ObamaCare: Opposition Is Now Bi-Partisan

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi plans to force a vote on the health care bill this week, and people need to contact their representatives to urge them to vote “No.” This legislation will force tax increases, it will increase the cost of health care and it will force cuts to Medicare benefits. If that wasn’t enough, the House leadership is resorting to procedural tricks to pass legislation that most Americans don’t want. It’s just bad medicine.

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Tags: government health care, government regulation, health care take over, Medicare, Nancy Pelosi
Posted Mar 18th 2010 at 6:47 am in Congress, Healthcare, Obama, Politics | 91630152 Commentshttp://biggovernment.com/hbarbour/2010/03/18/obamacare-opposition-is-now-bi-partisan/ObamaCare%3A+Opposition+Is+Now+Bi-Partisan2010-03-18+13%3A47%3A17Gov.+Haley+Barbour+%28R-MS%29

Reason.tv: Nanny of the Month for February 2010!

Last month’s nannies pulled a modern-day Footloose by banning singing, dancing and rapping at new bars and restaurants—in Snoop Dog’s home, no less!

But what about this month?

Check out who’s pulling the plug on electric bingo machines (sorry charity fundraisers) and who won’t let pet stores sell dogs and cats (seriously?).

But the Nanny of the Month goes to the heartland pol who’s waging a very real war on fake pot (A.K.A. spice, K2, genie, black mamba, bliss, dragon, Bombay Blue …)

Ladies and gentlemen, we present Reason.tv’s Nanny of the Month for February 2010: Kansas State Rep. Robert Olson!

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Tags: black mamba, bombay blue, electronic bingo, fake pot, genie
Posted Mar 1st 2010 at 12:51 pm in Political Humor, Regulation | 8241034 Commentshttp://biggovernment.com/ngillespie/2010/03/01/reason-tv-nanny-of-the-month-for-february-2010/Reason.tv%3A+Nanny+of+the+Month+for+February+2010%212010-03-01+20%3A51%3A15Nick+Gillespie

Poll: Americans – and Millennials – Lack Confidence in Government and Wall Street on Economy

A new national poll finds a crisis of confidence on economic issues among Americans — and younger Americans (those 18-29) — alike.

Among the key findings, Americans and Millennials:

Are not confident in the government’s ability to handle the economic crisis. (59% of Americans;  55% of Millennials)

• Want a free market approach and oppose greater government regulation of business.  (55% of Americans; 53% of Millennials)
• Believe the country is headed in the wrong direction.  (67% of Americans; 60% of Millennials)
• Want the same set of moral standards in business life as in personal life.  (75% of Americans; 66% of Millennials)
• See business decisions based on greed as morally wrong. (74% of Americans; 77% of Millennials)
• Think their careers will be negatively impacted for the long-term by the current economic situation (55% of Americans under 65 years old; 55% of Millennials).

“A year into the Obama administration, we find that Americans — and younger Americans — are having a crisis of confidence,” says Carl Anderson, CEO of the Knights of Columbus, the group that commissioned the poll. “People are increasingly pessimistic about the government’s ability to handle the economic crisis and a majority believes that increased government regulation will hurt the economy.”

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Tags: Carl Anderson, economic issues, Free Markets, government regulation, Knights of Columbus
Posted Jan 28th 2010 at 1:59 pm in Culture, News, Politics | 66738115 Commentshttp://biggovernment.com/publius/2010/01/28/poll-americans-and-millennials-lack-confidence-in-government-and-wall-street-on-economy/Poll%3A+Americans+-+and+Millennials+-+Lack+Confidence+in+Government+and+Wall+Street+on+Economy2010-01-28+21%3A59%3A43Publius

The Payday Loan Public Option: As Bad As It Sounds

The Virginia State Credit Union is mining for gold and it’s finding it.  Thanks to former Virginia Governor Tim Kaine, state employees are being duped into a credit product designed to take more money from their paychecks than the payday loans it was designed to replace.  Not only that, this spider catches its flies via unfair competition.

Welcome to The c, or “Virginia PDL Public Option”.  It’s as bad an idea as has ever come into the credit space, short of the credit default swap.  Naturally, it is the invention of Government.

I’ll jump over all the usual falsehoods that Mr. Kaine presents and cut to the chase.

What’s so bad about this program?  Let’s take the unfair competition part first.   I don’t have any problem with the government entering the consumer credit business, just as I have no problem with a fair public option for health care, as long as the playing field is level. Therein lies the rub.

The PDL Public Option provides loans up to $500, at a 24.99% APR, with a six-month term, and a limit of  2 loans annually.  It requires membership in the Virginia Credit Union (VACU), which administers the program.   The VACU also requires direct deposit of the borrower’s paycheck.

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Tags: access to credit, bank charges, credit availability, credit union, government competition
Posted Jan 6th 2010 at 2:36 pm in Economics, News | 5521861 Commentshttp://biggovernment.com/lmeyers/2010/01/06/the-payday-loan-public-option-as-bad-as-it-sounds/The+Payday+Loan+Public+Option%3A+As+Bad+As+It+Sounds2010-01-06+22%3A36%3A47Lawrence+Meyers

Another Gem From a 2,000 Page Bill: ‘Botox Carve-Out’ Survives in PelosiCare Bill

A provision within Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s health care measure passed by the House the other week rehashes a months-old intramural battle between powerful Democrats over how biologic drugs will face competition from generic drug manufacturers.

While the House bill provides a brand drug maker-backed 12 years of monopoly data protection for these next generation therapies, one component of the bill, buried on page 1,534, beginning on line 15 under the heading, “Restrictions on biological products containing dangerous ingredients,” might raise more than eyebrows.

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Tags: botox, Food and Drug Administration, generic drugs, government carve out, government mandates
Posted Nov 13th 2009 at 2:41 pm in Congress, Healthcare, Politics | 3069866 Commentshttp://biggovernment.com/publius/2009/11/13/another-gem-from-a-2000-page-bill-botox-carve-out-survives-in-pelosicare-bill/Another+Gem+From+a+2%2C000+Page+Bill%3A+%27Botox+Carve-Out%27+Survives+in+PelosiCare+Bill2009-11-13+21%3A41%3A31Publius