Obamacare-Protest

It was a beautiful day for a “high noon” tea party rally of thousands of Americans from all over the country. An estimated 20,000 to 50,000 people (depends on who and what you read) were believed to have converged at the West Lawn in Washington, DC outside the congressional building on Saturday to protest the pending ramrodding of government-run health care by Congress. “Kill the bill” and “Don’t tread on me” were recurring themes on a number of protest signs at the “Code Red” rally.

Thank you to the thousands of patriots who attended. Millions of Americans who couldn’t be there were rooting you on.

From the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, ‘Tea party’ heard as D.C. focus of protest:

WASHINGTON — Veerle Vandecasteele strolled along the White House’s front-lawn fence Saturday, a cloudless and unseasonably warm day.

“What a beautiful capital city this is!” she said, explaining that she and her mother, Freeda, flew in from Belgium at midweek.

“I am very struck by how peaceful your protesters are — indeed, friendly,” she said about passing “tea party” activists, clad mostly in red, white and blue and hoisting homemade signs.

When the Vandecasteeles planned their sight-seeing trip, they never suspected it would coincide with a make-or-break congressional vote on health care, accompanying pro-and-con rallies and a pair of unrelated protests.

The House was poised to vote today on that controversial bill, 14 months after PreIt was a beautiful day for a “high noon” tea party rally of thousands of Americans from all over the country. An estimated 20,000 to 50,000 people (depends on who and what you read) were believed to have converged at the West Lawn in Washington, DC outside the congressional building on Saturday to protest the pending ramrodding of government-run health care by Congress. “Kill the bill” and “Don’t tread on me” were recurring themes on a number of protest signs at the “Code Red” rally.

Thank you to the thousands of patriots who attended. Millions of Americans who couldn’t be there were rooting you on.

From the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, ‘Tea party’ heard as D.C. focus of protest:

WASHINGTON — Veerle Vandecasteele strolled along the White House’s front-lawn fence Saturday, a cloudless and unseasonably warm day.

“What a beautiful capital city this is!” she said, explaining that she and her mother, Freeda, flew in from Belgium at midweek.

“I am very struck by how peaceful your protesters are — indeed, friendly,” she said about passing “tea party” activists, clad mostly in red, white and blue and hoisting homemade signs.

The House was poised to vote today on that controversial bill, 14 months after President Obama opened his first health-care forum.

In between were missed deadlines, angry town hall meetings for many congressmen on summer recess, a House bill passed in November followed by a Senate version approved on Christmas Eve.

When Massachusetts Republican Scott Brown won a special January election to fill the Senate seat of the late Democrat Ted Kennedy — thanks largely to voter anger over the health-care debate — it further complicated Obama’s crusade. Brown’s victory ended Senate Democrats’ 60-vote majority and their ability to easily block a GOP filibuster.

By week’s end, after days of closed-door dealing and White House arm-twisting, House Democrats appeared confident of mustering the 216 votes needed to pass the Senate bill.

In the 12 blocks between the White House and Capitol Hill, a steady stream of people carried homemade signs and “Don’t tread on me” flags, folding chairs and coolers to a tea party rally against the health-care bill on the Capitol’s West Lawn.

Rochester, N.Y., native Jim Garrity hurried toward that rally with his son, Andy. “Up until a couple of months ago, I was a lifelong Democrat,” he said. “Not any more.”

A mechanical engineer, Garrity, 68, said he never participated in politics or protests before, but, “I couldn’t not be here. It’s important that my voice is heard.”

The crowd covering the West Lawn included a mix of younger and older protesters as well as whole families, many with their pets in tow.

Rep. Mike Pence, R-Ind., one of the rally’s many speakers, said he was impressed by the throng’s “electric” energy.nt Obama opened his first health-care forum.

In between were missed deadlines, angry town hall meetings for many congressmen on summer recess, a House bill passed in November followed by a Senate version approved on Christmas Eve.

By week’s end, after days of closed-door dealing and White House arm-twisting, House Democrats appeared confident of mustering the 216 votes needed to pass the Senate bill.

Rochester, N.Y., native Jim Garrity hurried toward that rally with his son, Andy. “Up until a couple of months ago, I was a lifelong Democrat,” he said. “Not any more.”

A mechanical engineer, Garrity, 68, said he never participated in politics or protests before, but, “I couldn’t not be here. It’s important that my voice is heard.”

The crowd covering the West Lawn included a mix of younger and older protesters as well as whole families, many with their pets in tow.

Rep. Mike Pence, R-Ind., one of the rally’s many speakers, said he was impressed by the throng’s “electric” energy.

Examiner.com has a live-blog, detailed accounting of the rally. Here is just a portion, so be sure to visit the site to read it in its entirety… Code Red Kill The Bill Rally Against Health Care Bill Live Blog – Code Red Kill Bill Rally Continues Sunday March 21 Capitol Hill Washington DC:

12:37 (EST): A Latina woman from Brazil who became an American Citizen, came for opportunity in America, and now sees things happening in America that happened in Latin America: politicians preaching hope and change for the people, but really only doing it to further their own agendas.

12:41 (EST): Rep. Gohmert takes the stage and says that there are over 17,000 new jobs in the bill for the IRS!!

12:43 (EST): Congressman from Tennessee says, “If this bill passes, we will repeal it, and if they can’t repeal it, then we’ll meet them at the state line with our governors.”

12:45 (EST): Rep. Scalese says “If this deal is so good, then why are doing backroom deals and ferrying congressmen on Air Force One like a Ferris Wheel at Disneyland?”

12:49 (EST): Diane Young, an African American educator from Maryland says she feels betrayed by Obama, and that he rode into office on pernicious lies.

12:57 (EST): Marsha Blackburn takes stage: “Let’s kill the bill and start over with real health care reform. This is about freedom. We the people are standing strong, and you all are leading the way. Some people say Republicans are the part of “no,” but we are the party of “know,” and the more we know the more we don’t like it.

1:02 (EST): Rep. Kingston of Georgia says, “If this bill is so good, why have so many deals been made with the President’s own party?”

1:05 (EST): Andrew Langer, President of Inst. for Liberty takes the stage and says he wants everyone to be whistle blowers- he handed out a few thousand but ran out since the crowd is much bigger than that.

1:07 (EST): The president of Doctors and Patients has doctors behind her wearing real coats, not coats from the White House costume department. One of the speakers says that CBS news says the crowd is 2,000, but looks much bigger than that. That’s quite a crowd for something planned just 3 days ago!

1:15 (EST): Jon Voight just took stage (introduced by Bachmann) and says, “Obama has a compulsion, he will turn this country into a socialist country- it’s a runaway train he can’t stop- Obama will be a one term president, but the damage he will cause will harm this country for years. We have to stop it!” Voight goes on to discuss the interview Obama had with Brett Baird on Fox showed how he would not dare answer any questions. Obama gestures showed that he was trying to say, “Don’t you dare speak when the President speaks!”

1:24 (EST): Rep. Gingrey of Georgia takes the podium. Gingrey is also a doctor. He says, “The Stimulus bill was supposed to be for shovel ready projects, and we saw what happened to that! Now with the health care bill, if 75-year-olds need medicine or attention, a health care czar will say that they are shovel-ready!

1:27 (EST): Dr. Milton Hill, Obama’s second cousin, takes the podium. “The bill is brought to you by the same people who chose health and well being of smelt fish over humans! Stop this bill and on Monday, your doctor will concentrate on your health, not studying government tables!”

1:30 (EST): Michele Bachmann comes back and says she estimates that there are over 50,000 people now gathered in D.C. for the Code Red Kill the Bill rally!

1:35 (EST): Rep. Aiken from Missouri takes stage, and then the National director of Resistnet takes podium and says, “I spend everyday reading the blogs and what you write!”

1:40 (EST): Rep. Rogers takes the stage and says, “When asked what type of government we have, Ben Franklin said that we have a Constitutional Republic, if we can keep it! Back there in the capitol, they are lying, cheating, and stealing to get to your health care. Only here could they be cheating the 85% who do have health care to give to the 15% that do not have health care.

1:42 (EST) The Resistnet president speaks again, “I may be blonde, but I studied economics. I’m tired of being lied to! We are all being treated like we’re a bunch of ‘dumb blondes!’ Stand here and declare that this bill be killed!”

1:44 (EST): Rep. King of Iowa takes the podium- “We’re going to keep this hill.” He tells a story of “Toxic Stew.” (Admin note: video of “toxic stew” story below, h/t to Flopping Aces)

1:46 (EST): Brendan Steinhauser of Freedom Works takes a picture of the crowd, and thinks the lawn is holding 40,000 people. He says he just heard from Rep. Cardoza and will NOT be supporting the deem and pass. He is listening to the people, who are making a difference.

1:53 (EST): Tito Munoz, president of the Hispanic Coalition says, “First and foremost, I am an American. I did not come to America for dependency – I came here form liberty! We’re going to stay here at the capitol, and will come back 10, 100, a million times!”

1:57 (EST): Tea Party leaders take the stage and say, “We’re tired of this elitism and backroom deals!”

2:01 (EST): A speaker from Americans for Life says she just got a count from the whip- Pelosi doesn’t have the votes!!

From First Coast News, First Coast Tea Party Members Rally in DC:

WASHINGTON, D.C. — First Coast Tea Party members are in Washington, D.C. They rallied in front of the Capitol Saturday with thousands of others against the Health Care Bill.

Billie Tucker of Jacksonville was among the 50-thousand people voicing their opposition. She arrived in Washington Friday night and said the feeling in Washington right now is historic.

“We’re just hoping and praying they do the right thing. These people are not violent. There’s none of that but everywhere you we go there are people who love their country. But you cannot keep pushing the people. You can’t keep doing this to them and when the people say, ‘We don’t want this,’ and do it anyway, they’ll suffer the consequences for sure in November.”

Tucker plans to stay in Washington with the thousands of Tea Party members for Sunday’s vote. She’ll be back in Jacksonville on Wednesday. SHINGTON, D.C. — First Coast Tea Party members are in Washington, D.C. They rallied in front of the Capitol Saturday with thousands of others against the Health Care Bill.

Billie Tucker of Jacksonville was among the 50-thousand people voicing their opposition. She arrived in Washington Friday night and said the feeling in Washington right now is historic.

Tucker plans to stay in Washington with the thousands of Tea Party members for Sunday’s vote. She’ll be back in Jacksonville on Wednesday.

And, to be placed in the “never let a good health care protest be put to waste” file, anti-war demonstrators, with veteran protester Cindy Sheehan, were in attendance. And were arrested, of course.

From Toronto Sun, D.C. anti-war protesters target Obama:

WASHINGTON — Thousands of protesters — many directing their anger squarely at President Barack Obama — marched through the U.S. capital Saturday to urge immediate withdrawal of troops from Iraq and Afghanistan.

At least eight people, including activist Cindy Sheehan, were arrested by U.S. Park Police at the end of the march, after laying coffins at a fence outside the White House. Friday marked the seventh anniversary of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.

“Arrest that war criminal!” Sheehan shouted outside the White House before her arrest, referring to Obama.

At a rally before the march, Sheehan asked whether “the honeymoon was over with that war criminal in the White House” — an apparent reference to Obama — prompting moderate applause.

The protesters defied orders to clear the sidewalk on Pennsylvania Avenue in front of the White House and park police say they face charges of failure to obey a lawful order.

Activist Ralph Nader told thousands who gathered in Lafayette Park across from the White House that Obama has essentially continued the policies of the Bush administration, and it was foolish to have thought otherwise.

“He’s kept Guantanamo open, he’s continued to use indefinite detention,” Nader said. The only real difference, he said is that “Obama’s speeches are better.”

Obamacare: Taxing The American People Into Oblivion

“Death and taxes may be inevitable, but they shouldn’t be related”

Steve Watson and Paul Watson

Prisonplanet.com

Tuesday, March 23rd, 2010

H.R. 3590, The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, to give it its full title, is rammed full of tax increases which will further economically cripple Americans already laboring under the worst financial crisis since the great depression.

The partnering Reconciliation Act, currently in the Senate, also contains a raft of pork barrel and tax hikes, there to fund the trillion dollar cost of nationalizing medicine.

As reported by Bloomberg News today, analysis by the nonpartisan congressional Joint Committee on Taxation reveals that the bill will generate $409.2 billion in additional taxes by 2019.

In addition, the Congressional Budget Office states that the bill also levies almost $69 billion more in penalties for those who fail to meet mandates to buy insurance.

The Journal of Accountancy boils down some of the tax hikes and penalty fees in H.R. 3590 and the Reconciliation Act – the highlights include:

Excise Tax on Uninsured Individuals – Individuals who fail to maintain minimum essential coverage will be subject to a penalty equal to $750. The fee for an uninsured individual under age 18 is one-half of the adult fee.

Excise Tax on High-Cost Employer Plans – The federal government would impose a 40% tax on the value of employer-sponsored health coverage exceeding certain thresholds. Those levels are projected to be $8,500 for self only and $23,000 for any other level by the year 2013. This excise was announced with fanfare by the White House and labor unions in January and remains in the final bill.

Increase in additional tax on distributions from Health Savings Accounts and Archer Medical Savings Accounts not used for qualified medical expenses – An increase from 10% to 20% on taxes of money in a health savings account not used for qualified medical expenses. For Archer medical savings accounts, an increase from 15% to 20%.

Additional Hospital Insurance Tax on High-Income Taxpayers – High income tax payers, making on a joint return over $250,000 and a standard return over $200,000, are required to pay an additional 0.5% of wages. This applies to both self-employed, and regularly employed individuals.

Fees on Health Plans – A fee applied to all health insurance providers based upon net premiums and any third party fees associated with the administration of those programs. The fees will total $6.7 billion annually. This figure begins at $8 billion in the Reconciliation Act and rises to $14.3 billion by 2018.

Tax on Indoor Tanning Services – The act imposes a 10% tax on amounts paid for indoor tanning services. Like a sales tax, the tax will be collected from the person tanning when payment for the tanning services is made.

Business Insider boils down 15 more tax hikes here – highlights include:

Tax on individuals without acceptable health care coverage – A 2.5% income tax on individuals who do not have health care coverage, limited to a cost less than the average national health care premium.

Excise tax on elective cosmetic medical procedures – A tax of 5% is levied upon the am mount paid for any cosmetic surgery. This does not include the need for such surgeries created by trauma or a disfiguring disease. If the tax is not collected by that professional completing the procedure, their business is still liable for the requirement.

The Reconciliation Act also legislates for the following surcharges: 1% surcharge on individuals making more than $350,000, 1.5% surcharge on individuals making more than $500,000, 5.4% surcharge on individuals making more than $1 million.

Yet more tax provisions in the bill are highlighted by INvestors Business Daily in their piece titled 20 Ways ObamaCare Will Take Away Our Freedoms – highlights include:

Taxes On Employers – If you are a large employer (defined as at least 101 employees) and you do not want to provide health insurance to your employee, then you will pay a $750 fine per employee (It could be $2,000 to $3,000 under the reconciliation changes) (Section 1513).

Taxes on Pharmaceutical Companies – The government will extract a fee of $2.3 billion annually from the pharmaceutical industry (Section 9008 (b)).

Taxes on medical device manufacturers – The government will extract a fee of $2 billion annually from medical device makers (Section 1405).

Obamacare: Taxing The American People Into Oblivion 110310banner1

As a candidate and President, Barack Obama has had one core message for middle class Americans: I won’t raise your taxes.

By putting his name to the health care reform bill today he has swiftly put to bed any pretence that he would uphold that pledge (multi-trillion dollar bailouts aside).

While the new taxes on individuals are bad enough, the penalties imposed on pharmaceutical corporations, health insurers and employers are will inevitably serve as a double whammy as the hikes will undoubtedly be passed on to the general public in the form of higher costs.

“Simply, you have nationalized healthcare by proxy.” writes Jonah Goldberg of the LA Times.

“Insurance companies are now heavily regulated government contractors. Way to get big business out of Washington! They will clear a small, government-approved profit on top of their government-approved fees. Then, when healthcare costs rise — and they will — Democrats will insist, yet again, that the profit motive is to blame and out from this Obamacare Trojan horse will pour another army of liberals demanding a more honest version of single-payer.”

“The Obama administration has turned the insurance industry into the Blackwater of socialized medicine.” Goldberg concludes.

A swift dose of propaganda is sure to silence some critics. However, if the softly softly approach fails, the myriad of new taxes and regulations contained in the Obamacare bill will be aggressively enforced by no less than 16,500 new “combat trained” IRS agents armed to the teeth with shotguns, who will also closely scrutinize Americans’ income tax returns and be waiting to pounce should they find evidence of anyone trying to avoid paying for mandatory government health care.

Even if you agree with socialized health care in principle, the fact is that this will only benefit the insurance companies who wrote it. Meanwhile millions of Americans will be subjected to more taxation, harassment, and oppression at the hands of a federal government run amok. An out of control leviathan, hell-bent on an agenda to control every aspect of your life, as they lay in wait to exploit the momentum achieved through the passage of Obamacare by ramming through nightmare cap and tax levies to further financially castrate already beleaguered Americans.

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Find out who your enemies are and why Obamacare is merely the next step in the new world order agenda to regulate every aspect of your existence.