Big Company Asks Congress to Vote No on Health Care

Caterpillar, the heavy-equipment maker that President Obama cited last year in making his argument for a massive economic stimulus package, is opposing the health care bill nearing final passage, saying the bill would ramp up the company's operating costs by $100 million alone in the first year and imperil coverage for its 150,000 employees and retirees.

In a letter Thursday to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Minority Leader John Boehner, and provided to FoxNews.com, the Peoria, Ill.-based company urged lawmakers to vote against the bill, citing provisions in it -- such as new coverage mandates and the taxation of Medicare subsidies for prescription drugs -- that would drive up its health care costs by more than 20 percent.

"In our fragile economy, we can ill-afford cost increases that place us at a disadvantage versus global competitors that are not similarly burdened," Gregory Folley, vice president of the company, wrote.

"As one of America's leading manufacturing companies and exporters, we're disappointed that efforts at reform have not addressed the cost concerns we've raised throughout the year," he said. "And we strongly believe the current legislation is not in the best interests of Caterpillar or the more than 150,000 employees, retirees and dependents that we cover."

The company's estimate of $100 million is the equivalent of about an additional $55 a month for each of 150,000 workers. - FOX News Story

Democrats Avoiding Obama

If anyone sets up a Do Not Call Registry to block phone solicitations from the White House, Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Tex.) wants in.

Cuellar, a fiscally and socially moderate Hispanic Democrat from Laredo, tells reporters that he’s strongly leaning toward backing heath care reform – but that he’s been ducking calls from President Obama’s staff because he doesn’t want to enter the wind tunnel of presidential persuasion.

“With all due respect to the president, I have to look at my district. ... I want to make up my own mind,” said Cuellar, one of several Democrats who have told POLITICO that they’ve been avoiding Obama and his surrogates during the final few days of lobbying.

The last call came from Dan Turton, Obama’s top liaison to the House, the day before last – “I haven’t returned it,” said Cuellar, a former Texas secretary of state with a maverick streak. He endorsed George W. Bush in the 2000 presidential race.

“Whether [Obama] is popular or not in my district – I don’t know,” Cuellar added with a sly smile. “But he’s not going to be supporting me in my district. He’s not going to be running in my election.”

This week, Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-Mass.), who is a “no,” told POLITICO that he hadn’t been responding to some White House calls because there was little to change his mind.

Hiding from the White House – or Congressional leaders – is nothing new during tough votes. During last year’s vote on climate change legislation, allies of Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) searched frantically for one member, Rep. Ciro Rodriguez (D-Tex.), who voted against the majority and sped from the chamber. - Politico Story

Now make it 3 - Number of States to Sue Federal Government over Health Care

South Carolina Attorney General Henry McMaster says he and Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum are ready to file a federal lawsuit if health care reform legislation passes.

The U.S. House plans to vote on the plan Sunday.

McMaster said Friday that he expects attorneys general to join the lawsuit. He and other GOP counterparts have denounced the legislation.

McMaster says he wants to challenge an exemption that would keep Nebraska from paying for Medicaid costs.

He says even if that provision is dropped, he will sue over the requirement for everyone to buy health insurance. McMaster says both provisions violate state sovereignty.

Both McMaster and McCollum are running for the Republican gubernatorial nomination in their states. - FOX News Story

Americans Not Buying What Obama's Selling

The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Friday shows that 23% of the nation's voters Strongly Approve of the way that Barack Obama is performing his role as President. Forty-four percent (44%) Strongly Disapprove giving Obama a Presidential Approval Index rating of -21. That matches the lowest Approval Index rating yet recorded for this President (see trends).

Each time the President leads a big push for his health care plan, his job approval ratings suffer. For Members of Congress, the impact may be more tangible. Just 34% say they’re more likely to vote for someone who supports this legislation. Fifty-percent (50%) are less likely to vote for a Member of Congress who supports the health care reform plan proposed by the President and Congressional Democrats.

One reason for the opposition is the cost of the plan. Fifty-six percent (56%) of voters nationwide are opposed to reducing Medicare spending as a means of paying for the reform effort. Most also oppose the excise tax on “Cadillac” insurance plans. - Rasmussen Reports Poll

CBS Projects $1 Trillion in Savings is Highly Unlikely

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Democrats pushing for health care reform are closer to the finish line than ever, but it's not over yet. And the question of cost will remain a central issue in coming days.

On Thursday, the Congressional Budget Office weighed in with a key -- if still very preliminary -- cost estimate.

he latest bill is a mix of provisions from a bill the Senate passed last December and proposals made by President Obama recently.

Like the Senate version, the so-called reconciliation bill would provide government subsidies to low- and middle-income families buying health insurance on their own, expand eligibility rules for Medicaid and provide coverage for a majority of uninsured Americans.

It would also establish a number of insurance reforms.

The whole package will cost $940 billion over 10 years to provide expanded insurance coverage, according to the CBO forecast. In addition, the new plan could reduce the deficit by $138 billion over the first 10 years -- $20 billion more than the Senate bill.

Over the following decade, CBO projected, it could reduce the deficit by more than $1 trillion, although the agency stressed that such long-term projections are highly uncertain. - CNN Story

States Lining up to Sue Federal Government over Health Care

BOISE, Idaho -- Idaho took the lead in a growing, nationwide fight against health care overhaul Wednesday when its governor became the first to sign a measure requiring the state attorney general to sue the federal government if residents are forced to buy health insurance.

Similar legislation is pending in 37 other states.

Constitutional law experts say the movement is mostly symbolic because federal laws supersede those of the states.

But the state measures reflect a growing frustration with President Barack Obama's health care overhaul. The proposal would cover some 30 million uninsured people, end insurance practices such as denying coverage to those with pre-existing conditions, require almost all Americans to get coverage by law, and try to slow the cost of medical care nationwide.

Democratic leaders hope to vote on it this weekend. - FOX News Story

Nancy Pelosi Struggling to Get Her Own Leadership on Board

The controversial plan to approve health care reform without a direct vote doesn't even pass the smell test for one of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's own floor whips, according to the Boston Herald.

Rep. Stephen Lynch, D-Mass., who helps round up votes for the leadership, told the Herald the plan is "disingenuous" and threatened to vote against it unless he sees changes. Lynch voted for the House health bill last year.

"It would really call into question the credibility of the House," Lynch said, according to the Herald.

He was referring to a plan to use a parliamentary maneuver that would allow the House to simultaneously approve the Senate bill while voting on a package of changes to it. This would "deem" the Senate bill to be passed, without compelling members to vote for it directly.

Democratic leaders are considering the option because many House Democrats don't want to cast a vote in favor of the unaltered Senate bill, which they oppose for numerous reasons. But the House must pass the Senate bill in order to move on to the package of changes intended to correct all the things about it that they don't like.

The esoteric procedure has drawn fierce protest from Republicans, who say Democrats are trying to avoid accountability. But some Democrats argue that the procedure has been used plenty of times before, and that there will be no doubt about where lawmakers stand on health care reform in the end. - FOX News Story

Majority of Americans Against Health Reform Bill

As Americans wait for Congress to act on health care, a Fox News poll released Thursday finds 55 percent oppose the reforms being considered, while 35 percent favor them.

In addition, just over half of voters think House Democrats are “changing the rules” to get their bill passed.

About a third of voters (31 percent) think House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the Democrats are “playing by the rules” to get health care through, while 53 percent think they are “changing the rules.” Looking at the results by political party, 53 percent of Democrats think their party is playing by the rules, about one in four think they are changing the rules (27 percent) and the rest are unsure (19 percent). Varying majorities of Republicans (78 percent) and independents (57 percent) think House Democrats are changing the rules to pass the bill.

The level of public support for the health care overhaul has remained fairly steady since last July -- 35 percent favor it now and 36 percent favored it last summer. The number opposed -- 55 percent -- is up from 51 percent in January, and from 47 percent last July. Opposition hit a high of 57 percent in December.

Among partisans, the president’s party faithful are alone in supporting the proposed reforms. Sixty-six percent of Democrats favor them, while 53 percent of independents and 88 percent of Republicans oppose them. - FOX News Story

Obama's Approval Rating Falling Fast

The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Thursday shows that 23% of the nation's voters Strongly Approve of the way that Barack Obama is performing his role as President. Forty-three percent (43%) Strongly Disapprove giving Obama a Presidential Approval Index rating of -20. That’s just one point above the all-time low (see trends).

Each time the President leads a big push for his health care plan, his job approval ratings suffer. Rasmussen Reports will release new polling data on the health care plan at both 10:30 and noon Eastern today. - Rasmussen Reports Poll

Tea Partiers Arrive in Washington - Can They Stop the Madness?

Tea Party activists from across the country began to rally outside Democratic congressional offices in Washington on Tuesday to protest the $875 billion health care bill and demand meetings with their respective members of Congress.

And by all appearances, their arrival is not being taken lightly.

House Democrats received a formal memo from the office of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, listing tips for how targeted representatives should handle the crowds of activists.

"Tens of thousands of conservative and Tea Party activists will be on the Hill as part of what they are dubbing a 'Surge Against Obamacare,'" reads the memo, which also includes a checklist of provisions in the current bill to counter the "caricature of the reform bill presented by right-wing media outlets."

The checklist says: "Reduces the deficit; Cracks down on Medicare waste, fraud, and abuse; Provides historic tax credit for small businesses and individuals to purchase health insurance."

One rally, dubbed the "Code Red Health Care Rally," is planning to feature a host of Republican speakers, including Reps. Mike Pence, R-Ind.; Michele Bachmann, R-Minn.; Tom Price, R-Georgia; and Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn.

Two separate groups affiliated with the Tea Party movement, Freedom Works and the Tea Party Patriots, told Fox News they are expecting a large Pennsylvania contingent to be present at the rally. The office of Rep. Jason Altmire, D-Pa., who voted against the health care legislation last fall, may be a popular destination for protesters.

Altmire, a pro-life Democrat, told Fox News in an interview Tuesday that he remains concerned about the cost of the bill as well as its current language on abortion.

"There's definitely a lot of anxiety about this bill," said Altmire. "I'm not gonna cast a vote that my constituents are not comfortable with." - FOX News Story

Housing Construction Falls as Economy Still Failing to Recover

WASHINGTON -- Housing construction fell in February as winter blizzards held down activity in the Northeast and Midwest. The decline highlighted the challenges facing builders as they struggle to emerge from the worst housing slump in decades.

The Commerce Department said that construction of new homes and apartments fell 5.9 percent in February to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 575,000 units, slightly higher than the 570,000 that economists were expecting. January activity was revised up to a pace of 622,000 units, the strongest showing in 14 months.

Homebuilders are trying to emerge from a severe housing downturn. A rebound in housing is seen as critical to sustaining the overall economic recovery. - FOX News Story

Polls Show Less Transparency in Obama Government

Attorney General Eric Holder said Monday that the Obama administration has "delivered" on its promise to make government more transparent, but a new study released the same day concludes the Obama adminisitration is "falling short" of its promise.

"This past year has brought a shift in the way our entire federal government operates," Holder said as he commemorated "National Sunshine Week," which celebrates open government and freedom of information. "It's also signaled the emergence of a government that's striving to work more openly and more effectively for the people it serves."

In January 2009, on his first full day in office, President Obama issued an executive order promising a "new standard of openness," and two months later Holder, picked by President Obama to lead that effort, issued a government-wide memorandum "ordering a change in the way we approach, release and disseminate information," as Holder put it Monday.

"I asked that we make openness the default, not the exception," Holder told a crowd gathered inside the Justice Department.

But only "a minority" of federal agencies have responded to those actions with "concrete changes," according to a new report by the National Security Archive at George Washington University.

In addition, a new poll released Sunday by The American Society of News Editors found many Americans are skeptical that big changes have been made in the past year.

In the poll, 38 percent said the Obama administration engages in "about the same amount of secrecy" as its predecessors, 34 percent said the Obama administration engages in less secrecy than its predecessors, and 22 percent said it engages in more secrecy than its predecessors, according a report by the Scripps Howard News Service, which helped conduct the poll for The American Society of News Editors. - FOX News Story

Democrats Cooking Up Plan to Pass Health Care without Voting

A newly emerging Democratic plan to vote on health care reform without really voting on health care reform has critics riled up, as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her allies are accused of resorting to legislative trickery to send a bill to President Obama's desk.

Senate Democratic leaders had already drawn jeers from Republicans for a plan to try to pass a follow-up health bill with only 51 votes, as opposed to 60. Now Pelosi and Rep. Louise Slaughter, D-N.Y., chairwoman of the House Rules Committee, are cooking up a plan to pass the original health bill from the Senate side without forcing rank-and-file Democrats to technically go on record in support of it.

"Republicans believe that if the Democrats are willing to have the government take over our health care system, they should be willing to vote for it -- without any gimmicks," House Republican Leader John Boehner's office said in a statement. "Democrats wonder why people are so upset with Washington."

Here's how the maneuver would work and why Pelosi wants it:

Before Congress can consider the package of changes that many lawmakers want in exchange for their support on the original bill, the House has to first pass the original bill from the Senate side.

Problem is, even with assurances that the package of changes will be considered, many House Democrats don't want to go on record in support of the Senate bill -- what with its sweetheart deals, tax on high-value insurance plans and other controversial provisions.

Enter the Pelosi tactic, known as a "self-executing rule."

Under this tactic, the House could simultaneously approve the Senate version of the bill while voting on the package of changes. This would "deem" the Senate bill passed, though not directly show members voting in favor of passage.

It may sound murky, but the option is winning favor among Democrats.

Pelosi reportedly told liberal bloggers Monday that "nobody wants to vote for the Senate bill," and so she's strongly considering the non-vote vote. - Politico Story

Super Bowl Ads - Census is Way Over Budget & They Just Started Counting

The U.S. Census is well into conducting its constitutionally mandated 2010 count but the exercise is already running over budget.

Taxpayers are footing the bill of $14.7 billion for 10 years of Census counting. That price tag supports 500 local offices and a peak staff of 1.4 million workers.

But some cost overruns have already plagued this Census, like when tens of thousands of workers fanned out between March and July of last year to verify addresses -- a process known as "address canvassing." The Census Bureau, federal auditors later found, ran 25 percent over budget for a total cost of $444 million.

"When I arrived in July, the findings of that overrun were just emerging," Census Director Robert Groves said. "There was an underestimation of just the workload -- how many houses we had to go to." - Politico Story

Obama Admin Plays Hardball with Ally Israel

JERUSALEM -- A U.S. envoy's postponement of his Mideast trip appeared Tuesday to deepen one of the worst U.S.-Israeli feuds in memory -- even as Israel's foreign minister signaled his government had no intention of curtailing the contentious construction at the heart of the row.

Dozens of masked Palestinians also hurled rocks at police and set tires ablaze across the holy city's volatile eastern sector, as the deployment of thousands of Israeli security personnel entered its fifth day.

The diplomatic crisis erupted last week after Israel announced during a visit by Vice President Joe Biden that it would build 1,600 apartments for Jews in disputed east Jerusalem, the sector of the holy city that the Palestinians claim for a future capital.

The announcement enraged Palestinians, who have threatened to bow out of U.S.-brokered peace talks that were supposed to have begun in the coming days. The Obama administration, fuming over what it called the "insulting" Israeli conduct, demanded that Israel call off the contentious project.

Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman told Israel Radio that demands to halt Israeli construction there "are unreasonable as far as we are concerned." And he predicted that the diplomatic row with the U.S. would blow over, saying neither side had an interest in escalation.

But Washington notified Israel early Tuesday that envoy George Mitchell had put off his trip. The visit will be rescheduled at an undetermined time, officials on both sides said. - Politico Story

In a time when we have issues with Iran and North Korea, Terrorists threats from around the globe, Obama decides on Israel to play hardball.

It is ironic that a country that Joe Biden said couldn't have a better friend in the White House than Obama is the country that they decide to play hardball with. Iran continues to make nuclear weapons and the Obama Administration doesn't ratchet things up like this.

TOP DNC Donors Not Feeling the Love from Obama Admin

Former White House social secretary Desiree Rogers took plenty of blame for the gate crashers at President Barack Obama’s first state dinner and for posing for fashion shoots in glossy magazines.

But a previously undisclosed gripe about her provides another explanation for her abrupt departure last month: Some of Obama’s biggest fundraisers, already chafing at not getting enough love from the administration, didn’t even get Christmas cards last year.

“The donors rose up, and that was another reason Desiree got pushed out,” said a source close to the White House.

While such a slight may seem insignificant, it can carry major repercussions in a year when the Democratic National Committee is going to need every possible resource to help the party’s congressional committees stave off major losses in the midterm elections.

According to an analysis by POLITICO, only 15 — or just 10 percent — of the 150 biggest fundraisers for the Obama campaign gave the maximum $30,400 to the DNC last year.

“I have not had that much contact with the DNC in the last six to 12 months since the election. It’s very strange,” said Alan Patricof, a New York investor and longtime Democratic donor. -Politico Story

Virginia Legislature Passes Law Banning Mandatory Health Care

Virginia's General Assembly approved legislation that bucks any attempt by President Barack Obama and Congress to implement a national health care overhaul in individual states. But is this anything more than a symbolic move?

The Republican-ruled House of Delegates, with wide Democratic support, voted 80-17 on Wednesday without debate. It is a measure aimed at the Democratic-backed reforms pushed by Obama and stalled in Congress. The vote sends the measure to Republican Gov. Bob McDonnell, who intends to sign it. Virginia is the first state to approve such a measure.

The legality of bills like Virginia's is questionable because courts generally rule that federal laws supersede those of the states.

Thirty-four other state legislatures have either filed or proposed similar measures, statutes or constitutional amendments, rejecting health insurance mandates, according to the American Legislative Exchange Council.

Obama carried Virginia in his historic ride to the presidency in 2008, the first Democrat to do so in a presidential race in 44 years. But since then, the tide has turned. Virginia's Republicans routed Democrats in last year's gubernatorial and legislative elections, partly because of public distrust of Democrats' proposed health care reforms. GOP lawmakers expedited the bill and three others like it as a legislative statement reflecting broad voter discontent over the proposed reforms. Virginia's legislative session is, on average, the nation's briefest, and the bill passed four days ahead of Saturday's scheduled adjournment. - NBC Story

Stronger China Becoming More Anti-West

BEIJING - China's government has embraced an increasingly anti-Western tone in recent months and is adopting policies across a wide spectrum that reflect a heightened fear of foreign influence.

The shift has accelerated as China has emerged stronger from the global financial meltdown, with a world-beating economic expansion rate and a growing nationalist movement. China has long felt bullied by the West, and its stronger stance is challenging the long-held assumption shared among Western and Chinese businessmen, academics and government officials that a more powerful and prosperous China would be more positively inclined toward Western values and systems.

China's shift is occurring throughout society, and is reflected in government policy and in a new attitude toward the West. Over the past year, the government of President Hu Jintao has rolled back market-oriented reforms by encouraging China's state-owned enterprises to forcibly buy private firms. In the past weeks, China announced plans to force Western companies to turn over their most sensitive technology and patents to Chinese competitors in exchange for access to the country's markets. - MSN Story

Thanks to the ever increasing debt load of the United States and the Power that China has over that debt load they are becoming more and more influential.

America hasn't quite figured that out yet and keeps spending at a record pace.

Big week for Health Care - Dems Don't Have the Votes Yet

WASHINGTON -- The House's chief Democratic headcounter said Sunday he hadn't rounded up enough votes to pass President Barack Obama's health care overhaul heading into a make-or-break week, even as the White House's top political adviser said he was "absolutely confident" in its prospects.

The administration gave signs of retreating on its demands that senators jettison special home-state deals sought by individual lawmakers that have angered the public.

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs predicted House passage this week, before Obama travels to Asia, a trip he postponed to push for the bill.

"This is the week where we will have this important vote," Gibbs said. "I do think this is the climactic week for health care reform."

Political strategist David Axelrod said Democrats will persuade enough lawmakers to vote "yes." The House GOP leader, Ohio Rep. John Boehner, took up the challenge, acknowledging Republicans alone can't stop the measure but pledging to do "everything we can to make it difficult for them, if not impossible, to pass the bill." Republicans believe they may get help from Democrats facing tough re-election campaigns. - FOX News Story

U.S. - Isreali Diplomacy Worst in Decades

U.S.-Israeli relations have hit a 35-year low over a contentious east Jerusalem building project that threatens to derail peacemaking efforts with the Palestinians, Israel's envoy to Washington was quoted as saying Monday.

Ambassador Michael Oren's remarks clashed with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's assurances that the political turmoil resulting from the settlement announcement, which the Obama administration slammed as "an insult," was under control.

"Israel's ties with the United States are in their worst crisis since 1975 ... a crisis of historic proportions," the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper quoted Oren as saying to Israeli diplomats in a phone briefing over the weekend.

Israeli officials said that the U.S. is pressing the Jewish nation to scrap the east Jerusalem building project.

Competing Israeli and Palestinian claims to east Jerusalem were feeding tensions in the holy city, where Arabs and Jews maintain an uneasy coexistence and sometimes clash. Police were out in large numbers in the volatile Old City in expectation of renewed clashes

Top U.S. officials have lined up in recent days to condemn the Israeli plan to build 1,600 apartments in east Jerusalem, the sector of the holy city that the Palestinians claim for their future capital.

The project caused a storm in Washington because it was announced during Vice President Joe Biden's visit to the region last week, badly embarrassing the U.S. and complicating its efforts to restart Israeli-Palestinian peacemaking. The Palestinians immediately threatened not to join upcoming U.S.-brokered talks meant to jumpstart negotiations after a 14-month breakdown.

U.S. officials have not disclosed what steps they want Israel to take to ease the crisis, and Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev refused to comment Monday. But Israeli newspapers and radio stations said Washington wants the construction project canceled. - FOX News Story

Democratic Candidates Keeping Obama Away

Moderate House Democrats facing potentially difficult reelections this fall have a message for President Barack Obama: Don’t call us; we’ll call you.

Interviews with nearly a dozen congressional Democrats on the ballot this year reveal a decided lack of enthusiasm for having Obama come to their districts to campaign for them — the most basic gauge of a president’s popularity.

Some cite the president’s surely busy schedule. Others point to a practice of not bringing in national politicians to appear on their behalf. While these members aren’t necessarily attempting to distance themselves from the administration, there is nevertheless a noticeable reluctance to embrace the president among a certain class of incumbent, now that Obama’s approval rating has fallen to a new low — 46 percent in the latest Gallup survey.

It’s not an unusual development — President George W. Bush suffered a similar fate. As his popularity dipped and he became a more polarizing figure, few moderate Republicans wanted to be seen with him in their states for fear the association would be used against them by their rivals.

The difference, however, is that Bush was narrowly elected twice in a country divided between red and blue states, while Obama shredded that map. With his success in the interior West and upper South, Obama was thought to be such a political asset that he could play almost anywhere in the country.

But the sense of uncertainty over what to do with Obama seen last year in Virginia — in which Democratic gubernatorial candidate Creigh Deeds wrestled with whether to run with or from the president before ultimately embracing him in the campaign’s final weeks — now seems to be evolving into a firmer feeling among many centrist Democrats that they’d be better off without Obama appearing in their districts with them. - Politico Story