Under The Radar

So Mr. Transparency and his Pelosi-led crew have been mighty busy over the past couple of weeks. Okay, okay, his entire presidency thus far. But the past couple of weeks have been particularly bad. First there was the whole health care bill rammed down our throats.

But also inside that Health Care bill was a massive change to Student Loans. I am all for student loans - I used them for graduate school myself. But what the heck do Student Loans have to do with Health Care? Just another budgetary trick by the "Transparency" Party. And today, President Obama will be signing THIS piece into law:



Then there are Obama's recess appointments. Now, all presidents do this, that we know. But there was one person in particular who was opposed by both Democrats and Republicans. The following sets the stage:



Oh, yes. This Becker guy, friend to the SEIU is JUST who we need in a Labor position, isn't he? Well, you know what's coming. Obama appointed him despte all of the opposition:



So Student Loan overhaul was used to "balance" the Health Care costs (and we know it really didn't, given the double dipping shell games used in that procedure), but another victim of the budget is a benefit. It applies to the spouses of those serving in the Armed Services:



I hope the Pentagon is able to figure out a way to restore this benefit. It is an important benefit to those who serve the country, too, by supporting their spouses in the military.

Obama will be meeting today with French President Sarkozy. Unlike other allies who have visited the White House recently, Sarkozy will actually have a dinner in his honor. Why, you might ask? What makes him more important than, say, Netanyahu? Because Obama wants to ask him to send more troops o Afghanistan. I mean, really, after the way he has treated the British, he can't exactly go with hat in hand to them, can he? No, to our friends he is arrogant; to our enemies, he is solicitous. Go figure.

Oh, and one last thing, also a direct result of Obama's "Transparent" Health Care Law. Rep. Henry Waxman is a bit miffed that all of these big corporations are coming out saying how much this law is going to cost them, thus cost new jobs, and put more people into government run programs (which I contend was Obama's intent all along). He is demanding that they come to the Hill and testify April 21st. And they better bring all of their paperwork showing how they came to these conclusions:

Waxman's demands for documents are far-reaching. "To assist the Committee with its preparation for the hearing," he wrote to Stephenson, "we request that you provide the following documents from January 1, 2009, through the present:

(1) any analyses related to the projected impact of health care reform on AT&T; and (2) any documents, including e-mail messages, sent to or prepared or reviewed by senior company officials related to the projected impact of health care reform on AT&T. We also request an explanation of the accounting methods used by AT&T since 2003 to estimate the financial impact on your company of the 28 percent subsidy for retiree drug coverage and its deductibility or nondeductibility, including the accounting methods used in preparing the cost impact statement released by AT&T this week.

Waxman's request could prove particularly troubling for the companies. The executives will undoubtedly view such documents as confidential, but if they fail to give Waxman everything he wants, they run the risk of subpoenas and threats from the chairman. And all as punishment for making a business decision in light of a new tax situation.

The particular problem for the companies involves the prescription drug coverage they offer retired workers. In 2003, when President Bush and the Republican Congress passed the Medicare prescription drug entitlement, they offered a tax break to companies that continued to provide drug coverage for their retirees, rather than forcing them into the Medicare system. The new national health care bill ends that tax break, making it more expensive for the companies to continue offering the coverage. Ultimately, some analysts believe, the companies will stop covering the retirees, pushing them into the government system.

It's ironic, isn't it? Waxman, because these companies are harshing Obama's buzz from getting this thing passed is demanding something from these corporations that WE didn't get from Congress. Yes, the irony, the irony.

Not to mention some validation - I knew the government was trying to force more people into the government run system. Yeppers - just another piece of the Obama pie. I am sure more will be coming out about this issue in the intervening time before the Trial On The Hill.

So - what else is flying under the radar today? Let's hear it!