Archive for September, 2009
Under Fire from The Patriot
Author: AdminWhat is The Patriot? Besides a terrible action movie, it’s the official publication of our counterparts, the Berkeley College Republicans. In its last issue, it criticized an op-ed written by ASUC Senator Ariel Boone, Smart Ass Editor-In-Chief Mia Pskowski, and I in The Daily Californian. Specifically, BCR has a problem with raising cigarette taxes. They [...]
Read moreFear the Public Option? Look Around You.
Author: AdminThose who fear a public option should consider the status quo. Between Medicare, Medicaid, SCHIP, Veterans Affairs, and the Indian Health Service, the federal government already insures over 100 million Americans. A public option would not be radical, but strikingly orthodox. If it’s good enough for our veterans, it should be good enough for the [...]
Read moreNightly News Scan, 9/5/09
Author: AdminA lot of news today: Health Care: What’s on the Table, What’s Ahead — Wall Street Journal Unemployment at 9.7%, underemployment at 16.8% – Bloomberg News Wall Street Pursues Profit in Bundles of Life Insurance — New York Times State attorney general targets health insurers – Sacramento Bee Schwarzenegger says he’ll sign Healthy Families bill [...]
Read moreWhy We Need a Public Option
Author: AdminIn our national health care debate, perhaps the biggest flashpoint is Democrats’ proposed “public option”. As envisioned, it would be a publicly-run insurance provider coexisting alongside private firms. Individuals could participate if they so chose, but they would not be compelled to. President Obama “strongly believe[s]” in such an option, as does Speaker of the [...]
Read moreNightly News Scan, 9/3/09
Author: AdminInteresting articles for today: Advisers to Obama Divided on Size of Afghan Force — New York Times Wildfires Declared Act of Arson — Wall Street Journal California Senate Approves Tax on Health Insurers (to keep 700,000 on the Healthy Families program) — Los Angeles Times And, two great, albeit long, pieces: How Did Economists Get [...]
Read morePerspective on the Deficit
Author: AdminLast week, the Obama administration announced a deficit projection of $1.6 trillion. At 11.2% of GDP, this would be the largest in percentage terms since World War II. Moreover, the administration estimates a $9.05 trillion deficit over the next ten years. Unsurprisingly, Republicans are using these numbers as political ammunition. House Minority Leader John Boehner [...]
Read moreThe Need for Health Reform
Author: Admin“America’s health care system is broken.” Though one might expect such a statement to come from a politician or a patients’ rights advocate, it actually originated with a broad coalition known as the Better Health Care Together campaign. The campaign, which included AT&T, Intel, and Wal-Mart, found the status quo unacceptable and called for “achieving [...]
Read moreCal Dems in the News
Author: AdminThough the year just started, Cal Dems have been active all summer. The issues—health care and our budget crisis among them—didn’t pause, and neither did we. Our president Claire Viall, California College Dems president Ian Magruder, and I penned an op-ed in response to the plan to eliminate Cal Grants, which provide financial aid to [...]
Read moreWelcome to the Cal Dems Blog!
Author: AdminWelcome to the official blog of the Cal Berkeley Democrats! The Cal Berkeley Democrats is the official chapter of the Democratic Party at UC Berkeley, and one of the largest student groups on campus. We do a host of things: participate in political campaigns, invite featured speakers , discuss current events, and generally have a [...]
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