It’s For The Children
“Gag me with a spoon” used to be a popular “Valley Girl” expression. It’s no longer part of our everyday vernacular, but the feeling is the same – which is exactly my reaction every time I hear politicians say, “It’s for the children.”
The current flap over reauthorizing the SCHIP health insurance program for children is just the latest example of the political hyperbole we have become all too accustomed to hearing come out of the Beltway.
“…Democrats and their accomplices in the Leftmedia predictably portrayed the President as a Lone Ranger against “the children.” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi cried, “President Bush used his cruel veto pen to say ‘I forbid ten million children from getting the health benefits they deserve’.” (This from the party of abortion.) Of course, most of those ten million currently have health benefits—just not taxpayer funded. Yet. Furthermore, some of these “children” are as old as 25…The Heritage Foundation notes that roughly 70,000 families will be eligible for SCHIP and the Alternative Minimum Tax.” (Patriot Post, No. 07-40, October 5, 2007)
The Wall Street Journal highlighted the political opportunism of the SCHIP reauthorization bill with the following observation: “Known as a ‘funding cliff,’ the yearly SCHIP layout increases to $13.9 billion in 2011, then abruptly cuts spending by 65 percent below current funding levels. This helps ‘score’ the bill as costing only $35 billion over the five-year budget window, but it also means that come 2012 Congress will either have to pass new spending or kick kids off the rolls. The chances of the latter happening are approximately zero.” Can you say “campaign issue”? (Patriot Post, No. 07-40, October 5, 2007)“
[The State Children’s Heath Insurance Program (SCHIP)] without a doubt makes it easier for illegal aliens to get taxpayer-funded healthcare. The legislation wipes away the current requirement for multiple sources of identification and requires merely a name and a Social Security number to apply for benefits. The only safeguard is a single statement that says no illegal aliens can get benefits. That’s like opening the door to the chicken coop, but saying its okay because we put up a sign that says ‘No Foxes Allowed’.” —Rep. Sam Graves (R-MO) (Patriot Post, No. 07-41, October 8, 2007)
Looking further at the detail of the SCHIP reauthorization bill, we find that since they don’t have the money in the budget to pay for the expansion of the program, the financing of choice is a tax on cigarettes. Never mind that a cigarette tax is regressive and that it’s a declining source of funding.“By most measures, the average smoker is less privileged than the average nonsmoker. Nearly one-third of all U.S. adults living in poverty are smokers…” (GOP.gov, House Republican Conference)
“‘I know there is very little sympathy for smokers these days,’ Rep. Jack Kingston, R-Ga, said during the House debate. But it is still a tax increase on the backs of the smokers. And in order to get enough money to pay for this, it would require 22 million new smokers.” (GOP.gov, House Republican Conference)
“If the federal cigarette tax nears $1 per pack, smokers in many states will pay hefty sums into government coffers unless they kick their habit. On top of the federal tax, New Jersey levies a $2.57 per pack tax on cigarettes, followed by Rhode Island at $2.46. (GOP.gov, House Republican Conference)
Columnist Debra J. Saunders also made the following observations, among others, about the SCHIP program in a recent column (Jewish World Review, October 8, 2007):
“The cigarette tax is regressive and inadequate.”
“Supporters talk about providing more health care for poor children. Yet in six states, the Bush administration points out, SCHIP spends more on adults than children.”
“The Bushies also argue that the congressional bill isn’t about providing health care for poor kids – as it would expand SCHIP for children of the middle class, with family incomes as high as $62,000 per year – many of whom already receive employer-funded health care. In short, the vetoed bill does not put the neediest kids first.”
“…a third of the children who would sign up with SCHIP if Congress overrides the Bush veto already have coverage through their parents’ employers.”
Following are some of the steps our politicians can take that might make a real difference “for the children” they seem to care so much about:
- Stop spending us into the poorhouse. The very same children politicians are so eager to provide health care for will soon become the adults who will have to pay the bills that will be incurred to finance the SCHIP program now. This type of legislation is not free. As is so often the case, payment is being deferred in order to fund the program now, with a promise to pay it back later.
- Deal with the immigration problem. Our failure to stop the flood of illegal immigrants is already “breaking the bank” because of the benefits many of them are able to receive, and there appears to be no end in sight.
- Fix our tax system. “The children” deserve a fair and equitable tax system that will make it possible for them to live, work and plan for their own retirement after they become adults.
- Fix our schools, many of which no longer educate “the children” adequately. The failures of our school system are well documented and, in spite of the fact that we spend more money on education that almost any society in the world, our students consistently score among the lowest in essential subjects, such as mathematics and science.
- Do something realistic about the drug problem, which is destroying the lives of so many of “the children” our politicians say they want to help.
- Change the “entitlement” mentality that has become part of the accepted agenda of too many Americans and is taking us down the wrong path – toward Socialism.
- Fix Social Security - or it won’t be around for “the children” by the time they reach retirement age. “Generation Xers in America, by a margin of two-to-one…think they are more likely to encounter a UFO in their lifetime than they are to ever receive a single Social Security check…” (CATO Institute).
In the final analysis, we can’t have everything we want or think we need. No one can. There simply isn’t enough money available to do that – ever. So, what does that leave us? Choices, that’s what. We must choose between alternatives, and that includes the SCHIP program. President Bush asked for a $5 billion bill, Congress gave him a $35 billion program.The SCHIP bill that was passed by Congress is bad legislation, and President Bush was right to veto it.
If our politicians really cared about “the children” they would stop mortgaging their future with irresponsible spending and avoid the temptation to use these programs as a tool to gain political advantage. Unfortunately, that’s probably asking for too much.
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