End of Day -10/26/09
 

Monday, October 26, 2009

To: Friends & Supporters

From: Gary L. Bauer

 

The Truth About Those “Obscene” Profits

Thus far in his presidency, Barack Obama, his congressional cronies Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, and Big Media have attacked many sectors of the private economy. First they took aim at our nation’s banks, accusing them of being the culprit in our current financial crisis. Obama then attacked the travel industry when he argued that people should not stay in nice hotels or spend money on extravagant vacations. Then it was Wall Street, drug companies and “the wealthy.”

The Obama machine has targeted insurance companies throughout the healthcare debate. MoveOn.org, an Obama ally, has even been running a television ad that states, “Health insurance companies are willing to let bodies pile up as long as their profits are safe.” A lot of what the liberals here in Washington are saying about health insurers is false according to an Associated Press “fact check” released today. Here’s what the AP found:

• On average, the profit margins of health insurance companies are around six percent.
  
   
• Their profits barely eclipsed two percent of revenue last year, placing them 35th of 53 industries on the Fortune 500 list.
  
   
• The best health insurance performer was HealthSpring, which posted a 5.4 percent margin -- less then the makers of Clorox bleach, Tupperware and Coors beers.

For comparison, railroads recorded a 12.6 percent profit margin, while network and other communications equipment companies topped the Fortune list at 20.4 percent. Yet, according to the Associated Press, “Democrats and their allies have gone after insurance companies as rapacious profiteers making ‘immoral’ and ‘obscene’ returns while ‘the bodies pile up.’”

Throughout the presidential campaign, Barack Obama emphasized bringing people together. Since taking office, it seems that he spends as much time dividing us and playing on our fears as he does playing golf. After the health insurance industry, which businesses will Obama attack next?


Public Option = No Option

Senate Democrat Leader Harry Reid announced this afternoon that he intends to force a vote on the government-run “public option” because his private discussions with fellow senators indicate there are nearly 60 senators willing to support it in one form or another.

Let me remind you again what the public option is all about. President Obama has said that the public option could force insurance companies to be “honest” and lower costs by having to compete against the federal government. Today, Reid repeated those claims. But, as the AP “fact check” report makes clear, the insurance industry is not reaping “obscene” profits. The real goal is to bankrupt the insurance companies, putting them out of business, thereby making the government-run public option the only option.

Honest advocates of the public option admit that it is the vehicle through which they will achieve government-run socialized healthcare. Read this column and watch the video at the end. And if you need more proof of the public option Trojan horse, watch this video of Barney Frank saying that the public option, with its “strength and power,” is the best way to get a socialized single payer system.


The “Obama Hangover”

Today’s Boston Globe reports that some Democrat candidates are experiencing “Obama hangover.” For many liberal activists the 2008 campaign was intoxicating, but evidently their enthusiasm has waned significantly. Liberal candidates are finding it difficult to recruit volunteers and energize voters. There is more than just anecdotal evidence for this report.

James Carville’s polling firm, Democracy Corps, recently surveyed likely voters in 40 key congressional districts with Democrat incumbents to gauge the mood of the electorate. His results must be setting off alarm bells at the DNC. Here are a few noteworthy findings:

• Obama’s job approval rating in Democrat-held congressional districts stands at 48%-to-49%. In other words, if the election were held today, President Obama would likely be a drag against incumbent Democrats running for re-election.
  
   
• When asked if they would vote to re-elect their incumbent congressman or vote for someone else, 40% of likely voters in Democrat districts said they would vote to re-elect their congressman, while 45% said they would vote for someone else. These results reflect a seven-point negative swing against incumbent Democrats since the last Democracy Corps poll in April.
  
   
• Democracy Corps also tested six Democrat messages on the economy and four Republican messages on the economy that you will likely hear in next year’s congressional campaigns. All four Republican messages registered significantly higher levels of intensity with voters, while the Democrats’ defense of deepening deficits and sky-high spending largely fell flat.

Speaking of voter intensity, in today’s daily Rasmussen tracking poll, Barack Obama’s approval rating among likely voters stands at 47%-to-52%. Those figures include 29% who strongly approve of Obama’s performance and a whopping 41% of voters who strongly disapprove of his performance. This is a critical measurement because elections are won or lost on turnout, and the most motivated voters are the ones who turnout most.

In addition to the Democracy Corps’ polling on economic messaging, Scott Rasmussen reported last week, “For the first time in recent years, voters trust Republicans more than Democrats on all ten key electoral issues. The GOP holds double-digit advantages on five of them.”


Media Notice

Tune in tomorrow morning at 7:00 AM ET to Bill Bennett’s radio show, Morning In America. I will be on discussing the sanctity of life and other critical issues confronting our country. Click here to find station lists in your area.

 

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