Medina County Dem News

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MEDINA COUNTY DEM EVENTS

Mike Todd for State Senate Tailgate Party-October 28

The Todd for Ohio campaign is proud to announce the first of a series of "Todd Tailgates" has been scheduled for October 28th. The event will take place at Dirty Cowboys, on Medina Road in Medina Township, from 11 AM to 1 PM. Tickets are 25 dollars and include two free drinks (soft drinks or beer), with food, fun and entertainment. After the event, Mike Todd welcomes all attendees to stay to join him in watching the Cleveland Browns beat the St. Louis Rams.

The Todd Tailgates are a series of casual, fun events, which will serve to bring together people to have a good time and feel the excitement building behind Mike Todd's campaign for the Ohio State Senate. They will be taking place throughout the 22nd District in conjunction with major sporting events from now through the 2008 general election. These events bring together people from all walks of life, including those who don't normally attend "political" events, to enjoy a good social atmosphere and meet Mike Todd.

Tickets are available in advance by contacting the campaign.

SELECTED ITEMS FROM THE MCDAC BLOG

Capitol Hill Newspaper Roll Call Reports that Congressman Ralph Regula to Retire

Roll Call reports that Congressman Ralph Regula will announce his retirement, possibly as soon as Friday, October 12, 2007. Here is the link:
http://www.rollcall.com/issues/1_1/breakingnews/20441-1.html

If You Hate Government, You Shouldn't Run It

Now that is a simple and easy to understand slogan. It makes sense because a person who hates something and then tries to run it will do a bad job. It is true and the truth has been borne out by the Bushies' incompetence in Iraq, with Hurricane Katrina, with the fiscal operations of the Federal government, and with the actual running of the government itself.

The Bushies didn't look upon government service as "service" but as "employment", a place where they could make some money, pick up lines for their resumes, and fight the conservative battle against the evils of "big government." Of course, their conservative values didn't stop from trying to make a buck at the taxpayer's expense.

They were, of course, inherently bad at actually running the government. It is one thing to rant about liberals in some college or law school classroom or over beers at a local watering hole, it is a whole other thing to actually run a government. Time after time their conduct in office has been shown to be incompetent, venal, corrupt, and devoid of any new ideas.

It is not enough, though, to just enjoy the train wreck they are making of the conservative movement. Progressives need a slogan to drive home to the American people why these idiots shouldn't be put in charge of future governments. That's why we are submitting the slogan that "if you hate government, you shouldn't run it."

Chris Matthews Claims Cheney Pressured NBC to Silence Him

Chris Matthews was at a 10 year anniversary party for the cast of Hardball, his nightly television show, and when he made some remarks, he claimed that the difference between the Clinton and Bush Administrations was that the Clinton Administration never tired to silence him. This is a quote from an article about the event:

In front of an audience that included such notables as Alan Greenspan, Rep. Patrick Kennedy and Sen. Ted Kennedy, Matthews began his remarks by declaring that he wanted to "make some news" and he certainly didn't disappoint. After praising the drafters of the First Amendment for allowing him to make a living, he outlined what he said was the fundamental difference between the Bush and Clinton administrations.

The Clinton camp, he said, never put pressure on his bosses to silence him.

"Not so this crowd," he added, explaining that Bush White House officials -- especially those from Vice President Cheney's office -- called MSNBC brass to complain about the content of his show and attempted to influence its editorial content. "They will not silence me!" Matthews declared.

He also used the line that the Bush Administration has "finally been caught in their criminality." This is yet one more sign that Washington media types have turned on the Bushies. This is going to be one long year and approximately three months for them. Not as long as it will be for the rest of us, but long nevertheless.

Republicans & Wing-Nut Bloggers Attack 12 Year Old Boy & Family

Just one more reason why we are not Republicans: We would find it impossible to be a part of a political party who decides that a 12 year old boy who was critically injured in a automobile crash and didn't have health insurance is a legitimate political target. Here is some background from the ABC News story linked to above:

With debate raging in Washington over children's health insurance, congressional Democrats found a new way to make their case for an expansion last weekend: Rather than have a senator or a congressman respond to President Bush's weekly radio address, they decided to have a child who was helped by the program speak directly to the public.

But the 12-year-old boy whom Democrats chose as their poster child is now at the center of a firestorm in Washington and beyond. Conservative bloggers who uncovered some details of the family's finances are blasting the family, calling the fact that they rely on federal insurance an example of how the State Children's Health Insurance Program has expanded beyond its original intent.

According to Senate Democratic aides, some bloggers have made repeated phone calls to the home of 12-year-old Graeme Frost, demanding information about his family's private life. On Monday, a spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid accused GOP leadership aides of "pushing falsehood" in an effort to distract from the political battle over S-CHIP.

Now, you are probably asking yourself why would even Republicans be this mean? Here is what they are alleging:

But after a largely positive story about Frost appeared in the Baltimore Sun, conservative-leaning bloggers began focusing on details of Frost's family situation. They suggested the family makes the conservative argument -- that the children's health insurance program has strayed from its original purpose by subsidizing healthcare for middle-class families, not just poor children.

A blogger on FreeRepublic.com discovered that Frost and his sister, Gemma, attend a private school where tuition costs $20,000 a year. Their father, Halsey, is a self-employed woodworker, meaning that if his family doesn't have health insurance, it's because Halsey Frost -- as his own boss -- chooses not to purchase it for himself.

"One has to wonder that if time and money can be found to remodel a home, send kids to exclusive private schools, purchase commercial property and run your own business . . . maybe money can be found for other things," a blogger with the handle "icwhatudo" wrote on FreeRepublic.

Only, of course, being Republicans they didn't bother to check out the facts. Here's what we are referring to:

But Manley say conservative bloggers didn't dig deep enough. It turns out that the Frost children attend Baltimore's Park School on near-full scholarships; they pay roughly $500 per child per year in tuition, he said.

Like many small-business owners, Halsey Frost can't even afford to provide health insurance to himself, Manley said.

"Last year, the Frost's made $45,000 combined," Manley said. "Over the past few years they have made no more than $50,000 combined depending on Halsey's ability to find work."

The Frost family did not immediately return calls seeking comment.

Of course, facts don't manner to Washington, D.C., Republicans, whether the issue is starting a war in Iraq, passing reckless tax cuts, or vetoing children's health insurance, they just don't care.

S-CHIP Incease Less Than 8% of What Bush Has Spent on Iraq

If you look on the MCDAC blog, you will see that we have installed a counter than provides continuous updates on how much the Iraq War is costing American taxpayers. We obtained this counter from the National Priorities Project. As of this morning, the cost of the S-CHIP funding that Bush vetoed is less than 8% of the cost of the war in Iraq. That means that Bush and his Republican allies are unwilling to spend $.08 cents for children's health insurance for every dollar they have spent so far in Iraq. This is a graphic example of the priorities of the Bush and his Republican allies.

Not only do they not want to spend the money, but as Paul Krugman noted in one of his columns in the New York Times, they make jokes about Bush's veto. According to Krugman, this was Bill Kristol's reaction to Bush's veto of the S-CHIP funding bill: "First of all, whenever I hear anything described as a heartless assault on our children, I tend to think it's a good idea. I'm happy that the president's willing to do something bad for the kids." Bill Kristol is the editor of the conservative newspaper the Weekly Standard and an advocate of the Iraq War.

Of course, it is easy for Kristol to joke about someone else's kids not having health insurance, just as it's easy for Bush to veto the bill. Neither of them have ever had to worry about how they were going to pay for medical bills for their children. Even as Bush was bankrupting businesses down in Texas, you can rest assured that "Poppy" Bush and Barbara made sure than his precious twins had health coverage. Well, we suppose we should be grateful for the fact that at least Bush had the decency not to joke about his veto.

UPDATE: See Nancy Pelosi make the point on Fox News Sunday with Chris Wallace.

Other articles from the MCDAC blog can be read at http://www.mcdac.blogspot.com

The MCDAC Newsletter is published by the
Medina County Democratic Action Committee
Joyce V. Kimbler, Treasurer
P.O. Box 1213
Medina, OH 44258
mailto:Email:%20joycekimbler@medinacountydemocraticactioncommittee.org
On the World Wide Web at http://www.mcdac.org