aboveGround Magazine » Politics

The Public Option is Back In?

Katy — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 05:24:43 +0000

Senate majority leader Harry Reid has proposed a healthcare reform bill that includes the public option, but allows states the ability to opt-out. While insurers are not pleased with the possibility, liberals are thrilled to see some progression. One would think the compromise would be enough to elicit some support from the Republicans in the way of a real bipartisan decision, but debate never ends.

The Herald Tribune cited Florida Governor Charlie Crist speaking out against the opt-out plan calling it a “Trojan horse” the government will use to take over healthcare. Crist, however, refuses to take a stance on whether or not he would support opting-out for Florida.

On the other side of the spectrum, House majority leader Steny Hoyer told the Associated Press, they planned to release their healthcare bill sometime this week. Hoyer said he was in favor of the opt-out plan, though it didn’t greatly change the direction of House Democrats, as they were already planning to include some degree of public option.

Now we wait.

Obama Wins 2009 Nobel Peace Prize

Katy — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 14:42:50 +0000

Barack Obama has become the fourth U.S. President to win the Nobel Peace Prize “for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples,” (nobelprize.org). Theodore Roosevelt was awarded in 1906, followed by Woodrow Wilson in 1919, and Former President Jimmy Carter was given the Nobel in 2002.

Though Obama was awarded the prize after a record 205 nominations, according to several news comment posts about this story, feelings from Americans are extremely mixed.

Sarah Palin resigns as Governor

Tyler Hakes — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 20:41:00 +0000

Sarah Palin’s surprise announcement of resignation by July 26th — described as a way to avoid “lame duck” status — has sparked theories about her dedication to running for president in 2012. Coming as a shock to many, Palin has already announced that she will not be running for Gubernatorial reelection after her term expires in November.

No, No Says Supreme Court, Let’s Play Fair

Tyler Hakes — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 23:38:44 +0000

The Supreme Court ruled 5-to-4 in favor of requiring elected judges to disqualify themselves from cases in which one of the parties directly contributed a large sum of money to the judge’s campaign. The New York Times spells out the story behind this decision by saying that it, “ordered the chief justice of the West Virginia Supreme Court to recuse himself from a $50 million case against a coal company whose chief executive had spent $3 million to elect him.”

The stink of the issue is mainly the apparent infringement of the Due Process Clause of the U.S. Constitution. “No person shall … be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law,” reads the Fifth Amendment, which is generally interpreted to guarantee a trial under the terms of a fair trial. This decision is the first time that election contributions were recognized as affecting the fairness of the trial.

Campaign contributions are a mainstay in political life, and the way that these contributions can affect the outcomes—not only of the election, but of many entrenched issues that stem from the election of any particular figure—can be massive. Looking into this particular case the issues are apparent and very real.

The lowdown: The initial case was settled in 2002, several small mining companies sued A.T. Massey Coal Company for a combined $50 million, claiming that their fraudulent acts had driven them (Massey’s competing firms) out of business. The court rules in favor of the plaintiffs, awarding the other companies $50 million. Massey appealed, and between the time of the first case and the appeal there was an election for justices of the court. Don Blankenship (CEO of Massey) contributed approximately $3 million to a campaign for Brent D. Benjamin, a Republican, who won the election, unseating Warren R. McGraw as the chief justice.