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A 2006 memo penned by Newt Gingrich praised the health reform law Mitt Romney piloted as governor of Massachusetts, and threatens to undercut the former House speaker's criticism of that plan.
A memo (first unearthed Tuesday by the Wall Street Journal) distributed through Gingrich's Center for Health Transformation credits Romney and his state's health reform law as a positive development.
"The most exciting development of the past few weeks is what has been happening up in Massachusetts. The health bill that Governor Romney signed into law this month has tremendous potential to effect major change in the American health system," Gingrich wrote. "We agree entirely with Governor Romney and Massachusetts legislators that our goal should be 100 percent insurance coverage for all Americans."
That would seemingly temper Gingrich's criticism of the Massachusetts plan as the "forerunner of Obamacare."
Gingrich has similarly criticized the individual mandate contained both in Romney and President Obama's health reforms, despite having supported a similar model for health reform in the 1990s. He's since disavowed such a plan.
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Just a thought experiment: If we were able to take all previous presidents, and replace them with their opponents who lost, I wonder if anything would be so different today?
I am self employed in MA and I thought Romney care would help lower costs for me. It didn't help me at all and my costs are now almost $17000yr for a family plan with Blue cross and a $2500 deductable. The emergency rooms are still full of illegal immigrants and my cost go up every year while my plan keeps getting worse. If anyone tells you that big government is the best solution to any problem they are lying to you.
I agree costs need to go down I just paid $400 to have my two children's teeth cleaned. That is nuts. Maybe the government should put its money into subsidizing thousands of medical students to flood the market with doctors and lower the prevailing wage?
You are unfortunately get screwed from both ends. The doctors will bill insurance well beyond what they would charge someone without insurance. Why? Greed. Then the insurers will try to get every last penny they can from you. Why? Greed. We are not lacking common sense in this country we are lacking ethics. Everyone wants that new car or that new this or that new that. Greed is the problem always has been and always will.
As a resident of that Left Wing Looney bin Massachusetts, I have to say that the health care law in this state basically works. Those who get health care from their place of employment have seen absolutely no change in what they have. Those who do not get health care can purchase it at a pretty good price for a plan.
Remember, we all pay for health care of those who do not have any insurance. When someone goes to the Emergency room without insurance and cannot afford care, the hospital adds the money it spent on the patient to everybody else's bills. Of course many people cannot understand this.
You would think that Conservatives could find a candidate who is either not crazy as a loon or a hypocrit magnitude 10 on the richter scale.
Brewzky23 - Did the liberal media write the Newt note? Just wondering how you came up with blaming the media.
I think Brewsky23 forgets that there are such things as word processors and tape recorders and video cameras and all of those gadgets that record most of the things that our public figures say and do, so when one of these campured moments is brought to light, for folks like Brewsky23 it means that the (often mislabled 'liberal') media must be doing it to "smear" their guy.
blowhard: Who said Newt did not write the memo. I love the ingrained, "gotta spin something" mentality you people have. Please show me where I said someone other than Newt wrote the memo. And Sherminator. you're really not that funny or bright. If you don't think the media is making this front page news for the sole purpose of smearing a candidate you're an idiot.
What I'm saying is, who cares about the memo. Every politician, including your beloved Obama will say whatever they think is appropriate at that moment in time. How is that news, and what politician doesn't do this every second they're awake. Newt has no chance of getting nominated with or without the memo. They better focus their sight on Mitt. If Obama keeps his current track record on this course he will lose; if by some miracle the economy rights itself by itself, he might win.
republicans......taking away your freedoms and happiness with violence and oppression since the 1800's....god bless America, the Country
of democracy....of the republic....With so many outstanding human beings in office it is very difficult to choose replacements.
Perhaps if we just drafted 500 out of the general population we might have a chance at being represented.
Elect no politicians!
A thought...why can't we stay home, quit fighting wars and take care of us?
I know, we need wars for big oil and military contractors and so we will make up enemies so we can keep spending like mad.
The issue here is not whether the healthcare act helps people but who suggested it. As President Obama has said many times, what he suggests has been done in the past by Republicans and Democrats. The problem lies in the fact that the extreme conservatives without consciences want to discredit the President so that they can replace him in 2012. The mainstream media has been complicit in this regard by slanting many of the articles they write to benefit the right. Many people, including a large number of children do not have healthcare and are suffering as a result of this. The MEME group of libertarians do not want to help and are pushing the GOP/Tea Party Congressional members in the House and Senate to destroy this assistance by trying to eliminate the Affordable Healthcare Act. Gingrich and Romney are hypocrites as shown by their past deeds or comments. It is sad that they both feel that they have to distance themselves from a program that has helped many and has the potential to help many more to win an election.
Obamacare would pay for upwards of 20 million illegals healthcare. I know Obama said differently, but he's a lying SOB. How about people paying THEIR OWN health bills and keep the federal government out of it! The government should have NO CONTROL over health insurance!!
RDG— where did you get Obama care will cover illegals? Where!!
We already pay for illegals health care. How does Obamacare add to that bill?
I blew out my Flip Flop
Stepped on a pop top.....
Waistin' away again in Margaritaville.
Flagellation and self-flagellation, the Republicans are at it again. The primaries should have been a wonderful opportunity for them to show their strengths and present an overall platform instead it has turned into a perverted dungeon scene with each candidate taking his turn getting a whipping. On the handle of each whip is inscribed, "My Words", and "My Deeds". Go to it boys.
When are people going to see this fat little jerk for the hypocrite and political opportunist that he is (and always has been)!
Porky Pig for president!!!
Jesus, we need a new administration... Government waste is none other than disgusting. Higher taxes won't help the American people one bit... Will just lead to more waste. And about this tax break... How do the dems rationalize that 2 month tax break is better than 1 year tax break? Dumbfounds me. I literally get dumber when I hear some of these replies from Obama supporters. Sad to see Beautiful America reduced to current status.
How can you possibly get dumber teabagger? You started with an IQ of ZERO!
Negative numbers is how.
enlightened conservative Republicans?!, will do anything and vote for anyone, they think can replace Obama. They want to stop the spending and reduce the national debt. Good luck with that. The projections of spending, just to allow for the baby boom generation retiring, will raise the debt ceiling for the next 8-10 years. The Republicans preach no taxes and curb the national debt because they don't have a clue. Even if, one of them gets elected, they will not be able to put a dent in this problem without raising taxes. The problem is, they will do what they always do, raise taxes on the middle and working classes, while going after Medicare, Social Security, unemployment insurance, pensions, education and government jobs, at the national and state level. When your not watching the Fox channel, check the non-partisan Government Budget Office's projected debt for the next decade?! LOL
Who cares, so hes a politician, he lied whats new.Sooo they get in office and then they do the exact oposet of what the said they would do.I'm so tired of repubs. and dems. tired of the lies and the bickering and the politics .the middle class dies and the rich and the poor profit.This can't stand for much longer,we the people have to change this. I don't care if your a teaparty or a ows we are all Americans quit falling for there tactics of divide and conquer.
The bigger story here is that Willard's health plan - the one Newt the Hoot praised? Well it's exactly the same thing that WIllard is now calling "Obamacare." You have to admire the right's ability to complete abandon fact, logic or any form of sanity when it comes to politics.
Fire them all and start fresh consider voting for your favorite person in your neighborhood they would do a better job than the clown's we have now!!!!
Two things you can expect now on this thread.
1. The inbred teabaggers will start blaming the "liberal media" for reporting this fact. Because the "liberal media" should do what Fake News Channel does - just ignore anything that's bad for the GOP
2. The right wing traitors will start trying to change the subject because this looks bad for their guy and they want to talk about ANYTHING else.
Why do you feel the need to insult people you have never meant?
rp2012: i just read your comment history, seems you do the same thing. Not that it's wrong, I don't feel meeting someone is required to condemn them. Hitler, for example. Do you know how hard it is to get an appointment to meet that guy? I just decided to condemn him anyways.
No, there is only one thing you can expect on this thread. Liberals who never read to study issues and only follow clichés from the FLEA Party.
Mitt and Newt are both progressive Republicans and their positions on the issues are almost identical. It is probably idealistic of me, but I am really hoping one of the more conservative candidates (Bachmann, Paul, Perry, Santorum) pulls a surprise in Iowa.
We don't need Obama light for the next president.
..IF you do, you be doing worse than just throwing your vote away, you will be giving you vote to the ONLY PARTY whose sole purpose for 4 years was to "Create as much chaos as possible in order to keep a legally elected official of this country from performing as WE REQUIRED him to do... When a political party tries it's level best to destroy that which THE VOTERS have DEMANDED - THEY NEED TO BE DESTROYED...and it presently appears they are destroying themselves by the minute daily w/o ANY help from the Liberals.
Conservatives destroying their own party & ideology out of spite, why does that NOT sound surprising or unusual..?
It should not be a surprise to hear any thing spewing out of the mouths of the republican candidates or any other republican politican because their only goal is to turn the white house back over to one of their hand picked flip-floppers who the Koch brothers and Glover Norquist already own and go back to the southern good old boy intellect that will never happen under President Obama's watch. Progress is something that these republicans are going to fight against because change and not being in control scare's them to death, and having an equal playing field is something that they would kill to not have.
Wow, and you're allowed to vote?
republican,democrat it makes no difference. all of them have developed into a class society of their own.
all for one and one four all. as long as it is in their own personal interest, they have no motivation, or intention to serve america.
it will take an exceptional leader from either party to fix our political system,which is on the edge of a cliff hanging on for dear life.
let someone with real integrity and wisdom please step up.
Ron Paul 2012. If you think someone with an impeccable voting record who will absolutely end the wars and bring our currency back from the abyss is a clown, then shame on your parents.
You can't help but like Newt's face but hate is mind.
After doing a few calculations, I have made this as simple to understand as possible:
U.S. Tax Revenue: $2,170,000,000,000
Federal Budget: $3,820,000,000,000
New Debt: $1,650,000,000,000
National Debt: $14,271,000,000,000
Recent Budget Cut: $38,500,000,000
Now when I remove 8 zeros and pretend it's household budget you get:
Annual family income: $21,000
Money the family spent: $38,200
New debt on existing credit card: $16,500
Outstanding balance on credit cared: $142,710
Total budget cuts which some politicians are proud of: $385.
Please vote out as many of these idiots as possible.
The simple truth is that "Obamacare," like everything else Obama has done or tried to do is more conservative than it is liberal. This whole rightie idea that Obama is this extreme left-wing "socialist," is completelty ridiculous and demonstrates in no uncertain terms, just how out of touch with reality these half-wits who still support the republicans, are.
an extreme left-wing socialist, would be advocating the over throw of the Government by force, you need to look up the definition of extreme left wing and understand, you don't know what you are talking about. Obama is slightly left centrist, who has advocated a bi-partisan approach to legislation for the last 3 years, only to be obstructed by the conservative right, Senate, filibustering at the largest rate in the history of our country. Every Republican President since Ford, has agreed with Medicare, Medicaid, Veterans Benefits, Unemployment Insurance, Public Assistance (food stamps) and corporate tax breaks?! How do you define socialism? You can not be an extreme radical leftist and be a representative of the Government by definition, unless you are talking about Fascism.
Actually, Jim, I would argue that Obama is a RIGHT-leaning centrist with his ties to big business and weak wall street reform.