Obamacare-funded Health Centers for 'migrants' won't check immigration status

 Verne Strickland Blogmaster / August 11, 2011


Okay, friends, it's here --an in-your-face decree from your king and mine, Barack Obama. I think we must now call this the futile system. Now illegal immigrants can waltz right up to the door of a "community health center", be admitted without any identification check, and receive health care free and clear, courtesy of the U.S. Government and its benefactors -- you and me. Shocking. Unheard of. Until now. We gotta pull the gloves off, good neighbors. The man is out of control. We've lost control of our country.



Wednesday, August 10, 2011
By Matt Cover

President Barack Obama pauses as he speaks in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington, Monday, Aug. 8, 2011. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

(CNSNews.com) - The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced on Tuesday that it has awarded $28.8 million to 67 community health centers with funds from the Obamacare health reform law.

Of that $28.8 million, "approximately $8.5 million will be used by 25 New Access Point awardees to target services to migrant and seasonal farm workers," Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Spokeswoman Judy Andrews told CNSNews.com. HRSA is a part of HHS.

Andrews said that grant recipients will not check the immigration status of people seeking services:
“Health centers do not, as a matter of routine practice, ask about or collect data on citizenship or other matters not related to the treatment needs of the patients seeking health services at the center.”

Further, the grant recipients are required to serve "all residents" who walk through their doors.

“The Program’s authorizing statute does not affirmatively address immigration status,” said Andrews. “Rather, it simply states that health centers are required to provide primary health care to all residents of the health center's service area without regard for ability to pay.”

These Obamacare disbursements seem to contradict a claim President Obama famously made in a nationally televised speech to a joint session of Congress on Sept. 9, 2009.

“The reforms I'm proposing would not apply to those who are here illegally,” Obama said then. When Obama said these words, Rep. Joe Wilson (R-S.C.) shouted out from the House floor: "You lie!" After the speech, Wilson called the White House and apologized for his remark and issued a statement saying he was sorry for it and President Obama accepted his apology.

However, five days later, led by then-Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D.-Md.), the House voted 240-179 to rebuke Wilson for his outburst on the House floor.

The grants announced by HHS yesterday aim to support community health centers that provide health care free-of-charge or at a reduced price to people making up to 200 percent of the federal poverty level.

Because the health care centers receiving $8.5 million in Obamacare money "to target services to migrant and seasonal farm workers" will not check the immigration status of the migrant workers who seek their services it is inevitable that they will serve illegal aliens.

According to the Pew Hispanic Center, illegal immigrants make up an estimated 25 percent of all migrant farm workers, with disproportionate amounts residing in California, Texas, Florida, and Georgia.

“As a result of the concentration of unauthorized immigrants working in certain occupations, there are some occupations where they also represent a high proportion of workers. For example, 25% of farm workers are undocumented immigrants,” Pew said in a 2009 report.

The $28.8 million in ObamaCare grants announced yesterday are part of the New Access Point grant program for community health centers. Migrant Health Centers are a special type of community health center that specifically targets migrant farm workers.

“These awards demonstrate a commitment to improving and expanding access to quality health care for local communities. We are removing barriers that stand in the way of affordable and accessible primary health services,” HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said in a statement on Tuesday announcing the grants.

“The Migrant Health Center program provides support to health centers to deliver comprehensive, high quality, culturally-competent preventive and primary health services to migrant and seasonal farm workers and their families,” the HRSA says on its Web site.

CNSNews.com is not funded by the government like NPR. CNSNews.com is not funded by the government like PBS.

Who are the true friends of public education in NC? Democrats? Show me the money!

Verne Strickland Blogmaster / August 11, 2011

Posted on August 8, 2011 by Bob Luebke in Education
NC Civitas

“We have always indicated to the people of North Carolina and indeed the world that North Carolina would never abandon its commitment to improve public education and to have the best university and community college system in the world,” said Rep. Rick Glazier (D-Cumberland)  at a Democratic news conference. “With this budget, it turns out the Republicans are just indicating we were only kidding.”
 

That statement seems to sum up the message of most Democrats: the unprecedented budget cuts jeopardize educational quality and reverse the educational progress the state has made. Democrats wasted no time in distancing themselves from the budget and telling citizens how Republican policies are bad for public education.

Yes, it may be justified to dismiss the claims as mere political rhetoric.  Certainly conservatives, and many Democrats, have strong differences regarding the best way to improve education.  Democrats and liberals believe that is best handled through additional funding and improvement and expansion of the current system. Conversely, Republicans and conservatives contend that expanding educational freedom and infusing competition into the current system are the best ways to improve our schools.

But let’s put that debate aside for the purpose of this article. What does recent history say about Democratic claims? That is, have they prioritized state spending on education in such a way as to match their rhetoric that more funding is the key ingredient to educational improvement?

Testing the Assertion

A review of general funding patterns for the past 30 years is one way to help answer this question as Democrats have long exerted considerable influence over the state’s affairs. For all but eight years between 1982-2010, a Democrat has occupied the governor’s office.  Jim Martin, a Republican, held the office from 1985 to 1993. Democrats controlled the Senate for that entire period.

In addition — except for 1995-1999 when Republicans had a majority in the House and the 2003-04 term when the election of 60 Democrats and 60 Republicans resulted in co-Republican and co-Democratic House Speakers — Democrats controlled the House. Considering these realities, budgets have been generally reflective of Democratic preferences regarding public education.

Democrats claim the scope of recent budget reductions is unprecedented. Is this true?  One useful indicator to gauge public support for education is K-12 state support, adjusted for inflation.  Chart I shows 29 years of state support for public education[1].  Aside from the general upward trend line, one observation is quite noticeable. Funding levels track with general business cycles. During flush economic times, state appropriations on K-12 education grow. As the economy,  and thus revenue, dips, so does spending on public schools.

A cursory review of the data reveals three previous occasions when funding levels declined or flattened, all of them in concert with economic downturns. Clearly the current decline in K-12 expenditures merely follows historical patterns. If this year’s K-12 budget somehow “turns its back on education” as Gov. Perdue put it, then it merely joins several Democratic budgets of years past.




Now let’s examine the Democrats claim that they treat education funding as a top budgetary priority.
Again, because Democrats controlled the governor’s office for all but eight years and the House and Senate for all but two terms when control was divided, state support for K-12 education is largely reflective of Democratic Party preferences.

Chart II  shows total state education spending as a percentage of general fund spending. Spending is tracked for four categories: all public education,  K-12,  UNC System, and  community colleges. Aside from a relatively slow increase in the 1980s, education spending as a percentage of total state spending has been flat or in a slow decline.

K-12 spending as a percentage of all state spending reached its high mark in 1988-1989 (46.5 percent). By 2010-2011, K-12 education spending represented only 37.7 percent of all state spending.  Thus as the budget pie has increased, the percentage share devoted to public education has actually decreased.  Again, this evidence contradicts Democrat rhetoric.

The percentage of total spending on public education (K-12, community colleges and UNC System) declined even further than K-12 spending, dropping from a high of 68.1 percent (1986-1987) to 55.2 percent  in 2008-2009.  Spending levels for higher education and community colleges remained generally flat as a share of the total budget throughout this same time period.

Summary

A leaner budget for K-12 public education has left Democrats and liberals decrying Republican policies, their uprecedented fallout  and the end  of  North Carolina’s proud history of funding public education. What does history say about these claims?

Three other  times over the last 30 years, North Carolina has seen downturns in education spending similar to the current dip. Often times these reductions were exacerbated by overspending in previous years. Republican budget writers are merely going down a road already well paved by Democratic leadership over the past three decades.

Do Republican policies and education spending represent a departure from the state’s longstanding commitment to public education as a top priority? Hardly.  The relative importance of education spending as a state priority has been  eroding for some time.  Since the late 80s, public spending on K-12 education as a percentage of all state funding has been declining. 

In addition, State funding for the UNC System and community colleges has fallen from a combined 22.6 percent of general fund spending in 1982-83 to 18.4 percent of general fund spending in 2010-11. Thus, even by their own misguided measurement of more taxpayer support of the established education system equalling a “commitment” to improve education, Democrats have failed to live up to their rhetoric.

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[1] Education data is from North Carolina State Budget Summary of Recommendations, 2009-2011, Historical Data Tables.  Published by Office of State Budget and Management, Office of the Governor.

Exasperated House liberals back Pelosi, point finger at President Obama

Verne Strickland Blogmaster / August 10, 2011  

YOU CAN'T TELL THE PLAYERS WITHOUT A PROGRAM -- AND AS USUAL, YOU CAN'T TELL THE PLAYERS ANYTHING!

By Mike Lillis / 08/09/11 08:15 PM ET / THE HILL

 

Frustrated liberals are standing behind House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), even though she has not attempted to torpedo bills that they strongly opposed.

Dozens of House Republicans have defected this year on high-profile bills on funding the government and raising the debt limit, ostensibly giving Pelosi and her liberal-leaning caucus leverage.

But that perceived sway has proven largely meaningless, as Pelosi’s allegiance to the administration has left her in the awkward position of tacitly endorsing policies she dislikes.

In short, as long as President Obama and GOP leaders are forging bipartisan deals, the leverage of House Democrats will go only as far as their willingness to buck their own president — something they’ve so far been disinclined to do.

Indeed, amid the year’s most contentious and partisan budget battles, House Democratic leaders have prioritized the appearance of party unity over the policy concerns of their caucus.

Liberal Democrats, for instance, objected to the nearly $40 billion in spending cuts included in the 2011 continuing resolution (CR) enacted in April. More recently, they howled in opposition to the debt-limit package bursting with domestic spending cuts but entirely absent any tax-revenue increases.

Although Pelosi voted against the CR, she did so quietly, without announcing her intentions beforehand or whipping fellow Democrats to join her in opposition. She even suggested she would vote yes if her support were needed to pass the bill.

Pelosi supported the debt-limit bill while conceding it was a raw deal for Democrats. Although most observers predicted House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) would need Democratic votes to pass the proposal, Pelosi afterward said she thought the Republicans could secure the votes on their own.

“I’m unhappy about the fact that this was developed with a premise that the Republicans would have the 218 [votes needed to pass the debt-ceiling bill],” she told reporters last week, according to Talking Points Memo. “Since they didn’t, we should’ve had more influence.”

Half of the House Democratic Caucus rejected the final deal, while 73 percent of House Republicans voted for it.

The bipartisan deals on the CR and the debt have complicated Pelosi’s effort to win back the House because it is difficult to criticize Republicans for backing deals that Obama signed into law. Moreover, the presidential race will be center stage next year, and House Democrats have grumbled that Obama’s actions in 2011 clearly illustrate that winning back the House is not among his top priorities.

A growing number of liberal Democrats and policy groups say the White House has left Pelosi little choice through the budget debates. They’re blaming Obama’s deal-making style for undermining most of the leverage held by Pelosi and other House Democrats.

http://thehill.com/homenews/house/176191-exasperated-house-liberals-back-pelosi-point-finger-at-president

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U.S. Sen. Richard Burr visits Chemtex world headquarters near Wrightsville Beach.

Verne Strickland Blogmaster

by Michelle Saxton 

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Lumina News

A global engineering company with headquarters on Eastwood Road in Wilmington is working on a new technology that could be a breakthrough in the alternative fuels business, U.S. Sen. Richard Burr has said.


Burr was in New Hanover County on Tuesday, Aug. 9, meeting with officials of Chemtex and representatives of the Biofuels Center of North Carolina to learn more about a platform that will allow them to partner with enzyme companies like Novozymes to bring competitively priced ethanol and biomass products to the marketplace. 

“For North Carolina that means another leading technology and green energy,” Burr, R-N.C., said, adding that more competitively priced ethanol products would take pressure off Midwest corn demand that drives up the livestock feed cost of North Carolina’s massive hog, chicken and poultry industry. “It has a leveraging impact on our economy here in North Carolina, all because of one technology that emanates from a headquarters here,” Burr said.

Chemtex holds its United States headquarters in Wilmington and has other worldwide operations in Italy, China and India, according to its website, www.chemtex.com. Such new technology is in production in Europe as a demonstration project, Burr said, adding there are high hopes of possibly looking at North Carolina and other southeastern states for producing ethanol and using land that currently is not valued high in the agricultural industry, such as spray field land for hog lagoons.


“For any agricultural area that is used for hay, for grazing, the fact that you could plant multiple crops, harvest those crops and feed them into a system that produces fuel means that you could get three, four times the amount of income off of that acre of property,” Burr said. “That’s a drastic change to the agricultural community.”
“It really propels North Carolina into the fastest growing area of the agricultural industry,” he added.
 
Biofuels experts in North Carolina were working to identify the best feedstock for their production, Burr said, noting that all of that feedstock can be grown aggressively in the state.


Burr said he and other members of Congress have an opportunity to hear from people willing to produce alternative fuels and not ask for subsidies. 


“I think we could with great confidence let the subsidy on corn ethanol fall by the wayside, which would have an immediate impact on livestock feed costs, but without any reduction in the amount of volume that we could get in ethanol in the marketplace,” Burr said. 


“The direct effect that the consumers would feel is that they would experience a reduction in the cost of gasoline with ethanol because the subsidy is not there, and we’re injecting into the system a much more competitive fuel,” the U.S. Senator concluded.

Cruel Communist oppression didn't end with the fall of the Berlin Wall, or the collapse of the USSR. The horrors live on.

North Korea

 

Verne Strickland Blogmaster / Tuesday August 9, 2011

Escape From North Korea

Defection is daunting. So is starting a new, free life.

By Tom O'Neill

Photographs by Chien-Chi Chang

 

A frigid November day pressed against the windows of a shabby apartment building in the Chinese city of Yanji, ten miles from the North Korean border. Three stories up, footsteps stopped outside a door. At the sound, two young women hurried to a back room and shrank against a wall. Then came a knock. The women, defectors from North Korea, bowed their heads, expecting the worst. If the Chinese police found them without identity cards, they would be deported in handcuffs and chains. Back in North Korea, they would be sentenced to years of hard labor in a prison camp.

Continue »

Pantano for Congress announces key events on campaign calendar.

Verne Strickland Blogmaster / July 9, 2011

Remembering The Heroes Who Perished This Weekend Please join Ilario and the Pantano Campaign in remembering in your thoughts and prayers the 30 US soliders who were tragically killed in Afghanistan this weekend when their helicopter was shot down.  In rememberance of these brave soliders, Ilario wanted to share the reflections of Debbie Lee, a Gold Star Mom. Ms. Lee is a friend, a patriot and tragically the mother of the First US NAVY SEAL to be killed in Iraq. She has worked tirelessly to restore America. These are her hopes and her prayers in the wake of this weekend's tragedy: "My heart aches with the devastating news this morning of the great loss of life today in Afghanistan as a helicopter went down with 31 Special Forces Operators, the majority of them from Navy SEAL Team 6." "As part of the Naval Special Warfare community and the Mother offallen SEAL Marc Alan Lee this is a very personal and painful  loss." "My heart grieves deeply with the families and the community. I standready to deploy to help these families to provide comfort, strength and help in whatever way I can." "Their sacrifice is a reminder of all who have given their lives fighting the terrorists in Iraq and Afghanistan and the dedication of all of our troops who are serving faithfully. We must never forget the sacrifice our troops and their families have made and continue to make defending America and our freedoms." "I know all Americans want to reach out and I will keep you posted how we can do that but at this point prayer is one of the most powerful things we can be doing for these families and for the community." Please visit Ms. Lee's website, www.americasmightywarriors.org, to learn more about her organization, about her mission of honoring our son's memory by honoring our military, their families, and the families of the fallen, and about how you can help!  Join Us for a Pig Pickin' Celebrating Ilario's 40th birthday party and the Grand Opening of our Volunteer Headquarters! August 13, 2011 - Saturday 11:00 am - 2:00 pm $10 Pig Pickin’ With a Special Book Signing by Congressman Joe DioGuardi Author of “Unaccountable Congress: It Doesn't Add Up” "Joe DioGuardi is one of the real heroes in the War on Waste. In this book Joe reads the riot act over how our lawyer-filled Congress mismanages your money and 'cooks' our national books, using numbers like a drunk uses a lamp post - for support rather than illumination." --J. Peter Grace, Chairman, Citizens Against Public Waste DioGuardi, a CPA for over 20 years, who served two terms in Congress provides an insiders  account that exposes Congress's "grossly inept and deceitful fiscal practices."DioGuaardi shows how " congressional taxing, spending and guaranteeing combine with outrageous personal perks, deals and legal exemptions to endanger 'the very soul of American democracy.'"  In the midst of the current debt crisis and the economic struggles presently facing our country this is a timely message we all need to hear. PANTANO FOR CONGRESS Volunteer Office 8207 Market Street, Unit H -Wilmington Porters Neck Shopping Center, near the Post Office Make our office your conservative headquarters away from home! Come for stickers, signs and T-shirts from all your favorite GOP candidates! Office Hours: Mon-Fri 12-6pm starting 8/15 PS. We’ll be celebrating Ilario’s 40th Birthday too! EVERYONE is invited to celebrate with Ilario and Jill and the boys and… Enjoy a piece of birthday cake – Ilario’s treat for All! Bring the family – fun activities for the kids! Brunswick County Luncheon Reception & Book Signing this Monday, August 15th! Hungry for conservative ideals and principles? Join us for a luncheon reception with: ILARIO PANTANO Local Conservative Republican Congressional Candidate (NC-7) Family man, Businessman, Author and two-time Marine War Veteran Special Guest Book Signing with: AUTHOR AND CONGRESSMAN JOE DIOGUARDI AUTHOR OF: UNACCOUNTABLE CONGRESS: IT DOESN’T ADD UP “Joe DioGuardi is one of the real heroes in the War on Waste. In his book Joe reads the riot act over how our lawyer-filled Congress mismanages your money and ‘cooks’ the books, using numbers like a drunk use a lamppost – for support rather than illumination” – J. Peter Grace, Chairman, Citizens against Public Waster WHEN: Monday, August 15th 2011, 11:30 am – 1:30 pm WHERE: DOCKSIDE SEAFOOD HOUSE, 9955 Nance St, Calabash, NC 28467 WHAT: Your $25.00 Lunch Donation includes Choice of entrée (shrimp, flounder, clam strips or grilled chicken) salad, dessert and sweet tea **************************​**************************​************************** Photo Opportunity with Ilario Pantano and Congressman DioGuardi 11:30 am – Noon ($10.00 Donation) *Special Book Signing Opportunity by Congressman Dio Guardi too! Personally autographed BOOKS will be available for a $20 donation **************************​**************************​**************************​******** PLEASE come dine with Fellow PATRIOTS in support of Ilario Pantano and Congressman DioGuardi as they enlighten and inspire us on the important issues RSVP by 8/14/11 Pantano for North Carolina, PO Box 11280, Wilmington NC 28404 Or email: finance@pantanoforcongress​.com or 910-471-304 Lunch and Learn! Join us as we kick off our educational series on important issues in policy and history. We will start with a lecture series on the constitution taught by an instructor that has generously donated her time. Our first classes wil be 8/16, 8/18, 8/23 and 8/25 from noon until 1:00pm. Bring lunch and a hunger for History! Can’t make ‘em all? No worries. More policy classes will follow. Stay tuned for more information on future classes!

08/09/2011 IN THIS ISSUE Join Us for a Pig Pickin' Celebrating Ilario's 40th birthday party and the Grand Opening of our Volunteer Headquarters! Brunswick County Luncheon Reception & Book Signing this Monday, August 15th! Lunch and Learn! CONNECT & SHARE Building for Victory in 2012! As we open our headquarters this week, and continue to build for victory in 2012 please consider doing your par to help us move forward.  We have a grassroots army that is already working on the ground, and the right message for these perilous times.  Now we just need your help to ensure that we have the resources to make our message heard across the 7th District! You can contribute online or mail contributions to: Pantano for North Carolina P.O. Box 11280 Wilmington, NC 28404. Thank you for your generous contribution and ongoing support! *Please list Employer and Occupation information on checks. QUICK LINKS CONTRIBUTE ONLINE JOIN THE CAMPAIGN VISIT THE WEBSITE READ OUR PRESS CONTACT THE CAMPAIGN Thank you for your continued support!

ATHEISTS ACTING LIKE FOOLS: Ground Zero Cross -- unconstitutional because it exists?

Verne Strickland Blogmaster, August 7, 2011

By Jordan Sekulow  
Director of Policy and International Operations at the American Center for Law & Justice.

In the tumultuous days following the worst terrorist attack in U.S. history, workers at Ground Zero discovered a sign of hope and comfort – a cross – two intersecting steel beams from Tower One of the World Trade Center standing in the midst of so much death and destruction.

In the decade since 9/11, the Ground Zero Cross has become a symbol of hope and healing for those who survived the terrorist attack, the families and friends who lost loved ones on that day, and the coworkers of the brave first responders who made the ultimate sacrifice.

This historical artifact of the 9/11 attacks is, lawsuit notwithstanding, going to be featured in the new 9/11 Memorial and Museum. Unfortunately, angry atheist syndrome has reared its ugly head again. As soon as the cross selection was announced the American Atheists organized filed suit, claiming it violated the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment.
 

The group actually claims that its members are experiencing “dyspepsia [upset stomach], symptoms of depression, headaches, anxiety, and mental pain and anguish,” not from the devastating destruction of life caused by the terrorists on 9/11, but as a “direct and proximate result of the unconstitutional existence of the cross.” That’s not a line from a blog post, a press release, or a fundraising letter; that is the actual legal argument presented by the American Atheists in their complaint. 
 

It doesn’t take a lawyer to realize that this is an utterly preposterous proposition.

At the ACLJ, we are taking action to defend the Ground Zero Cross.  We are preparing to file an amicus brief representing Tim Brown, a 9/11 firefighter and first responder who lost 100 hundred of his closest friends and colleagues at Ground Zero.

Our initial legal analysis of their complaint reveals that while the lawsuit argues that it is unconstitutional to “plac[e] a religious symbol of Christianity on government-owned property,” it “fail[s] to note that the cross is actually a remnant of the ruins of the Twin Towers.”


Even other atheists recognize that this is a “frivolous lawsuit.”  Susan Jacoby (a fellow On Faith contributor) on her “The Spirited Atheist” blog acknowledges that the American Atheists’ suit “misconstrues the First Amendment,” wondering whether the president of the American Atheists, David Silverman, “really believes this nonsense,” although she can't resist a swipe at something faith-based, this time at government-funded charities with religious affiliations- which, she fails to mention, by law must segregate those funds from any used for proselytizing - that is the real First Amendment “problem.”

What’s even more disconcerting than the lawsuit itself is what some of the atheist plaintiffs are saying about a 9/11 relic that has comforted so many.  One plaintiff called the cross-shaped steel beams an “ugly piece of wreckage” that “does not represent anything . . . but horror and death.“ Another called it “offensive and repugnant.”

The communications director for American Atheists can’t figure out if the cross is just a “t” or a religious icon. How can they get so physically sick and mentally ill over crossed metal beams when they deny God exists? I suspect there is something deeper at issue for these atheists but that is for another discussion.

As the head of the National September 11 Memorial Museum so aptly noted:
This steel remnant became a symbol of spiritual comfort for the thousands of recovery workers who toiled at ground zero, as well as for people around the world. In the historical exhibition, the Cross is part of our commitment to bring back the authentic physical reminders that tell the story of 9/11 in a way nothing else can.
 
This is what the ACLJ is defending with our brief – a monument to those who lost their lives at Ground Zero and a symbol of hope and healing for the survivors and 9/11 families.

Jordan Sekulow  | Aug 4, 2011 11:28 AM