“Do you want to know who you are? Don't ask. Act! Action will delineate and define you.”…Thomas Jefferson

It has been an extremely exciting time in our countries history. It is clear that the American public has awakened from decades of apathy and we are speaking out against the government forces that are making their move for total control of our lives..

Activism is alive! The 9-12 rallies, Tea Party’s, town hall meetings, etc., are all part of the movement towards fewer taxes, more personal freedoms, with a smaller and more accountable government. All elected officials from the White House to every small town government entity in the USA are finally hearing the voices of the silent majority.

That is why Americans for Prosperity is proud to announce its partnership with the top candidate/activist training organization in the country, American Majority.

For those of you that cannot attend one of the many 9-12 rallies but want to learn more about how you can make a difference, join AFP-IL and American Majority on 9-12-09, for the first of several candidate/activist training seminars throughout the state.

AFP cannot think of a better partner to help equip the states activists with additional tools and training to help make a difference in OUR communities!

To learn more or to register for the 9-12-09 training session click here and join the efforts to back our government!

A quick look at AFP in the news:

Join AFP-IL facebook…

Please take the time to join AFP-IL’s facebook group and connect with like-minded citizens throughout Illinois and the country.

Health Care Update...

The Patients First Web site has undergone a revamp and is being launched this week! Be sure to check it out and refamiliarize yourself with it: www.joinpatientsfirst.com

For a Washington update on ObamaCare, click here.

How Van Jones Happened and What We Need to Do Next…

By AFP national policy director, Phil Kerpen

Now that Jones has resigned, we need to follow through with two critical policy victories…(Click here to read more…) 

AFP-IL attends a bill signing for House Bill 35 Transparency and Accountability Portal...

On August 17, 2009, Governor Pat Quinn hosted a bill signing ceremony highlighting several key transparency reforms. During the ceremony, Governor Quinn announced the signing of House Bill 35 (Public Act 96-0225). (Click here to read more)

Illinois in Serious Trouble...

Letter from AFP member Rob Zastany Chicago Tribune

What is wrong with Illinois? As a voter, taxpayer, and member of Americans for Prosperity, I am appalled by the fiscal irresponsibility from our elected officials in Springfield. (To read more click here)

Washington Political Update

Kennedy’s impact on reform: Proponents of a Washington takeover are not likely to pick up any extra votes as a result of Sen. Kennedy's death.  Their only likely paths to success are procedurally tricky and perilous “reconciliation” (which we detail later in this update) or more likely a deal with a handful of Republicans to do a mandates-and-subsidies bill that hands the big insurance companies guaranteed profits.  Stay focused. We still face the same threat of a so-called “compromise” that federalizes health insurance and penalizes businesses and individuals if they don’t comply.

Obama to launch “new” plan: The president will be given credit for portions of the health care plan most likely to pass, according to a report from The Atlantic.

Obama is scheduled to address a joint session of Congress next Wednesday in prime time.

The Atlantic says: “[Obama] plans to list specific goals that any health insurance reform plan that arrives at his desk must achieve, according to Democratic strategists familiar with the plan. Some of these "goals" have already been agreed to, including new anti-discrimination restrictions on insurance companies. Others will be new, including the level of subsidies he expects to give the uninsured so they can buy into the system.”

New Talking Point: Where’s the Senate Bill?

Everyone’s focusing on the House health care bill, H.R. 3200, which has hundreds of offensive provisions that have people up in arms all across America. Some Democratic senators are deflecting questions about the bill by saying, “Well, that’s not the Senate bill. We don’t have a Senate bill yet.” That is false. There is a Senate bill, but it's being kept secret!

The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee (Sen. Kennedy’s committee) completed a marathon month-long health care markup July 15. More than six weeks ago, they voted a bill out of the Senate HELP Committee. It’s complete in every way except the funding mechanism, which they are waiting on from the Senate Finance Committee. So other than the tax hikes, we should know everything about the Senate health care bill, but they won’t release the bill. The Congressional Budget Office can't score it yet, because they don't know what's in it.

An earlier version of the HELP bill is posted online, but they haven’t showed us the changes they made in the committee.

This is unprecedented. It’s been more than a month and they won’t show us the bill! The HELP Committee needs to release the bill as voted out by committee so the public can scrutinize it. This is basic transparency and basic democracy.

Show us the bill!

Also in the Senate … What’s “Reconciliation”?

The Democrats have said they may “go it alone” on health care. That probably means they’re going to have to use a trick called budget reconciliation to get it through the Senate with only 50 votes. 

Now “reconciliation” means only 50 votes, only 20 hours of debate, and no amendments.  They would make a huge change to 1/6th of our nation’s economy potentially having the government take it over or strictly regulate it without having time for amendments, without having debate, without having any input from the rest of the United States Senate. 

Robert Byrd, the Senator from West Virginia, killed this dead in its tracks when Bill Clinton proposed it on health care back in 1993.  At the time he said it would be a gross abuse of the reconciliation process, and he had enough clout to stop that from happening. He still thinks it is a gross abuse.  In April of this year he said, “I oppose using the budget reconciliation process to pass health care reform.  As one of the authors of the reconciliation process I can tell you the ironclad parliamentary procedures it authorizes were never intended for this purpose.” 

There is more.  Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) put a budget amendment in that would have preserved the 60-vote hurdle for health care reform.  That passed 79-14.  79 senators wanted to preserve the 60-vote hurdle, the normal order of the Senate.  That means in order to go ahead and do this with just 50 votes, they would only need to have 29 people who voted against using budget reconciliation change their minds and vote in favor of using it.  It would be utter hypocrisy.  

This procedure would be a trick, a gimmick, and the American people deserve better.  They deserve to see the normal Senate process used so that there can be debates, so that there can be amendments so we don’t that end up with a health care system that has not even been examined through the normal legislative process.  Contact your senators and tell them not to abuse the reconciliation process to force through health care.

This Isn’t Just about Health Care

The Left’s big miscalculation is that the Right is just upset about this health care bill. As you hold your rallies and events, remind your crowds what they already know: this isn’t just about health care! This is about being fed up with a Congress that is spending our money hand over fist, ramming legislation through that they’re not even reading, and taking over sectors of our economy one by one.

Great synopsis by The Wall Street Journal: “Snafus in the federal ‘cash for clunkers’ program -- which gave people rebates to trade in gas-guzzling cars for more fuel-efficient new vehicles -- highlighted how disorganization can hamper government plans.” And “White House budget forecasters said they now project $9 trillion of additional federal

debt over the next decade, adding $2 trillion to an earlier estimate.” (Source found here)

What the Other Side Is Up To?

As you may have heard, Obama’s campaign-turned-post-campaign organization, Organizing for America, put out an alert stating that “ All 50 States are coordinating in this – as we fight back against our own Right-Wing Domestic Terrorists who are subverting the American Democratic Process, whipped to a frenzy by their Fox Propaganda Network ceaselessly re-seizing power for their treacherous leaders.” (Source found here).

That’s us, folks! ;)

The lefty groups are copying the bus tour idea and attempting to hold scores of rallies in the next two weeks to counteract the tremendous outpouring our side has seen. Health Care for America Now, the union-backed campaign, is holding events all over. You can find the ones nearest you here: http://healthcareforamericanow.org/ I received an email from the Campaign for America’s Future, a related group that linked to this, proclaiming “Let’s Get Health Care Done – For Ted.”

This Labor Day, union members will be headed to the pulpits of at least 1,000 “faith communities” to push their politics. This follows Obama’s outreach to religious leaders essentially urging them to use their positions in their religious organizations to push for his plans. Good column by Mona Charen on the intersection Obama’s trying to create between religion and the politics of health care, including his “We are God’s partners in life and death” and accusing us of “bearing false witness” quotes. Read more here.

Quotable tidbit from Michael Moore

August 11, 2009 Political Wire article

Michael Moore on the Public Option

Filmmaker Michael Moore, who directed Sicko, discusses health care reform in the current issue of Rolling Stone:



"If a true public option is enacted -- and Obama knows this -- it will eventually bring about a single payer system, because the profit-making insurance companies won't be able to compete with a government run plan and make the profits they want to make."



Moore adds: "I probably shouldn't be saying this, but I'm counting on the fact that Republicans won't be reading this Rolling Stone."

The Left’s big miscalculation is that the Right is just upset about this health care bill. As you hold your rallies and events, remind your crowds what they already know: this isn’t just about health care! This is about being fed up with a Congress that is spending our money hand over fist, ramming legislation through that they’re not even reading, and taking over sectors of our economy one by one.