Call Melissa Bean's office today for health care

Health Care for America Now (HCAN) is urging 8th District constituents to phone Representative Melissa Bean's office today and ask her to support President Obama's proposed budget, especially the funding of $634 billion for health care over the next ten years.

This is the second day of a call-in campaign. Word is that Congresswoman Bean is on the fence. We can let her know it's important to fund solutions to the health care crisis. (In fact, we can't afford not to fix health care if we want a full economic recovery, but more on that later.)

HCAN has an online app here (you'll need to sign up if you haven't already, then click "CALL") that saves the cost of a phone call and lets you record the outcome of the call - the name of the staffer you spoke to and the present stance of the politician called. Be polite! It's likely we're at the start of an extended discussion with the Congresswoman's office.

Gnawing at Their Restraints

Last Monday, March 16, 2009 - while much of the country was up in arms about AIG bonuses - some folks were hard at work setting the stage for more larceny. In a bit of theatrics Barbara O'Brien described as "faux populism", Senator John Cornyn (R-Exxon) held a Senate Republican Conference hearing to Protect Small Businesses from Lawsuit Abuse. Cornyn summoned Ted Frank from the American Enterprise Institute to help with the Protecting.

Senator Cornyn has taken substantial contributions from a donor who might want to avoid being sued for lead paint poisoning. In 2005, Ted Frank represented Merck in Vioxx litigation.

With the nation at the precipice of economic collapse after an orgy of deregulation, these gents want to undo one of the remaining restraints on corporate excess.

It's not just about toxins like lead or asbestos or Vioxx. Consider lawsuits brought under the False Claims Act, often initiated by whistleblowers. Compare the billions of dollars of taxpayer money recovered under the False Claims Act to the $165 million in AIG bonuses. And imagine what would happen without this protection.

The gnawing at the restraints doesn't stop.

P.S.: Antidotes to tort reform spin: Justinian Lane, TortDeform.