This crazy bastard wants members of Congress/Senate to agree to READ a bill concerning health care reform before they sign it. In an equally crazy request he asks that a copy be posted on the Internet for 72 hours prior to a vote so Americans can read it and digest the contents for their selves.

The nerve of this Commie bastard to expect our busy representatives to spend the time to READ a bill prior to signing it. Doesn't he know they have lobbyist to lunch with, pages to chase, and Government Sh*t to do and can't be bothered with trivial stuff. Then he has the balls to post the names of those LOSERS that have agreed to READ the bill first.

Check it out.
http://www.letfreedomring...ge-to-read

I'm glad it's a real big deal, now.

Yeah, the wingnuts were really up in arms about this issue during the Bush administration.

So it's not so much about getting it right as it's about paying back the "wing-nuts" for 8 years of GWB. Makes perfect sense to me, no wonder we are so F**ked.

I looked at the list of signers, and without a score card I can see no way of knowing if the listed party is a member of any particular party. So maybe this is just what it is, a list of our employees that are willing to have first hand knowledge of a bill that will directly effect everyone of us before they sign it in to law.

No, it's about, quit being a dumbass. Your concern comes 200 years late.

[This message has been edited by Buck Showalter (7/20/2009)]

Now that's a cleaver and pertinent response Buck and it leaves me no response.

Apparently it doesn't, too bad. It's not like I disagree with the proposition, but it's really a flaming load that it's suddenly so important to you.

[This message has been edited by Buck Showalter (7/21/2009)]

The notion that I should sign a petition for congress to simply do their job is outrageous. They should know what is in EVERY bill they vote upon. If this were anyone in private practice there would be lawsuits for malpractice.

If you are implying that I have been paying unusual attention to this particular subject you are exactly right. I have a dog in this hunt for fact, that dog is a good health care plan provided by my employer with a co-pay on my part that I can live with. I do not want to throw it away for the sake of 100% coverage for everyone, I don't care that much about everyone. I hear the "you'll be able to keep the coverage you've got" lip service coming out of Washington but I'm not buying it, so save that argument. It's a bold face lie.

We all can agree change is needed and tighter controls must be established but if you think this is the way to go about it you sadly mistaken. And for Pete's sake if your signing a bill that effects all Americans so directly and so profoundly READ THE FU*KING THING FIRST.

Bottom line is that's really all I expect out of the suit wearing monkeys we send to Washington, try to know what your doing before you do it. As always I'll live with the consequences no matter what.

I just heard a podcast on this topic a few days ago. It's actually pretty disturbing how bills get passed. The Patriot Act was a perfect example of this. They throw out a 1200 page bill at midnight before the vote, then put in a 300 page amendment a few hours after that. In addition to that, there are blank sections of the bill that are to be filled in later, with no review by the legislators that voted on it. There was a comment from one congressman that it was physically impossible for anyone to have read the patriot act when it came to a vote based on how long it was and how long before the vote they got the bill. Pretty ridiculous when you consider how important some of this stuff is.

Same with the Stimulus Bill. Sad indeed!

Yeah, but post-9/11 the urgency was at least a little easier to understand. Nobody knew what was coming next at that point. History has shown that overreaction in that kind of climate is just a part of human nature.

But with the stimulus we were told it had to be passed in a matter of hours, only to then have it held up for several days after for a signing photo op. Then we find out most of the money was actually just payola and will take years to trickle out. It'll have little to no effect on the economy.

Now with healthcare, we have the same problems we've been living with for decades, and all the sudden it needs to be passed in a couple weeks. Obama says "the time for talk is over" and then when he's asked about the bill it becomes apparent he has no idea what's in it. He's delegated all of that, but then pretends that he's laser focused on getting it done tomorrow. Why the urgency? I suspect it has more to do with plummeting poll numbers than anything.

I don't think "urgency" had anything to do with it, this is standard procedure and has been for a long time.

Levi, The more I get into this the more I think you are right on the money. It's just business as usual in the Nations Capital, man what a hornets nest we have there. Never the less we can HOPE for CHANGE.

Hope/Change is what it's all about!!!!

While I agree with the total absurdity about the process used by Washington to pass bills I have to take exception to the whole "stimulus is payola we won't see for years" line. There are currently..(looking it up now).. 13 major road construction projects around the Minneapolis metro area that are specifically being paid for with funds from the stimulus. A few of them were VERY hot topics in local elections in the past and one guy lost his public position because he couldn't get a major interchange construction project done so the citizens ousted him.

None of these projects were getting done anytime soon until the stimulus funds were handed out.

[This message has been edited by J. Dyba (7/23/2009)]

We could go back and forth all day on individual projects. There are stories all over the place. Alot of them stating that alot of states are mostly using stimulus money to plug holes in their own budgets.

This is $800 billion dollars, give or take. Think about that when you hear stuff said like "150k jobs saved." We could've made 150 thousand people multi-millionaires with that amount of money.

The question is much larger than a few bridges here and there. It's over 2500 bucks for every man, woman, and child in the US. Is it worth it?

Maybe it is, and maybe it isn't worth it. I propose we wait at least a few months to see if the plan has the desired affect on the economy. Radical thinking I know. If not, then you can throw the "african" out of office. Or try. Every report I see, except on Fox News, spells out positive trends in the economy. Happening now.

Matt - the thing we need to realize is that if McCain would have won the election, we wouldn't all be talking about the economy right now.

We'd be discussing who the next vice president should be.

[This message has been edited by Brian A. Reed (7/24/2009)]

Looks like they are going to slow down a little on this medical reform bill, thats a good thing. Lets work hard on getting it right correct or at least more correct before it becomes a law we will be stuck with for a long time to come.

When I first posted this there was 63 signers on the promise to read before signing now there are 93 signers, a step in the right direction.

FYI click on the original link and catch Montana's own Denny Rehberg speak about the promise to read and get a look at the bill (siting on his desk) in all it's 1300 page glory.

FYI click on the original link and catch Montana's own Denny Rehberg speak about the promise to read and get a look at the bill (siting on his desk) in all it's 1300 page glory.

I have my doubts that our Denny has ever read 1,300 pages of anything in his life.

I agree with most of the criticism of this bill and especially of the Congressmen/women reading it. My biggest complaint though, as someone who DOES pay for healthcare through my employer is WHY are we even wasting time debating it in Congress? Hold the insurers and medical field accountable for reasonably priced care and coverage. Healthcare is NOT a "RIGHT". Where in the Constitution does it mention providing healthcare or half of the other "RIGHTS" that everyone thinks they are entitled to. End the entitlements and maybe we can get the country headed in the right direction. In my opinion the best place to start would be to vote out the entire Congress and start from scratch. Could it really be any worse?

Amen! Throw the bastards out, everyone of them.

The count is up to 102, that reading the bill idea is really catching on................NOT.

If by read, you mean let your interns read and summarize.

We have the opportunity to throw 438 of them out every two years.

Now, most of them are able to get back in due to the incumbency protection racket that is congressional redistricting - which is yet another thing that could use a good dose of "reform".

On the other hand - Senate seats are statewide, so if they get back in it's the voter's fault.

"Throw the bums out" is a wonderful rallying cry... but why would the next crop be any "better" than the current one, particularly once the lobbyist money starts rolling into the campaign coffers?

... but why would the next crop be any "better" than the current one, particularly once the lobbyist money starts rolling into the campaign coffers?

You know, probably not but I'd love to see the look on the outgoing members face when he/she realizes they been replaced.

I think we just keep replacing them until they get the clue.