falsely believing it is not possible to stop the flow of illegal aliens into our country - nothing could be further from the truth. Don't believe a 20-foot deep, 25-yard wide, razor wire double fence can't stop illegals from crossing our borders? Just ask http://razor-wire.com/ 602-447-0300 Phoenix, Arizona. Or just ask one of the 50 governors of each state who preside over their state's prison system. The most basic duty of government is to protect it's citizenry from invasion - now, a majority of Americans support doing what it takes to secure our borders. We've got to STOP illegal invasion to CONTROL illegal immigration. It is a duty owed us by our government.
Conclusion
What are the differences? There's not a dime's worth of differences between them. Hillary characterized the situation as, "What people want, what people accept and what is politically acceptable" as the heart of the matter. She may have inadvertently told the truth here, since the fact remains: the drug lobby RULES CONGRESS! The drug lobbyists/lawyers write our nation's healthcare bills - Congress doesn't. Haven't you seen Michael Moore's movie "Sicko?" Every American should see this movie. Roll call vote is supposed to remain open only 15 minutes - the last time Congress passed the drug lobbyist bill the vote remained open until 3am, till hundreds of drug lobbyists twisted enough arms to get the votes they needed. Unfortunately, America will remain the only country in the civilized world WITHOUT true, fully-paid universal healthcare.
REAL CHANGE will NEVER COME on the wings of the corporate bird: the Democratic and Republican parties.
.r o n ron@corvusblog.com
