Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wisconsin)
GOP Set to Tamper with Safety Net
By Don Flynn
WASHINGTON--Two government social programs—bravely won in the tumultuous civil rights struggles of the 1960s for the poor, the elderly and minorities—appear targeted for drastic overhaul by tea partiers and Republican conservatives in Congress.
Despite various Polls declaring that Americans support Medicare and Medicaid, Republicans led by House Budget Chairman Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wisconsin) are stubbornly forging ahead to rewrite, water-down or privatize them.
Deficit-cutter House Republicans and right wing hawks plan several conferences, including the National Medicaid Conference scheduled for June 19, to formulate ways to revamp Medicare and Medicaid to slash millions in health care assistance and end the entitlements as they have existed.
"There’s no question that those programs became the fundamental part of the human support network for people of low income and disabled, regardless of any other background, and were fundamental to their lives," health expert Harvard Professor Robert Blendon told The Spiritual Herald.
"And also for seniors, Medicare played a big role in getting seniors actually out of poverty because you removed the payment of medical bills from their lives," he said.
"They’re really establishing an agenda for the 2012 election," he said. "The 2012 election is going to be a very big election for health care in the United States.
“These issues...Read More
House majority leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) faces criticism from religious groups.
WASHINGTON--Evangelicals and conservative Catholics, winning key elections to Congress last year, have been successful in recruiting new members to their religious right Christian agenda.
High on that agenda is legislation that would ban abortion on demand, same-sex marriage and ordination of gay clergy. The religious members, all of whom were supported by the tea party, feel they have the numbers and the clout to sway votes of the middle-of-the road lawmakers.
Estimates vary, but tea party caucus leaders in Congress say they have about 90 members who are pressing for moral ...Read More
Gospel singer Maurette Brown-Clark is no doubting Thomas.
BALTIMORE--Sometimes dreams do come true.
For one-time doubting-Thomas singer Maurette Brown-Clark it happened when she was a college student at the University of Maryland.
There was a rumor that singer Richard Smallwood had a dream about a gospel choir he wanted to create to record with him. His dream reportedly spelled out exactly what he wanted each singer to sound like.
A friend of Maurette told her that she was one of the choir members who appeared in Smallwood’s dream. “Richard Smallwood is looking for you. Here is his number, call him,” she...Read More
