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Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Health Care: Jared Polis A Republican in a Blue Dog Suit

Jared Polis should be in theater. He has crafted a wonderful disguise of being a liberal through, highly-crafted, public relation work. I'd ask Mr. Polis if he truly understands the meaning of liberal. Because you are rich and come from Boulder doesn't make you liberal Mr. Polis. Funding a foundation focused on education and "questionable" interest in the lower income segments of the community doesn't make you a liberal either.

In my book being a humanist makes what people brand as a liberal in modern times. Being able to weigh the externalities of the health care debate and translating them into future good, including economic and financial good, makes you liberal. If you are all about the here and now and what looks good at the top of the ladder--you, sir, are of no liberal mind. You have no vision and you certainly are not representing all your community--even if the median income in Boulder is higher than average for the state.


liberal (adj.) Look up liberal at Dictionary.com
c.1375, from O.Fr. liberal "befitting free men, noble, generous," from L. liberalis "noble, generous," lit. "pertaining to a free man," from liber "free," from PIE base *leudheros (cf. Gk. eleutheros "free"), probably originally "belonging to the people" (though the precise semantic development is obscure), from *leudho- "people" (cf. O.C.S. ljudu, Lith. liaudis,leod, Ger. Leute "nation, people"). Earliest reference in Eng. is to the liberal arts (L. artes liberales; see art (n.)), the seven attainments directed to intellectual enlargement, not immediate practical purpose, and thus deemed worthy of a free man (the word in this sense was opposed to servile or mechanical). Sense of "free in bestowing" is from 1387. With a meaning "free from restraint in speech or action" (1490) liberal was used 16c.-17c. as a term of reproach. It revived in a positive sense in the Enlightenment, with a meaning "free from prejudice, tolerant," which emerged 1776-88. Purely in ref. to political opinion, "tending in favor of freedom and democracy" it dates from c.1801, from Fr. libéral, O.E. originally applied in Eng. by its opponents (often in Fr. form and with suggestions of foreign lawlessness) to the party favorable to individual political freedoms. But also (especially in U.S. politics) tending to mean "favorable to government action to effect social change," which seems at times to draw more from the religious sense of "free from prejudice in favor of traditional opinions and established institutions" (and thus open to new ideas and plans of reform), which dates from 1823.
enlighten Look up enlighten at Dictionary.com
1382 (O.E. had inlihtan), "to remove the dimness or blindness (usually figurative) from one's eyes or heart," from en- + lighten. Enlightenment is 1669 in the spiritual sense; 1865 as a translation of Ger. Aufklärung, a name for the spirit and system of Continental philosophers in the 18c.
"The philosophy of the Enlightenment insisted on man's essential autonomy: man is responsible to himself, to his own rational interests, to his self-development, and, by an inescapable extension, to the welfare of his fellow man. For the philosophes, man was not a sinner, at least not by nature; human nature -- and this argument was subversive, in fact revolutionary, in their day -- is by origin good, or at least neutral. Despite the undeniable power of man's antisocial passions, therefore, the individual may hope for improvement through his own efforts -- through education, participation in politics, activity in behalf of reform, but not through prayer." [Peter Gay]


The make-up you are wearing isn't very appealing Mr. Polis, and I fail to see where the more educated Boulder citizens and Coloradoans who put you in office are going to forgive you for actively sinking the public option on health care and possibly the Obama Administrations ability to be effective in the future. Of course, by my stereotype, you don't need the wealth of office, just the power. Perhaps your underlying plan is to move into being lobbyist after being defeated. But the least you could do for the good people of Colorado is to take off the Red-Riding Hood Cloak and show those big eyes and big teeth. Do your job as a self-proclaimed liberal or at least don't hide behind the skirts of the Blue Dog democrats. It could easily be said that you, and your wealthiest friends, essentially purchased your office in 2008.

Jared Polis (D) Winner
(60% of vote)
Raised: $7,353,034
Spent: $7,323,502
Cash on Hand: $29,533
Last Report:December 31, 2008
legend PAC contributions $24,250 (0%)
legend Individual contributions $1,310,022 (18%)
legend Candidate self-financing $5,992,550 (81%)
legend Other $26,212 (0%)
Industry contributions from the 2008 campaign both above and below

Jared Polis (D)

IndustryTotal
Democratic/Liberal$429,390
Securities & Investment$116,217
Retired$84,850
Computers/Internet$60,730
Real Estate$49,660
Misc Finance$42,200
Lawyers/Law Firms$39,828
Printing & Publishing$26,030
Business Services$23,900
Candidate Committees$21,250
Misc Business$17,350
Health Professionals$12,055
Construction Services$10,600
Lobbyists$9,900
Pharmaceuticals/Health Products$9,900
Non-Profit Institutions$8,650
Hospitals/Nursing Homes$8,600
Retail Sales$8,150
Misc Energy$7,300
Civil Servants/Public Officials$7,300
NOTE: All the numbers on this page are for the 2007 - 2008 House election cycle and based on Federal Election Commission data available electronically on Friday, July 17, 2009.

Do you seriously think sinking the Obama administration will get you re-elected in 2010 after you held on to his coattail in 2008?

From the upcoming 2010 campaign cycle tracking below

Jared Polis (D) *

ContributorTotal
National Assn of Retail Druggists$2,000
Henry Cueller for Congress 2002$1,000

Jared Polis (D)

IndustryTotal
Health Professionals$1,000
Candidate Committees$1,000


Your comments are rather transparent in the strategic game of politics. Creating a defense for voting "no" on the main issue of our modern times--for the sake of those holding and hoarding wealth--reeks of a Democrat in Republican drag. A Conservative in the cloak of a Liberal--if you insist on PR labels. And you, sir, have just outed yourself in prime time media.

I hope the good citizens of Boulder and Colorado check you at every turn and make you accountable. You can start Mr. Polis by fully disclosing the relationships you have had, the discussions you have had, and any increase in funding or tacit support you have received from the health care industry, private PACS, the insurance industry, and their associates. Names and amounts Mr. Polis. Update your electorate please. Don't skimp on the details.

And before I go, yes I am on a rant, let me remind you of your "nonprofit foundation's" mission. You are willing to recognize the inequalities in America pertaining to education. My guess would be it is a very important strategy to get those soccer-moms to the voting polls. I'd give you more credibility behind your actions if it just wasn't so illogical and convenient for you to vote against the same families in their pursuit for well-being, health, and equality in our democratic society.


Jared Polis Foundation

Mission: Our mission is to create opportunities for success by supporting educators, increasing access to technology, and strengthening our community.

General Overview: The Jared Polis Foundation was established in 2000 to support educators and students, involve parents and families, and strengthen Colorado’s schools and communities. Located in Boulder, we are funded primarily by Jared Polis and focus our resources on giving low-income students and families access to technology through our Community Computer Connection program, contribution to public discussion of important educational issues and innovations through the Jared Polis Education Report, acknowledging and recognizing the outstanding contributions and dedication of educators through our Teacher Recognition Awards, and creating new opportunities for under served and out of school students to receive a high-quality education through the start-up of the New America Schools and the Academy of Urban Learning.


*Note: All campaign contribution details come from www.opensecrets.org
Feel free to distribute or cite this material, but please credit the Center for Responsive Politics. For permission to reprint for commercial uses, such as textbooks, contact the Center.

Jared Polis gets top Dems rethinking health care : Nation and World : Boulder Daily Camera
At the heart of the skirmish is the question of how to pay the trillion-dollar cost of health reform, one of the trickiest questions of the debate and one that is already dividing Democratic lawmakers. The House version of the bill raises about half that money from a new tax of as much of 5.4 percent on families earning more than $350,000 or individuals earning $280,000.

Polis led a mini-revolt of House freshmen last week against the surtax, circulating a letter that gained 21 Democratic signatures and claiming that it would take a heavy toll on small-business owners, many of whom don't file as corporations


Comments :

3 comments to “Health Care: Jared Polis A Republican in a Blue Dog Suit”

Thunderhead said...
on 

My call to David Sarota on AM 760 yesterday was in the attempt to answer why Representative Polis had put forth the weak objection on the health insurance bill, HR3200, by stating that it would hurt small business while revenue experts sited the proposed legislative tax on upper income as barely grazing 4% of small businesses.

I mentioned to David that in general, the blue dog coalition was conditioning the public for their overall response to the bill. In particular, Representative Polis was setting up a single exception grievance with the bill in order to justify his future voting along with the republicans and thereby unnaturally amplifying the withered ranks of a defeated minority while demonstrating before the same public their backing of the Bush statement that you should just go and get an insurance savings account. Polis wants the voters prepared as he ratchets up his relatively trifling objection to health care reform into the impediment of full blown dissent.

The pattern seems similar in the Senate with the usual unyielding positioning of the 40 member republican minority closing ranks on the party line and sucking some democrats into the vortex. I am surprised that cannot be overcome by a 60 member democratic coalition.

Representative Polis also demonstrates just how bound he is to specialized interests and the monopolized market strangling middle class wage earners.

In addition Polis' phrasing in the Washington Post about "tax and spend policies" of the liberal post-war New Deal legacy was a cynical sneer that echoed the representative's master doctrine, Reaganomics. Polis cut his party with the dull sword of dead rhetoric from the right, while attempting to distort a highly successful New Deal legacy. What kind of democratic foundation does Jared Polis have?

Thunderhead

mowdy5gs said...
on 

So scince he purchased his office in conjunction with his wealthy friends you mean he's republican right?

Magpie said...
on 

On the surface he just looks like a sell-out to the public. He is taking political hits to do the other Blue-Dog's dirty work. In the future he'll get a payback no doubt.

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