If there’s anything Republicans enjoy, it’s deriding the Affordable Health Care Act, or as they sneer, “Obamacare.” So who do you think was first in line to scarf AHCA funds that help early retirees?
That would be Gov. Rick Perry’s own Texans, followed by employees of Huntsman International, owned by the family of Jon Huntsman. Both men, of course, are running for president against Obama.
“Some people have described this program as ‘Cash for Clunkers,’ in the sense that if you want it, you have to get in line first,” said Paul Fronstin, an economist with [nonpartisan Employee Benefit Research Institute]. “There was a lot of advice given to be first in line.”
…Texas, it seems, heeded the advice. So did Huntsman International.
The $5 billion fund provides a way for employers to continue offering healthcare benefits to retirees aged 55 to 64. The United Auto Workers is the largest recipient but Texas and Huntsman International are no drops in the bucket.
The Teacher Retirement System of Texas, a statewide system for public education employees, received more than $70 million as of Sept. 22, according to the federal Health and Human Services Department. The Employees Retirement System of Texas, which covers state employees, received about $30 million…
And records show the Huntsman family business, where GOP presidential candidate Jon Huntsman sharpened his executive skills, received about $1 million.
Are the Republican candidates bothered by the gaping hole between their campaign speeches and their actions? Not even a little bit.
Texas taxpayers also pay federal taxes, said Perry spokesman Ray Sullivan.
…in Texas, public and private employer retiree plans have collected more than $326 million from the subsidy. They range from American Airlines to Texas A&M University — Perry’s alma mater.
…Jon Huntsman has not been involved in the family business since 2005, said company spokesman Gary Chapman. Huntsman resigned from the company to pursue his political career.
Asked why Huntsman International applied for the early retiree subsidy, Chapman responded: “We’re a commercial organization. We are looking to maximize our shareholders’ value. If there was a legitimate opportunity for us to get help in this respect, we would go for it.”
Maximizing private stockholders’ value on the taxpayer dime? If you’ve ever wondered how that whole 1%-99% thing works, and how wealth travels upward from the 99% to the top, here’s a vivid illustration. Being committed to raiding the public till and privatizing every dime of taxpayer money possible is one of the tenets of being a Republican these days. “Conservatives” like Perry and Huntsman prove it.
And the MSN media will ignore this story and the candidates will not be asked about on the Sunday gab fests either.
May I make a suggestion? Stop calling it “OBAMACARE” and start calling it “REPUBLICARE”, since it was originally proposed by the Heritage Foundation in response to “HILLARYCARE”.
The republicans cannot get away with calling an apple an orange if we keep reminding them that it is, indeed, an apple.
I would hope that folks who are much more computer literate than I would send a link to this article to some other websites, that way the people could be aware of this!