Archive for the ‘swine flu’ Category

It’s teeth-grinding time for Georgia’s Democratic members of Congress.

The best evidence for confrontations to come over health care reform during the August break is video that surfaced this weekend — from an Aug. 1 town hall meeting sponsored by the city of Douglasville. U.S. Rep. David Scott was the primary speaker.

The event was recorded by the city’s cable TV station. The video was then nabbed by WXIA-TV.

The main purpose of the event was to discus improvements to Ga. 92 in the area. But at the end, questions of all topics were allowed, including a pair of inquiries on health care.

To describe Scott’s reaction a “rant,” as the Atlanta TV station allowed some to some to do, may be pushing things. But Scott did show a flash of temper to those who challenged him on the topic of rebuilding the American health care system.

Watch for yourself:

In response to the health care questions, Scott said:

”There are people in this room, who are here, who don’t want anything changed …

Continue reading Your morning jolt: Georgia Democrats prepare for health care backlash »

Two of Georgia’s three physician-congressmen have been making some overlooked news lately.

In overlooked House floor speeches earlier this week, U.S. Rep. Paul Broun joined U.S. Rep. Phil Gingrey (R-Marietta) in declaring that a media-driven hysteria over the H1N1 virus — only rubes call it swine flu now — was resulting in overspending by the Obama administration.

(Is anyone else tempted to call it the “hiney” virus?)

Broun and Gingrey objected to $2 billion in a defense supplemental bill for pandemic preparedness, and another $1.5 billion to develop an H1N1 vaccine by this fall.

Some of the spending has been recommended by the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta.

Politico tells of statements by the two congressmen made during Tuesday’s special order session on the House floor:

Gingrey: “We can’t let all of our spending and our reaction be media-driven in responding to a panic so that we don’t get Katrina-ed. … It’s important because what we are talking about as we …

Continue reading Your morning jolt: Two physician-congressmen condemn virus ‘hysteria’ and the spending that goes with it »

Speculating ahead of the facts is dicey in any profession, but it’s particularly hazardous in politics. And especially on live television.

U.S. Rep. Paul Broun (R-Athens) was on C-SPAN’s “Washington Journal” this morning, discussing the swine flu outbreak. Broun was a logical choice. Not only is the congressman a physician, he sits on the House Homeland Security Committee.

While he finished strong, Broun got off to an inauspicious start when the moderator asked for his reaction to the first death in the United States attributed to the flu: a 23-month-old toddler in Texas.

Broun drew a straight line between the swine flu and illegal immigration. News outlets would afterwards report that the dead child was from Mexico City, brought by his family to the border town of Brownsville,Texas, on April 4 to visit relatives. The family arrived by plane.

See the entire program here. This is the relevant part of the exchange:

Broun: Of course, it’s sad to see a 23-month-old child die from …

Continue reading Paul Broun on swine flu and illegal immigration »