Well, I am not sure. This is just weird.

Republicans in the House have sent a letter to Obama saying that yes, they did all they could to scare people with ads about 'Medicare Cuts' before the election. They also say in the letter that the ads they ran were a major reason they were elected. To save Obama the trouble of looking the ads up they have helpfully provided copies of them for him to view.

Now, after vowing to destroy Medicare in Ryan's budget plan, they have found that about 83% of US Seniors feels like they have been lied to by Republicans since they have been lied to by Republicans. So the 'kill Medicare' thing is off the table even though every Republican House member voted for it.

Now Republicans are upset that the Democrats keep telling the voters how the Republicans voted. Republicans are even more upset that the Senate intends to debate the bill that the Republican controlled house passed since it will just serve to remind people that Republicans voted to kill Medicare. I think they are also feeling silly that the Republican budget plan will not work unless unemployment goes to 2.8% and says there for 30 years. If the Senate brings this up words like 'stupid' and 'ignorant' are bound to be tossed around.

So they are asking if the Dems will just let bygones be bygones and maybe the voters will forget this whole thing ever took place. They have made it clear they intend to give up nothing in return for the Dems doing this.

I am no good at posting links, but please feel to Google this for more details.

Also.... I am beginning to wonder if this is all some sort of hoax. I mean, could any group of people really be that dumb?

Medicare and SS are both election year "sacred cows" for both parties. It sounds like the Republicans are just trying to go on the record.

Same old Pot/kettle fiasco

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TC
Current stable:
- 2004 Mazda RALLYWANKEL
- 2007 Saturn sky redline
- 2004 Explorer...under surgery.

Past: 135i, GTI, 300E, 300SD, 300SD, Stealth

This is what happens if you elect politicians you think you can have a beer with.

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1979 Black on Black, 300CD (sold), 1990 Black 300SE, Silver 1989 Volvo 780, 1988 300CE (vanished by the hands of a girlfriend), 1992 300CE (Rescue).

Republicans are on the record for destroying Medicare. What they want is to get off the record.

They are asking for the Dems to pledge to not use this massive mistake by the Republicans against them even though they are now bragging about having used it to defeat the Dems.

It is almost as if Republicans are now saying they never had any plan to cut spending because they want everyone to forget the plan they put forth.

The bottom line: They fell for their own baloney.

And that is no exaggeration. The Ryan "plan" might be the biggest political mistake ever.

It's gonna be tough to top the invasion of Iraq.

I think the continued spending without thought and raising the debt ceiling just might have done that

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1987 560SL
85,000 miles

"Well it was he wrong country to invade, but at least it was in the neighborhood."

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1991 560 SEC AMG, 199k <---- 300 hp 10:1 ECE euro HV ...

1995 E 420, 170k "The Red Plum" (sold)

2015 BMW 535i xdrive awd Stage 1 DINAN, 6k, <----364 hp

1967 Mercury Cougar, 49k

2013 Jaguar XF, 20k <----340 hp Supercharged, All Wheel Drive (sold)

As fraught with flaws as Medicare is, most people know that placing their faith in ins. companies complete with execs angling for 7 and 8 figure paydays is going to leave them short when at age 68 they need a simple procedure that costs about $10K, a procedure that has a good chance of giving them 5 to 10 more years of relatively healthy living.

The heroic, 6 figure hail Mary pass procedures need to be reined in. Too many people are getting mega expensive care that has virtually no chance of succeeding in any meaningful way.

I heard on the demon NPR the other day that the average person consumes $300K in Medicare expenses (?!) after having contributed $100 K to it in payroll deductions.

Major change is needed but the Ryan plan is DOA. I wonder if he'll get re-elected?

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1986 300SDL, 362K
1984 300D, 138K

Wow! Something middle of the road. Even from Berkley CA. A big double Wow. It would be nice if some politician got it. I think the majority of Americans understand it, but the extreme or even moderates of today in both parties are no where near the center.
Tom

I would gladly officiate at his public crucifixion.

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1991 560 SEC AMG, 199k <---- 300 hp 10:1 ECE euro HV ...

1995 E 420, 170k "The Red Plum" (sold)

2015 BMW 535i xdrive awd Stage 1 DINAN, 6k, <----364 hp

1967 Mercury Cougar, 49k

2013 Jaguar XF, 20k <----340 hp Supercharged, All Wheel Drive (sold)

Berkeley, Berkeley, Berkeley. It's a town. A cute town. But, enough complaining, thank you for your kind words.

My old man spent the last week of his life being tortured at some unknown but significant expense to the taxpayer. Diagnosed with non-Hodgkins lymphoma (sometimes referred to as non-favorable diagnosis lymphoma). The doctor told my mother it would probably be best to just let him go. I wasn't there at the time, probably couldn't have stopped her anyway, but she thought he was saveable. He was 77, never smoked or drank, strong as an ox.

A day after starting chemo, he was in misery. Didn't even seem to recognize old friends. I spoke to him by phone the day before he went in, his words were slurred but he was still intact, mentally anyway.

They had to put mittens on him so he wouldn't pull his catheters out. He was cussing at my mother to give him his pocket knife so he could cut the mittens off. After about 6 days of that, he died.

Hospice care would have been a much, much better way to spend his final days, and would have cost a good bit less, no doubt. I sorta wish someone who knew would have said, "No, we're not going to torture the old fellow."

CBS had a good piece on 60 Minutes about useless mega $$ care in the final months of life, courtesy of Medicare. Good piece. But from Rs, we hear "DEATH PANELS!"

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/11/19/60minutes/main5711689.shtml

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1986 300SDL, 362K
1984 300D, 138K

My dad was also subjected to pretty aggressive chemo in his last few months; it was his choice. After seeing a little of what he went through, I would not make that choice.

It seems the Republicans had a good reason for wanting the Dems to pledge to never use what the Republicans call 'Mediscare' tactics in their ads.

The Republicans are going to start running ads in California in a week or so saying that Dems are destroying health care by making Medicare stronger. The tag line is 'Medical decisions should be between you and your Doctor'. The ad does not point out that medical decisions will stay between you and your doctor; it just talks about the Dems plan to make changes to Medicare and leaves you to try and figure out what on Earth they are talking about.

But they still want Dems to pledge to not bring up this deception during the elections.

I wonder if this could be referred to as 'begging'?