CNN

The problem with these bombastic Republican "leaders" is that they don't know anything and they don't care that they don't know anything. Facts are important only as they fit into preconceived, Conservican notions. And if there are no facts to fit your immediate point, then, hell, make one up. This is well-illustrated here. It simply won't matter to Dick Armey that Shakespeare never said anything of the sort. Now maybe Armey is referring to Samuel Johnson, who said, "No man but a blockhead ever wrote, except for money." Take a moment to inform Mr. Armey of this, and I'll bet a bundle that rather than be embarrassed about displaying his ignorance, he'll shrug and say, "Well, what's important is my larger point." But of course, if your larger point is illuslrated by an incorrect fact, then your larger point is liable to be incorrect.

lies, lies, lies and more lies...again this guy spins the facts around and spreads myths to promote his agenda....it is call and OPTION and private insurance would still be used by the overwhelming majority via workplace benefitls

I think Armey needs to put his money where his mouth is. He needs to opt out of the government funded healthcare system that's provided coverage for him and his family nearly all his adult life and see just how expensive it is for a man of his age to purchase health insurance coverage (if, indeed any one would be willing to sell him health insurance coverage). In fact, I think that would be the honorable thing to do for any politician who opposes a public option. Of course, I don't see too many Republicans doign that.

Mr. Armey, your name suits you. I am a life-long diabetic, juvenile on-set when I was 2. I have, in the past, been declined health care coverage due to my diabetes. You have NO IDEA what you are talking about, only how much money the insurance lobby puts in your pocket.

Not all diabetics are so because they eat like pigs. It's this kind of mis-information that makes your party the butt of jokes and the subject of real fright. Fright because you fill people's heads with lies to get what you want. Go stuff yourself.

I will sacrifice our current innovation for a better ranking in our health care system against other countries...

DICK ARMEY need we say more?

I live in N.Y. District 23 where we just elected Democrat Bill Owens; the first Democrat in over one hundred years thanks to Dick Armey and his ill-informed, out-of-touch with real people conservative sidekicks.
People-real people-need this Health Insurance Bill to Pass-and Pass now. His garbage did not win us over way up here in the North Country and it should be looked upon as a lesson in how out of touch these wingnuts are with real, hard-working Americans. Pass that Bill!

For some reason Dick looks like a person that LOVES getting RICH on OTHERS MISFORTUNE.....just look at his S...Eating grin.....

As much as I want to be a REPUBLICAN again, everytime I see and hear this type of rhetoric....I remain INDEPENDENT with a more "liberal" view than I like....

hmmmm.......

Hooray for the healthcare bill which will totally bankrupt us as a nation and entice millions more illegal immigrants to overrun our resources!!

If you are so against everyone having health care, why don't you ask people to give up medicare and medicaid. These two programs are government funded and also ask for a little help to keep the program going. Also, if the senior citizens are smarter than an eight grader they will know that health care will not kill them but the stupid people that is not smart will brain wash them to beieve it will. People get a grip and let's stop taking care of some of the people who have the money to buy affordable health care but choose not to because they want to keep their money to themselves until they get sick and then it is on the people who have health care see their premium rise to cover they butts.

If you believe anyone from Texas now you need a checkup from the neck up.We have had enough lies from Texans.

What is his first name again?
I am not supprised. We have seen the political productivity of leaders with that sort of first name. They end up with no credibility

Dick Armey wouldn't even make a good used car salesman.... Only a fool would listen to him. Of course, anyone who looks at health care the same as a commercial transaction is a fool. There should be no profit considerations in any health care decision making, we all know that.

Typical Republican. Don't bring up the married couple with 2 kids who work 2 jobs each but still can't afford health insurance. Bring up the alchoholic. The Republicans have the most uncanny ability to see the worst in every situation.

I'm tired of conservatives telling us that healthcare reform will kill innovation in medicine. If that is truly the case, then explain Germany. I guess companies like Bayer, Merck, and Boehringer Ingelheim never produce anything innovative. And I guess the fact that Germany performs better than than US in virtually every category, including cost and effectiveness, show that countries with state-run insurance options are failing to take care of their people properly. This is the reason you never hear Germany and Denmark brought into the argument about state health programs. Instead, conservatives can only take swipes at Canada and the UK. But of course liberals won't do it either, because they're afraid of being called socialists. This is not a debate, it's a schoolyard brawl, complete with kicks to the groin and sand in the eyes.

this guy is a total idiot....you count on this texan idiot...one texan idiot messed the nation, this mess the health care??? funny idiot...shut his stupid mouth....

The reason people go 20, 30, 40 years without buying insurance is because they can't afford it. They don't get preventive healthcare, so they end up in emergency rooms with life-threatening diseases. Sounds like Dick Armey agrees with Grayson's description of the GOP plan for healthcare–Don't get sick, and if you do, die quickly.

I'm glad I don't belong to the Dick Army, he sounds like Hitler!!!
The only people without healthcare, according to him, are bums and alcoholics. Nice man!!!

Would that be the same Thomas Edison who had not yet invented the light bulb the last time a Dem held the House seat in NY-23?

Until last Tuesday.

The proof you failed is in which party picked up voting wins and which party picked up 2 symbolic wins.

This guy is your classic GOP moron. Their solution to everything is to do nothing and let people suffer. They have been doing it for years and are likely not to stop. Republicans solution to progress is to stay where we are. If it was up to them the recession would have just kept getting worse and worse to the point where we would have been standing in soup lines again. I say we just ignore them and move this country forward. Sir you are wrong, the primary killer of innovation is called the GOP. Moron.

The only Corporate Fascist fat pig I see in this photo is Dick Armey.hahaha

I'm surprised that an elected politician would blithely suggest that Americans who have difficulty obtaining private insurance due to preexisting conditions actually have this difficulty because they "eat like [pigs]." I'm also glad that I don't live in this ignoramus' district.

Now we will hear every GOP-nutcase come out of the woodwork to SCARE AMERICA!

45,000 Americans die every year because they lack healthcare.

Everyone is upset over the tragedy at Fort Hood. However, 45,000 Americans DIE every year because they lack healthcare and the Republicans....... DO NOT CARE!

What about overweight guys like Armey? That's not helping your health and neither would inactivity. Not regularly exercizing is irresponsible too?

Innovation in what? How to deny coverage? Most large pharmaceutical innovation is funded by government grants right now because the co's don't want to take a chance on big drugs 'cuz they fail more than they succeed. Also, we are mainly talking about insurance companies, not pharmaceutical companies or hospitals, and I am trying to figure out what kind of 'innovation' an insurance company has ever provided...

Every state in the union has an insurance commission to force insurance companies to follow the basic rules of decency. They still manage to cheat a considerable number of their customers. Armey doesn't have to worry about the drug and insurance industries losing profitablity because they can't cheat and steal. They'll find a way to do it anyway.

Excuse me? My husband is diabetic because he "eats like a pig"? (Nice thing to call the people who have voted for you.) We have paid for health insurance all our lives and when he was diagnosed-what happens?- he is dropped and forced to pay for "high risk" insurance. We now must have separate policies, 2 deductibles, etc... With his policy alone costing $800 a month! (There is no other insurance in Texas that provides high risk insurance so we can't "shop" for a better rate.) We can't let this go because he also has heart problems and has been in the hospital 3 times this year, we pay his 20% plus prescriptions. We always pay our bills but I fear the day we may not be able to afford any of this. Then who will pay? ALL TAXPAYERS WILL! We need something, Dick if you care for the people you represent AT ALL you and all the elected officials should work together regardless of party lines to do something to help us that are going broke trying to do the right thing!!! By the way he still tries to work and could claim disability easily.

Good grief, what the heck would he know about innovation and how it does (or does NOT) relate to people having health insurance??

This is disgusting. This is twisting the ideals of a free market economy to the pharmaceutical companies' whims – which has been done for years here in America, the only country that refuses to impose restrictions on these corporations, resulting in outrageous prescription prices.
This isn't about Republican principals – this is about keeping the wealthy in power of the impoverished. Why do the conservatives insist on pointing to the "evils" of the poor (i.e. welfare cheats, or benefitting from healthcare when individuals were not "responsible with their own health") while ignoring corporate crime, wealthy tax evaders? It's comparable to blaming the victim of a rape – "they were asking for it." – and it makes me sick.

GET THE FACTS BEHIND THE NEWS! Not everyone who does not have insurance is drunkard or glutton . Which seems to be Mr. Armey's claim. But even drunks or gluttons may need good,affordable health care, perhaps more than most. I am surprised that a former member of the US House would take such a position.

Perhaps Mr. Armey should consider the good potential for the whole nation that the House reform bill can bring.

Well, those newly ill folks are going to get care anyway. Who do you think will be the sole group paying for it ? Those who currently pay the high insurance premiums, artificially inflated because 47 million get care for no cost to them! Wake up America ! Armey is not stupid. He is selling this as another Republican scare tactic.

I think Armey means that it will kill that large bankroll from the lobbyists he and his republican cohorts have in their pockets.

There go all those great paid vacations and golf trips!

Cripple the entire pharmaceutical industry? come on Dick do you really think we are that dumb.

Such vitriol.

Why must it be assumed that any person who has fallen upon hard times is an alcoholic who 'eats like a pig'? Some people genuinely try and still struggle, take care of themselves to the best of their ability and still get sick. I don't see the humanity, nor any sense of 'patriotism' in having such disdain for your fellow man. Where is our sense of compassion as a nation?

Lets not forget that many a rich man would not be rich if not for the hard labor of the hundreds of workers he pays a mere $8 per hour to while he makes billions. I know, I know ... his labor is worth more because ... um ... he's in charge.

I told CNN that adding Mary Matlin to their talking heads would make them lose viewers... Also that their constant bashing of our President would make them lose viewers. Bill Bennett and his constant hateful rants, Mary Matlin and her nonsense, and now Peggy Noonan!
If I wanted to listen to this horrible anti-Obama rethoric I would tune into that horrible fox news channel.
So, CNN has lost their respect and their dignity and their viewers know it.
AND, that our President won the peace prize should have been a momentous day for our country, yet, all the news networks made it sound more like a death threat instead of an honor.
I'm ashamed of CNN and of what they've become.

""Now [the government] comes along and says, 'Irrespective of the fact they've gone 20, 30, 40 years of their adult life without ever having bought insurance prior to getting a liver inflammation due to their excessive drinking habits or diabetes because they eat like a pig, you must now insure them,'" Armey said."

Yeah because they are the only 2 forms of 'pre-existing conditions' that exist right?

He is crazy. The pharmaceutical companies throw money around now like there is no tomorrow. They spends millions on lobbying, give physicians free drugs. The only thing this bill will do is keep costs down.

Please do not pass judgement and cast stones on those who have never had health insurance. You do not know their story or what they've gone through. This is racism against the poor and middle class folks in America. These are hard-working, good and humble people.

A person who has worked a minimum wage job all their life may not have ever had health insurance- that does not make him/her lazy or ignorant. An artist who is widely respected in their field may not be able to afford insurance-that does not make that person stupid.

Very offended by his words.

Dick Armey– the man who thinks we should put a price tag on lives of American citizens and earn a healthy profit from them. The man who thinks it's OK that nearly 50,000 Americans die every year because they have no insurance coverage. A man who thinks an insurance company should be able to deny coverage of a life-saving procedure to someone because they once had acne, or even because they've had a child. Dick Armey– the man who thinks capitalism trumps compassion and who prefers ideology over pragmatism. The man who thinks it perfectly acceptable for an insurance company executive to be paid an 8-figure bonus because his company denied coverage to thousands of hard-working Americans who cancelled policies of people who became sick. What we're talking about here is a political creature bereft of any conscience. A reptile who would sit and watch other Americans die as long as he has what he needs.

Sickening.

"You go right back to Shakespeare, who first said, 'If it can't be sold for a profit, it's not worth writing,' or take Thomas Edison's reiteration of it, 'If it can't be sold for a profit, it's not worth inventing,'"

Right! That's why so many Republicans patronize prostitutes.

Making money off of death (war) and disease (health care) is morally repugnant and the goal of all Republicans.

Mr. Army says "let those who eat like pigs die" Army is a typical fake Christian Republican. Every public policy stance he takes is the exact opposite of what Jesus would do.

Mr. Army - then received a master's degree from the University of North Dakota and a Ph.D. from the University of Oklahoma. I guess he did not learn anything because he went to GOVERNMENT run schools

'If it can't be sold for a profit, it's not worth inventing.'

And that pretty much sums up conservative thought. Onward Christian soldier, Onward!~

..Neo_socialism has reared its ugly head under the leadership of the botox injected house speaker Nancy Pukelousy and our narcacist president oflubber..the continued destruction of our economy will continue..in the end we will all be speaking chinese..after all it is their money we are spending

There is no innovation brought by HEALTH INSURANCE.

It's a non-product.. and all is only innovation comes in new ways to refuse treatment.

Health care innovation comes from research labs, universities (government grants), pharmaceutical companies etc. – all of which are not relevant to health INSURANCE reform.

This man is a corporate lobbyist and fraud. Period. Anyone who listens to him is a fool or is being fooled by the real Republican establishment: pro-corporate big business executives.

Insurance companies are the real death panels. And this guy is their #1 cheerleader.

Democrats never seem to be able to grasp the power of the profit motive. To Obama and the rest of the new democrat socialist party, all profit is evil which is exactly what they learned back when they were all smoking dope and Bill Ayers was blowing up buildings. They just can't grasp the notion that profit is the carrot that drives innovation. All of the tremendous strides and advances that we have seen in health care came about because the "evil" corporations and entrepreneurs saw a monetary gain for themselves by developing new products.

How incensitive and ignorant to suggest that people get diabetes because they eat like a pig. This is an insult to millions of people who happen to be diabetic. Watch your ugly mouth before you open it.

What a lunatic and liar! How is all that deficit spending from the Bush Regime going to get paid. I'd rather see billions used on caring for people than repeatedly Blowing stuuf up and killing the innocent. Where was the fiscal "conservatism" then? I think we've seen way too much capitalistic innovation in this area – more like profiteering – something you all do very well! Peace

We may be sure that Dick Armey is personally "sold for a profit" to the health insurance companies.

The military, fire protection, and police protection are not products to be sold for a profit. Are they therefore worth nothing? Why shouldn't health insurance, which protects Americans from financial ruin just like the military, police, and firemen, not be a legitimate function of government?

Armey is a hack and a mouthpiece for Big Insurance, whose massive and obscene profits are threatened by universal health care. Every taxpayer should get physically ill when they hear him whine that Americans do not deserve the same health care coverage that this leech enjoyed at America's expense.

'Irrespective of the fact they've gone 20, 30, 40 years of their adult life without ever having bought insurance prior to getting a liver inflammation due to their excessive drinking habits or diabetes because they eat like a pig, you must now insure them'

Wow, what an attitude! Does he really believe that everyone without health insurance all choose to be without health insurance? What universe does he live in?

Can't the health care lobby give you better talking points. What about the GOPer born with Schizophrenia. Should they be turned down for having a preexisting condition? Who decides if half the party acts like us or them? Palin, Limbaugh, Steele, or you.

These people (Armey, Palin, Limbaugh, etc) are interested ONLY in their own survival. They'll do and say anything as long as it guarantees them a life raft off of the sinking GOP.

Why are the republicans so protective of insurance company profits?

(HINT – money for political PACs for themselves).

This is what these wingnuts do. They say that health care reform will kill everything. First it will kill the private sector and then grandma. Now they are saying it will kill innovation as if that know or understand what that is. Wingnuts like Palin and Dick Army are using fear to gin up the fringe of the right. They have no facts to back their claims, so they use crazy scare tactics to justify their logic.

So, I have to pay for the health insurance for some fat slob, who sits on his butt watching TV all day, eating Big Macs. Great. Perhaps the Dems should do the same for car insurance. Give everyone insurance at the same price, no matter what their driving record or how they take care of their car.

While I agree that insurance companies shouldn't be forced to insure individuals who have been careless about their health, how can we possibly make that determination? With auto insurance it's easy by looking at the individual's driving record (chargeable accidents, tickets, etc.) But how do you objectively do this with health insurance, especially when it is the insurer who makes the call?

Army doesn't know he's talking about. My dad is a scientist and he has found in years of research that countries that rely on the private sector for innovation have the least innovation. R&D in the health care industry is often slow and benefits may not be seen for years, investors are not too keen on slow. This where government grants come in to help innovation along.

is this guy serious? this is exactly why republicans lost the presidential election...they're completly out of touch with reality. so, if insurance companies dont cover people that have medical conditions, who's has to do it? TAX PAYERS! sick people without health insurance aren't going to just stay home and die, they're going to walk into the hospital and get help and taxpayers pay for it. i have no problem with health insurance companies actually having to take responsiblity and do what they're supposed to do.....provided health insurance. this is why democrats are mandating that everyone have health insurance, so that health insurance companies can still make a profit while insuring people that have excessive medical problems. it's common sense. guess that's too much for republicans to understand.

This is coming from a man who said he would fight till his last dieing breath to stop the raising of the minimum wage.

pPlease do not pass judgement on those who have never had health insurance. You do not know them or their story. That's racism against the poor.

He's right. No compitition, no reward, no inspiration. Thats socialism for ya

Gotta love that Dick Armey. At least now, at the end of the game, he's finally being honest. It's not about a grassroots uprising, and it's not about taking away personal liberties of the uninsured by forcing them to have health coverage. Nope... it's really about, and has always been about, the "rights" of insurance companies to make grotesque profits without limits. And as their hired spokesperson, Mr. Armey is finally coming out and saying it: it's your own friggin' fault if you get sick. Why should the poor, starving insurance companies have to pay for your thoughtlessness? Don't you realize you're hurting their profits when you get sick? How dare you!

Thanks, Dick, for finally dropping all pretense and letting us know what you're really all about.

If one were to apply Mr. Armey's logic to existing government programs, defense contractors should have their innovation stifled because they're not operating at a profit. I seriously doubt that is the case! Also by Mr. Armey's logic, people who "eat like a pig" (his words) should be left to die from diabetes. So much for "death panels" - it's Mr. Armey's job to decide who lives and dies. It appears that his positions defy both experience and the Hippocratic oath.

Another old white dude who gets big bucks from the lobbiest should just get out of the way for the needs of all Americans,becouse you do not have a clue what the real issues we are facing everyday becouse a lot of us can't afford health care and that number is only going to grow.Face the fact that we don't have jobs and not working as much and the status que is no longer working in favor for Amircans but only share holders and way over paid coe's and their boards.You get goverment health care and so do senors and I don't hear you complaining about your lack of coverage, So now do the citizens of this country a favor and do the job you was elected for and stop pandering to the special interest that pay for you campians.

Sure there are people that lead unhealthy lifestyles, and then there are those that get sick even though that make the right choices all along the way... it appears that Mr. Armey and his cohorts want to play god and decide who lives or dies... sounds like they already have a death panel ! it's Dick Armey !

health insurance reform gives some of us a chance for life... and if the republicans want to really be the party of life they they should start right now with health insurance reform

There are a lot of people that get ill even though they lead very healthy lifestyles: my mother never smoked in her life and got lung cancer, my brother was an athlete and got spinal cord cancer, my father was a WWII vet and worked in a chemical factory for 47 years and got Parkinson's disease. They are all dead now.

GET THE FACTS BEHIND THE NEWS! Medicare the largest and best liked Health Plan is a gov't run plan.. Medicare has not stifled drug research. Why should the reform health plan? Other countries of the world have similar health plans and a flourishing drug and insurance industry..

Change often causes fears and uncertainty. Critics are conjuring up all kinds of possible bad outcomes that will never come to pass. This will not solve the problems of everyone having access to good medical help that is affordable.

Typical attitude from the GOP past and present "if we can't make a profit from peoples sufering then don't bother" I suppose Mr. Armey feels that everyone without insurance now are lazy, fat, and never took care of themselves, and therefore unworthy of health care. There are plenty with health care that lead unhealthy life styles should we toss them out of their health care plans? Oh I know lets insure only healthy people, deny coverage if the do get ill, and then the insurance company profits could rise unfettered. Of course the pharm. companies will take a hit but then sacrifices have to be made.

"diabetes because they eat like a pig, you must now insure them"

That sounds like something an insurance lobbyist would say. There is no doubt about that. Only a fool (or a person with an economic incentive) would assume that everyone who is diabetic eats like a pig.

Of course people like him assume that any person that fails to follow the same exact moral code and lifestyle choices as him deserves to rot in the gutter. Funny, though, that he says this as his jowls are protruding.

sounds like hurry up at die to me.....

So anyone sick should die because he thinks we eat like Pigs. Tell us what happens to a child who had been sick most of their lives when they get to old to be on their Parents Insurance. There is nothing in our system for them because they have pre-existing conditions and they have done nothing wrong. He thinks its ok to let them die so profits won't be hurt. This sickens me.

Guess that makes all the inventions fromm NASA worthless. Armey is such a brain.

This is the paradox. I am very much for an universal healthcare. Wondered though how it would affect the industry to create new drugs to help those in need. Guess we need to weigh what's more important. The welfare for most or just a few. At this point in time I will take my chance with most. I think we are seeing the damage that is being created with the current setup. Soon if left as is, it will only get worse. And just so you know, I do pay for my own insurance. Self employed so I pay more than most. Yet I feel that this is the right thing to do. The humane thing to do. Even if it hurts a little on the paycheck.

Sounds like quotes from the Masons? Fear mongering.

"Now [the government] comes along and says, 'Irrespective of the fact they've gone 20, 30, 40 years of their adult life without ever having bought insurance prior to getting a liver inflammation due to their excessive drinking habits or diabetes because they eat like a pig, you must now insure them,'" Armey said.

And here lies the black soul of the conservative movement.

Get sick? Hurry up and die.

That said, looks like Mr. Armey hasn't missed many meals.

Ok, Dick, I see what you're saying, but, I think it's become glaringly obvious that NO part of healthcare should be run on a for-profit basis. These companies can be incentivized in other ways, and I completely disagree with you, and your buddies, that the answer to fixing our health care woes is to do NOTHING and allow a corrupt health insurance industry to continue to destroy us with their greed. Also, the fictional character you are referencing, the one who never wanted health insurance, drinks like a fish and eats like a pig, is someone I've never met. Does this person have a name?

Your politics of hate, Dick, and your party's policies of pay the rich guy and screw everyone else, have become irrelevant in the 21st century. We're moving forward... you stay back there, Dick, I won't miss you.

Or you stay in the military for 30 years thinking they're going to take care of you. Little did you understand that when you become age 65 you'd be kicked over to medicare. Of course you can be treated at the military base. but, what about the elderly of us who live at least over a hundred miles from any base or Veterans hospital. We have to rely on Medicare and tricare for life(Military). Now here is the gripe first there is very few Doctors who will accept medicare of course they will file on it for you after you've paid for services. But then medicare mails them the check that you never see. Now in the health bill they want to decrease benefits for the elderly plus raising our rates for medicare. (Medicare is not free. It is paid for by the receiver). To most elderly who live on Social Security alone who will not receive a simple cost of living this is the death penalty they were talking about. OH CHANGE IS GOOD. YOU GO OBAMA SUPPORTERS. LETS SEE WHAT YOU DO WHEN MOST OF THIS SINKS IN ON YOUR REARS THAT YOU TOO WILL HAVE A SHORTAGE OF WELFARE BENEFITS.

If you weigh the benifits vs the drawbacks, it is the benifits that outshine all your hues and cries. This is our chance to exrtend Health care to all or at least the most, let us join together, irrespective of party and do pass this for the good of American people. Does this have to hit home for one of us to realize the importance of Universal Health care? Ours is the only develpoed country that does not have it. is the whole developed world crazy or are we? We are greedy but not crazy.

I would like to see Dick Armey go to St. Jude's Hospital or Children's nat'l Hospital in Washington and tell the parents of the children that "you heven't been responsible" because your child has cancer or leukemia. The GOP doesn't want any improvement in people's lives, just maintain the status quo for the rich, fat boy club.

If an aging body can't be sold for a profit, it's not worth saving. Let them die quickly and reduce the surplus population.

Health insurance companies shouldn't be forced to insure individuals who have a family history of diseases like diabetes. If their not Aryan enough, they should not be covered. Sieg Heil fuhrer Beck.

We call Reagan a fiscal conservative even though his administration produced enormous deficits. What do facts have to do with concepts and ideology? If facts can't be sold for a profit, they're not worth having.

I see a FreedomWorks bus loaded with "real Americans" heading to the steps of the United States Senate with their Dachau death camps posters and Jon Voight in tow to speak to the crowds about the indoctrination of President Obama by Jerimah Wright. Hopefully the Republican Senators will show a little more intelligence and class in debating this issue than their cohorts in the House did with their "press conference/rally." The Republican House members have put a stamp of approval on this crazy behavior, clutching their copies of the United States Constitution. The House Minority Leader mistakenly quoting the Declaration of Independence, rather than the Constitution. It was a really sad statement on the Republican Party. Are these people really civilized? Shame on the Republicans, the Conseratives, and the Insurance Companies for encouraging and partaking in this crap! And by the way, thanks to Mr. Armey for helping the Democratic candidate in New York 23 win-it sure helped in passing the House health care bill.

What is loser, corrupt Armey doing making comments. Let him go hide behind a rock with Cheney. What a scumbag he is.

Mr. Armey will be one of the "responsible ones" if this country does not pass health care. Therefore, I suggest all Americans who are being forced into bankruptcy because of medical bills send these bills directly to Mr. Armey for payment. The Republican party fought Social Security, Medicare and now health care. Says a lot about how they feel about the average, non-rich, non-white, non-connected American citizen! Shameful

Health care profit before the nation's health? He's crazy.

From a Canadian.

Greetings Alexander,

How typical for a Big Phrama republican puppet to state on behalf of the pharma giants, they'll lose money!

With American senior citizens being gouged by the mega-profits by Big Pharma, their spokespersons (namely the Republican Party) are moaning and complaining.

Canada and other country's quickly realized that putting skids to the mega profits of Big Pharma was in the best interests for their citizens and for the entire society living in there country's.

For many years Big Pharma has poured hundreds of millions of dollars into the Republic party and Republic lawmakers to insure Americans do not get any price curbs on their drugs that cost mere penny's to make and sell for thousands of dollars per monthly prescription to fill.

Senior citizens should be outraged by Dick Armey's comments and the utter hypocrisy to which he represents.

A. Smith
Oregon

this coming from a state that has 24% uninsured;
i'm tired of paying for Texas's patients with my higher premiums.
Let them opt-out and pay for their citizens themselves.

I bet you have insurance, don't you....Dick.

So Dick there is no room for moderates in the GOP? You say you are for a return to the principals of the U.S Constitution of smaller Government, fiscal conservatism, and responsible individual rights to live their lives from Government interference.
But then you say we need to escalate our war efforts, you say gays do NOT have the right to marry, you want to continue to have prohibition against drug use.
Well does the conservative party what this to be a free country again or not? I say they do not they are just as bad as the Big brother liberals, come on Dick either you want what the founding fathers design or you do not, from your words I say NOT.

Once again, good common sense wasted on an idiotic power-hungry government and a selfish, brain-dead electorate.

The GOP is in full defebsive mode and getting more rabid each day. Morons

Once again, the Republicans' spokesman is someone who believes that only the wealthy deserve to be healthy.

I've got mine; to heck with you! Get diagnosed with cancer, get hit by a car, give birth to a special needs child, your spouse need heat surgery?

Tough!

I hope that Dick learns some compassion the hard way, just like Lee Atwater did. (Lee died of brain cancer .... Hmmmm .... for Dick, how about something like ALS?)

Hey, Dick are you aware that one of the most innovative institutions in the country is a non-profit – NASA.

Since when did the federal government force banks to give mortgages to people who couldn't afford them??? People who couldn't afford mortgages and got them anyway happened because the bush administration and past republican congresses took off regulations to make sure those kind of things didn't happen so their rich banker and wall street buddies could make more money off the backs of the middle class and poor working class. The whole reason were in the mess were in is because the regulations put on after the great depression, to prevent another depression, were slowly taken away for the benefit of banks and wall street and they did get rich for years until everything collapsed – thank god Obama was president and had the courage to push through the stimulus or unemployment would be at 25% and the economy would still not be recovering like it is (housing, manufacturing, inventories,GDP all coming back!!) Jobs are the last to react and hopefully they will come back soon – unfortunately all the jobs the republicans let big business send overseas will never come back!!

God is good. 176 GOP members and 39 Demo's are going to be collecting Unemployment benefits. YEA

I guess Dick Army hasn't spent any time in Europe or knows anything about medical innovation. If he did I don't think he'd make that statement about healthcare reform crushing innovation. Europe has been equal to or even better at medical innovation then the USA for quite some time. Example: the 1st commercially available MRI angiography– SIemens Germany. Electronic health records.. Europe is a decade ahead of the USA.

Really Mr.Army... don't talk about things you know nothing of.

Innovation? What innovation has the health care monopoly shown in the past 50 years? Does Armey think that raising prices and shrinking coverage is innovation? Does Armey think that insurance executives should continue to make medical decisions? At least 45 thousand Americans die every year because they can't afford to see a doctor. What kind of innovation is that? Face it Mr. Armey – - the party for insurance parasites is over!

Through no fault of my own, I had childhood ear infections which have left me as an adult with a rebuilt ear, balance problems and sinus issues which insurance companies can preclude coverage for ongoing treatment. I also have had knee problems again, through no fault of my own but which insurance companies can waive coverage or increase premiums.

Why can they do this? Because I am self employed so I now have to either accept whatever insurance my wife has been "issued" (note: not chosen as there was no choice of coverage plans) through her employer or tackle the individual market where pre-existing issues are hurting many Americans. Also, Europe has robust drug innovators as does Canada just check out latest drugs being developed and you can see German, French and Canadian manufactures thriving. Also, in those countries there is an insurance industry, although it is not-for-profit. By the way...is heath care really just a consumer "product" like shaving cream? Nice try Dick...

We just can't afford another one trillion dollars to our already bloated national debt!

It's going to kill a LOT more than innovation.

Gosh, how do other countries drug manufacturers make profits?

They don't charge an arm and a leg for a script!

Please explain, Mr. Armey.

Among the many things which Dick Armey is NOT is a Shakespearean scholar. There is no such quote from Shakespeare. The correct quote is:
No profit grows where no pleasure is taken.

These right wing nuts just plain make things up!!! [Like death panels - see next article]

Shakespeare was talking about words; Edison was talking about things.

Health care is about PEOPLE.

Guess we all know what Dick values the most ...

Now [the government] comes along and says, 'Irrespective of the fact they've gone 20, 30, 40 years of their adult life without ever having bought insurance prior to getting a liver inflammation due to their excessive drinking habits or diabetes because they eat like a pig, you must now insure them,'" Armey said.

I think Dick Armey is the "PIG" and I bet he has health insurance too. I wonder why he is so againsy ALL Americans having health insurance. Could it be the millions of dollars he has taken from the health insurance companies. Hmmmm, makes you wonder!

Nice try bozo. The pharma industry spends just as much money on marketing as threy do on research. i promise you they will survive this just fine, and by the way in case you haven't heard...the pharma industry SUPPORTS the bill. as for supporting people with bad heath habits i assume you are in favor of cancelling health insurance for all smokers? OOPS. that would not sit well with yout tobacco industry lobbyists....guess not.

this disgusting pig is as dangerous as it gets with his constant fear mongering. let us not forget that this is now how he makes his living preying on the fears of senior citizens.

It is obvious at this point that this man has no soul...I am also starting to question his mental health.

Someone needs to admit him on a 5150 hold and have him evaluated...wow!

I LOVE the rethugs and their incapacity to sound like sane individuals...they may think that they are on the cusp of a resurgence, but not so long as they allow the crazies to control their party!

Remember, old white men are VERY SOON to be the MINORITY...so even if you have 100% support from them you will NEVER regain what you once had!

Right now, lack of health coverage for so many American families is killing people!

And the practices of the current health insurance companies is acceptable to you? Cherry picking only health individuals to "cover" is OK? Denying people who need insurance the most is OK to you? Finding every reason to deny covering something even when you are paying premiums is OK to you?

Shut up you lying business puppet filth. The only reason the Republican party exists today is to help greedy men and corporations continue to enslave people.

I pray that someone you care for experiences the wrong of the industry you are so intent on protecting.

Why doesn't CNN disclose Dick Armey's relationships with the insurance company who pay him to make these half hearted arguments?

Instead he's paraded as an authority on the matter with no other interest than "freedom".

Who is talking about limiting pharmaceutical profit? We're talking about people getting sick and needing care, not a revenue stream.

Dick Armey is a meathead! Everything should be for profit, huh? Necessity is the MOTHER of invention you capitalist swine – not profit. Do you think early human beings developed tools and basic life necessities if there were no profit? Plus, I am sure these statements were made after they already made a 'profit' on their works- not when they were starving artist and tinkerer.

Health care is a human right and should not be for profit!

Like anybody really cares what Dick Armey thinks?!

First off, Mr. Armey, when did profit become more important than lives? What about cancer, Mr. Armey? What happens if you have employer provided health insurance and get cancer while there, then after remissions you start your own business? Your new insurance that you buy, for yourself, will not cover you if the cancer comes back. Now what are you supposed to do? Die, because you don't think they took care of theirself properly?? HMMM??? Any suggestions there mister high and mighty??? I would love to see you survive on my salary or the salary of most Americans. You couldn't do it. So how about getting off your soap box, stop worrying about "me me me me me" or "money money money" and help someone else for a change, Mr. Armey?

Typically, the state-run media is fixated on a lone Rep vote from a heavily impoverished Dem district in Louisiana that is totally dependent on receiving free handouts, and thus will always support more and more freebies.

What about the more interesting story about the 39 Dem defectors from the Pelosi faction? Seems like there are MANY MORE Dems that see the outrageous danger represented by this insane bill than there are "conscientious" cross over Reps. Where are the stories about THOSE conscientious objectors??? This defeat is a huge embarrassment for Pelosi.

This guy wants everyone to listen to him and teh GOP when they have been wrong about everything from deregulation to the war(s) on terror. These jokers have screwed the pooch so bad they can't be trusted to lead in any way anymore! BTW, I have never voted a straight ticket in my life but will likely start now since the GOP has completely divorced themselves form reality! Their ideas are sauteed in wrong sauce.

"If it can't be sold for a profit, it isn't worth inventing"?!

To me, at least, this speaks volumes about executives in the pharmaceutical industry rather than H.R. 3962. These execs are not in the business of making widgets or Model-Ts, they produce medicines for sick people. These people are morally, ethically, and even legally, an extention of the medical industry whose first priority is and should be always the patient's needs!

Besides, good drugs will always make a profit, like any good product; the CEOs may just have to give up making 50-60 times what the factory floor worker makes a year.

Oh well, just more fear mongering from the right wing. The gov't has been regulating the drug companies for years – its' called the FDA.

Live in hope or live in fear, America. Its' your choice.

typical comment from someone who has all of their medical costs covered by the tax payer for his entire career. Listen Dick I mean Senator Armey if the problem is only people who abuse their bodies are now getting taxpayer provided health insurance their never would have been an arguement. The problem is the that those of us who are working to pay for your health insurance simply want coverage we can afford since you have coverage we cant afford but pay for anyway. now we need to pass a bill that allows us taxpayers to vote in our own wage increases every four years and we will be all set. God bless you on your next election campaign

Sarah Sarah Sarah .. keep up the good work .. you are helping Democrates all accross the Nation .. atta girl!

This is totally brutal and animalistic to refuse insurance to anyone irrespective of whatever they have done. Insurance should also educate about good eating habits etc.

I don't know what this guy was smoking when making these comments. It is inhumane to refuse treatment (or insurance) just because of their past.

Yeah and he looks like a really healthy person himself....like he's looked after himself...oh wait – he's got the sweetest healthcare plan in the whole country...lets take that away from him and see how he fares in the real world!

So if sex can't be sold for a profit, it is not worth having??? I would say that health care, like sex, is best managed without the profit motive.

Not all diabetics ate like a "pig" to precipitate the disease. There are reasons that may not be tied to eating that triggers diabetes.

Shakespeare never said that. You are a liar, Mr. Armey. Maybe I would have been open to your ideas but to lie so deliberately about something so easily researched shows you have contempt for the common man. Thus I have contempt for you. Go away and make money for yourself doing something good, not by being a parasite to an already struggling insurance industry.

Fear mongering, fear mongering, fear mongering, fear mongering . . . that's all they've got.

Armey is brought and paid for by big insurance and any other business that stands to lose their outragious profits if the health insurance bill is passed, desperately needed by thousands of americans who are suffering and dying due to lack of insurance, remember the saying, you can put lip stick on a pig, he is still a pig, enough said.

Oh please. The government controls the military, but there's no lack of innovation when it comes to inventing interesting new ways to kill people. More fear tactics from those who profit greatly from the status quo. Have a nice day!

I say pass the healthcare reform so the "have not" can have affordable health care, then sit back and watch as they starve to death because no one has a job to pay taxes to fund their food stamps and government entitlement vouchers! Government's idea of job creation is to make more Government jobs, paid for by taxing those with jobs, so tax funded jobs being taxed to pay for tax funded jobs to be taxed for paying tax funded jobs.....

if i was a republican and had any of the conditions he talked about with out facts i would not be a republican any more, spitting in the windis what they do best

When Speaker Pelosi states that this health care bill will "provide coverage to 36 million Americans", she is lying. That is like saying that the State of Massachusetts is providing auto insurance to all uninsured motorists by making it illegal not to have it. It is not something that is being given to you by the Government, it is something the Government is forcing you, or your employer to buy. How is that "providing" you anything? Yes, there may be a million here or there that will get taxpayer provided coverage, because they can not purchase insurance on their own, but not the 36 million figure she is tossing around.

Dick, you are former, so please just go away. your vote does not count anymore.

He does make a good point. I don't believe folks with existing conditions should pay the same amount. But the reason seems to be that hospitals must care for anyone that hits their doorstep. Unless that changes, we should at least attempt to make sure that everyone (citizens, that is) has coverage.

Let's take Armey's Health Care and ask the same question in a few years..

Somebody must be paying Dick Armey and Newt Gringrich well. They just don't seem to be able to shut up. They are out of touch with average Americans.

So, if it can't be healed for a profit, it's not worth healing? That makes about as much sense as charging seniors for their wrinkles.

Armey told CNN's John Roberts on American Morning. "If the government is going to control what it is, whether it can be distributed, what it is, what price it can be sold, you will disincentive the whole process of research. We've seen it before and we'll see it again.

It's the same way the GOP is advocation for the government to control women life through federal ban of abortion. Talking about personal liberties we have no lesson to learn from the party of Hypocrites.

I take extreme exception to Mr. Armey's comment that "people with diabetes eat like a pig". My mother and brother both suffered from diabetes (my brother a juvenile diabetic), and I assure you it wasn't that they ate like a pig – my mother modeled for a Palm Beach coutourier and was model-thin and my brother was thin as well. To make such a hasty generalization about such an insidious disease is both ignorant and appalling! The changes I have witnessed in the republican party over the last several years has been nothing short of epic, and just when I think they can't get anymore odious, they do!!

Oh, and I forgot to mention ...

Even Dick Armey should be ashamed to repeat the incredible lie that Ronald Reagan reduced the size of government and practiced fiscal responsibility. In fact, the federal government, its budget, and the national debt grew at an unprecedented rate as soon as Reagan became President. The last Carter budget spent $504 billion with a deficit of almost $41 billion. By the end of Reagan's two terms, the federal budget was $991 billion with a deficit of $205 billion.

The idea that Reagan reduced government, reduced government spending, or was fiscally responsible is a devious lie. Google it. The GOP is lying to your face.

Someone needs to point out to Armey that the government pays the pharmaceutical companies to research and develop new drugs. I can't believe John Roberts let him get away with that whopper...oh, wait, yes I can.

To answer Armey's "eat like a pig" argument, the insurance companies forced the auto companies to put automated seat belts in all cars. Why can't they force the food companies to stop targeting children with sugary and fatty foods?

This man does not know what he is talking about. Obviously, he just rants for the sake of keeping his name in the news. I worked for the largest generic drug company in Canada and our drug firms are thriving under our Health Care coverage. I can't believe that people are being sold a bill of goods to disuade them from accepting universal coverage.
I'm a Senior who pays $6.11 dispensing fee only on prescriptions and refills. The drugs, themselves, are covered under our Insurance coverage. Listen up people! Believe it`s possible!

This is the same Dick Armory who said he was going to opt out of Medicare. Unfortunately he has so many preexisting condition he cannot. get insurance. He didn't know that. The new Republican plan would not cover preexisting conditions either. According to the CBO the Republican plan would leave more people uninsured and in bankruptcy. Perhaps we should put preexisting conditions on Wall Street method of moving money around for that is the God he genuflects to. And he want us to follow his health care words of wisdom to solve our problems.

"Irrespective of the fact they've gone 20, 30, 40 years of their adult life without ever having bought insurance prior to getting a liver inflammation due to their excessive drinking habits or diabetes because they eat like a pig, you must now insure them."

What about every healthy, hardworking American who has lost their health insurance because they lost their job? Or gave birth to a child with special needs? Or just happened to grow old and develop Alzheimer's? Or lost their house because they got cancer?

What about THOSE people, Dick?

YOU, sir, are the pig in this equation!

Riddle me this, Dick Armey: Do all government employees take care of their health? Why do folks in Congress who smoke, those who don't exercise, those who eat poorly, why do they deserve insurance more than someone who does not get a government paycheck?

Armey is of course is right. Did you all see the picture of that botox laden snake Pelosi, smiling that fakey smile of hers. Can't wait to see her in tears in 2010. Obama one and done, all liberals out for decades starting 2010. They have just committed the biggest single robbery in history. Liars and thieves.

Mr. Armey,

Many Americans don't eat like pigs but still have diabetes. Shame on you. If I lose my job tomorrow, I won't be able to find health insurance because I have diabetes. I've worked for 25 years...but I worry about what if...do I deserve to go bankrupt because of a health condition and insurance companies that won't touch me? I think now.

BTW, which insurance company is paying you or one of your family members? You are shameful!

OMG. This is disgusting. What a judgemental elites. These guys have no idea how the real world lives.

Dick also wants Social Security eliminated. He is the lowest form of republican life.

Good thing the hippocratic oath does not mention profit. I do not think profit has been the driving force in medicine for most of history and profit driven medicine leads to maintenance drugs not cures. Cured people aren't hooked they don't come back for more.

Just keep talking Dick, democrats are beginning to look even better. this guy sounds like a raving lunatic.

According to this Dick, a person who has a heart attack or has been in a car accident has not been responsible for his own health.

Health care reform will introduce real competition into the insurance marketplace – he knows that and is afraid of it.

People will be able to CHOOSE their health care insurance – and choice is a cornerstone of capitalism.

All we need to know is this: How much money has Dick Armey received from the health care lobby this past year? In fact, that is the only question that any republican should be asked. If it's anything more than 50 cents, how can they possibly have any credibility with the American public while slamming reform? They say the insurance companies will be unable to compete against the gov't plan...and I ask, "unable", or "unwilling"? I think they will be able to compete, but it may take the insurance companies coming to the stark realization that it may not be necessary to employ some guy as their CEO and pay him 11.9 million dollars a year.

Is this idiot serious, with his statement that the government should not force health insurance companies to insure individuals who have not been responsible with their own health. Um Mr. IDIOT, if they had health insurance they could prevent the illnesses they have.

Typical old white man.

Democrats health care plan is very destructive. we already have undocumented aliens covered under 42 U.S.C. § 1395dd, indigent folk with AIDS healthcare is paid for by taxpayers and now the Democrats have a wonderful plan that taxes the 'rich' and cuts healthcare for seniors, and folks unable to afford insurance will be subsidized and insurance companies cannot deny health insurance for 'preexisting' condititions who will then pass on the cost to all others. how can this be considered a plus with so many negatives?

yeah... it's easy for an overweight politician with superb health care to criticize people for making "poor health choices." Gotta love Republican leadership... They really do have the peoples' interests in mind.

Irrespective of the fact that this is a petty and largely baseless argument, Armey is quickly undermined byt he fact that this type of Healthcare WORKS in many other countries.

For him to insenuate that those without Healthcare have done nothing to acquirte it and are largely alcoholics or obese, is not only outrageous, but also typical of what we have heard and read from his cohorts who want you to believe only the "bad people" are without insurance.

Let's stop playing capitalism with people's HEALTH and LIVES, and do some good for everybody.

What a load of utter fear mongering childish crap the GOP are telling.

I am so sick and tired of 'the party of no', predicting doom and gloom whenever something is done to benefit We The People. And then, on top of predicting it, they set out to make it happen. Why can't
Republicans work for the people instead of for the corporations and businesses ? It's not all about profit, it's about having the greatest country in the world. One where everyone has a chance to achieve their dreams. Not just the wealthy, the bankers ,the politicians and insurers, but everyone.

The sad aspect of health reform is that it should never be a political agenda! Reform should be what is best for American citizens not based on what is the best way for a party to line their pockets and definately not what is in the best interst of special interest...

If everyone actually read the bill that was passed...and understand the impacts of this bill.... We would understand that this "reform" is going to be worse than what we already have....which is why there is the exemption clause for those that actually pushing the bill.

People are not parties...not an agenda....and government has never proven to be a solution. Rather...they are the problem!

this guy knows nothing about diabetes am not diabetic but have family members that are they never ate like pigs, i know a 6 year old that was diagosed she was not over weight or ate like a pig

Wow. Do we really believe that money determines the true value of everything? Seriously. Was the Bible written to make a profit? What about penicillin?

Dick Armey, former Texas Congressman, is like other members of the Republican party elected by my fellow Texans: he is not the sharpest knife in the drawer. No matter, of course, since it only takes about 15 minutes to learn everything that any Conservative has said since 1932. All you have to do is repeat those same 12 sentences over and over and over and over and ...

I'm for taking a chance on this bill. As Franklin Roosevelt said, "We must do something. If it doesn't work out, we can modify it as we go along." Let's pass the best bill that the timid Democrats can come up with. Then, year by year, we can fix anything that doesn't work like we think it should.

I trust my federal government and my president a lot more than I trust my health insurance company, the CEO of my health insurance company, and Dick Armey.

What a jerk! He has no right to judge. I suppose he would rather those people die than give them the care they need. I suppose he would say it serves them right. I hope he doesn't call himself a Christian, because no Christian would say that about someone! Yes, I am working, and yes, I am already insured by my employer, but really...everyone deserves to get health care. The preexisting condition thing is what is hurting a lot of people. A lot of people are not working...and that's not because they choose not to work! These days it's really hard to find work. They still deserve health care. We are the richest country in the world and we still can't take care of our own? Hmph! What does that tell the rest of the world?

Translated: Innovative ways to fleece the American public by insurance companies.

FYI – FreedomWorks is closely tied to its founder, corporate lobbyist and former Republican Congressman Dick Armey, whose former lobbying firm DLA Piper that he resigned in August 2009, represents Bristol Myers Squibb, among other pharmaceutical companies.

NO PROFIT on my health Mr. Armey !

so then why was the bill passed ?

Hey Dick, "eat like a pig" eh? You sure look like one in this pic. Don't you think you'd better rephrase since you are basically insulting many of your own (doesn't Mississippi and some Southern "red"states have the highest obesity rates?) constituents with this stupid comment

There is a lot of truth to this. The government is going down the exact same road as they did with housing. Loans were given to people who could not afford them and it was a critical step towards the housing market colapse.

I seincerely hope this bill does not pass the Senate. This is more of a retaliatory strike than a solution to any problem

I don't understand how anyone can be against improved Health Care. In the short term it will be expensive. But over time consider the money SAVED by addressing health problems early when they are treatable. It's what I call one dimensional thinking (aka STUPID)

"The Texas Republican also said the government should not force health insurance companies to insure individuals who have not been responsible with their own health"
It's comments like this that really push the average American away from the Republican Party. It's absurd, short-sighted, and shows the misunderstanding a person has of someone who economicaly not truly able to be "responsible with their own health" Go to the store compare price to eating healthy and eating poorly. See what you find...

Armey's main concern is about the millions that he gets from the health insurance industry.

Oh and those banks ORDERED THEMSELVES to give loans to people who were not qualified and the Republicans are the ones who wrote the deregulations that allowed it... There was ALOT of profits made my mortgate brokers durring that time- once the red tape came down they wasted no time writing unqualified mortgages- give me a break!!

No health care reform will kill people.

More words of wisdomn from the GOP. I'm sure that all of those out there that have developed diabetes will be happy to learn that they develped it because they eat like pigs. Perhaps Mr. Armey needs to do a little research and he will find out that many folks develop diabetes and other ailments because his beloved pharmaceutical companies lie about the safety of drugs and present "studies" performed not by independent researchers but by researchers paid by pharma to come up with the result they want. Armey is just another GOP shill for the pharmaceutical industry. I wonder how much they are paying him for making this statement?

Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you, one Silvio Berlusconi, Prime Minister of Italy.

When he needed a cure and treatment for his life-threatening illness, he didn't go to any medical centers in Italy. He didn't go to the medical centers in Europe. He didn't go to Canada. Nor did he go to Cuba.

No.

He went to the Cleveland Center in Ohio.

Now ask yourselves why...

Armey is very opinionated for someone who has so little sociological insight.

Opening up more options will kill innovation? Really? Unlike the monopolistic health care system we have now right?

The outstanding cost of health care is likely a contributing factor in why people don't have insurance and Mr. Armey talks about this as oh, they're not taking care of themselves so why should the government?

He's not making a very persuasive argument, nor making any indication of a better plan.

Armey is an idiot.

How can individuals without insurance take responsibility for their failing health if they can't afford to see a physician? Eating right and exercising isn't always the solution. Preventative care is what the uninsured need. If they can take measures to prevent illnesses and control any illness from which they already suffer, then why not offer them basic insurance. I just don't understand how the richest nation in the world, one of the most advanced nations in the world can have as many uninsured, homeless and poor people living on their land. The US has one of the highest infant mortality rates but we're supposed to be the best. This is a case of the haves not wanting the have nots to have anything!

Where have we seen it? He quotes two men whose quotes were taken out of context no less- but even if they said that- where then is his example of whats something is incentivized NOT for profit do we see this imploding of our financial system...the post office?... Nope... ummm Public School system?...Nope
I just want to know what exactly the "boogie man" of a public option will do to our country- other than REMOVE some power from these Corporate Insurance Carriers that have a monopoly over the American People...?? Furthermore why is there never a follow up question when these Republicans make blanket statements like that that sound something like "sir, can you provide an example of what you speak of when you say we have seen this time and time again"? God forbid journalists go the extra step for an actual story- fearing being labeled bias...lol what a joke!

If the Dems could barley get this pig of a bill to pass the house, the senete will eat it up as they should. there are to many democratic senators that do not want to lose their jobs come next election.
I wonder what the lone republican got in return for his vote??? what a spineless little man.

And this is why we do not need government run health care.
All the innovation and advances we have seen in medicine will stagnate.
Some may never happen at all.

Health care is a choice, not a right.
Being fined for not buying health care insurances is unconstitutional.
If this passes, I suspect the SCOTUS will have their hands full with all the lawsuits.

Dick Armey is an idiot. No one in their right mind will listen to this guy. He's just another old white guy that has raped this country for his own profit and is afraid of losing his wealth at the hands of a younger generation. Heaven forbid at the hands of an African American. Go stick you head back in the sand.

Fear tactics.

Anything to get health care reform to fail!

For Republicans, it's not about health care, it's about political control. They just want to "break" the president. All their talking points are tactics, and they are NOT TRUE!

Does he have any proof?
CNN why you give platform to this party of NO people?

army is a knucklehead..... america is screaming for reform....70%... where does this nitwit and his band of wing nuts get off going against the wishes of the american people... he should be tried for treason...

How does he sleep....