Month: October 2013

Club For Growth exposed

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Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

ChocolaThere is a lot of information about the billionaire bastard Koch brothers and their evil "Kochtopus," but they are not the only evil plutocrats of the far-right.

One of the more prominent far-right groups is Club for Growth, which the "lamestream media" frequently mentions in reporting, but never identifies "who are these guys?" The media simply quotes Club for Growth's president and former congressman Chris "Count" Chocola and let it go at that. Chris Chocola – Club for Growth.

Jia Lynn Yang at Ezra Klein's Wonkblog takes a look under the hood. Who’s supporting the GOP hardliners?:

With analysts saying a debt ceiling breach could send financial
markets into a tailspin, people on Wall Street are nervously watching
from afar to see whether Congress will act. But if they’re looking for
someone to blame for this situation, they might start by looking at a
few in their own set.

A small group of financiers is responsible for much of the money
behind Club for Growth, the conservative anti-tax group that has become
extremely successful at encouraging uncompromising voices on Capitol
Hill, such as Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.).

* * *

But as our colleague Lori Montgomery wrote last month,
the Club for Growth has emerged as a uniquely influential voice in
pushing the Republican Party to adopt hard-line tactics, financing
primary challenges against Republicans who don't toe its line.

We contacted the group's leading donors to interview them about their
views of the House GOP's tactics in the debt limit impasse so far, but
none responded to requests for comment. A number of them make a living
managing other people’s money, which could lead to some awkward
questions if the stock market plummets as much as 45 percent in the
event of a U.S. debt default, as some are predicting.

Below is a brief introduction to financiers who support the Club for
Growth. Contribution numbers come from OpenSecrets.org; their ages and
biographical information have been pulled from public records.

(Update) Time to build the Grand Alliance

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Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The Washington Post reported on Saturday, White House finds unlikely alliance in business community:

President Obama, Treasury Secretary Jack Lew and senior adviser Valerie
Jarrett spoke to nearly 150 business executives on a conference call
Friday with an update on their efforts to avoid a default, according to a
White House summary of the call.

When the call ended, Jarrett entered the Roosevelt Room of the White
House to meet with lobbyists for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the
National Association of Manufacturers, the Financial Services Roundtable
and other business groups representing aerospace and technology
companies. During the meeting, Jarrett and Brian Deese, deputy director
of the Office of Management and Budget, asked the business groups to
encourage their member companies to communicate with lawmakers on the
urgency of finding a negotiated solution[.]

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[T]he U.S. Chamber is doing research on key states where it can battle
back against tea party candidates willing to use the country’s debt
repayments as a bargaining chip.

“I do think we need to act. We
need to combine and concentrate our efforts to succeed,” said Bruce
Josten, the U.S. Chamber’s executive vice president for government
affairs, noting the interest he and others have in exploring primary
challenges of tea party candidates. “But the equation is complicated and
requires very good information.”

Updates re: Arizona Health Insurance Marketplace

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Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Updates comprised from stakeholder organization communications:

We are continuing to experience tremendous demand at HealthCare.gov during
the first week of Open Enrollment. We know some of you are having
trouble getting to the application and we are sorry for any
delays. Thanks for your patience, and please keep trying!

Here’s what we’re doing to make things better:

  • Extra space for more users to get onto the system

  • More technicians working around the clock to find problems and fix them

  • More trained representatives ready to take your calls at our Marketplace toll-free number

  • New pathways to get you to the application faster

These
improvements and others have cut the wait times by one-third, and more
people are successfully applying and shopping in the Marketplace.

If you need help with your Marketplace application, you can contact the 24/7 call center, use the live chat function, or go to LocalHelp.HealthCare.gov to find an in-person assister in your community.

——

We always knew that there would be some glitches and kinks in the
system as it gets up and running. The important thing is that those
problems are being identified quickly, solutions are being devised, and
we are sharing those solutions with enrollment experts across the
country.

This is not a sprint but a marathon, and we're in it for the long haul.

If people you know are looking for health insurance, ask them to visit our new and improved Get Covered America site
so they can learn more about their new health insurance options. We’re
featuring plain-language answers to the most common consumer questions,
personal stories about why getting covered is so crucial, and a portal
to take visitors straight to their state’s Health Insurance Marketplace.

Sunnyside teachers work hard while the administration struggles

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by David Safier I may only know a few teachers in the Sunnyside school district, but I know teachers. People in the classroom don't spend a whole lot of time thinking about the superintendent or the school board. They know who they're working for: the students in their classrooms. If teachers are happy with what's … Read more