I am literally dumbfounded how corrupt and influenced our government and elected politicians are and yet it continues unabated as if we, the people, have to accept what we're told to want or like or need. At least until today, I still subscribe to the Sunday New York Times, and read about the utter contempt our government elected congresspersons have for the people who elected them. There were forty two different representatives articulating the same party line handed down from one of the legal lobbyists employed by Genentech, a subsidiary of Roche, an international conglomerate, and by two (2) Washington law firms.
One of the members, owned and paid for by Genentech and some law firm said he got the statement from his staff and had no idea where they got the information from. Huh ? I would think "the language" that the Congressman has printed in the Congressional Record would come from him, he elected by his district.
The statements all placed in the Confressional Record were based on information supplied by Genentech employees to one of it's many lobbyists, Matthew Berzok, a lawyer at Ryan, MacKinnon, Vasapoli and Berzok, who is identified as the "author" of the documents. The statements authored by Berzok were disseminated by more lobbyists at a giant law firm, Sonnenschein Nath and Rosenthal, just two days before the House vote. Todd Weiss, senior managing director at Sonnenschein, said : "We are trying to secure as many House republicans and democrats to offer this/these statements for the record as possible".
Weiss said he told "the lobbyists" to "conduct aggressiveoutreach to your contacts on the Hill to see if their bosses would offer the attached statements (or and edited version) for the record. Despite engaging in recent years in stepped up campaign contributions to many House memebers, and hosting numerous fund raisers for our lawmakers, Evan Morris, head of Genentech's Washington office, said "There was no connection between the contributions and the statements".
Mr.Morris said Republicans and Democrats, concerned about the unemployment rate, were receptive to the company's arguments about the need to keep research jobs in the United States. The N.Y. Times lobbyists that wrote this article have the temerity and audacity to claim that the statements weren't meant to change the bill, but only to show bipartisan support for certain provisions. Huh ? I find it beyond appalling and shameful that lawyers and employees from multi-national corporations that give money and throw parties and fund raisers for the representatives that THE PEOPLE elect get to write what is contained in this massive health care bill, one of the most wide sweeping bills affecting all Americans, while our elected representatives continue to sell their votes and beliefs to the highest bidder.
Asked about the Congressional statements, another lobbyist (have you begun to understand that Lobbyist do rule our government, yet) close to Genentech said : "This happens ALL THE TIME. There was nothing NEFARIOUS about it". Huh?
We the people need to eliminate lobbyists from the governing of the United States. The way to begin this much needed and often promised change is to vote out every representative of the House and of the Senate that compromises and sells out his vote to any lobbyist. Before any politician takes the oath of office, he or she should promise that he or she will not allow any lobbyist to influence his/her decision AND to remove himself or herself from any committee while under scrutiny for ethical violations.
To allow a vote on a health care bill, clearly compromised and clearly not representing the desires of most Americans, framed behind closed doors, after all the bribes given and promised, is enough of a reason to end all access by lobbyists, lawyers, and the large multi nationals.
Obama's promise in his 1 year multi billion dollar campaign for president, was that there will be and end to lobbyists on his watch. haha. Just like his previous support for campaign finance reform. The only audacity I've seen from this President, is the blatant lying and "politics as usual" that has permeated this administration from day one. Obama just becomes another politician that doesn't think twice from telling the voters what he knows they want to hear, until there is no longer a need for their vote.
What further evidence do we need to end this corruption and grasp on our government and significant policies to all Americans, by lobbyists, lawyers, and multi nationals, all in the pocket of most (if not all) politicians, elected by the PEOPLE of the United States.
When an elected official not only abdicates his oath of office to act on behalf of those that elected him/her, but gives it to an unelected person or law firm or corporation in exchange for money, favors, and other type of bribe, it is time to elect someone other than those in office. This is further evidence that the two (2) party system is an abject failure and only by opening up our federal and state elections to multiple parties (independent,libertarian, business person, common man/woman, conservative, liberal, republican, democrat, to name a few that come to mind) will the people of this country be truly represented by those who have no desire in using their office as a bargaining chip for their own selfish and greedy purposes.
Too many people are too entrenched in the nefarious affairs of our government and I'm afraid the people of this country are going to have to let our public elected officials that they will not accept this anymore despite their refusal to change business as usual.
One of the members, owned and paid for by Genentech and some law firm said he got the statement from his staff and had no idea where they got the information from. Huh ? I would think "the language" that the Congressman has printed in the Congressional Record would come from him, he elected by his district.
The statements all placed in the Confressional Record were based on information supplied by Genentech employees to one of it's many lobbyists, Matthew Berzok, a lawyer at Ryan, MacKinnon, Vasapoli and Berzok, who is identified as the "author" of the documents. The statements authored by Berzok were disseminated by more lobbyists at a giant law firm, Sonnenschein Nath and Rosenthal, just two days before the House vote. Todd Weiss, senior managing director at Sonnenschein, said : "We are trying to secure as many House republicans and democrats to offer this/these statements for the record as possible".
Weiss said he told "the lobbyists" to "conduct aggressiveoutreach to your contacts on the Hill to see if their bosses would offer the attached statements (or and edited version) for the record. Despite engaging in recent years in stepped up campaign contributions to many House memebers, and hosting numerous fund raisers for our lawmakers, Evan Morris, head of Genentech's Washington office, said "There was no connection between the contributions and the statements".
Mr.Morris said Republicans and Democrats, concerned about the unemployment rate, were receptive to the company's arguments about the need to keep research jobs in the United States. The N.Y. Times lobbyists that wrote this article have the temerity and audacity to claim that the statements weren't meant to change the bill, but only to show bipartisan support for certain provisions. Huh ? I find it beyond appalling and shameful that lawyers and employees from multi-national corporations that give money and throw parties and fund raisers for the representatives that THE PEOPLE elect get to write what is contained in this massive health care bill, one of the most wide sweeping bills affecting all Americans, while our elected representatives continue to sell their votes and beliefs to the highest bidder.
Asked about the Congressional statements, another lobbyist (have you begun to understand that Lobbyist do rule our government, yet) close to Genentech said : "This happens ALL THE TIME. There was nothing NEFARIOUS about it". Huh?
We the people need to eliminate lobbyists from the governing of the United States. The way to begin this much needed and often promised change is to vote out every representative of the House and of the Senate that compromises and sells out his vote to any lobbyist. Before any politician takes the oath of office, he or she should promise that he or she will not allow any lobbyist to influence his/her decision AND to remove himself or herself from any committee while under scrutiny for ethical violations.
To allow a vote on a health care bill, clearly compromised and clearly not representing the desires of most Americans, framed behind closed doors, after all the bribes given and promised, is enough of a reason to end all access by lobbyists, lawyers, and the large multi nationals.
Obama's promise in his 1 year multi billion dollar campaign for president, was that there will be and end to lobbyists on his watch. haha. Just like his previous support for campaign finance reform. The only audacity I've seen from this President, is the blatant lying and "politics as usual" that has permeated this administration from day one. Obama just becomes another politician that doesn't think twice from telling the voters what he knows they want to hear, until there is no longer a need for their vote.
What further evidence do we need to end this corruption and grasp on our government and significant policies to all Americans, by lobbyists, lawyers, and multi nationals, all in the pocket of most (if not all) politicians, elected by the PEOPLE of the United States.
When an elected official not only abdicates his oath of office to act on behalf of those that elected him/her, but gives it to an unelected person or law firm or corporation in exchange for money, favors, and other type of bribe, it is time to elect someone other than those in office. This is further evidence that the two (2) party system is an abject failure and only by opening up our federal and state elections to multiple parties (independent,libertarian, business person, common man/woman, conservative, liberal, republican, democrat, to name a few that come to mind) will the people of this country be truly represented by those who have no desire in using their office as a bargaining chip for their own selfish and greedy purposes.
Too many people are too entrenched in the nefarious affairs of our government and I'm afraid the people of this country are going to have to let our public elected officials that they will not accept this anymore despite their refusal to change business as usual.
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