Bob Dole Don't Like This

Jesse Walker | October 14, 2009

When Bob Dole, Bill Frist, Tommy Thompson, and Louis Sullivan weighed in on health care reform, they weren't necessarily motivated by pure public-spiritedness. Tim Carney reports:

Former Republican Health and Human Services Secretaries Louis Sullivan and Tommy Thompson, along with former Senate Majority Leaders Bill Frist (a doctor) and Bob Dole, received plaudits in the president's weekly radio address for exhibiting "the spirit of national purpose" and for understanding "that health insurance reform isn't a Democratic issue or a Republican issue, but an American issue that demands a solution."

Media outlets dutifully carried the Democratic story line: Four important Republicans are backing Obama, but GOP lawmakers remain in lockstep for partisan political readings.

Obama, along with ABC News, the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Associated Press and nearly everyone who reported on the GOP support for Obamacare, left out the salient detail that these pro-"reform" Republicans are lobbyists, consultants and directors for the drug companies, hospitals and other health care corporations that stand to profit from Obama's reform.

Dole, for example, does health care lobbying for Alston & Bird, whose clients include drug makers, hospitals, insurance companies, and medical trade associations. For more details, go here.

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Death Panelist|10.14.09 @ 10:33AM|#

It should be illegal to point out the ulterior motives of politicians.

Bergholt Stuttley Johnson|10.14.09 @ 10:44AM|#

Well, its racist, so the new Hate Crimes Law ought to cover it.

Death Panelist|10.14.09 @ 11:50AM|#

I don't think you're allowed to apply the various Hate Crimes laws to protect/avenge Republicans.

John Tagliaferro|10.14.09 @ 10:39AM|#

Nice to see that the new administration is keeping the lobbyists out of the White House. It was probably done by confrence call.

Spartacus|10.14.09 @ 10:42AM|#

Health care reform will have to wait until next year, after Obama receives his Nobel Prize for medicine.

Isaac Bartram|10.14.09 @ 10:51AM|#

No, but if Obama does get healthcare reform, he's a shoo-in for the Medicine prize next year.

Actually, given the prevailing worldview (health care is a human right etc*) we are certain to get some bill or other.

The only question is, how much will it cost and will those costs increase the deficit to levels where deficits do matter.

Or will the costs be covered by tax increases that have the same effect?

*This is a sophisticated variant on "I want it, gimme."

Jonas|10.14.09 @ 11:03AM|#

I wish we WOULD treat health care as a right. Something along the lines of:

"Congress shall make no law establishing a system of health-care, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof."

Just like our other rights... amazing!

John Tagliaferro|10.14.09 @ 12:18PM|#

I like that.

|10.14.09 @ 12:34PM|#

If only the 40 some million of the uninsured Americans had access to computers we would see, feel and touch the need for healthcare REFORM.

anonymous|10.14.09 @ 11:09PM|#

I'm pretty sure the healthcare part is fine, insured or not -- are you sure you aren't speaking of reforming the "having someone else pay for healthcare" part? Food stamps aren't agricultural reform.

mark|10.14.09 @ 1:50PM|#

Or, "The right of the people to peaceably associate, and contract for health care services, shall not be infringed."

The Angry Optimist|10.14.09 @ 10:43AM|#

Four important Republicans are backing Obama, but GOP lawmakers remain in lockstep for partisan political readings.

Does this remind anyone of the "coalition of the willing" that included like, Poland and Lithuania not too long ago?

Kolohe|10.14.09 @ 1:05PM|#

and unimportant ones like the UK, Spain, Portugal, Denmark, Australia

Attorney|10.14.09 @ 10:48AM|#

Assholes.

|10.14.09 @ 10:48AM|#

Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain.

Mango Punch|10.14.09 @ 11:04AM|#

I vunder iv zee count can count to vun point two trillion.

Xeones|10.14.09 @ 11:05AM|#

[insert Viagra joke here]

Bob Dole|10.14.09 @ 11:21AM|#

They better know they're in for some stiff opposition. They think we've gone soft, but it's gonna be a hard fight.

Bob Dole|10.14.09 @ 11:16AM|#

What the hell is this, some kind of tube?!

|10.14.09 @ 11:16AM|#

"LaRouche won't stop with the knock-knock jokes!"

The idea that these dipshits would do anything for reasons other than profiting is laughable, which makes Obama's statement akin to calling everyone idiots. But then again, he's not too far off base.

Colin|10.14.09 @ 11:33AM|#

The mainstream media organizations no longer report news; they only shape it to fit their political agenda.

Not even the Soviets had such a weapon on their side, as no one believed anything that was written in their press.

Morris|10.14.09 @ 11:59AM|#

Yeah, and they exaggerate! Can you imagine that, Colin?

KT|10.14.09 @ 11:41AM|#

I think Bill Frist or his father owns the hospital in which I work.

Morris|10.14.09 @ 11:52AM|#

When Jesse Walker weighs in on health care reform, he isn't necessarilly motivated by a sincere desire to get to the truth. Jesse Walker works for a right-wing libertarian magazine and musn't deviate too far from the party line.

edna|10.14.09 @ 12:13PM|#

wow, that convinced me!

John Tagliaferro|10.14.09 @ 12:20PM|#

Cosmotarians are not that right-wing.

Guy|10.14.09 @ 5:09PM|#

How right-wing are they?

|10.14.09 @ 12:24PM|#

What is the "truth" that he doesn't desire to get to?

Guy|10.14.09 @ 5:02PM|#

I think Morris means any truth. devoted ideologues are interested in advancing the ideology, not in finding the truth.

|10.14.09 @ 12:11PM|#

Jesse Walker works for a right-wing libertarian magazine

I thought he worked for Reason. Is he moonlighting?

Guy|10.14.09 @ 5:05PM|#

Noam Chomsky is a left-wing libertarian. He would never appear on the pages of Reason. What's wrong with being right-wing? Not intellectually respectable enough? Have the courage to be yourself!

|10.14.09 @ 12:17PM|#

Let him starve. For all our sakes.

BakedPenguin|10.14.09 @ 12:33PM|#

I say we beat the shit out of him and dump him somewhere in Canada, so he can get government-run health care he's aching for.

|10.14.09 @ 12:40PM|#

But it's the yelling at him that he wants. He's a douche masochist with severe mental problems. Attention is what he wants, even negative attention. If you give a dog a treat every time he shit on the kitchen floor, you end up with a lot of dog shit on your kitchen floor. Any attention we pay him is a treat.

Even talking about not talking to him is attention.

John Tagliaferro|10.14.09 @ 12:52PM|#

You just can't wait for your case to be heard by the Supreme Court, can you?

Guy|10.14.09 @ 5:07PM|#

Who are we talking about?

Skid Marx|10.14.09 @ 1:34PM|#

Note to self:

More guns.
More ammo.

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