One of the reasons New York spends more on Medicaid is because the health care industry uses its political power to charge more, the subject of my prior post. A second reason is it charges for services it does not actually deliver – Medicaid fraud. A third reason is that New York provides more Medicaid services for recipients than do other states. And as I wrote here, the beneficiaries of most of those additional services are the elderly.

Today’s American elderly are the best off people, with the easiest lives, in history – unless one counts slave-owners. Tomorrow’s elderly, those born after 1955 or so, will not be as fortunate. Entering the labor force after social security taxes were raised, on the wrong end of multi-tier labor contracts, without defined benefit pensions and perhaps, when they reach their 50s, losing health insurance as well, and with limited savings, today’s young and middle-aged will reach old age as social security funds begin to run dry and the debts run up by their predecessors must be paid. We will have to work until no longer able, and will then face poverty. The poverty rate of the elderly, much lower than that of children in recent decades, is likely to explode – unless the seniors use their political clout to tax their own children into poverty, or to wipe out public education, or otherwise do unto their offspring what was done to them.

On LunchBox today, host Adam Green on: former Rep Mark Foley, Rep Thomas Reynolds, Daily News, New York Post, Jeannine Pirro, New York City Council and Cocaine.

The media here in the dog's nose of New York State have been atwitter over Tom Reynolds' involvement in the PageGate scandal involving Mark Foley.  As has been widely reported, we know that the 16-year old recipient of Foley's inappapropriate emails was troubled enough to bring it up with Rodney Alexander (R-LA), who then took it to Tom Reynolds. 

Why?  Because Reynolds is in charge of the NRCC. 

Reynolds, in turn, did not engage in any sort of investigation into the matter, but instead claims to have informed his boss, Denny Hastert about the matter.  There was no ethics probe of Foley; no censure, no reprimand.

What I would do about Medicaid is not what I would do about health care.  In my view, because those in need of expensive care, and those who do not want to pay for them, are free to move across state borders, health care is a national problem with a national solution (see here).

Any state that attempts to provide universal care for its residents will end up providing universal care for all Americans – until its economy collapses and it provides nothing to anyone.  With regard to Medicaid, my goal is to avoid having the health care industry – with its political power and indifference to the consequences of its increasing demands – from destroying other public services and the economy of the state.  Medicaid, for me, is a fiscal issue, not a health care issue, and my goal is to continue to get necessary health care without paying twice as much as everyone else.  That is different from the current fiscal goal – to pay as much as possible in for as little as possible in exchange for political support.  The current situation is a product of incentives – the state government gets to hand out money to its supporters, but other governments are forced to pay much of the cost and impose much of the sacrifice.  My proposal is to change the incentives.

With about 5 weeks till the mid term elections, the Democratic Party for the first time in more then a decade has a shot at winning back at least the House of  Representatives. At first glance this seems to be a good thing. However, if the Democrats win the House and maybe even the Senate, it will not be because of a strong and cohesive Democratic Party. It will actually be quite the contrary; it will be because of a weak and incompetent Republican Party.

If there was no Iraq war, the Democratic Party would not pick up a single seat this November. This is because the Democratic Party still has no key message, and any message that it does produce is diluted by conservative Democrats. What the Democratic Party needs today, is a latter day Barry Goldwater or William F Buckley. Democrats need to move their Party to the left first, and then worry about winning elections. Democrats today are Republican light; they constantly hedge their bets, by compromising on things like tax cuts, the Patriot Act, and until recently the war in Iraq.

via TPM Muckraker

Apparently, Hastert and Co. have another good lesson for the kids.  When you find yourself embarrassed by what you've previously written and heavily touted ... all you gotta do is DELETE... DELETE... DELETE!

TPM Muckraker reports that Speaker Hastert has just taken down this press release which had been featured on the front page of his website until yesterday.

Photo Hat Tip: DailyKos

On LunchBox today, host Adam Green on: political sins.