The Hammond Report

My 16 year old daughter came home the other day telling me one of her teachers told the class that GWB was a baby killer. Seriously. I, of course, asked why in the world would he say that about our President, and thought that the teacher was referring to the Iraq war. She told me that it was because Bush vetoed the SCHIP reauthorization and because of that thousands of babies would die from not having insurance. We both chuckled at this because we have had discussions about this liberal wacko teacher before and my daughter and I use his liberal indoctrination attempts as learning opportunities.

I explained my point of view on the subject and then we sat down at the computer and did a little bit of research. We found the following information on Whitehouse.gov explaning Bush's position on SCHIP.

Guess what she discovered with just a quick google search? That Bush actually supports the reauthorization of SCHIP and a 20% increase in funding and wants to maintain the original purpose of the program of targeting the dollars to poor children.

We, she actually, also discovered the real and truthful reasons Bush vetoed the bill.

MYTH #2: Cost is the only reason for President Bush's veto threat.

• FACT: There are numerous problems with Congress's SCHIP bill. In addition to raising spending by $35 to $50 billion, the legislation:

1. Turns a program meant to help poor children into one that covers children in some households with incomes of up to $83,000 a year.

2. Would move millions of American children who now have private health insurance into government-run health care.

3. Is an incremental step toward the Democrats' goal of a government-run health care system.

4. Raises taxes on working Americans.

5. Relies on a budget gimmick that drops SCHIP funding by almost 80 percent in year six, masking future deficits and ultimately resulting in a choice between higher taxes or forcing millions of children to lose health insurance.

6. Creates new funding schemes inviting states to overspend their budgets and shift health care costs to the Federal government by using SCHIP funding to offset state Medicaid spending.

7. Provides incentives to states to relax protections against enrolling ineligible individuals, including illegal immigrants.

MYTH #3: President Bush is wrong in claiming the Senate SCHIP bill would cover children in some households with incomes of up to $83,000 per year (400 percent of the Federal poverty level).

• FACT: The Senate bill grandfathers in New York at a higher SCHIP match rate than the rest of the country – allowing SCHIP to cover children in some households with incomes of up to $83,000 per year.