RUSH: We’re gonna go to Tucson, Arizona, and Christine. Nice to have you on the program. Hello.
CALLER: Hi, Rush! I’m so excited to talk to you.
RUSH: Thank you. Thanks very much.
CALLER: I want to know why I don’t have all my TV cable programs with split screens showing me the storm about to hit, what exactly Obama is doing and the hospital outside where this terrorist is.
RUSH: Are you talking about the Hurricane/Tropical Storm Ida?
CALLER: Yes.
CALLER: The media hasn’t told us?
RUSH: Well, because I remember back 2004, 2005, 2006, when there was no recession.
CALLER: Right.
RUSH: The media was telling us there was. We were on the precipice of one, and remember when the gasoline price hit four dollars a gallon, the news was just filled with sob story after sob story after sob story. The media went out and they found all of these people who were suffering economically, and they had these people berating George Bush for not caring what was going on. Unemployment was at 4.7%, an all-time record low. And yet we got sob story after sob story after sob story on the $4-a-gallon gasoline. All these stories about, ‘We’re in the recession; it’s just about to start,’ and they went out and they found people economically in distress and they were all over television. And now, I don’t see any of that.
CALLER: Nope.
RUSH: I don’t see one sob story. I don’t see any interviews of old people having to choose between dog food and medicine during the day. I don’t see any of the stuff that we usually get when a Republican’s in the White House and the economy is roaring!
CALLER: No, we don’t have pictures of all these pictures are about to be washed away — and we even have a messiah who could stop this storm!
RUSH: Well, but The Messiah is down there grieving with the stricken families at Fort Hood.
CALLER: Well, and I remember when Bush was running for election when Clinton was in office — because I have a small company and I pay the gas bill — and gas went from like 80 cents to $1.50, and they didn’t say a word, because it was six months before the election.
RUSH: Yeah. Yeah.
CALLER: And no one said a word about it. No one. There were no stories about what’s happening.
RUSH: Same here. Same here. If you are a steady consumer of the traditional media, the establishment media, you would not know that there’s hardly anything wrong in the country. Everything is hunky-dory and wonderful. I mean we’re on the verge of getting health care. We’re going to insure all the uninsured. Obama is loved and adored by people all over the world. The United States image is changing all over the place. Oh! I mean, it’s great! You’d have no idea that things are in the tank.
CALLER: It frustrates me tremendously because during Bush we had the strongest economy in the history of the world. We were doing so well, the stock market at 1400. I’m an employer, and unemployment went so low we couldn’t find people to work for us. We had to pay somebody ten dollars an hour just to show up.
RUSH: Yeah. And then another five dollars an hour if you want them to do anything.
CALLER: Hmm?
RUSH: Another five dollars an hour if you want them to actually do anything after they showed up.
CALLER: Oh, yeah, here in Tucson just to show up every Monday. But I remember they split the screen, they showed the storm hitting, and Bush had to give up — there was some kind of Republican convention or fundraiser that he had to give up to go stand by the ready in case this storm hit. It was the one after Katrina.
RUSH: But even Katrina. You know, that was another glittering example of —
CALLER: Blaming Bush.
RUSH: — blaming Bush and showing the misery of people and showing how government under Republicans is unresponsive and doesn’t work. Because Republicans really don’t care about people, Christine, see? That’s the dirty little secret. There were actually stories. You had black leaders actually suggesting that Bush was happy this had happened because it was busting up an electoral majority for Democrats in New Orleans. He didn’t care if black people died. I mean, that was routine! That was routine on the news. Now there’s nothing. There’s nothing wrong. I’m not seeing one negative story. I’ve not seen one sob story of one person. Now 7,500 truckers have lost their jobs this year, or maybe it’s in a smaller period than that. Who’s laying off? Pfizer is.
They’re getting out of the town entirely and they are going to either lay off or transfer 1,400 people. So that was all for nothing. People lost their homes. They were taken away from them by the US Supreme Court. And now the reason for it is leaving town. And there’s another story. Sprint, the wireless provider, is slashing up to 2,500 jobs — and that’s not the first round of layoffs. They gotta ‘cut their labor costs by $350 million on a yearly basis as part of a widespread restructuring plan. They are the third largest wireless provider in the country. Most of the positions will be eliminated by the end of this year.’ Think Christmas. ‘The job cuts will affect all levels of the company, across all geographic locations.’ ‘Pfizer to eliminate 600 St. Louis jobs’ in addition to getting out of New London, Connecticut. And I haven’t seen one story in any Drive-By or State-Controlled Media source about one person who has lost their job this year and what their life is like now. So it must not be true that this is happening.
BREAK TRANSCRIPT
RUSH: Question from Jake Tapper. ‘Here’s a question a lot of Senate Democrats want to know: ‘When you gave your joint address to Congress, you said that under our plan, no federal dollars will be used to fund abortions.’ Now, this amendment passed Saturday night which not only prohibits abortion coverage in the public option, but also prohibits women who receive subsidies from taking out plans that provide abortion coverage. Does that meet the promise you set out or does it overreach, does it go too far?’
OBAMA: This is a health care bill, not an abortion bill, and we’re not looking to change what is a core principle that has been in place for a very long time which is federal dollars are not used to subsidize, uh, abortions.
RUSH: Stop the tape! (sigh) They are going to be used to subsidize abortions. Debbie Wasserman Schultz as much as admitted it yesterday on television. Louise Slaughter and a couple of others have sent letters to Pelosi. Folks, you and I all know the Stupak amendment language is coming out of there. Federal funds will be used for abortion or it will not pass the House. So once again: A huge disconnect from the truth from President Obama. Here’s the rest of the sound bite.
OBAMA: And I want to make sure that the provision that emerges meets that test, that we are not, uh, in some ways sneaking in, uh, funding for abortions, but on the other hand that we’re not restricting, uh, women’s insurance choices. There needs to be some more work, uh, before we get to the point where we’re not changing the status quo. And that’s the goal.
RUSH: Gibberish. Pure gibberish. Abortion funding will be in the final bill. Otherwise it has no chance of getting Democrat votes. It’s just that simple. He can say what he wants. Now, there was a report yesterday that in the Pelosi bill, if you don’t buy mandated insurance, you can face a fine of up to 2.5% of your income and $250,000 fine, and five years in jail. Jake Tapper says, ‘Do you think it’s appropriate to have a threat of jail time for those who refuse to buy insurance?’
OBAMA: What I think is appropriate is that in the same way that everybody has to get auto insurance and if you don’t you’re subject to some penalty, that people who are paying for their health insurance aren’t subsidizing folks who simply choose not to until they get sick and then suddenly they expect free health insurance. That’s — that’s a, uh, basic concept of responsibility that I think most Americans abide by.
RUSH: Yeah, well, this comparison to automobile insurance is ridiculous. You buy auto insurance to protect yourself against damage you do to somebody else. Health insurance is an entirely different concept, and they continue to make this comparison. Then Tapper said, ‘But as the Senate puts its final bill together and as the House and Senate prepare to vote on after the conference committee, they should know: ‘Does the president think jail time is appropriate?”
OBAMA: Well, I’m — I’m not sure that’s the biggest question —
OBAMA: — that they’re asking right now.
TAPPER: It’s a question.
OBAMA: So the, uhh… Umm… I — I think I put out the principle, uhhh, ehh, that penalties are appropriate for people who try to free-ride the system and force others to pay for their health insurance.
RUSH: So he won’t deny it. He just, ‘Ah, that’s not the question. Jail time, that’s not a big issue.’ It’s not? It’s about basic freedom! There are many constitutional authorities who say it is not constitutional for the federal government mandate anybody buy anything. Here’s Redmond in Miami, Florida. Redmond thanks for waiting I appreciate your patience. Hello.
CALLER: Rush, it’s a great honor.
RUSH: Thank you, sir.
CALLER: We operated on a four-month-old baby today and I want you to know that every member of my OR team is not a member of the AMA.
RUSH: Yeah, AMA has come out for the health care bill again. But they’ve got some minor objections. If it cuts doctors pay too much they won’t be on board. What do you think it’s going to do?
CALLER: I’ll tell you what. The CBO has not calculated the cost of demonizing and demoralizing every doctor in the United States. I’ve talked to people. I’ve said, ‘What do you think is going to happen to physician productivity if Obamacare passes?’ I’ve asked my liberal friends who voted for Obama. They said, ‘Oh, it will go down 50 to 70%.’ So that means longer waiting times, fewer patients getting seen, fewer procedures getting done. Nobody gets this, and nobody is even thinking about it, Rush.
RUSH: Well, the CBO and the government never does score things what I call dynamically. They’ll take a tax cut or a tax increase and they’ll run the numbers. They do not factor in the dynamic changes that result, just like you mentioned. They’re not factoring in the loss of morale, the loss of motivation.
CALLER: Loss of productivity. Rush, the things that are rewarded get done. It’s a basic management principle.
RUSH: So what do you think they’re thinking to require that you maintain your productivity?
CALLER: You know, they’ll have a list: Here’s how many patients you have to see. And I don’t think patients want to be seen that way. I think patients want to be seen because that doctor is highly motivated to see them, figure out what’s wrong with them and cure them. That’s what I do. That’s what drives me every day. I work nights, I work holidays, I work weekends, and so does every other physician I know.
RUSH: See, that’s what they’re counting on. They’re counting on the fact that you all in the medical profession take as your primary motivation, healing, saving, curing, as you say; and that that will override everything. They’re figuring the economics will not really affect you.
CALLER: Yeah. So in the meantime… So they’re assuming that we’re going to continue to work relentlessly because that’s how we got to be heart surgeons: We worked relentlessly. Rush, I can’t even tell you: 16 years of training every other night in the hospital, self-abnegation, away from family, away from friends, working for less than what I’d get paid at McDonald’s. Because I had a dream, and I was going to make it happen. And now they let loose the lawyer dogs on us and they’re going to cut back and they’re going to make us nine-to-fivers, they’ve going to have us punch a clock, give us the salary that Obama’s salary czar thinks is appropriate.
RUSH: Right.
CALLER: And they’re gonna gut us. I don’t think you can calculate the loss of productivity, the loss of morale — and ultimately the loss of excellence in American medicine.
RUSH: When you talk about the loss of productivity you’re talking about the loss of care. And that will of course then subtract and detract from the excellence in American medicine that does exist. It’s horrible. All of this is just horrible. And when you stop and think, doctor, this is all being done for one reason: And that is to create in perpetuity the Democrat Party in power by creating as many Americans as possible who are dependent on the government and some form of subsidy or check for their existence. That’s what this is about.