Why? Is Congressman Gwen Moore in trouble?

RPW Chairman Reince Priebus suggested a way Obama could get a bigger crowd. “If he was speaking at ‘Unemployment Fest’ the crowd would be bigger. And not as happy.”

When reached for comment, Congressman Steve Kagen expressed surprise.  ”Honest Injun?” he said.

Our friend and fellow blogger StB already has his sights set on the first offensive nickname he would like to eliminate:

See, I attended Madison High School in Milwaukee. Our rival was Vincent High School. The VincentVikings to be exact. Is that not a race-based name? Let me serve notice now that I find it to be very offensive! Why? Because my forefathers who came from Germany had to live under tyrannical Viking rule centuries ago and I am pretty sure I had a grandfather that could have been killed by a Viking. It haunts me to this day thinking a relative of mine from centuries ago was brutally murdered by a violent Viking. Ok, so that may not be true. Maybe it is that my high school usually lost in football and basketball to them. But think about it. I am not even a student, but I could claim to be offended by the nickname. Now that I read it again, I do not even need to provide a reason why I am offended. So I encourage any student at Madison High School to jump aboard the bandwagon and complain on my behalf.

Aha! As a graduate of proud Harold S Vincent High School, not only did we beat our arch-rival Madison at sports, but we probably beat them in the all-important arrests and truancy categories as well.

As for his school, Milwaukee Madison, they had the highly offensive nickname, “Knights.” Just absolutely disgusting how offensive that name is to so many minorities, especially Arab students who might suffer from PTHGS, or Post-Traumatic Historical Grievance Syndrome, after the cruel Crusades invaded their ancestral homelands. It’s a wonder the sensitivity police are not picketing the school right now demanding a name change. Given the Christian connotations of the nickname, I’m sure the Freedom From Religion Foundation would swiftly join any complaint.

Aha! Alumni of the two schools have a common enemy, Custer High School, as pointed out by WISN-AM’s Mark Belling this afternoon. Custer is not only the general that led genocidal war against Native Americans on the frontier, but the school’s nickname is the Indians. Is this a sick joke? While a lesser rival (a much lesser rival, if memory serves), their stadium was host to both Madison and Vincent High Schools’ home football games. It’s amazing the damn thing wasn’t called Little Bighorn. Fortunately, none of the students will ever graduate with enough knowledge of American History to be offended.

Of course, the real farce of this whole exercise is how the Democrats will hold the schools more accountable for the nickname of the football team than whether the teachers can teach and the students are educated.

One would think with the passage of this legislation that all of the education problems in Wisconsin will be solved. But the only penalty any school in Wisconsin faces for not teaching a kid to read is frustrated parents seeking escape to a better school for their kid – if one can be found. Imagine if the state imposed a $1000/day penalty for every school in a district that fails to teach a student attending class that day. How quickly would school administrators scramble to find out why Johnny can’t read – after the administrators complained about how unjust it is to be held to a standard of performance.

Perhaps when they ban “Trojan” from the schools as needlessly offensive to Turkish students for cruelly reminding them of the invasion by Homeric Greeks, we can remember why schools were actually created rather than as publicly-funded condom dispensaries.

As for worrying about offending Native Americans and other minority groups, surely the Democrats have some explaining to do with their continued celebrations of Jefferson-Jackson Day Dinners? Do they serve a Trail of Tears dessert tray? How about Monticello Plantation Soup as an appetizer?

In the meantime, I’d like to report the name “Milwaukee Public Schools” as offensive to schools everywhere. The $1000/day could be used to reimburse offended taxpayers across the state who have had to foot the bill for failure for too long.

MILWAUKEE – Following partisan passage of a flawed health care bill, Republican Party of Wisconsin Chairman Reince Priebus issued the following statement:

“Instead of reform, Democrats in Congress voted for a $2.5 trillion dollar government-run health care bill that increases taxes, raises premiums, slashes Medicare and does nothing to control the cost of healthcare. The American people deserve better.

Instead of considering thoughtful and bipartisan proposals that would immediately bring down the cost of health care, Democrats have charged ahead recklessly with a bill that will bankrupt our nation for years to come and does little to address the underlying problems making health care unaffordable for many American families.

Badger State Democrats who supported this fiscally irresponsible health care bill filled with earmarks and special kickbacks should know this will not be the last they’ll hear from Wisconsin voters dissatisfied with the current bill. Congressmen Dave Obey, Steve Kagen, and Ron Kind will hear from voters loud and clear from now until November 2, 2010, when Wisconsinites go to the polls to fire Nancy Pelosi and the Democrats who have ignored their concerns.

*******

Meanwhile, in Congressman Steve Kagen’s district, Reid Ribble:

Ribble Statement on Health Care Reform Passage

Today’s passage of health care reform was a sober reminder that our Congressman – Dr. Steve Kagen – is more interested in helping Nancy Pelosi than the citizens of the Wisconsin’s Eighth District. The health reform proposal passed today will not reduce costs and will increase taxes on every sector of the economy including the most poor and underserved. Most importantly, it has the potential of limiting and rationing care when Americans need it most.

Health care reform is essential, but this is not the measure that will fix our system’s problems. I agree that commonsense reforms are needed. Unfortunately, when the bill is implemented four years from now, they still will be. It’s tragic that the government takeover today will do nothing to bend the cost curve downward and will only serve to raise premiums and drive costs up. The most unfortunate aspect of the Pelosi/Kagen approach is the high number of hidden taxes that will be foisted on already-struggling families and businesses.

They include such taxes as:
· Surtaxes on earned income and investment income
· Taxes on real estate investments
· New marriage penalty taxes
· Increases in the Medicare tax that would, for the very first time ever apply to: capital gains, dividends, interest, rents, royalties, and other investment income that many senior citizens receive.
· And finally the health care bill contains at least 12 direct and indirect tax increases on the middle class, breaking the Presidents promise of not increasing by “a single dime” taxes on those making less than $200,000 for singles and $250,000 for couples. These include
o A tax on existing insurance plans
o An individual mandate tax on Americans who do not purchase government-approved health insurance
o An increase in the 7.5% adjusted gross income floor for medical expense deductions to 10%
o Limits on Flexible Spending Accounts
o Increased penalties for nonqualified Health Savings Account distributions
o Other restrictions on Health Savings Accounts, Health Reimbursement Accounts, and Flexible Spending Accounts
o A tax on tanning services
o An employer mandate tax
o A sales tax on medical devices
o A tax on health insurance premiums
o A tax on prescription drugs, and
o A tax on insured and self-insured health plans.

- More -

What is most surprising and personally disappointing is the lack of real reforms to the system; medical providers, small business owners, and experts agree that a few reforms would drive costs down.

There is no mention of legal reform – so defensive medicine and frivolous lawsuits will continue.

There is no reduction in the cost shifting that takes place from reduced Medicare/Medicaid reimbursements (Medicare and Medicaid pay health providers so little that providers are forced to charge others more to offset the cost)–and in fact that cost shifting will increase.

Decoupling insurance from employment would have also driven down costs and ultimately make individuals more responsible for their own health – in fact this bill makes employers more responsible.

Nothing in the bill will improve wellness because nothing in the bill improves health outcomes.

Keep in mind that even if the Democrats fall one or two votes short, they will likely keep the vote open until they twist arms sufficiently to get the remaining votes to put them in the majority. It won’t be pretty.

Protestor against the federal health care bill in Washington D.C. (MacIver News Service)

Is he running to be Wisconsin’s governor? Or is running for the United States Senate?

* By the way, how pathetic is this? He gave the petition to a member of Wisconsin’s congressional delegation who is a sure vote for the bill, rather than to one of the two possible swing votes.

First came a shot fired last week at U.S. Rep. Steve Kagen, the two-term Democrat from Appleton, from a conservative group calling itself the “League of American Voters.” The group, which is targeting Kagen and 17 other House Democrats seen as vulnerable by the Republican Party in the November election, falsely accused Kagen of voting for a provision in the health-care reform legislation that was actually in the Senate bill.

Kagen responded to the misfire with the threat of heavy artillery — not at the League of American Voters but at the four Green Bay TV stations that aired the attack ad.

In a letter to the broadcast stations, Kagen’s attorney Michael Maistelman warned: “Any airing of these false, misleading and deceptive ads by your station could make your station liable for damages for the false and libelous charges made by this sponsor.”

Libelous? We think not.

The ad warns that President Barack Obama and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi want Kagen to cast the deciding vote in what the group calls “a last-minute deal to take over your health care.”

The ad begins: “Our congressman, Steve Kagen, voted for Obama and Pelosi’s health-care takeover,” then accuses Kagen of supporting “billions in Medicare cuts, health-care rationing (and) big taxes on good insurance plans.”

The phrase “big taxes on good insurance plans” was a reference to a provision that appears in the Senate version of the health-care bill, not the House version that Kagen supported.

After the stations inquired, the group submitted a revised version that correctly cites that Kagen voted for a bill that is “financed by an income tax surcharge.”

It is an incredible stretch to suggest that saying that Kagen wants “big taxes on good insurance plans” is libel.

Kagen’s victory in that battle may not have helped win the war. After all, aside from annoying the local media, all Kagen accomplished was different wording in the ad reminding voters that he supported higher income taxes. Kagen will have to find other means of getting himself elected other than trying to bluster and bully the local media. They ain’t no bandleaders.

“I have made the case to the speaker and also to the White House that we should take small pieces, small bites,” Kagen said. “In the practice of medicine, I can’t give a child a big pill. What do we do? We cut it up into pieces. Let’s find things we can agree on.”

Kevin Binversie isn’t buying it.

Let’s just go with the facts here shall we?

1) Has Nancy Pelosi listened to Kagen one iota in the past during the health care bill debate?  Um, No.

2) Does it appear that Kagen is trying to cloud the picture as to what is the reconciliation process need to be accomplished (i.e., House passes the Senate bill, President signs it, then a “corrected bill” passes both the House and Senate by simple majority votes)?  Likely.

3) Will Kagen be a “No” vote on what is the first step of reconciliation, which he has said publicly he backs?  That also be a No.

If the reporter, Robert Hornacek of WLUK Fox 11 bought what Kagen spewed, he seriously needs to get his head examined.  When it’s time for the vote, Kagen will be a solid “Yes.”

However, Jay Bullock expressed some concern from the center square,

Pretty much last on my list of possible Wisconsin defectors was Dr. Steve Kagen. Why? When the man courted my endorsement in 2006, he sat across a Starbucks table from me and asserted, flatly, that comprehensive health care reform was his top priority. It was his signature campaign issue. And he was an easy yes vote in the House last year.

So what do I find today? Ugh:

Jay? I wouldn’t suggest using “ugh” when discussing Kagen. It might remind people of, ah, his multi-cultural timekeeping.

Really, though, Jay is right in a way. Whatever voters are going to vote against Kagen because of his vote for health care are not going to switch their votes if he suddenly flip-flops now. Kagen probably knows this, too, and his claim of advising Speaker Pelosi probably has all the substance of his supposed rudeness to former First Lady Laura Bush, or his supposed confrontation of Karl Rove in the bathroom.

The League of American Voters changed the ad to instead include the income tax surcharge that was included in the House version. I hope Kagen thought this change, a reminder that Kagen voted for higher taxes, was worth the legal fees his campaign will have to pay.

(Note to Maistelman: bill Kagen right away.)

“I’m working hard to bring jobs back to Wisconsin and responsibility back to Washington, and if that means leadership in the House of Representatives must change – so be it.”

If you can figure out what the hell that means, please tell his constituents. As far as I can gather, Kagen is suggesting he is going to vote Republican in the next vote for Speaker of the House.