THIS HAS BECOME A PATTERN

FAUX News reports on people being scewed by Obamacare and later we find that it's not true, often because those very same people don't know the facts.  The latest FAUX "story" was so bad it made Mediaite:

Fox News Cancer Patient Bill Elliott Doesn’t Have to Die
by Tommy Christopher | 7:47 pm, November 8th, 2013

On Thursday night’s edition of Fox News’ The Kelly File, host Megyn Kelly conducted a gut-wrenching interview with a viewer named Bill Elliott, who told Kelly that he plans to forego his cancer treatments rather than pay the $1500 per month insurance premium that he’s been told it will cost him to be insured under Obamacare.

He later reveals that his old plan cost him about $170, and the one his “insurance guy” offered would cost him $1500 a month, with a $13,500 deductible. However, the most expensive Obamacare plan offered to individuals over 50 on the exchange for South Carolina is $796.87 a month, for the most expensive Gold plan, and Bronze plans in the state start at $255.35 a month. Kelly didn’t ask him, but Mr. Elliott might qualify for federal subsidies as well. For example, if he makes $26,000 a year, that Bronze plan would be $163.42 /mo., less than what he was paying before.

He [Elliot] also said “Now with Obamacare, the man that I’ve got looked into it, they are not going to pay for pharmaceuticals or medical devices.”

But under Obamacare, both of those categories are mandated as essential health benefits.Either Mr. Elliott’s insurance man is giving him a bum steer, or something is being lost in translation. I’ve tried to get in touch with Mr. Elliott, but have thus far been unsuccessful.

A BAD CONSEQUENCE OF THE SC DECISION ON OBAMACARE

The Court made Medicaid expansion up to individual states and many have decided not to follow through, so hospitals will be hurt because the former subsidy for caring for The Poors is eliminated under Obamacare because it assumes nationwide expansion of Medicaid. It seems he GOP will not permit this to be fixed, so something else must be done. (h/t Atrios)

CALLING OUT THE BANKSTERS

The chairman of the NY branch of the Federal Reserve is primus inter pares and what he or she says cannot be dismissed as mere punditry so these remarks by William C. Dudlet, the current NY Fed chair, are very impressive:

Some argue that what I have proposed—higher capital requirements and better incentives that reduce the probability of failure combined with a resolution regime that makes the prospect of failure fully credible—are insufficient.  Perhaps, this is correct.  After all, collectively these enhancements to our current regime may not solve another important problem evident within some large financial institutions—the apparent lack of respect for law, regulation and the public trust.  There is evidence of deep-seated cultural and ethical failures at many large financial institutions.

Reports of these remarks did make Memeorandum but there are only 5 other links at the moment.

CONSERVATIVE JOURNALIST NEWS

Robert Costa provided excellent coverage of the Shutdown for the National Review and that got him a new job with the WaPo.  If you want to keep up with conservative politics but don't like the radio gasbags., Costa, David Weigel and Byron York are the journalists to read.

THIS MIGHT BE CONSIDERED A STEP FORWARD

I didn't think conservatives would come up with an alternative to Obamacare, in part because they claim that we have the very best system in the world.  Today, Fats Limbaugh told me that the Heritage Foundation has a plan:

Getting Health Care Reform Back on Track
There are many policy options Congress should consider, after repeal of PPACA, to begin moving the system in the right direction and put the country on the right path toward market-based health care change that gives people better choices and allows them to take account of the price and value of health care. For example, Congress should:

• Provide individual tax relief for all persons purchasing private health insurance, regardless of where they work;
• Eliminate barriers to individuals purchasing health care coverage that best suits their personal needs across state lines;
• Allow employers to convert their health care compensation from a defined benefit package to a defined contribution system;
• Promote new group purchasing arrangements based on individual membership organizations and various associations, including union, fraternal, ethnic, and religiously based groups;
• Improve consumer-directed health options (such as health savings accounts, health reimbursement arrangements, and flexible spending accounts) that encourage greater transparency and consumer control over health care decisions;
• Extend rational pre-existing condition protections in the non-group health insurance markets for those with continuous creditable coverage, thus rewarding responsible persons who buy and maintain coverage;
• Set up a fair competitive bidding process to determine government payment in traditional Medicare fee-for-service and Medicare Advantage programs;
• Review Medicare rules and regulations and eliminate those that unduly burden doctors and patients, such as the restriction preventing doctors and patients to contract privately for medical services outside of the traditional Medicare program;
• Encourage the states to set up mechanisms such as high-risk pools and risk transfer models that help lessen the problems of individuals who are difficult to insure;
• Expand states’ ability to develop consumer-based reforms that enable states to customize solutions for their citizens;
• Strengthen premium assistance in Medicaid to enable young families to obtain private health insurance coverage;
• Improve patient-centered health care models for those on Medicaid;
• Increase federal and state efforts to combat fraud and abuse in Medicaid, including tightening eligibility loopholes in Medicaid for long-term-care services;
• Encourage personal savings and the development of a robust private insurance market for long-term-care needs;
• Make the ban on taxpayer-funded abortion permanent and government-wide and extend a similar permanent policy to ensure protection of the right of conscience among medical providers and personnel; and
• Stop new tax increases and promote tax cuts that would expand private insurance coverage and grow the economy.

BENGHAZI UPDATE

CBS's 60 Minutes segment that relied in part upon the testimony of a liar has been wiped from the Internet and Simon & Schuster will review the book that's based in part on the liar's testimony.  BTW, archconservative Mary Matalin heads the branch of Simon & Schuster that published the book.

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS DOES GOOD

I remember he inserted an amendment to Obamacare to increase funding for community health centers and today he let us know how that's going:

Sen. Bernie Sanders announced on Thursday that the federal government designated three new community health centers in Vermont. The announcement will increase from eight to 11 the number of health centers that will provide primary care for some 163,000 patients throughout the state. Nationwide, the latest round of grants awarded today totaled $150 million for 236 new community health centers around the country to serve more than 1.25 million additional patients.

A Sanders provision in the Affordable Care Act authorized $11 billion to build, expand, and operate community health centers throughout the United States.

DO YOU WANT A CAREER IN PLAGIARIZING?

Rand Paul found a home at Breitbart and you can too!!!

A LITTLE WINGNUT LIE

I've heard national and local radio hosts call Sebelius a hypocrite because she's not enrolled in Obamacare.  The truth is that Sebelius turned 65 last May and is in another government program, Medicare.

IT'S NOT THE AMOUNT, IT'S THE PLAINTIFFS

Another bankster organization is being fined for ripping off Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, something Baggers simply can't explain because in their world, it was the other way around.

Wells Fargo pays $335 million to settle Fannie and Freddie lawsuits
By Agence France-Presse
Wednesday, November 6, 2013 18:25 EST
The Raw Story

Wells Fargo said Wednesday it had agreed to pay $335 million to settle claims by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac that it overstated the quality of mortgage securities it sold them.

Wells Fargo now joins Citigroup, J.P. Morgan and other banksters caught ripping off the two agencies.

ANOTHER BAGGER LOST

This time in ALABAMA of all places.  The district voted 62% for Mitten$ and still rejected the Bagger in the GOP primary:

Business-backed Bradley Byrne wins in Alabama
By ALEX ISENSTADT | 11/5/13 11:07 PM EST Updated: 11/5/13 11:55 PM EST
POLITICO

With 100 percent of precincts reporting, Bradley Byrne, a staid former state senator, led Dean Young, a conservative real estate developer who likened himself to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, 52.5 percent to 47.5 percent.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce spent around $200,000 on Byrne’s behalf, and Ending Spending, an outside group bankrolled by TD Ameritrade founder Joe Ricketts, spent around $75,000 on TV and ads boosting him. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor and House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy send checks to Byrne, as did dozens of Washington-based political action committees.

ONE MORE TIME: IT WASN'T SARVIS

I noted below that a pre-election poll found that Sarvis voters would split in favor of McAuliffe over Cooch and CNN's exit poll confirms that result:

And if Sarvis had not been in the race, exit polls indicate McAuliffe would have beaten Cuccinelli by 7 points (50%-43%).

MADE FOR EACH OTHER

Glenn Beck and Rafael Cruz are a like two peas in a pod:

Ted Cruz’s Father: Gay Marriage and Evolution Are ‘Marxist’ Tools to ‘Destroy God’
by Andrew Kirell | 10:25 am, November 5th, 2013

Glenn Beck: ‘Marxist Revolutionary’ Obama Knew Obamacare Site Wasn’t Ready and Didn’t Care
by Josh Feldman | 4:05 pm, November 4th, 2013

CONSERVATIVE OR LIBERAL...

(h/t Mark Levin (yes, really))
A mandate is a mandate is a mandate.   The Heritage plan of 1993 had mandatory enrollment and apparently Mitt Romney still thinks a mandate is the way to go:

MEET THE PRESS
Nov. 3, 2013: Mitt Romney, Deval Patrick, Bill Kristol, David Axelrod,
Bob Woodward, Katty Kay | Guests and Topics | Transcript

FMR. GOV. MITT ROMNEY:

Well, I think the president failed to learn the lessons that came from the experience of Massachusetts. First of all, the Massachusetts experience was a state-run plan. The right way to deal with health care reform is not to have a one-size-fits-all plan that's imposed on all the states, but recognizing the differences between different states' populations, states should be able to craft their own plans to get all their citizens insured, and to make sure that preexisting conditions are covered.

(BEGIN TAPE)

FMR. GOV. MITT ROMNEY ON TAPE FROM 2007:

"I think you're going to find, when it's all said and done, after all these states that are laboratories of democracy get their chance to try their own plans, that those who follow the path that we pursued will find it's the best path, and we'll end up with a nation that's taken a mandate approach."

(END TAPE)

FMR. GOV. MITT ROMNEY:

Well, I'm not president so I can't be so clear minded as to tell you what I would have done. But my own plan was to say to each state, "You've got a requirement to move to a point where all your people are insured, and where you cover preexisting conditions. We're going to give you flexibility from the federal government level to help you be able to do so."

FINES ALONE WON'T WORK

Big Pharma has been hit with billions in fines just since 2000 but they don't deter bad behavior.

Johnson & Johnson to pay $2.2 billion to settle health care fraud allegations
By Agence France-Presse
Monday, November 4, 2013 12:46 EST
The Raw Story

Global health-care giant Johnson & Johnson will pay more than $2.2 billion to settle allegations that it misrepresented drugs and used kickbacks to promote their sales, the Justice Department said Monday.

In one of the largest health-care fraud settlements in US history, J&J’s criminal and civil fine covers allegations the company promoted Risperdal and other prescription drugs for uses not approved as safe and effective by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the department said.

The settlement further covers kickbacks J&J allegedly paid to physicians and pharmacies for prescribing and promoting those drugs.

AMERICAN BANKSTER CAPITALISM

It's not just this firm, it's the ethics of the banksters.

US govt: Hedge fund giant SAC Capital to pay $1.8B
By LARRY NEUMEISTER and MARCY GORDON 1 hour ago
AP

NEW YORK (AP) — Hedge fund giant SAC Capital Advisors has agreed to plead guilty to fraud charges and to pay a $1.8 billion financial penalty, federal prosecutors said Monday.

The government said in a letter to judges presiding over the Manhattan case that it believed the financial penalty is the largest in history for insider trading offenses.

The company will pay a $900 million fine and forfeit another $900 million to the federal government. It also will terminate its investment advisory business.

The deal follows a separate agreement by SAC to pay a $615 million penalty to settle an insider trading claim by the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Authorities alleged that SAC Capital earned hundreds of millions of dollars illegally from 1999 to 2010 as its portfolio managers and analysts traded on inside information from at least 20 public companies. Bharara in July said SAC Capital "trafficked in inside information on a scale without any known precedent in the history of hedge funds."

ANOTHER NIALL FERGUSON FAIL

I predict, in the weeks and months ahead, a very painful tug-of-war between our monetary policy and our fiscal policy as the markets realize just what a vast quantity of bonds are going to have to be absorbed by the financial system this year. That will tend to drive the price of the bonds down, and drive up interest rates, which will also have an effect on mortgage rates—the precise opposite of what Ben Bernanke is trying to achieve at the Fed. - NYRB, June 11, 2009

Niall had a lot of company among conservative economists, as you can see from this excerpt from a roundtable on FAUX News:

PAYNE: So, where are you then, Peter, with respect to inflation? Do you think this is going to be the big story of 2010?

SCHIFF: You know, look, I know inflation is going to get worse in 2010. Whether it's going to run out of control or it's going to take until 2011 or 2012, but I know we're going to have a major currency crisis coming soon. It's going to dwarf the financial crisis and it's going to send consumer prices absolutely ballistic, as well as interest rates and unemployment.

I HAVEN'T LOOKED INTO THIS UNTIL NOW

Despite reading and hearing about the poor job market for college graduates because of the Great Recession, I never looked into the facts until I came across a reference to Lisa Kahn's paper "The long-term labor market consequences of graduating from college in a bad economy" in Paul Krugman's End This Depression Now. The paper did get a write-up in the WSJ and here are some excerpts:

The Curse of the Class of 2009
For College Grads Lucky Enough to Get Work This Year, Low Wages are Likely to Haunt Them for a Decade or More

By Sara Murray
Updated May 9, 2009 11:59 p.m. ET
WALL STREET JOURNAL

The bad news for this spring's college graduates is that they're entering the toughest labor market in at least 25 years.

The worse news: Even those who land jobs will likely suffer lower wages for a decade or more compared to those lucky enough to graduate in better times, studies show.

The damage can linger up to 15 years, says Lisa Kahn, a Yale School of Management economist. She used the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, a government data base, to track wages of white men who graduated before, during and after the deep 1980s recession.

Ms. Kahn found that for each percentage-point increase in the unemployment rate, those with the misfortune to graduate during the recession earned 7% to 8% less in their first year out than comparable workers who graduated in better times. The effect persisted over many years, with recession-era grads earning 4% to 5% less by their 12th year out of college, and 2% less by their 18th year out.

CUCCINELLI AS A MEASURE OF BAGGER INFLUENCE

I noted before that Cooch had Mark Levin campaign for him and he's also had the help of other hyper-conservatives, including Scott Walker, Ron Paul, Marco Rubio, Rand Paul, and Jim Bob ("I can't afford condoms") Duggar. Cooch also spent time sucking up to reporters from the National Review, News Max and Fox News.

So, if Cooch loses as seems likely, it will amount to a repudiation of Bagger politics.

I PRETTY MUCH SUPPORT GLENN GREENWALD...

but there's really no excuse for him to appear on FAUX News.