TR EMERITUS

Associated Press, 26 March 2010 Congressional Democrats sent the final piece of landmark health care legislation to President Barack Obama before heading home to face a skeptical -- and sometimes even threatening -- electorate. The last legislative chapter in the wrenching national debate over Obama's health overhaul plan came Thursday night in the House, as Democrats approved -- for the second time -- a package of fixes to the sweeping health bill Obama signed two days earlier. The measure includes better benefits for seniors and low-income and middle-class families. In the hours ahead of the vote lawmakers reported isolated threats of violence from a volatile public. The vote was 220-207, as majority Democrats prevailed despite 32 defections and no Republican support. The same bill had passed the Senate earlier in the day 56-43, with all voting Republicans and three Democrats voting "no." Obama was expected to sign the measure early next week. The fix-it bill was slightly changed by the Senate from a version that passed the House last weekend, necessitating Thursday night's second vote by the House because both chambers must approve identical legislation before the president can sign it. "This is the last step we must take to make health reform a reality for millions of Americans," said Rep. Frank Pallone, D-N.J. Republicans were bitterly opposed to the end. "We need to repeal Obamacare and replace it with policy that will create more access, create jobs, which will lower the cost of health care and not be a government takeover of the health care system," said Rep. Paul Broun, R-Ga. In Iowa on Thursday to trumpet the benefits of the legislation, Obama said, "We made a promise. That promise has been kept." "From this day forward, all of the cynics, all the naysayers -- they're going to have to confront the reality of what this reform is and what it isn't," the president said. "They'll have to finally acknowledge this isn't a government takeover of our health care system." Taken together, the two bills extend coverage to 32 million uninsured Americans and aim to crack down on unpopular insurance industry practices, such as denying coverage for people with pre-existing medical conditions, and to reduce federal deficits by an estimated $143 billion over a decade. Most Americans would be required to buy insurance for the first time or face penalties if they refuse. The second of the two bills also presented Obama with another victory, stripping banks and other private lenders of their ability to originate student loans in favor of a system of direct government lending. After a monthslong battle in Congress, the political struggle was morphing into a new phase in which public debate was tinged with violence -- and politicians accused one another of seeking to exploit it for their own advantage. It added up to a charged atmosphere for lawmakers about to head back to their home districts for the two-week Easter and Passover recess. More than 10 lawmakers in the House said they had received threats or worse as a consequence of the health care debate, most of them Democrats who voted in favor of the legislation. There were reports of bricks through windows, a cut propane line to a grill and numerous obscene and threatening phone calls, letters and faxes. An undisclosed number of lawmakers were under increased police protection. Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and the GOP leader, Rep. John Boehner of Ohio, both denounced the threats and incidents of violence. But Democrats said Republicans had been too slow to respond, drawing an outraged response in return. Thursday's votes marked the final stages of a rescue mission that Obama and Democratic leaders mounted more than two months ago, after Republicans unexpectedly won a Massachusetts Senate seat, and with it, the ability to slow final action on health care legislation. Under a revised strategy, the House agreed to approve a Senate-passed bill despite numerous objections, on the condition that both houses would follow quickly with a fix-it measure. The one finally brought to a vote on Thursday added more than $20 billion to subsidies for lower- and middle-income individuals and families who will be required to purchase insurance, and about $8 billion over a decade for states that already provide more generous than average Medicaid benefits.- AP  Read More →

記者康仁俊 from Now News, 26 March 2010 針對無殼蝸牛團體揚言政府如果無法解決高房價問題，年底將再發起無殼族夜宿街頭活動，行政院長吳敦義今（26）日說，政府一直對無法讓住者有其屋感到虧欠，他自己的心裡也很抱歉，對於是否可能在市中心的精華區興建國宅，吳敦義 (Wu Guoyi) 則說「這是供需問題，不可能」，不過他也說，很多地方已經在辦理都市更新，「未來會增加供需」。 對於無殼蝸牛揚言再上街頭，吳敦義說，政府現在至少還有800多戶的國宅，將會一次提出讓中低收入民眾申請，未來政府也將在台北與機場捷運若干站的附近，挑30分鐘左右就可以進到市區的地點，用以興建平價住宅增加供需。 吳敦義強調，「住者沒有辦法有其屋」一直都是政府的虧欠，他心裡也感到很抱歉，不過他坦言，以台北市為例，若是要他說台北市的房價很便宜，「這話我說不出口」，政府沒有能力壓低市中心精華區地價，同時在供需問題上，政府也不應該全面把地價及房價都壓低。 吳敦義說，所有大都會的市中心、核心區、精華區都很貴，他認為政府只能增加供應，同時各部會已經初步擬出「健全房市方案」，他在前晚已經聽完簡報，也請相關部會從金融面、社會福利面追求公平的面向加以修改。- Now News  Read More →

作者:冀居·谢 由黄一杰（音译: Ng E-Jay）执笔的TOC社论《昇菘勒索加码——代议制的失败》提到有一点很重要，就是建屋局(HDB)玉成昇菘(Sheng Shiong)的掠夺性商业策略。 昇菘把五间湿巴刹一举买下，是有其垄断一方的杀手锏。我们只要看下地图，就知道蔡厝港、武吉班让和荷兰—武吉智马是三个相邻的选区，把这边的五间湿巴刹包下，岂不是可以坐地称王了吗？摊主不配合他们的加租，也就不必在这一区混了。现在他们把投资的付出转嫁给目前的摊主，而建屋局乐观其成，说他们不是心心相印，实在没有人相信。 再来，这三个区的国会代表，都是行动党的一时之选；颜金勇(Gan Kim Yong)，人力部长；维文医生(Dr Vivian Balakrishnan)，通讯、青年与体育部部长；张俰宾博士(Dr Teo Ho Pin)，PAP市镇理事会总召集人，都没有在国会为民众发声，争取民众的基本权益，所以社论的执笔者说是“代议制的失败”。 还有一点，是我的猜想。昇菘买下五间湿巴刹，不外是想把它们转换成旗下的超市连锁店，那么原本的摊主可以成为昇菘的员工，或者以抽佣的方式继续在超市内经营摊位。可是建屋局的“缩一半”也拖累了昇菘，让他们猪八戒照镜子——里外不是人。所以对本地商人来讲，政府也是信不过的，他们为自己的选票举棋不定，大商家小商人倒成了刀俎上的猪肉了。 来源：大马论坛  Read More →