ACOs are here to stay - Whatever the Court decides
The future of healthcare in America may be wrapped up in these three letters: A-C-O, the Accountable Care Organization (ACO).
This model to provide high-quality, cost-effective care received momentum from the Affordable Care Act (ACA), but it will continue regardless of the Supreme Court’s decision this month. Why? Because an ACO is a sensible, efficient, and patient-centered way to keep people healthy and then care for them during illness.
What savings? 2012 Farm Bill is agribusiness as usual
The Senate has taken up the formidable Farm Bill, which sets agricultural and food policy in the United States. Proponents of the Senate bill claim it will save money and cut subsidies, but this is a half truth at best. In reality, the Agriculture Reform, Food and Jobs Act of 2012 (S. 3240) is shaping up to be a big, expensive, $969 billion boondoggleâ€"just like its predecessorsâ€"and it needs some serious changes.
Why investment in Africa makes a difference
Critics of providing endless development aid to Africa are right, but not for the reasons you might think. That is because development aid is just part of the picture on how to engage a continent which still grapples with famine, war, and disease but that also has growth rates that are leaving other regions, including Europe and Latin America, in the dust. While the development aid is still essential, what is also really needed now is increased engagement with Africa to support economic development and to build trade relations through foreign direct investment.Â
Obama celebrates Father's Day with BBQ, military dads
Starting his Father's Day celebration a few days early, President Obama made a surprise lunch stop at Kenny’s BBQ Smokehouse to eat with military dads and local barbers as part of a new campaign to promote fatherhood.
"These guys are also young fathers, and they're doing a great â€" he’s got four kids. He’s got two," Obama said, motioning to the two military fathers. "And Michelle and I have been working a lot with military families, trying to support them. When these guys are deployed sometimes, they're leaving the family behind. I just want to make sure they get support."
India's problematic protectionist plan
Smart policy and the removal of economic barriers have driven the amazing development of the Indian economy over the past few decades. Yet, today, that progress is threatened by new obstacles being erected by the Indian government â€" obstacles that could, ironically, isolate India from the benefits of participating in the global market. If left unchecked, other nations could mimic the Indian approach, injecting even more uncertainty into the fragile calculus of the global economy.
Betty White promotes White House Summer Jobs initiative
Actor Betty White taped an advertisement for the White House’s Summer Jobs initiative that was released Wednesday.
In the video, White talks about her first job, which was an appearance on a TV talk show. “It taught me that whatever else I did for the rest of my life, I wanted to stay in that business. And I have. I’m 90 and I’m still in that business and loving it,†the star of the beloved 1985-1992 TV show “Golden Girls†said in the video.
McCain sides with Reid, calls Pacquiao decision 'disgrace to boxing'
Boxing brought two fans from separate sides of the aisle together this week, with Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) tweeting Wednesday â€" in a rare show of bipartisanship â€" “I completely agree†with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.).
Reid on Tuesday called for an investigation into a controversial decision that cost boxer Manny Pacquiao a championship game.
“The decision was a disgrace to boxing,†McCain tweeted.
I completely agree w/ @SenatorReid - the decision was a disgrace to boxing- "Reid calls for probe of Pacquiao decision" thehill.com/homenews/senat…
â€" John McCain (@SenJohnMcCain) June 13, 2012
Michelle Obama joins Pinterest, emphasizes Father's Day
First lady Michelle Obama joined Pinterest on Wednesday, and immediately began sharing personal photos in honor of Father’s Day.
Latest DNC web ad uses teacher, first responders to jab Romney
Democrats are continuing to hammer Mitt Romney over his suggestion that the federal government should not help subsidize the hiring of more teachers and emergency responders.
In a new Web ad released Wednesday, three public-sector workers â€" Michael, a fireman; Martha, a science teacher; and DeMar, a police officer â€" introduce themselves.
"Mitt Romney says there should be fewer of me," says the firefighter. "He wants to cut taxes for people like himself by cutting jobs like mine."
George H.W. Bush jokes about his love of socks, 'The Bieber'
Former President George H.W. Bush, in an interview aired Tuesday, denied that he knows anything about Justin Bieber â€" whom he called "The Bieber" â€" but acknowledged that he and the 18-year-old pop singer share a love of colorful socks.
"I like a colorful sock. I'm a sock man," Bush acknowledged on NBC. "Biebs? Is he a sock man? I don't know much about The Bieber. I never see him, I don't know what he does."
Poll: World souring on Obama, American foreign policy
President Obama has seen his poll numbers slip in recent months as a lagging economy continues to dog his presidency, and now there's evidence that the president is also seeing his popularity erode around the world.
According to a new survey of more than 26,000 people in 21 different countries, support for the president's international policies is dropping. Approval of the president's handling of foreign affairs has dropped 15 points in Europe, 19 points in the Middle East, 18 points in Russia, and 30 points in China according to a new survey by the Pew Global Attitudes Project.
The poll found many object to American strategy in fighting the war on terrorism, with majorities in 17 of the 21 countries surveyed saying that they disapprove of the use of drones in Middle Eastern countries.
Federal oversight needed to address cruel, corrupt treatment of horses
Horses hold an iconic place in our nation’s history. Without Paul Revere’s trusty steed, Brown Betty, the colonists in New England might have never known of the British forces’ late night advance toward Lexington. As American settlers moved west to the Pacific, horses pulled covered wagons and plowed fields on new homesteads. Horses accompanied many of our military commanders into battle, and horses still carry our fallen soldiers to their final resting places at Arlington National Cemetery.Â
Clean coal has a role in our energy future
Natural gas prices recently plunged to their lowest level in more than a decade. Short-term, that’s good news for consumers and industry seeking respite from high energy prices. Long-term, belief in any single fuel source as America’s energy salvation undermines prudent public policy that encourages a diverse energy portfolio, including clean fuels and renewables. We need an all-of-the-above approach supported by President Obama and Mitt Romney to meet our energy needs and reduce our dependence on foreign oil.
Ending experimentation on chimpanzees is right choice
As a scientist who used primates as subjects in life-saving research for America’s military pilots and astronauts as well as the only member of Congress with a doctorate in human physiology, I can assure you that spending more taxpayer money on invasive research on chimpanzees is both scientifically and fiscally unnecessary. That is the reason I introduced the Great Ape Protection and Cost Savings Act (H.R. 1513/S. 810), which already has more than 175 bipartisan co-sponsors in the House and Senate.Â
Romney to campaign with Boehner in Ohio over weekend
Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney and Speaker of the House John Boehner (R-Ohio) will campaign together this weekend at a rally in Boehner's home congressional district.
The announcement of the Sunday afternoon event in Troy, Ohio â€" a suburb of Dayton â€" came after news of an hour-long meeting between the GOP heavyweights Monday in Atlanta.
That conference was the first time the pair had seen each other face-to-face since the former Massachusetts governor secured the delegates for the GOP presidential nomination. Both were appearing at separate fundraisers in the city.
Jeb Bush clarifies: 'Both sides,' not just GOP, are 'hyperpartisan'
Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush (R) on Tuesday addressed the previous day's media reports that he considered Ronald Reagan too moderate for his own modern party, tweeting that this reminds him why he "rarely" reads headlines.
Am reminded today why I rarely read headlines. #ContextIsImportant
â€" Jeb Bush (@JebBush) June 12, 2012
Sen. Mike Lee: Mormons have 'added dose of a belief in American exceptionalism'
Mormons have an "added dose of a belief in American exceptionalism," Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) told The Washington Examiner on Tuesday.
“Mormons sort of have an extra chromosome when it comes to American exceptionalism," said Lee, a Mormon senator from Utah. "Mormons do have an added dose of a belief in American exceptionalism."Â
Mitt Romney, the presumptive GOP nominee for president, also is of the Mormon faith.Â
Romney, Boehner held hour-long meeting Monday in Atlanta
House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) met with Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney in Atlanta on Monday, the first time the two party leaders had seen each other since the former Massachusetts governor secured the necessary 1,144 delegates to essentially snag the GOP nomination.
"The Speaker and the Governor met for about an hour yesterday and discussed ways they can work together over the months ahead," said Cory Fritz, a spokesman for Boehner, in a statement.
Boehner was fundraising in Atlanta during the House recess this week; Romney had a fundraiser of his own scheduled in the city.
Obama meets with Betty White in the Oval Office
President Obama showed "Golden Girl" Betty White around the Oval Office on Monday.
Pete Souza, the official White House photographer, on Tuesday tweeted a picture of Obama engaged in conversation with White.
Photo of Betty White and the President in the Oval Office: bit.ly/LWvlsI
â€" petesouza (@petesouza) June 12, 2012
Obama's big sigh of relief in Wisconsin
Last Tuesday was a terrible night for unions and a bad one for Wisconsin Democrats. After staking so much time, money and effort on the removal of Governor Scott Walker, the party saw almost an exact repeat of his 2010 election. For jubilant Republicans, despite losing control of the state Senate in the recall, this result confirms the strength of their message. For Barack Obama, there is a very different reaction. While he can’t be happy the Democrats lost, the vote totals and polls can allow him to breathe a sigh of relief. He is probably in no great danger of losing his electoral votes in the Badger State.