Today in Washington D. C. - Sept 21 & 22, 2009 - Afghanistan to Healt Care - Big Government Messes

Senate will resume consideration of H.R. 2996, the fiscal 2010 Interior-Environment appropriations bill. The bill provides $32.1 billion in discretionary spending, a $4.5 billion increase from last year. Senate is scheduled to vote on an amendment to the bill from Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) to provide money for the Smithsonian to participate in the Civil Rights History Project.

The New York Times is reporting that “Senators Lisa Mukowski of Alaska and John Thune of South Dakota, two members of the Republican leadership, have proposed an amendment to the spending bill for the Environmental Protection Agency that would prohibit the agency from writing regulations covering industrial emissions blamed for global warming.”

Later in the week, the Senate could move to Military Construction-VA appropriations, Defense appropriations, drug reimportation legislation, or a continuing resolution to fund the government until all appropriations bills are completed.

AFGHANISTAN: The Washington Post’s Bob Woodward reported, “The top U.S. and NATO commander in Afghanistan warns in an urgent, confidential assessment of the war that he needs more forces within the next year and bluntly states that without them, the eight-year conflict ‘will likely result in failure,’ according to a copy of the 66-page document obtained by The Washington Post.  “Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal says emphatically: ‘Failure to gain the initiative and reverse insurgent momentum in the near-term (next 12 months) -- while Afghan security capacity matures -- risks an outcome where defeating the insurgency is no longer possible.’ . . . McChrystal concludes the document’s five-page Commander’s Summary on a note of muted optimism: ‘While the situation is serious, success is still achievable.’”

Another Washington Post piece adds, “A disputed presidential election, an erosion in support for the war effort among Democrats in Congress and the American public, and a sharp increase in U.S. casualties have prompted the president and his top advisers to reexamine their assumptions about the U.S. role in defeating the Taliban insurgency.”

Given that this is a critical juncture in American operations against al Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell suggested a good way for Congress and the American public to consider this report and strategy going forward: “We would like to see General McChrystal and General Petraeus come up to Congress, like they did during the Iraq surge and give us the information about what they’re recommending.  We think the time for decision is now.  As Senator McCain has pointed out, when you delay a decision like this, you, arguably, maybe unnecessarily, endanger the lives of our soldiers.”

Democrats in Congress were adamant that Gen. Petraeus come to the Hill to explain the surge strategy in Iraq two years ago, so one would hope they’d be similarly interested in hearing from him and Gen. McChrystal on a new strategy for Afghanistan.

In his report, Gen. McChrystal warned, “Failure to provide adequate resources also risks a longer conflict, greater casualties, higher overall costs, and ultimately, a critical loss of political support. Any of these risks, in turn, are likely to result in mission failure.” As Sen. McConnell said, “We’re looking forward to hearing publicly what General McChrystal has to say and what the president’s going to recommend.  I think the sooner he can make that decision, the better.”

HEALTH CARE: It seems that Democrats just can’t deal with even mild criticism of their plans for massive overhauls of the health care industry, given reports today about Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus’ apparent targeting of the health insurance company Humana for attempting to inform its customers about congressional health care proposals.

The Wall Street Journal editors explain the story behind this incident: “Earlier this month, Humana sent a one-page letter to its customers enrolled in its Medicare Advantage plans, which offer private options to Medicare beneficiaries. Humana noted that, because of spending cuts proposed by Democrats, ‘millions of seniors and disabled individuals could lose many of the important benefits and services that make Medicare Advantage health plans so valuable.’” Yesterday, though, the AP reported that “the Health and Human Services Department, which oversees [the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services], launched an investigation of Humana after getting a complaint from Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., a senior lawmaker usually viewed as a reliable ally of the insurance industry.”

The WSJ editors get right to the point, writing, “Max Baucus’s latest bullying tactics are hard to believe . . . as the Senate Finance Chairman has sicced federal regulators on the insurer Humana Inc. for daring to criticize one part of his health bill.” According to the AP, “In a warning letter to Humana, HHS said the government is concerned that the mailer ‘is misleading and confusing’ partly because the company’s lobbying campaign could be mistaken for an official communication about Medicare benefits. HHS ordered the company to immediately halt any such mailings, and remove any related materials from its Web site. In the letter, the government also said it may take other action against Humana.”

The warning seems conveniently timed, given that today is the beginning of Senate hearings to consider Baucus’ health reform plan. The Wall Street Journal points out, “In fact, the Baucus draft legislation slashes $123 billion over the next decade from Medicare Advantage . . . . Mr. Baucus doesn’t want seniors to be educated about these facts, and obviously he’s willing to use his enormous power to punish any private company that doesn’t affirm his, well, creative version of reality.”

“Humana merely made the mistake of trying to tell seniors the truth about what will happen to their coverage,” the WSJ editors conclude, “and now CEO Michael McCallister had better hire a good team of lawyers. Mr. Baucus and the Obama Administration are out to make him an object lesson to the rest of the business class, and that means they won’t stop until Humana cries uncle or is ruined.” Hot Air’s Ed Morrissey notes how troubling this is for those concerned about free speech, as well. “It seems to me that Humana is rightly and rationally warning these customers that big and unpleasant changes will be coming with ObamaCare in all its various forms at the moment, including the Baucus plan. . . . Maybe HHS and the White House should spend a little time re-reading the First Amendment instead of attempting to intimidate people out of the political debate, especially the stakeholders.”

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Tags: Afghanistan, General David Petraeus, General Stanley McChrystal, health care, health care rationing, Humana, medicade, Medicare Advantage, NATO, US Congress, US House, US Senate, Washington D.C. To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!