Here’s what McCain has to say about the wonders of market-based health reform:

Opening up the health insurance market to more vigorous nationwide competition, as we have done over the last decade in banking, would provide more choices of innovative products less burdened by the worst excesses of state-based regulation.

Does anything more really need to be said? Sure! How about, "Are you kidding me?" Turn health care into financial fiasco part 2 ? Way to go McBrain...

McCain on banking and health - Paul Krugman - Op-Ed Columnist - New York Times Blog

The McCain campaign has cited the proximity of Alaska to Russia as evidence of her international experience.

Hagel scoffed at that notion.

"I think they ought to be just honest about it and stop the nonsense about, 'I look out my window and I see Russia and so therefore I know something about Russia,'" he said. "That kind of thing is insulting to the American people."

Thank you Chuck Hagel

"We confront a perception problem, which we have to fight every day -- that the Republican Party is not for working people or immigrants," said Jim Hyland, a rally organizer and chairman of the Fairfax County Republican Committee. "The only way that we can battle that is to take the fight directly to the people in these communities, spread the word that the Republican Party represents more of their views than the Democratic Party."

Hyland said he expects as many as 1,000 supporters to turn out for the event at Edison High School, where former senator George Allen...

Macaca, he of the confederate flag and noose in his office, is the headliner for the minority event in Virginia? Yeah, that's going to be a big hit.

GOP Rally Reaches Out To Minorities - washingtonpost.com

WASILLA, Alaska — In 2000, Alaska lawmakers learned that rural police agencies had been billing rape victims or their insurance companies $500 to $1,200 for the costs of the forensic medical examinations used to gather evidence. They quickly passed a law prohibiting the practice.

According to the sponsor, Democrat Eric Croft, the law was aimed in part at Wasilla, where now-Gov. Sarah Palin was mayor. When it was signed, Wasilla's police chief expressed displeasure.

"In the past, we've charged the cost of exams to the victims' insurance company when possible," then-chief Charlie Fannon told the Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman, the local newspaper. "I just don't want to see any more burden put on the taxpayer."

What the hell??? "Hi, you got raped, here's the bill." Then chief Charlie Fannon was brought into the job by Palin, and Palin was mayor from 1996-2002. Burden on the taxpayer to STOP RAPISTS? What is WRONG with these people???

Palin's town used to bill victims for rape kits - USATODAY.com

GIBSON: Do you agree with the Bush doctrine?

PALIN: In what respect, Charlie?

GIBSON: The Bush -- well, what do you -- what do you interpret it to be?

PALIN: His world view.

GIBSON: No, the Bush doctrine, enunciated September 2002, before the Iraq war.

PALIN: I believe that what President Bush has attempted to do is rid this world of Islamic extremism, terrorists who are hell bent on destroying our nation. There have been blunders along the way, though. There have been mistakes made. And with new leadership, and that's the beauty of American elections, of course, and democracy, is with new leadership comes opportunity to do things better.

GIBSON: The Bush doctrine, as I understand it, is that we have the right of anticipatory self-defense, that we have the right to a preemptive strike against any other country that we think is going to attack us. Do you agree with that?

Oh THAT Bush Doctrine! Except Charlie, that's not the Bush Doctrine. Pre-emption has been considered acceptable. It's PREVENTATIVE that you want. Asking the question when she has no idea what the hell Charlie is talking about is amusing (and quite frightening) but when Charlie, asking the question, gets wrong what it is as well, that's really scary and explains why I consider Charlie Gibson a tool.

ABC News: EXCERPTS: Charlie Gibson Interviews Sarah Palin

The welfare of the people shall be the supreme law

Shameless Plug!

Westmoreland was discussing vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin's speech with reporters outside the House chamber and was asked to compare her with Michelle Obama.

"Just from what little I’ve seen of her and Mr. Obama, Sen. Obama, they're a member of an elitist-class individual that thinks that they're uppity," Westmoreland said.

Asked to clarify that he used the word “uppity,” Westmoreland said, “Uppity, yeah.”

That would be Georgia Republican Rep. Lynn Westmoreland. I suppose on the bright side he left out the normal noun that goes with it.

TheHill.com - Westmoreland calls Obama ‘uppity'

While it would strengthen provider conscience rights, the proposed regulation would in no way restrict health care providers from performing any legal service or procedure. If a procedure is legal, a patient will still have the ability to access that service from a medical professional or institution that does not assert a conflict of conscience. For example, the proposed regulation does not affect the ability of private clinics to provide abortion services in accordance with the law.

This is of course, a steaming pile of crap. Having read the actual rule change, if you (meaning hospitals, doctors offices, clinic, whatever) receive funding from the government, be it research grants, medicare/medicaid payments, VA payments, or whatever, and ANY of your employees challenges on moral/religious grounds, you have to either cease whatever it is they object to, or lose funding.

And I mean ANYTHING. They took out the abortion parts people complained about making it now apply to EVERYTHING.

And I mean ANYONE. They make a point to mention even janitors as someone included.

This "administrative change" amounts to the complete elimination of federal funding for any and all health care.

And if you don't believe that, ask this; What happens when there is a Christian Scientist, who you can't discriminate against hiring because that's religion, working as a hospital janitor or secretary, who objects because they believe medicine is working against God? This isn't about abortion anymore, this is about medicine.

Regulation Proposed to Help Protect Health Care Providers from Discrimination

The February 23 letter stated, "The department is not aware of Karl Rove playing any role in the decision to appoint Mr. Griffin," and that the Justice Department was "not aware of anyone lobbying, either inside or outside of the administration, for Mr. Griffin's appointment."

Federal investigators have obtained documents showing that Kyle Sampson, then-chief of staff to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, and Chris Oprison, then an associate White House counsel, drafted and approved the letter even though they had first-hand knowledge that the assertions were not true. The Justice Department later had to repudiate the Sampson-Oprison letter and sent a new one informing Congress that it could no longer stand by the earlier assertions.

That would either be perjury or lying to Congress.

And hiring Murray Waas is a coup for Huffpo. He's about as well connected and informed as anyone in DC, he's heading for Sy Hersh/Woodstein levels.

U.S. Attorney Scandal Probe Enters White House Circle

I'm providing the link directly to the source, not coverage of this one.

The White House wants to redefine abortion as anything that could prevent a fertilized egg from implanting and surviving (starts around page 16). Under these rules, the list of things that would become abortion start with birth control pills, IUDs, Plan B, hell, spermicidal jelly since that's not exactly good for the eggs either.

So, a couple of questions. First, why are they doing this, and why now? The only answer I can see is they are trying to shore up McCain with the base, because this going through would be rejected immediately by an incoming Democratic president, while McCain could leave it in place. Were this a "real" priority, they could have done this 7 years ago. They did not.

So what would still be allowed? Plain condoms, no spermicide. I would have added diaphragms and (thank you Seinfeld) the sponge, but most diaphragms use a spermicidal sealant, and the sponge is soaked in the stuff.

This is a response to the rules passed in Illinois last year that required pharmacies to distribute things like Plan B, even over pharmacist objection. Refusal to fill prescriptions on "moral grounds" was considered harmful to the populace, as there was no end to where it could have gone (painkillers are "evil drugs" etc.). Those sorts of issues are mentioned on pages 8 and 9.

This is not just pandering, this is fundamentally offensive. This is the White House telling me how to live my life, under rules that do nothing to address any ill, merely to impose someone else's religious views on me and every other person in this country.

The bottom line effects? Every insurance company in the country can chop all of this from anything they have to cover, passing the cost to us. Pharmacies can refuse service, eliminating pregnancy prevention as an option. Provision of birth control to minors, becomes in many states, prosecutable because it is no longer preventing pregnancy, it becomes performing an abortion.

Madame Speaker? Impeach this President.

New "Abortion" Rules for HHS