Kansas Democratic Secretary of State Needs Ethics Lesson

A couple of weeks ago, the Kansas Secretary of State, running for reelection and lagging in the polls, decided that the official website of the office needed to be redone to make the site "as helpful and user friendly as possible." Problem is, it's still a rotten site - the major change is that it's now a full page ad for Secretary of State Biggs, featuring a large picture, and this text (emphasis added):

About Us

Secretary of State Chris Biggs is one of only four state officers authorized by the Kansas constitution and elected state-wide every four years. With his vision and leadership, our office serves all Kansans by performing numerous statutory duties related to the administration of statewide elections, business entities, and the uniform commercial code. The Kansas constitution created our office, but statutes define our daily duties.

Chris Biggs is "authorized by the Kansas constitution"? And the office only runs, I'm sure, because of his "vision and leadership." Transparently political...from the man who harps constantly about how non-partisan the office is supposed to be.

Today, we learned that Biggs is spending $159,000 of taxpayer money to run this ad:



He calls it a public service announcement. Just educating the public, he assures us. I'm sure it's important for the public to hear the name of the Secretary of State in order to learn about advance voting options in Kansas. Another blatantly political move, less than three weeks before the election.

The gall of an elected official spending $159,000 in taxpayer funds to display his mug all over the state this close to an election is incredible. And, by the way...how do we know he's spending $159,000? Because his campaign communications director, Tyler Longpine, tells us it is so. Why would anyone from his campaign need to be involved with the public service duties of the Secretary of State?

This is an outrage, and as a Kansas taxpayer and voter, I urge you to reject this transparent ploy and send this slimy politician packing. He has no respect for our money or our intelligence and is not fit to preside over elections for class president, let alone for the great state of Kansas.

Remembering 1972

It is a surprise to me that none of the political commentators are mentioning the 1972 elections. My guess is that Richard Nixon was so demonized that that election has been purposely ignored.

Mr. Nixon was the Republican incumbent. The Democrat nominee was George McGovern. For a running mate, McGovern chose Missouri Senator Thomas Eagleton.

Throughout the campaign, McGovern's left-leaning philosophies proved to be out of step with the American people. (He was tagged as the candidate for "Abortion, Amnesty & Acid") His choice of Thomas Eagleton, only added to that image.

Mr. Nixon was quite popular and there was every indication of a huge Republican victory. Then, just before the election, it was discovered that Mr. Eagleton had undergone electro-shock therapy for depression. That sealed the election outcome. Eagleton withdrew and was replaced by Kennedy brother-in-law Sargent Shriver. It did not help the Democrats.

McGovern won only the state of Massachusetts and The District of Columbia - 17 electoral votes in all. Nixon won 49 states and 520 electoral votes. It was, and remains, the biggest presidential landslide.

Toward the end of the campaign, some members of the Nixon campaign staff foolishly decided to break into the Democrats National Headquarters at the Watergate Complex and plant listening devices. The left-leaning media, spurred-on by the anti-Viet Nam War protesters, rode that break-in scandal mercilessly. As investigations unfolded, Nixon and his White House staff, hoping to protect their colleagues, made cover-up attempts which led to Nixon's resignation. Thus, our most spectacular election victory was followed by the first ever resignation of a U.S. President.

November, 1972 was 38 years ago. If you were 18-years-old then, you would be 56 today. It is not surprising that most of today's voters do not remember 1972. What they do know of the election is what the liberal media have taught... that Nixon was a crook.

Now, these 38 years later, I am seeing another landslide Republican victory in the making. And, following the election, I worry that there will be a relentless search to find some small infraction on the part of Republicans, Conservatives or Tea Party members, which can be exploited and blown into a Watergate-like bomb.

What a gal...

Many of us feel pride on those special days... a child is born, a wedding event takes place and your son or daughter walks down the aisle looking handsome or lovely. A patriotic day is cause for pride and celebration, but it isn't often that one can look at every day and feel proud of his/her relationships. I am one of the fortunates that can address that feeling every day of my life, I have the pleasure of awakening every day with my wonderful wife. She is the reason for my pride. She gives of herself freely to the call of helping others. She has been working tirelessly for conservative candidates at the local, district and statewide level. She isn't just stuffing envelopes or making phone calls, although they are important activities as well, she is taking responsibility for seeing to it that volunteers are showing up by the carload to support our candidates. The candidates put up with me because I have a convertible and drive it in their parade assemblies. But April does it all. She walks the parade routes, walks the precincts knocking on doors and distributes literature, sets up and attends fund raisers, takes over web sites and adds her magic to their appearence. She has been praised by everyone with whom she works.

Now you can see why I awaken with such joy every day of my life. I am married to one of the most wonderful, caring, intelligent women in the world.

I am a lucky man!

Memories I'd just as soon not have.

It was about 1975. I was having a conversation with a young TV sales Rep, recently out of college. The conversation turned to the activities of radical young people, like the SDS (Students For A Democratic Society). The Viet Nam War had wound down in what I believed then and now to be disgraceful policies of the United States Government. Our conversation ranged over some of the influence the young radicals may have extended on politicians.

The U.S. Military was working toward the extraordinary state they enjoy today... a well-educated, all-volunteer force of top rated professionals. The college R.O.T.C. was an important building block toward that goal. This starting point for training future officers began with young people obtaining a college education. The military was then suffering from an ill-deserved reputation and building a corp of better educated officers should have appealed to everyone. Not so. Earlier, at the University of Kansas, an important ceremony in the progress of R.O.T.C. training had been interrupted, and in fact abruptly ended, by a rowdy group of protesters carrying pro-North Viet Nam posters and shouting a chant that contained the phrase "Ho Chi Minh will win, win, win!"

I am loathe to express hate. But I freely admit I hated the SDS. Again, my unchanged belief is that they inflicted great harm on this country I love. Most of these young radicals were from affluent families. Few had ever done an honest day's work. They truly were reaping all the luxurious benefits of the country their parents and grandparents had built, and which they chose to destroy. As part of their protest, they were largely unwashed, long-haired - perhaps with a flower in their dirty hair - weirdly dressed, drug using bums... demonstrating their difference from, and indifference to, society. Of course, they felt they were hip, and we called them hippies.

The Bob Fosse film "Cabaret" had been out a couple of years but was still being widely viewed. This story of a bawdy girl (brilliantly played by Liza Minelli) was set in pre-World War II Germany, and chronicled some of the rise of the Nazi's Third Reich. There was a scene in the movie that was set in an outdoor beer garden. A large number of patrons were quietly enjoying their evening when suddenly a teenage boy, clean-cut and washed, wearing a simple brown shirt, stood up and began to sing, in a loud clear voice, a song stating that "Tomorrow belongs to me." So infectious was his singing, adult patrons began to join him. Soon the entire crowd was on their feet singing with the Nazi youth.

Meanwhile, in 1975 America, there was widespread and deep felt disdain for the young American hippies. Remembering the beer garden scene from Cabaret, I told my friend that these young Americans were fools. If they wanted to sell their philosophy, they should learn from the Nazi youth of the late 1930s. Boy, do I regret that thought. Maybe the hippies had seen Cabaret. More likely, they learned from the same tutors as did the Nazi brown shirts. They did bathe. They did cut their hair and go back to school. They became college professors. They became the architects of much of what is happening in our government today. Can I say Bill Ayers? Bernadine Dorn?

I still hate them. And they are still hell-bent on destroying America.

Tears.

Nine years ago my wife and I stood in front of our TV watching images of the horror unfolding in New York, our eyes red and sore from hours of crying. At one point some new piece of news flashed on the screen and my wife sobbed, "I just can't cry any more." I agreed. There just couldn't be any more tears left in our bodies.

But there were more tears. We have cried since - cried at the loss of young Americans lives in Iraq and Afghanistan.... and Ft. Hood, Texas. These were not bad people, finally caught perpetrating some evil deed. They were good people who had sacrificed a career, a peaceful civilian life, to serve their country.

We have cried as we tried to understand why anyone would want to kill them. We have cried as we tried to understand why people would want to destroy our beautiful America, this land we love so much.

We have tried to understand our enemy, and tried to understand why we cannot seem to defeat them.

We cry as we hear that some Americans, persons blessed with citizenship in this extraordinary nation, have joined al qaeda and their fight against America. One of those citizens born right here in my city while his father attended the very university later attended by members of my family.

Today we cry again as we hear anew of the suffering of so many. We cry as we realize that people with radical ideologies hold reins of power in our nation; people who seem to demonstrate that they do not share our devotion to this nation; people who seem to resent America's exceptionalism and want to bring her down.

Yes, there have been more tears. And, nothing gives us cause to believe the sadness will soon end.

Made in China - Paid in U.S.A.

Mark Steyn revealed a disturbing fact this past week. Strangely, I've not heard any news medium mention it.

Simply put, Steyn looked at the annual payment the United States is making to China just to cover the interest on the money we have borrowed from them.

Then he looked at the total Chinese Defense Budget. Guess what... the figures were nearly equal!

Steyn then conservatively projected the increases in our interest payments - as borrowing continues and interest rates rise - and arrived at the astonishing fact that in a very short time, the good old American taxpayer will be completely paying for China's military. All those fancy Chinese jet aircraft. All those massive Chinese aircraft carriers. All those millions of Chinese soldiers. All paid for by you and me.

When I was a kid, attending a small country school, we once scheduled a baseball game with an even smaller school. But there was a problem: that school did not have nine players to field a team. We had to give them several players so we could have a game. That worked out okay - we still won. But I have never heard of one nation equipping another nation with an army so they could have a battle!

Now, I don't think we are on the verge of a war with China, but imagine if we were! Think of all the good paying Chinese jobs, building war materials for both sides... all paid for by America!

Congress! Go Home!

A crude riddle used to float around bachelor parties and locker rooms:

Question: What food is guaranteed to kill a woman's sex drive?
Answer: Wedding cake.

I have a variation:

Question: What act is guaranteed to turn an intelligent person into an idiot? Answer: Elect him to Congress.

The answer to problems is often clear and simple to anyone but an idiot. Congress rarely sees the simple answer.

Consider government spending. In Congress, it works this way: various departments of government submit budgets calling for a 5% increase over the previous year. For the purpose of illustration, let's assume that, spread over many departments, those 5% increases add up to $150 billion. Congress ponders these budget requests and decides to give the departments, on average, only a 3% increase. Then they proudly trumpet that they have cut spending by $60 billion.

Wrong. They increased spending by $90 billion.

The correct solution? Eliminate the department. A classic example is the Department of Energy, formed to reduce our dependence on foreign oil. It has not. Eliminate the Department. Billions saved.

The Department of Homeland Security. Formed in the nervous days following 9/11. We have the FBI, the CIA, the Army, the Navy, The Marine Corps, The Air Force, The Coast Guard, The National guard... all able to secure the homeland. Eliminate the Department of Homeland Security. More billions saved.

How much more spending could we cut? How many more departments are there in the federal government?

In Congress, they talk endlessly about doing the nation's work. Bulletin to Congress: The nation will work fine without you. Take a vacation!

An Open Letter to Craig McPherson ...from your biggest fan

Thank you.

Thank you for renewing my faith in the American political system, for showing me that there are still principled, intelligent men of character willing to make the personal sacrifices required of those who choose to run for office in today's climate. Unlike most in the arena today, your motives are pure - you seek to serve for the good of the country, not for personal aggrandizement. I didn't believe such people existed any longer, and will be forever in your debt for proving me wrong.

Thank you for allowing me to share this amazing journey. You have taught me more than any professor and found strengths and abilities in me that even I did not know I possessed. You have challenged me to be and do more than I would have thought possible, not through pressure or demands, but through your leadership, inspiration and quiet inner strength. I will never understand how you came to possess centuries of wisdom in your relatively few years, but will always be grateful for having had the opportunity to be a small part of your story.

Thank you for the countless hours it must have taken to amass the incredible body of knowledge you possess regarding the founding and history of this great nation. I share your love of America and your deep patriotism, but lack your dedication. You did not become the man you are today through luck, charm, or special favors, but through hard work and self-discipline, qualities which are rarely found among your generation. You evidence a respect for America's greatness that is a tribute to a forgotten time - a time which was all but forgotten even when I was a child, when personal responsibility and mutual respect were as commonplace as they are now exceptional.

Thank you for giving new meaning to the phrase, "It's not whether you win or lose, but how you play the game." You have played by the rules, consistently, even when no one was looking and you might have gained much by bending them a little.

Being associated with your campaign is an enormous honor for me. Whatever the outcome, I wouldn't have missed it for the world. Thank you.

Might the Tea Party Actually Be the Culmination of King's Dream?

by Craig McPherson, candidate for U.S. House of Representatives (KS-03)
July 13, 2010

With Michelle Obama's comments yesterday and the NAACP's resolution condemning "racist elements of the Tea Party" likely to be passed today, it seems clear that branding the Tea Partiers as racist or at least intolerant is a strategy that the left intends to pursue to mitigate electoral damage this November.

The touchstone of this allegation has been, of course, the symbolic march of the majority party through the Tea Party protest on the afternoon of the House Health Care vote. The procession of government officials through private citizens was supposed to, I guess, represent the victory of freedom and equality over tyranny and racism. The irony here is that government power has been the greatest institutional facilitator of racism in our nation's history.

Many remember, of course, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s vision for America in his majestic “I Have a Dream” speech. Fewer, however, quote the factor which drove him and hundreds of thousands of others on that sultry August afternoon.

“So we’ve come here today…to our nation’s capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir.”

The great question facing the Republic today is just how big is that check and can we or any state possibly carry enough in its account to cover it? Is the check for liberty, freedom, and equality under the law? Or does it also cover the government guaranteed right to a fair wage, home ownership, protection from economic fear and unemployment, health insurance, carbon neutrality, a religion free public square, a college football playoff, and whatever else those with 50% plus one of the vote believe to be good for us?

It is clear that our founders and the giants whose shoulders they and King stood on believed only in drafting checks you can cash.

In writing the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson borrowed heavily from John Locke, a Christian political philosopher who suggested that God rather than man or government was the source of our rights to life, liberty and property.

Alexander Hamilton explained, “the sacred rights of mankind…are written, as with a sunbeam, in the whole volume of human nature by the hand of the divinity itself and can never be erased or obscured by mortal power”. Our government was put in place by a social contract of the people, who consented to cede a limited amount of their sovereignty to that government so as to have those God-given rights protected.

In his first inaugural address, President George Washington stated that “the foundations of our national policy would be laid in the pure and immutable principles of private (i.e. not government) morality”.

The unifying thread for The Tea Party movement is a modest expectation for what government can guarantee and immodesty in their expectation for what free people of good will can achieve.

Perhaps because this thread runs to the core of who America has always believed herself to be, The Tea Party movement now is being embraced by long time Democrats and long time Republicans, those with high levels of education and those with little education, those who have never before participated in political events, and political veterans. Although there are obviously some leaders who are trying to bring organization to the movement, by and large, events and protests are driven by those citizens willing to stand, even in the rain, to convey their message.

Despite how they have been portrayed, according to Gallup, members of the Tea Party are a remarkable cross-section of American life, diverse, taken as a whole from society at-large. This is surely a sign that The Tea Party movement has tapped into something deeply rooted in the American experience.

There is another story about King: that after the march from Selma to Montgomery he sat in the Montgomery airport and looked around the terminal, taking note of the incredible diversity of people there who had marched with him—white, black, young, old, rich, poor, Northerner, Southerner. This encouraged King and was a sign to him that the Civil Rights movement had moved beyond its original bounds and on was its way to becoming something truly socially redemptive and transforming. King’s name for this was the “Beloved Community.” And it was within this diverse community where America’s ultimate hope lay not with the government against whose oppression he marched from Selma to Montgomery to oppose.

We are again in the midst of a great civil debate about the nature and character of freedom and liberty. One party believes that government is our best hope, that they are the ones we’ve been waiting for and that good intentions make for good government. This is not what has made the American spirit so strong. America’s greatness has always been in her people not in her programs. America’s greatness has been in the town square and the fellowship hall, the small business and the Rotary Club, the Church and the school on the corner. It’s the spirit that flows from these, which truly governs America and makes her great.

King went on to say that promissory note was a guarantor to the inalienable rights of life, liberty and pursuit of happiness. I do not want to speculate about where Dr. King would fall politically today. But the King of 1963, whose life had been one long struggle against government encroachment, thought to only mention negative rights that day under the shadow of the Washington Monument. A decent home, a fair wage…may have been on King’s mind that day—but as he looked over the assembled crowd, his request for a better society was mainly for government to set them free.

By the way, those marchers too were accused of being violent, unruly and race-baiters.

How Will Yoder Vote?

By David Losey
July, 6, 2010

Any venture into predicting how an elected representative will vote is rife with uncertainty. It is so uncertain that one might question the sanity of anyone who might attempt such a task. However, I will attempt to bring some sense of clarity to this issue by looking at a critical factor that will shed some light on what can be expected from Kevin Yoder should he be elected to Congress.

That critical factor is who is financing his election. Knowing who is financially supporting his campaign will reveal a great deal about how he might vote if elected. Determining how he will vote on specific issues is extremely important because we need to know if he will represent us or will he represent special interests who financed his election. Voters of the 3rd District should be especially sensitive to this lest we get into the same situation like we did with Dennis Moore who ignored phone calls, faxes, e-mails, and letters from his constituents and repeatedly voted for more spending, more debt, and more government control over our lives.

The scope of this article will be to predict with some certainty how Yoder will vote on bills that come before Congress regarding the repeal and/or modification of the current law, the Affordable Health Care For America Act. The likelihood of this happening is high because the law was written in such a manner that it left a lot of details and regulations to be determined at a later date. For instance ... “Congress left it to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners to craft the guidelines for what is acceptable expense for use in the medical loss calculations and NAIC committees are working to have those written by the end of July” according to Kansas Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger, who chairs the NAIC committee that is drafting the guidelines. “One of the subcommittee's working on this is still haggling over how to define these things,” Praeger said. (http://www.khi.org/news/2010/jun/28/health-reform-without-cost-control-unsustainable-i/.)

I have previously reported that Cerner, Corp. has contributed over $11,500 to Yoder's campaign. Cerner is an international information technology health care corporation located in Kansas City, Mo. It is the leader in HIT (Health Information Technology) that will be at the forefront of putting everyone's health information in electronic form so that all health care providers, insurance companies, and government agencies can access it. It has considerable financial interest in this with an estimated $2B of stimulus money coming its way. It, also, estimates that the CPOE (computerized physicians order entry) system has a potential revenue of $8-10B (http://phx.corporate-ir.net/External.File?item=UGFyZW50SUQ9Mzg3MTMxfENoaWxkSUQ9Mzg5NTE1fFR5cGU9MQ==&t=1)
This order entry system “includes embedded alerts and protocols that help providers make the best care decisions.” ( http://kansascity.bizjournals.com/kansascity/stories/2009/08/24/story3.html?b=1251086400^1971701)

(Note: Who sets this protocol? What are the penalties for not following the protocol? Reduced payment? Does this mean that you and your doctor no longer determine your treatment? What about those with serious health issues or terminal illnesses? Do they get treatment?)

Cerner's revenue for 2009 was $1.67B. The stock price in March, 2009 was below 40 and traded above 90 in April, 2010. This represents a paper profit of over $250M for Neal Patterson, Chairman and CEO. This is big business! Cerner, as a corporation, and Mr. Patterson and the other executives, as individuals, have a great deal to protect! Is it any wonder that they would want to have a friend in high places to protect their interests? A friend who would vote in such a manner that would benefit them.

They are clearly not in the habit of wrecklessly spending money. Their investments are made wisely and prudently. It is, therfore, not too far of a stretch of the imagination to speculate that their investment in Yoder's campaign is done with the hope of having such a friend.

If one were inclined to dismiss this as an isolated case let me assure you it is not! I will briefly recap others in the health care and related industries who have contributed to his campaign.

1. One donor is HMS. It is the strategic source for innovative cost containment solutions that benefit government and commercial healthcare programs. One of their main objectives is to make efficient and appropriate use of public healthcare funds. In a time of economic recession HMS reported the following exceptional financial growth.

Q1 2010 Revenue of $65.0 million (+30%y/y), Net Income of $7.6 million (+33% y/y) and EPS $0.27 (+29% y/y) 2010 EPS Guidance Increased to $1.38 from $1.34 (+27% y/y)

2. Health Management of Kansas provides a full range of long-term care services. The scope of its operations include in-home service to 1250 Home Care clients, two Assisted Living facilities, a 171 bed skilled nursing facility in Coffeyville which includes 43 Special Care Alzheimer’s beds plus a 60 bed skilled nursing facility in Iola. Other services provided to aged and disabled clients include two transportation programs, outpatient therapy, adult day care, respite care, weekend Meals on Wheels, community education programs and support groups. The Executive Director has contributed to Yoder's campaign.

3. A member of management for Visiting Nurse Association made a contribution. VNA provides quality home health care to Kansas City and the surrounding metropolitan area regardless of the patient's ability to pay.

4. A member of the American Academy of Family Physicians also made a contribution. It has joined other leading physician associations in establishing Principles of Reform of the U.S. Health Care System as a guide to help Congress to improve both individual health and the collective health care system in the U.S.
Among them are
a.) Health care coverage for all is needed to ensure quality of care and to improve the health status of Americans.

b.) The health care system in the U.S. must provide appropriate health care to all people within its borders, without unreasonable financial barriers to care.

c.) Access to and financing for appropriate health services must be a shared public/private effort.

d.) Cost management is critical to attaining a workable, affordable, and sustainable system.

e.) Comprehensive medical liability reform is essential to ensure access to quality health care.


5.The owner of S & S Drugs has also contributed. This Drug Store business also delivers medical supplies and equipment to all of North Central Kansas.

6. Lockton Companies has given nearly $10,000 to Yoder's campaign. It is the world's largest, privately owned, independent insurance brokers. It is headquartered in Kansas City, Mo. and specializes in creating comprehensive and integrated benefits strategies for clients.

In addition to the six companies detailed above the following companies' corporate executives or management have contributed to Yoder's campaign.

• Menorah Medical Center
• Forest Pharmaceuticals
• Health Care Financial Advisers
• United Bioscience
• Discover Vision
• Durrie Vision Centers
• Haake Insurance Cos.
• Biomedix Vascular Solutions
• Farmers Insurance
• MW Pulmonary Consultants
• Peppes Dental
• Delta Dental
• Childrens Mercy Hospital
• Medicis Pharmaceuticals

How significant are the contributors cited in this article? The three industry groups represented (Health Professionals, Insurance Cos., and Computer/Internet) have a combined total of over $29,000 in contributions representing over 10% of total contributions (as of March 31, 2010 according to opensecrets.org) . Combined they represent the third largest industry behind Lawyer/Law Firms and Finance/Credit Cos.

On his web site Yoder states,

Fourth, I will work to repeal portions of the Obama/Pelosi Healthcare Legislation that will drive up costs, increase the deficit, grow bureaucracy and lower the standards of health care that Americans expect. I support making healthcare more affordable for all Americans. But what I can’t support are pieces of legislation rammed through Congress that will raise our taxes, increase insurance premiums, and promise to make drastic cuts in Medicare. Americans deserve better than this bill. I will work to re-write this act and build true health care reform that focuses on free market competition, patient choice and high quality of care.

To his credit he sounds like he is going to take a stand against Obamacare. But upon further review it is clear he only wants to repeal portions of Obamacare. Mr. Yoder, which portions do you support? Do you support the electronic entry of every American's health information into a system that can be viewed by all health care providers, insurance companies, and government agencies. Do you support protocol that will dictate how a doctor can prescribe care? Do you support cost controls that will be needed in order to have a sustainable system but will of necessity result in rationing? Do you believe that sufficient taxpayers' funds must be made available to cover every person within our borders whether they are legal or illegal residents? How can coverage be expanded without increasing costs? In 2014, Medicaid eligibility will be expanded to include all adults earning 133% or less of the federal poverty guidelines. How will this be done without increasing taxes?

A major concern that Mr. Yoder fails to address is the fact that mandated universal health care for all Americans is unconstitutional. No where in the Constitution does it allow for the federal government to require citizens to buy something and penalize them if they don't! Mr. Yoder, I would expect that anyone who wishes to represent the people of the 3rd District would know the enumerated powers listed in Article 1 Section 8 of the Constitution. This is what restrains the federal government and dictates what it can and cannot do! Mandated government health care is not one of them! One final question, Mr. Yoder. Will you follow the Constitution and vote accordingly or will you be persuaded to vote as the special interest groups who financed your election dictate?

In conclusion, there is one basic economic fact that Mr. Yoder does not seem to grasp. In order for health care to be available for all current residents of the United States, health care costs will increase, the deficit will increase, government bureaucracy will grow, rationing will occur, taxes will increase, insurance premiums will go up, and there will, by necessity, be cuts in Medicare. It appears obvious! Mr. Yoder, like his predecessor, wants to tax, tax, tax and spend, spend, spend! It looks like Moore of the same!