By Marianna Levyash – Talk Radio News Service

Sara Collins of the Commonwealth Fund and Stuart Butler of the Heritage Foundation shared their differences over the costs and benefits of health care reform during a briefing held Friday at the Alliance for Health Reform headquarters in Washington, D.C..

The Commonwealth Fund recently released a study on how effective the system reform provisions are in the House and Senate bills. They found that both bills are practical and contain key provisions that target cost and quality.

“Both bills substantially expand coverage to 94-96% of people…the major effect is on the uninsured,” said Collins.

Butler disagreed, arguing that both bills will create “troubling areas of affordability in legislation.” Specifically, Butler expressed disapproval over proposals involving higher taxes and employee insurance mandates.

“We will soon see pressures to afford other things in our economy,” said Butler. “The cost is squeezing out funds to have for our education and other goals that we have in our society.”

A United Nations resolution is quickly making its way through the highest ranks of the General Assembly. The resolution, L.37, condemns the Islamic Republic of Iran for the massive human rights abuses the government committed on students, activists, protesters and journalists following a widely perceived rigged June 12th Presidential election. Hundreds of thousands of protesters gathered on the streets of major cities and towns in Iran to condemn the re-election of President Mahmood Ahmadinejad over his opponent Mir Hussein Mossavi.

Iranian authorities have confirmed approximately 4,500 arrests surrounding the post-election unrest, with 89 convictions in post-election trials, 5 of which were capital sentences. Other reports cite up to 72 people killed in detention or in clashes with security services.

The protests garnered worldwide support and jumpstarted the “Green Movement” which has mobilized thousands in favor of a reformed Iran.  Police and Basij militia jailed, raped, beat and murdered journalists, students and protesters who demanded action be taken to formulate a recount of votes. Some 20-30 journalists, writers and bloggers remain behind bars.

Resolution L.37 was brought forward by the government of Canada in an appeal for action by  the 192 member UN body. The resolution was co-sponsored by 42 other countries, and calls on Iran to better cooperate with UN human rights monitors–by allowing them to make visits to Iran, and requests the UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-Moon,  to report back next year on Iran’s progress in fulfilling its human rights obligations.

Robert Wood, Deputy Spokesperson from the US Department of State added:

“The resolution also calls on Iran to cooperate fully with and admit entry to the UN Special Rapporteur on torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, and the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearance. It calls on the Government of Iran to abolish torture and arbitrary imprisonment, as well as any executions, including stoning, carried out without due process of law.”

Canada has led the drafting of resolutions on alleged human rights abuses in Iran every year since the 2003 torture and murder while in Iranian custody of Iranian-Canadian photojournalist, Zahra Kazemi. A prominent Canadian-Iranian Newsweek reporter, Maziar Bahari was freed recently after spending 118 days in jail. Many of the victims (both men and women) sent to Iran’s notorious prisons reported being raped.

“This is the toughest resolution on the human rights situation in Iran,” said Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon.

“The adoption of this resolution is another clear signal of the international community’s concern for the human rights of people in Iran. With this resolution, and those presented in previous years, international attention has been drawn to the unacceptable human rights situation in Iran, and the Government of Iran has been forced to account for its actions. We continue to invite the Iranian government to take meaningful steps to respect the human rights of all people in Iran,” he added.

The adoption of the resolution sends a clear message to Iran to act quickly to investigate these crimes committed during the election coup and to uphold due process of the law.  Iran has rejected several requests from member-states including Canada, to visit the country and investigate the abuses.

The resolution was  approved by a vote of 74 to 48 by the Third Committee of the UN General Assembly.

The resolution also expresses concern over the treatment of  minority communities inside Iran including Arabs, Azeris, Baluchis, Kurds, Christians, Jews, Sufis and Sunni Muslims.

“The nuclear issue has been used by the Islamic Republic to avoid international scrutiny of its fraudulent election and mounting human rights violations,” said Akbar Atri, a leading student activist and democracy advocate who served on the board of the Office for the Consolidation of Unity, Iran’s most prominent student organization. ”While it seeks a solution on the nuclear front, the international community must pressure the regime to release political prisoners and allow the full spectrum of liberties, including free and fair elections.  Anything less will amount to a validation of a regime fast losing all semblance of legitimacy.”

The Iranian mission representative to the United Nations, Mohammad Khazaee, issued a statement in response the adoption of the resolution:

“No Government including my own can claim perfection. Nonetheless, we believe that the old worn-out policy of introducing resolution on Iran is not only an unfair and unjustified action, but also a disservice to the Iranian policy of cooperation with the UN human rights mechanisms.  The move is, therefore, doomed to fail and should be categorically rejected.”

By Marianna Levyash – Talk Radio News Service

In a phone interview with Talk Radio News Service Thursday, Heritage Foundation Senior Legal Research Fellow Brian W. Walsh said that language used in the federal cyber-bullying bill, introduced earlier this year by Rep. Linda Sanchez (D-Calif.), is overly broad.

“The terms [in the bill]…don’t have a precise, clear, accepted, generally agreed upon definition in federal law,” said Walsh.

Sanchez drafted the “The Megan Meier Cyberbullying Prevention Act” in response to the death of Megan Meier, a 13-year-old girl from Missouri who committed suicide in 2006 after being cyber-bullied on the social networking site MySpace by a woman named Lori Drew, the mother of one of Meier’s classmates. Drew was indicted and convicted on charges stemming from the incident in 2008, but was later acquitted in 2009.

The bill has received mixed reviews from a handful of members of Congress who have argued that it uses vague terms and would cause potential violations of free speech rights.

“We need to be extremely careful before heading down this path,” said Rep. Bobby Scott (D-Va.) during a House subcommittee hearing on the legislation back in September.

The bill would amend the federal criminal code to allow criminal penalties to be levied upon anyone that “transmits in interstate or foreign commerce a communication intended to coerce, intimidate, harass, or cause substantial emotional distress to another person, by using electronic means.”

“We are going to end up criminalizing conduct that shouldn’t be criminal in the first place…it’s easy to draft an overbroad criminal law,” said Walsh.

Travis Martinez – University of New Mexico/Talk Radio News Service

As the Senate prepares for a Saturday vote on whether or not to bring its health care bill to the floor, Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) says he will be working feverishly to try to muster up 60 votes, including at least one from the other side of the aisle.

“It would be a real break if we get one Republican to join us and say yes, this is an issue worth debating,” said Durbin. “I’m not assuming a thing, we’re working hard to bring all 60 Democrat votes together to proceed with this historic debate.”

Durbin refused to divulge any information about the status of Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.), a moderate who has remained quiet as to how she will vote on Saturday night.

“She’s told Senator Reid,” said Durbin.”You’ll have to ask Senator Reid.”

Travis Martinez – University of New Mexico/Talk Radio News Service

On Thursday Rep. Leonard Lance (R-N.J.) urged House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) to remove raising of the national debt ceiling language from the Defense spending bill. Lance said he’d like the Speaker to allow for a separate vote on the issue.

Currently, the national debt ceiling stands at $12.104 trillion. On Tuesday U.S. Treasury officials confirmed that the U.S. debt has hit it’s highest level since World War II at $12 trillion.

“The recent news that our nation’s debt has for the first time topped the $12 trillion mark should be of grave concern to every American…I stand here today with my colleagues to call on Speaker Pelosi to allow on the floor of the House of Representatives such a debate and a clean up-or-down vote on raising the debt ceiling,” said Lance.

Lance addressed a letter he sent on November 6 2009 to the Speaker asking for a stand-alone vote on raising the nation’s debt ceiling. 27 other House Republicans have joined with Lance in his efforts, including Rep. Pete Sessions (R-Texas), Joe Wilson (R-S.C.) and Ron Paul (R-Texas).

“I will vote against a needed increase in the limit the federal government can borrow unless Congress creates a commission to come up with proposals to bring the deficit and debt under control,” said Lance.

The New Jersey Republican said that he is waiting to hear back from Pelosi.

By Marianna Levyash – Talk Radio News Service

Senators Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) and Judd Gregg (R-N.H.) displayed concern over the high cost of the Senate health care bill during a press conference Thursday.

According to statistics Gregg obtained from the Senate Budget Committee, the bill increases federal spending by $1.2 trillion between now and 2019, and if fully implemented, it would cost over $2.5 trillion over the next ten years.

“This representation that it’s an $850 million dollar bill is simply wrong,” said Gregg.

Republicans opposed to the legislation say taxes will go up by nearly $500 billion, Medicare will be cut by $465 billion and that 24 million people will still be left uninsured.

“Revenues shouldn’t go to create a new entitlement, they should go to reduce the out-year already contingent unfunded liability that we have in Medicare,” stated Gregg.

The Senate is expected to vote on the bill this coming Saturday.

Travis Martinez – University of New Mexico/Talk Radio News Service

During her weekly press conference, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) lauded abortion language in the Senate’s health care bill on Thursday.

The Senate bill, which was posted online Wednesday night, grants the secretary of Health and Human Services to decide if federal funds will be allocated for those who obtain insurance from the public plan. It would also require that private insurers split premiums from subsidies used to pay for abortion coverage.

“We have all agreed on all sides of this issue that we would maintain the status quo. There will be no federal funds for abortion,” said Pelosi. “I think the Stupak Amendment goes beyond maintaining the status quo. I’m pleased with the language in the Senate bill. I think it’s pretty clear that no federal funds will be spent on abortion,” she added.

The “Stupak Amendment” in the House bill would ban elective abortions for those covered by the public health insurance plan and would prohibit private insurers to offer abortion coverage to those who receive federal subsidies for health care premiums.

“I believe there is plenty of common ground to be found to do that [maintain status quo]… Conversations continue, and we will find common ground,” said Pelosi.

The Senate is expected to bring its bill to the floor for debate this Saturday.

By Marianna Levyash – Talk Radio News Service

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) along with Democratic leaders on Thursday unveiled their health care bill, complete with a state opt-out government-administered public option.

During the press conference, Reid invoked former President Harry Truman, who wrote to Congress 64 years ago today that “we should resolve now that the health of this nation is a national concern, that financial barriers in the way of attaining health shall be removed.”

The 2,074 page “The Patient Protection and Affordable Act,” ensures that over ten years, the $849 billion bill will produce a net deficit of over $130 billion, cut future Medicare spending and ban insurance companies that decline coverage to anyone with a “pre-existing [medical] condition.”

Coverage will be extended to 94% of eligible Americans, close to the 96% of Americans covered in the House Affordable Health Care For America Act.

When asked about the abortion amendment in the bill, Reid answered “This is a health care bill, not an abortion bill.”

Reid and his fellow Democrats now need 60 votes in order to pass the bill. When asked about the chances of that happening, Reid responded by saying, “We’ll find out when the votes are taken.” He added that he will not use reconciliation as a means of passing the bill.

By Julianne LaJeunesse – University of New Mexico/Talk Radio News Service

Hopefully, no one told U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner that pitching the Obama administration’s financial reform plan to Congress was going to be painless. During a heated Joint Economic Committee hearing on Thursday, U.S. Republican Reps. Michael Burgess (Texas) and Kevin Brady (Texas) called on Geithner to step down, telling him that his work is not adequately serving Americans.

“Conservatives agree that as point person, you failed,” Brady argued. “Liberals are growing in that consensus as well. Poll after poll shows the public has lost confidence in this President’s ability to handle this economy… for the sake of our jobs, will you step down from your post?”

Geithner responded to Brady by saying he’s privileged to serve in his position, but did not give the Congressman an answer. Responding to Brady’s concerns over unemployment and the types of jobs lost, Geithner remarked, “Almost nothing in what you said represents a fair and accurate perception of where this economy is today.”

The purpose of Geithner’s visit to the Hill, his second in as many days, was to encourage lawmakers to include four elements that he argued, “are critical to a strong package of [regulatory reform] legislation.”

Among them: Forcing non-banks who act as banks to be subjected to the same safeguards as recognized monetary institutions; accountability that includes a proposed council that will ensure that banks, regardless of size, work on a level playing field; a more capable financial system that will better absorb shocks and failures and adoption of a “no institution should be considered too big to fail” motto, which Geithner explained would be enforced by the government under “resolution authority.”

“This emergency authority, what we call resolution authority, has to be designed to facilitate the orderly demise of a failing firm…not ensure its survival,” he said. “Any risk of loss, must be recouped from the largest institutions, in proportion to their size. The financial industry, not the taxpayers, need to be on the hook.”

The Washington Bureau will be covering:

- The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee holds a hearing on “The Fort Hood Attack: A Preliminary Assessment”

-Reps. Lamar Smith (R-Texas), Steve King (R-Iowa) and others host a forum on the impact of illegal immigration on jobs.

-Sens. Gregg (R-N.H.) and Alexander (R-Tenn.) will hold a pen and pad briefing on the debt ceiling and health care.

- The Joint Economic Committee holds a hearing on “Financial Regulatory Reform: Protecting Taxpayers and the Economy.” Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner will testify.

- House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) holds her weekly press conference.

-Reps. Lance (R-N.J.), Paulsen (R-Minn.), Jenkins (R-Kan.), Lee (D-Calif.) and Olson (R-Texas) call for a separate vote on raising the debt ceiling.