Republicans Tell Pants on Fire Lies 76% of the Time

by: Libby Shaw

Thu Aug 20, 2009 at 01:02 PM CDT

The first order of business was for the group's leader to pass around a handout that supposedly offered a page-by-page translation of the House health care reform bill from an alien bureaucratic dialect to everyday English.

"A U.S. Army translator has been found who speaks 'Washington Doublespeak' and he was kind enough to decode the bill and post his plain-language findings," read an introductory paragraph.

As one who also has a family member who attends medical support group meetings I must say the group's leader did the unspeakable and unforgivable.  Folks attend these meetings for support, empathy and encouragement.  They are there to learn ways in which they and their families can cope with the diseases that plague them.  They are there to learn how to fight the depression and fear that accompanies so many diseases.  For a leader to introduce a new level of fear and anxiety to people in this state is criminal.

Obviously the GOP and HCR opponents know no shame.

Below are a few of the despicable whoppers used to foment fear among the ill.

Among the supposed findings: "Page 29: Admission: your health care will be rationed! ... Page 42: The 'Health Choices Commissioner' will decide health benefits for you. You will have no choice. None. ... Page 50: All non-US citizens, illegal or not, will be provided with fee healthcare services. ... Page 59: The federal government will have direct, real-time access to all individual bank accounts for electronic funds transfer."

The leader of the group said she couldn't sleep after reading the handout. Other members in the group of nearly all seniors were equally disturbed. So was I, but for a different reason.

The handout seemed to be nothing more than a chain e-mail whose credibility had been superficially enhanced by the fact that it had been printed out. What it lacked in all-caps typography it made up for with exclamation points and outrageous claims. When anyone asked where it came from, we were told only "the Internet."
Whether it's passed out by hand, posted, forwarded, linked to, or spewed loudly at town hall meetings, this type of misinformation has poisoned one of the most important public policy debates of our lifetimes.

Poisoned indeed.  It is all about killing healthcare reform, especially that with a public option.  Killing healthcare reform is the one and only motive driving the GOP and the deep pocketed opponents of healthcare reform, i.e. the healthcare insurance industry.  

A public option means insurance companies' profit margins will diminish, their CEO's will earn a mere couple of million instead of tens of millions dollars in salaries and bonuses. Oh, those poor, starving, destitute greed mongers.   The gatekeepers who are rewarded by saying NO and handing out death sentences will finally be held accountable for the decisions they make.

Imagine that.

Falkenberg learned that the source of the chain email is Peter Fleckenstein, a prolific conservative whose blog, Common Sense from a Common Man, is filled with anti-health care reform analysis.  Fleckenstein lives in Phoenix and said he is a former marine and father of two.  

An organization called Polifact had already debunked the lies spewed by Fleckenstein's group.

'Blatant lies'

To check the chain e-mail derived from Fleckenstein's post, Politifact's reporters read the health care bill and consulted with a nonpartisan expert who had done the same.

"It's awful," said the expert, Jennifer Tolbert, an independent health care analyst at the Kaiser Family Foundation. "It's flat-out, blatant lies. It's unbelievable to me how they can claim to reference the legislation and then make claims that are blatantly false."

Another study by Polifact reveals that Republicans generally lie most of the time, but where healthcare reform is concerned they are  lying through their teeth 76% of the time.

As you can see, and as Politifact editor Bill Adair has noted, the claims of Republicans and opponents of health care are much more likely to be false than true. Overall, 76% of their claims (16 of 21) are either "false "or "pants on fire."

They are also more likely to be false than are claims of Democrats and supporters of reform. Overall, 28% (5 of 18) of Democrats' claims are "false."

Finally, Obama has been more truthful than either Republicans/opponents or other Democrats/supporters: 22% of his claims have been "false" (2 of 9); more than half have been "mostly true" or "true."

Wow. President Obama is the most honest of them all.  What a refreshing change after W., Cheney, Rove et. al. all of whom lied 24/7/365 for eight long and dark years.

As if telling ridiculous whoppers are not enough,  Republicans are also showing how over the top they are willing to go.  Some folks are encouraged to bring assault rifles to town hall meetings at which the President of the United States is present.  Now, why would anyone need an assault rifle at any time, much less at a peaceful rally outside?  With the President of the United States in attendance?  Did these same folks bring assault weapons to G.W. Bush's events?  I kind of don't think so and if they did the shrieking from the right would have been deafening.  I can hear Rush, Glenn and Sean now.  "Deranged leftist hippie communist brings military assault weaponry to W. fundraiser!  He wants to kill our President!"  "He hates freedom!"  "He hates democracy!"

Worse, some of our esteemed lawmakers actually believe it is totally within gun owners' rights for these people to bring assault rifles to Presidential events.

I guess Joe the Gunner brings his assault rifle when dropping off his children at school.  And to church services.

Sure he does.

And if anything horrible happens such as if one of these assault weapon crazies happen to be in a bad mood, gets angry and kills innocent people, these very same lawmakers will say they had nothing to do with it.  It is out of their hands.

And Republicans wonder why only the fringes of American society want to identify with them anymore.

The Party lies most of the time.  It stands for nothing but lies, disinformation, war and hate speech.  Republicans obviously are unable to cope with a 21st century United States.

President Obama threw the Republican leadership a life line as well as a chance for the right and left to come together.  Republicans rejected the President's offer outright.

Adios to the willingly manipulated, the losers and crazed extremists.  By the way, a recent Rasmussen poll reveals that 57% oppose the plan if it doesn't include a government-run health insurance plan to compete with private insurers.  I guess FOX, Rush, Glenn and Sean haven't noticed.