Free Republic

The Insurance Industry is not happy about this:Hmmm... I've had two policies stall on the Income Verification section. It says try again in 24 hours. This was as of 1:30.

".......A day that was supposed to bring Washington to the edge of resolving the fiscal showdown instead seemed to bring chaos and retrenching. And a bitter fight that had begun over stripping money from the president’s signature health care law had essentially descended in the House into one over whether lawmakers and their staff members would pay the full cost of their health insurance premiums, unlike most workers at American companies, and how to restrict the administration from using flexibility to extend the debt limit beyond a fixed deadline.............."

According to a new study conducted by Texas Tech University Professor Dr. Michael Giberson for the Institute for Energy Research, the government and wind lobby aren't telling taxpayers the whole truth about how much wind energy really costs. The study comes as the wind lobby is set to receive another extension on massive subsidies with little results to show for it. "As Big Wind's lobbyists fight tooth and nail to extend the wind Production Tax Credit, it is important that we look at the true costs of wind power to taxpayers and ratepayers," IER President Thomas Pyle said about...

Sens. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., and Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, have issued a letter to the U.S. Department of Justice and Federal Trade Commission asking for an investigation of anticompetitive practices by oil companies that limit consumer access to renewable fuels, specifically higher ethanol blends.

A fire (screen capture from Jalopnik.com) that torched a Model S from the formerly Teflon Tesla Motors on Tuesday blackened its front end, lowered its stock price, and (further) revealed a corporate arrogance not seen since Fisker Karmas were alight. But CEO Elon Musk saw to it that taxpayers werefully paid back their $465 million Department of Energy loan, so as watchdogs over the public purse we can forget all about it and just go on about our business – right? Wrong. The incident near Seattle still should be of great concern because Tesla still heavily depends on tax breaks...

Regulations issued by the Obama administration this week would require members of Congress to buy one of the top-tier insurance plans from the ObamaCare exchanges. The Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) of the House sent guidance to members of Congress this week, based on a directive from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), that says they must choose plans from the "gold" level of insurance coverage, not "bronze" or "silver" plans. "Platinum" is the only higher level of coverage under the exchanges. "For plan year 2014, Members of Congress and designated congressional staff will choose from 112 options in the Gold...

**SNIP** The final proposal on keeping the government open from the House removed this special Congressional exemption. Members and staff would no longer receive special subsidies from the federal government to purchase health insurance. The proposal would have also suspended, for one year, penalties levied on individuals who don't have health insurance. This is similar to the waiver granted by the Obama Administration to employers earlier this year. The Senate, however, rejected both provisions. Had it opted to eliminate its own special subsidies, the government would be open today. Preserving its own platinum health insurance coverage drove the Senate to...

Driven on the Intercounty Connector lately? No? You’re not alone. Many haven’t. The 18.8-mile highway—the first stretch of which opened two and a half years ago after great hype and amid great controversy—is the road less traveled. Traffic counts are well below early projections, and revenue from tolls—needed to pay off the bonds that were sold to build the road—is far less than originally anticipated. The initial estimated cost of $1 billion has ballooned to $2.4 billion—or as much as $4 billion if you include interest payments. Consequently, all tolls on Maryland highways, bridges and tunnels have been raised in...

We’re all paying more at the pump. It’s hurting consumers and dangerous for the fragile economy. And, it’s because of a Washington handout to corn farmers and big Wall Street banks – all disguised as a measure to promote renewable energy and clean-burning fuels. The Renewable Fuel Standards (RFS) mandates an ever-increasing floor of ethanol be mixed with gasoline. The bill, which was expanded under President Obama, ensures a baseline level of demand for ethanol, distorting the market and sending the price of corn substantially higher. That’s because gasoline refiners have to purchase ethanol, regardless of the price. So, corn...

For some individuals and families signing up for ObamaCare, a little fudging can make a big difference in their bank accounts. In California, for example, a childless married couple stating income of $30,000 would face a $1,000 deductible, $15 per primary care visit and a maximum out-of-pocket cost (after premiums) of $4,500. But for a couple attesting to $32,000 in income, the deductible would be $3,000, primary care visit $40 and out-of-pocket maximum a hefty $10,400. Though they are separated by just $2,000 in income, the government might provide the lower-earning family as much as $5,900 more in cost-sharing subsidies...

When Colin and Joyce Elston bought their Florida dream home in May, they were confident they could afford the three-bedroom, two-bathroom ranch with a pool and a backyard overlooking the Intracoastal Waterway. Now they are not so sure. The retirees said they had enough in savings and investments to pay the mortgage and the $1,482 yearly flood insurance on the home, which sits on palm tree-lined Paradise Boulevard on Treasure Island, a barrier island in the Gulf of Mexico. But within two months of moving in, they received a stunning surprise: Due to a recently passed federal law, their flood...

A former top White House official and the head of President Obama’s personal advocacy group is joining the board of a green energy company backed by a major Democratic donor that recently received millions in federal contracts. LanzaTech announced Wednesday that Jim Messina, Obama’s former deputy chief of staff, reelection campaign manager, and the head of his retooled campaign apparatus Organizing for Action was appointed to the company’s board of directors. “Jim’s proven ability to merge technology, messaging, and communications in support of ideas that transcend ‘business as usual’ will help us continue our mission of reshaping how our world...

As close observers of history and human nature, James Madison and the other Founders of the U.S. Constitution knew that the equal and unbiased application of the law to all people, especially elected officials, is essential to freedom and justice and one of the primary safeguards from authoritarianism and oppression by a ruling class. And so, referring to the members of Congress, James Madison wrote in Federalist No. 57: "[T]hey can make no law which will not have its full operation on themselves and their friends, as well as on the great mass of the society." Today, elected officials need...

<p>Four people familiar with the development of the software that determines how much people would pay for subsidized coverage on the federally run exchanges said it was still miscalculating prices. Tests on the calculator initially scheduled to begin months ago only started this week at some insurers, according to insurance executives and two people familiar with development efforts.</p>

After the Department of Energy announced this week ithad given up on not-bankrupt-but-should-be Fisker Automotive, and will auction off its loan for a pittance, you’d think (and hope) Congress would have had enough of this kind of thing. Senator John Thune certainly has. “The Obama administration has gotten into the business of picking winners and losers at a significant cost to taxpayers,” said the South Dakota Republican yesterday. “I’m calling for the Senate to consider my amendment to eliminate the wasteful ATVM loan program and for my colleagues to join me in protecting taxpayer dollars from any future risky green...

Republicans revealed the details of their new healthcare bill, to replace Obamacare. It has the backing of nearly 3/4 of the republicans in the House. The bill includes money to the states to shore up their preexisting condition pool. The bill from the Republican Study Committee, would repeal the entire Obamacare bill. It would expand health savings accounts, medical liability reform, and would eliminate the restrictions on buying insurance across state lines. Although the sponsors of the bill plan to vote on it as soon as possible, they concede that it has no chance of passing in the senate.

The internet has been abuzz with stories about General Motors competing with Tesla by offering a vehicle that will get 200 miles on an electric charge and cost only $30,000. One headline even declared that GM might be the winner of the competition with the title reading, " GM Takes on Tesla- and Just Might Win." The only problem is that the car being hyped does not even exist. Nor may it ever. GM has much experience in the field of green vehicle hype now having a couple of years under their belts with the Chevy Volt. Those in the...

Just when you think Washington politics couldn't get dirtier, Congress finds a new low. To hold onto their illegal Obamacare subsidy that no other American earning $174,000 could get, members of Congress are trying to silence the subsidy's chief critic, Sen. David Vitters, by dredging up a 2007 unproven accusation that Vitters patronized a prostitute before being elected to the Senate. Shockingly, the cabal also proposes that any member of Congress who votes for Vitter's proposal would be ineligible for the subsidy if Vitter fails and the subsidy stays. Has anyone in Congress read the Constitution? You can't make a...

WASHINGTON (AP) — Low-income workers on union health plans are not eligible for the same federal subsidies available to those who buy insurance in the new state health care marketplaces, the White House said Friday. The decision is a disappointment for labor unions, coming shortly after top union officials met for more than an hour with President Barack Obama to press their case that subsidies could be extended to union-sponsored plans.

It looks like General Motors is attempting to make up for the money it loses on every Chevy Volt in volume as August sales, spurred by recent price cuts, reached an all-time high of 3,351. The fact that the car has been on the market for about three years and initial much-hyped proclamations from GM would have put sales at 20,000 per month by now goes unrecognized by those that think 3,351 vehicles is a lot of cars to sell in a month. To put the sales in perspective, it took Toyota about 2 ½ days to sell that many...

Now that the heirs of Carl Pohlad’s estate are caught up in the very confiscatory tax regime their favorite politicians helped create, it is tempting to root for the taxman just to make a point. Seems the IRS believes the Pohlad boys undervalued their prized possession, the Minnesota Twins, to the tune of $269 million as part of their late father’s estate. Now the greedy hand wants at least $121 million from the franchise the taxpayers built.

This week, President Obama is hitting the road to unveil his plan to "combat the soaring costs of higher education." His three part plan consists of connecting financial aid to school performance, supporting academic innovation, and making college more affordable. His road tour and policy initiatives sound good in the nightly news cycle. They make for great talking points, but President Obama's plan does not address the fundamental reasons behind why tuition is rising. Both sides can agree that rising college costs are a big problem and burden for students. But more college subsidies and government aid will not solve...

Big governments control more than just your pocketbook and basic freedoms. In the United States, the foods that our government subsidizes has a direct effect on YOUR health, and unfortunately, the effect is usually a negative one. It is no secret that the United States spends more on health care than any other country in the industrialized world, by a long shot. U.S. doctors treat diseases that are directly influenced by the diets of Americans. However, it might come as a surprise to know that the foods that our government subsidizes are direct contributors to the diseases that kill so...

According to the carefully crafted plan of the Obama administration, there would be one million electric cars cruising around America's streets and highways by 2015. According to the plan, almost half of those vehicles would be Chevrolet Volts. So how well are President Obama's industrial policy plans working out in the real world? The easiest way to find out is to count up the number of Chevrolet Volt sales over time. Electric vehicle industry observer InsideEVs provides a monthly scorecard of the number of sales recorded for each primarily electricity-powered automobile in the U.S., from which we extracted the...

The Chevy Volt madness continued this week with General Motors announcing that consumers will see a $5,000 decrease in the price of President Obama's favorite green wonder-car. Sales of the Volt have been dismal, with most consumers refusing to be as smitten with the car as the President and the few enthusiastic green ideologues who seemed to believe that spending approximately $20,000 more for a car (over a gas-powered rival) that can save them about $3 a day in gas makes sense. What seems to go unrecognized is the fact that the price cut comes at the expense of GM...

Stephen Ross, the billionaire owner of the Miami Dolphins, is recruiting tax-and-spend puppet candidates to challenge fiscally conservative Florida Republican state legislators in the 2014 Republican primaries. The New York real estate investor’s actions are the latest in his campaign of personal destruction against fiscal conservatives who voted against massive taxpayer subsidies for Ross’ Sun Life Stadium. Ross, a real estate investor from Michigan who now lives in New York, owns 95 percent of the Miami Dolphins and Sun Life Stadium. Ross sought funding this year from Florida state and local taxpayers to cover much of the expenses for $350...

I’m starting to get the sinking feeling that — for all of the recent ado about finally decoupling the usually omnibus farm bill into the two separate, more accessible issues of food stamps and agriculture ‘policy’ — what we’re might end up with is some kind of last-minute stopgap extension of the current farm bill, which is supposed to expire at the end of September.Congress still has plenty to duke out on both issues; the Democrats are refusing to stand for any substantive cuts to the national food-stamp program (the enrollment for which has grown by 70 percent since 2008,...

This week, House Republicans passed a rather unusual farm bill. There was no money for food stamps for the poor, a program that typically makes up the bulk of these bills. But the House did manage to pass billions in subsidies for farmers and agribusinesses. Ideology probably can’t explain this vote — at least not entirely. Most outside conservative groups were aghast at the crop insurance and commodity supports, which will cost taxpayers some $195 billion over 10 years. Yet House Republicans actually made the farm aid more generous — by adding a new shallow loss income entitlement program, tossing...

Full title: The cost of subsidies for those seeking government aid through ObamaCare has increased dramatically, critics sayVideo at link The cost of subsidies for those seeking government aid through ObamaCare has increased dramatically, critics say – even before a single dollar has been collected. Republican Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah wrote a letter to the administration asking why the president is already requesting 107 percent more than three years ago to pay for subsidies. "They low-balled everything, and they knew they were not asking for enough money to actually do this," John Goodman of the National Center for Policy...

Despite little news over the past nine months since its last-minute abandonment of an initial public offering that was supposed to raise $76 million in cash, stimulus recipient Smith Electric Vehicles is showing little evidence it can inspire demand for its commercial trucks, like its plug-in car counterparts. Smith’s selling point for its step vans was that, unlike electric automobiles, delivery routes in urban areas did not require a long range between refueling (or, recharging). Frequent stops and short distances alleviated the “range anxiety” that accompanies cars like the Nissan Leaf. Frito-Lay, Coca-Cola and Staples were cited as early adopters...

It appears that there is no end in sight to the Obama Administration's costly quest to electrify America's auto fleet, despite the recent flurry of reports that continue to confirm that the benefits of electric vehicles (EVs) are practically nonexistent in comparison to the costs. One of these reports even came from Obama's own NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) panel which downplayed the importance of EVs and claimed that electric cars will only need to account for between one and three percent of car manufacturer's product portfolios by 2025 for lofty government EPA requirements to be met. The Autoguide.com...

As America's debt rises to unsustainable levels, the U.S. government is losing billions every year on energy tax subsidies that do little to combat climate change. That's according to a tough report released this week by the National Research Council. The non-partisan academic report concluded that current tax policies are a "poor tool" for addressing climate change -- and a costly one. It found energy subsidies in 2011 and 2012 cost $48 billion, with limited results. "Very little if any GHG (greenhouse gas) reductions are achieved at substantial cost with these provisions," the report concluded. The report coincided with a...

We have covered several areas concerning corporate welfare or cronyism; however, our areas of research were limited to the State of Texas. Unfortunately, Texas is not the only government that suffers systematically from this problem. The Federal government does as well, and there is little question as to whether or not it exists. The real question is, “How much of it exists?”Our Founding Fathers feared corruption caused by foreign interests. Being a relatively new nation, they believed we were vulnerable to countries like Great Britain who would try to usurp power. One of the reasons our first national bank, the...

The USDA Rural Development agency also touted a program to subsidize the Wine Barn LLC in “marketing and increasing production of its Kansas produced wine.” That cost $25,000. The USDA Rural Development also said it would hand $300,000 to the Mackinaw Trail Winery in Michigan, $100,000 for the Appleton Creek Winery in New York, $162,500 for the Old Westminster Winery in Maryland, and tens of thousands of dollars to wineries in Nebraska and Iowa. Liquor is the name of the game for the USDA, apparently – they’re also subsidizing the production of vodka in North Carolina, Bloody Mary mix in...

LE BOURGET, France – Designers of Europe’s Ariane 5 rocket are crafting a defense against U.S. startup rocket builder Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) even before the next-generation Ariane 6 rocket – itself spurred in part by SpaceX – has been approved for production. The first line of defense is the Ariane 5 Midlife Evolution vehicle, whose new upper stage is halfway completed and awaits final approval, in late 2014, of European governments. Ariane 5 ME will increase the current Ariane 5 ECA’s payload-carrying power by about 20 percent, meaning it will carry two satellites weighing a combined 11,000 kilograms....

General Motors has announced a $4,000 rebate (or $3,000 and a four year, zero interest loan from government-owned Ally Financial) on the slow-selling Chevy Volt. The company had a choice regarding how to deal with an excess supply of Volts that is growing faster than demand. GM could have, once again, temporarily halted production until inventory (currently at about a 6 month supply) came down to reasonable levels. It instead chooses to lose more millions of dollars by spending on incentives designed to manufacture demand that otherwise is practically nonexistent. The much-hyped Chevy Volt was originally presented by GM...

Michael Moore takes to twitter to brag about the profit his non profit theater makes and hilarity ensues.

Despite the looming bankruptcy of electric carmaker Fisker Automotive, and disappointing sales of electric vehicles across the country, the Obama administration has harnessed some of the country’s top scientists, engineers, economists and auto experts to push electric car use deeper into the fabric of American society. Among the ideas being considered: new and bigger consumer subsidies for electric-car purchases, stiffer gasoline or carbon taxes, more federal subsidies for electric-car research, more subsidies for public-access battery-charging stations, and even broad, publicly-funded ad campaigns extolling the virtues of cars that the public currently seems disinterested in buying. Those possibilities, and more, have...

Experts with the Institute of Energy Economics at the University of Cologne estimate that [German] consumers will have to pay more than €100 billion by 2022 for renewable energy facilities that have already been installed. Of the 28 cents household customers pay per kilowatt-hour of electricity today, 5.28 cents already applies to the [Renewable Energies Act] levy, and that figure is growing. There are many reasons for the cost explosion. Contrary to earlier forecasts, solar and wind farms are a long way from being able to produce energy at the prices possible in coal-fired or nuclear power plants. There are...

Considering how important and ubiquitous energy is for virtually all of life’s activities, it should come as no surprise that energy policy often dominates the agendas in legislative chambers in each of the fifty states and on Capitol Hill. Historically, most of the energy debate in many of these legislative bodies has centered almost exclusively on ensuring that citizens have ready access to affordable and reliable energy. Unfortunately, over the past several years, the energy debate has shifted. Instead of worrying about the cost and dependability of energy, many legislators are now focusing on ways in which certain politically preferred...

Government Failure: Two years ago the president announced his goal of putting 1 million electric cars on U.S. roads by 2015. Did he mention that to reach that target the unpopular cars might have to be given away? The market for electric cars is so weak that consumer costs are approaching almost nothing. The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday that in order to "spark buyers for electric cars," there is a need to "drop the price to nearly $0." "A new round of discount leases on mainstream-brand plug-in cars such as the Nissan Leaf or Fiat 500e, combined with federal,...

Wealthy Californians would like to thank you for buying them expensive automobiles. Didn’t know you that generous, eh? In fairly recent political history, left-of-center ideologues and other special needs people have advocated “public/private partnerships”. Once opposed to anything corporate, alleged progressives now embrace funneling tax funds to corporations of every ilk that sustain their ideology, regardless of how insane the plot sounds to common folks with common sense. No less of a man than Bill Clinton (and given his serial freelance philandering, there is no lesser of a man) has focused his face into television cameras proclaiming that government funded...

Great news for consumers who are considering buying General Motors' green wonder car, the Chevy Volt. I know how excited those environmentally conscientious Volt enthusiasts can get, but a little patience can pay off big time if potential buyers hold off for a year or so on their purchase. According to GM CEO Dan Akerson and following another dismal month of Volt sales (1,306 in April), the car that defies logic will soon be available for up to $10,000 less money. The good news extends to shareholders of GM as the next generation of the Volt will supposedly be profitable...

While hindsight may always be 20/20, foresight should be pretty clear in many instances as well. The Fisker failure was one of these times. Many saw the folly in spending hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars to support the green debacle. In fact, the Associated Press has reported that even the Obama Administration had warning of the Fisker loan risks back in April of 2010 when the Energy Department began emailing their concerns. Congress will be holding hearings starting today to address the scandalous waste of taxpayer money on Fisker. Reuters states one of the goals of the hearing, "'The...

A Washington company intends to moor five wind turbines off the Oregon coast, and hopes the project dovetails with a separate proposal for liquefied natural gas.

Earlier this year, I reviewed General Motors' first quarter earnings report and annual results . My take-away from the report was that GM relied upon shady accounting techniques and a build-up of US dealer inventories to produce some rosy-looking results. Channel stuffing to the tune of an over 20% increase in inventory from year end 2011 provided for GM's revenue growth. The trend continues as GM has further pumped-up inventory for quarter one. The reason that dealer inventory figures are so important is that automakers record revenue when vehicles are shipped to dealerships, not when they are actually sold to...

It appears that the Mainstream Media folks may finally be starting to expose one of the worst cases of taxpayer abuse that this country has ever seen. Kudos to Deepa Seetharaman who wrote a piece for Reuters which questions the feasibility of the government-subsidized, lithium-ion based battery technology behind electric vehicles (EVs) like the Chevy Volt. While Seetharaman acknowledges the limitations of lithium-ion batteries, what remains unchallenged is the continued waste of billions of taxpayer dollars to support the failing, pseudo-green technology. The evidence that the Obama Administration's EV subsidization has been a costly fiasco (particularly regarding the Chevy Volt...

When a company wants to go public and offer shares of common stock, it must fill out an S-1 form, a background document used by investors for research before an initial public offering (IPO) is filed. Because they have a direct financial interest in the performance of a company, individuals and groups that invest are smart to look closely at this document before pledging their money. If only the government was as careful. Last summer, Michigan Capitol Confidential covered the “green” energy company Mascoma Corp., which has received more than $100 million from the federal government and another $20 million...

The Chevy Volt has inarguably been the poster child for President Obama's push to electrify America's auto fleet. Billions of taxpayer dollars have been spent to produce and subsidize the plug-in electric car. For years we have heard about the supposedly amazing technology for the Volt which would lead America to energy independence, be a "game-changer" for General Motors and provide a multitude of new green jobs. Proclamations were made that supply for the wonder-car could not keep up with the demand. Well, March's sales figures are in and give further confirmation that the lofty claims were all lies. March's...

Michigan subsidizes up to 32 percent of expenditures for film, television, music video, video game and other media projects done in the state. Essentially, this means that select qualified ventures receive a check from the state treasury for production. I recently debated Michigan's film subsidy program on Fox 2 in Detroit. I gave several reasons why the state should not be spending taxpayer money on this private enterprise. Here they are: The Michigan film subsidy program does not create jobs. As James Hohman, a fiscal policy analyst at the Mackinac Center for Public Policy reported in 2010, the initial program...