My response to a right winger who thinks it is "no big deal" that Sen Pat Roberts owns Halliburton [View All]

[proud2BlibKansan]

stock. He also pointed out that Michael Moore owns Halliburton stock. He also gave me the old "Democrats raise taxes" line and said Obama was a socialist. And that the Bush administration doesn't feel like the government should punish those who were successful at making money. So I blasted off this reply:


I care and so do millions of other Americans. You are delusional if you believe that owning Halliburton stock means nothing. HELLO!? It means he is profiting from the war - the war he voted for. Come on. I know you aren't that dense.

I have already written my representatives many times and asked for a law forbidding members of Congress from profiting from legislation they vote for. If you don't see a problem there, I don't know what to tell you.

Since Michael Moore isn't running for office and is a private citizen, I don't understand why we need to be concerned about his stock portfolio. But you are repeating a myth that was debunked 3 or 4 years ago. You need to keep up or go to some new internet sites for your news. Michael Moore has a foundation that has a diverse portfolio (not at all uncommon) and at one time Halliburton shares were part of that portfolio. Now here's the important part: it wasn't HIS money. And those shares were sold many years ago, even before we invaded Iraq. You do understand what a charitable foundation is I hope. At any rate, no, Michael Moore does not own any Halliburton stock.

As for tax increases, as long as they aren't funding a bloviated defense budget and bridges to nowhere, I don't care. However I do care that Pat Roberts has voted against health care for children and the elderly, while supporting tax breaks for oil companies and that bridge to nowhere.

I also supported Hillary's health care plan so I am glad to see Slattery voted for that. Just think where we would be today if that plan had passed. Instead, 50 million Americans don't have health care. Do you know anyone without health care? I do and it's not a good place to be. A good friend of mine is laying in a nursing home right now while his family struggles to find a hospital willing to take care of him. This is one of the most shameful things about America. We spend $720 million a day in Iraq while Americans suffer and die because they can't afford health care.

Roberts also voted against veterans benefits. This is personal for me because I have many veterans as family and close friends. One of them was paralyzed in Iraq and needs to go to Chicago for rehab. He will be driven in an ambulance that his family has to pay for. So instead of a one hour flight at VA expense, he will have to endure a 10 hour ride in an ambulance. This is just beyond shameful. And again, we spend $720 million every day in Iraq but a soldier who will be in a wheelchair for the rest of his life after serving his country is not worth the expense of a plane fare.

On your last point, you lost me when you called Obama a socialist. That is almost comical. But again, the Republican meme of allowing the rich to stay rich and not tax them fairly comes through loudly and clearly. You guys are the ones who complain about Social Security but you always fail to mention that a person making 90,000 a year pays the exact same Social Security tax as a person making a million dollars a year. Just imagine how well funded our SS would be if we taxed all wage earners at the same rate. And of course the Bush administration doesn't feel like the government should punish those who were successful at making money. They just leave out the point that part of the reason they have so much money is they haven't had to pay taxes on their earnings. Middle income folks have to pay taxes but the wealthy get tax breaks.

But really, as soon as Pat Roberts failed to release that 9/11 Commission Report, he lost me. That was enough for me. I hate to be a one issue voter and I do have other reasons to oppose him, especially since he is a Bush supporting Republican, but dragging his feet on the report of his committee that concerned the worst attack in our history on American soil is just beyond shameful.

Roberts most definitely needs to go.