Sherrod Brown: First We Go After Big Pharma
The new senator from Ohio weighs in on drug-pricing reform, Iraq, the '08 campaign, and (oh yeah, that!) trade.
Fresh from victory in Ohio's knock-down drag-out Senate race, Sherrod Brown is happily preparing to exit the rough-and-tumble House for the mannered courtesies of the Senate. Brown ran his campaign on familiar themes — middle class economic issues and criticism of NAFTA-type free trade policies. He was a vocal member of the House anti-free trade coalition — made up of both right wing Republicans and liberal Democrats such as fellow Ohio congressman Dennis Kucinich and Vermont's Bernie Sanders — that used to battle then-speaker Newt Gingrich and President Bill Clinton in the '90s. Once he takes his Senate seat, Brown will be serving on Senator Ted Kennedy's Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. He told us his top targets will be Iraq, trade, and the pharmaceutical industry.
Mother Jones: What do you think should be done about Iraq?
Sherrod Brown: Re-deploy. Troops out within 18 months to two years. I think that time should be shrunk now because things have gotten consistently worse, obviously. The Iraqis will never do what they need to do in terms of cooperation among the Shiites, Kurds and Sunnis, and in terms of building the police and military security forces, until they know we're leaving.
MJ: What do you want to do on the Health and Education Committee?
SB: FDA reform — wrestling the agency away from drug company influence. In my 14 years in the House, I've seen a very good agency, the Food and Drug administration — one of the best public agencies in the world, frankly — turn into a shadow of itself because of drug company influence. I think the best way to fill the donut hole [the coverage gap in the Medicare drug benefit] is to negotiate drug prices. When you negotiate drug prices on behalf of 40 plus million beneficiaries, the donut hole begins to shrink.
MJ: How about trade?
SB: We will not give President Bush the kind of fast track authority he has had in the past. I have no doubt about that. The question is: what do [will] we do instead? The first option is "first, do no harm." That means don't pass trade agreements without environmental and labor standards, without food safety standards — trade agreements that continue to squeeze the middle class in this country and don't help the working poor in [other countries]. Ultimately, I think [that] means renegotiating some of these trade agreement.
MJ: Any interest in being Vice President?
SB: No. But anybody that runs for the president will have to go through Ohio, literally and figuratively. The Democrats need to nominate somebody that will be an economic populist, that will stand up for the middle class, that doesn't just want to increase the minimum wage but somebody that will work to put the government on the side of working families. And that means different trade policy, standing up to the drug industry, taking on the oil industry. It means showing that the Democratic Party is a progressive, populist party.
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Iraq is hash /or say hasheesh ..sometimes our guilt leads us frther than feds know! we all take pot and desire hash...we all see uncle-sam.corp profit till it hurts consumer.
All Education is /is "escuse me please" or "sorry is the only medicine we have right now" "your too ctitically wounded" "health care is discussed without pay-later schemes ..Heres you free dental check-up and thirty years for fifty dollors [passes trillions advance to refresh gums and research food]only plus you get is 'watch your mouth' dental instrument free and Sandy and myself Dr Khan are holding the phone right now!..
"they still call it labour maam?" "its the immigration 'red pass'sooner the luxury !your from pakistan too ? "i think it sounded like that"
Im not dumb ,i know that much yet!
Re Immigration
I just returned from Southern California & wish to make my position clear re the Kennedy/McCain Immigration "Amnesty" Bill. I am totally opposed to this legislation in that I believe it will not solve our problem but rather,over time,make things significantly worse.
I certainly hope that regardless of how much President Bush pushes for passage of this legislation you resist his pressure.
What do you think on the issues on global warming?
Socialism is a plague on humanity. It has never worked, and will never work. The more it is attempted to be implemented, the more it will destroy in it's path. Give me one example of where it was successful (and if you say France, I'll die laughing).
Great, another one who thinks the only answer is to destroy our best companies. Is this a joke? Wake up. Taking down these magnificant life saving companies and all the brain power they employ is not the solution. Go after doctors who over subscribe, This is the issue!
TOP 10 INDICATORS YOU LIVE IN A FASCIST COUNTY
American Cultural Ambassadors David and Renate Jakupca of the International Center for Environmental Arts (ICEA) in Cleveland, Ohio have examined fascist regimes in history and found 10 defining characteristics common to each:
1. A perceived Powerful and Continuing Community Spirit - Fascist counties tend to make constant use of slogans, mottos, symbols, songs, and other propaganda to rally the people to their current cause. No matter what the consequences are, people tend to look the other way or even allow their tax money to be used in the name of community patriotism.
2. Loss of Recognition for Human Rights - Because of the need for their fundamental security, the people in a fascist county are persuaded that their human rights and civil liberties can be ignored in certain cases because of the "needs" of special interests.
3. Identification of Enemies/Scapegoats as a Unifying Cause - people are rallied or bought into a unifying patriotic frenzy over the need to blackball or eliminate a perceived common threat or foe (whistle blower). Power brokers build themselves up by hiring others to knocking others down through discrimination, coercion, elections, etc.
4. Controlled Mass Media - Sometimes the media is directly controlled by the government, but in most cases, the media strings are pulled indirectly by the Syndicate money through advertising or sold out media executives. Media outlets like 'COOL CLEVELAND' and ANGLE Magazine are blatantly owned and operated by the special interest groups. Censorship, is the key word here. Economic Fear is the motivational tool over the masses.
5. Religion/Non-Profit Sector and Government are Intertwined - Governments in fascist counties are pressured to use the most powerful religion in the county as a tool to manipulate public trusts to their favor. Religious and charitable rhetoric and terminology is common from government leaders, even when the major tenets of the non-profit sector are diametrically opposed to the community's best policies or actions. The whole non-profit sector integrity is compromised for the benefit of a chosen few.
6. Corporate Power is Protected - The business and non-profit aristocracy of a fascist county often are the ones who put the government leaders into power, creating a mutually beneficial business/government relationship for a more powerful elite mafia.
7. Labor Power is Suppressed - Because the organizing power of labor is the only real threat to a fascist government, labor unions, like in certain east side neighborhoods are either eliminated entirely, or are severely suppressed.
8. Disdain for Intellectuals and the Arts - A Fascist county tends to promote and tolerate open hostility to a higher level of Culture and Academia. It is not uncommon for senior artists and other academics to be censored, sanctioned or even arrested. Free expression in the arts and letters is covertly attacked. Google search: "ICEAlity"
9. Rampant Cronyism and Corruption - Fascist counties almost always are governed by groups of friends and associates who appoint each other to government and community positions and use governmental power and authority to protect their many, many, many friends on the public payroll from accountability. It is not uncommon in fascist regimes for county resources and even treasured real estate to be misappropriated by government leaders for special interest use. Business Poaching and other unscrupulous tactics are on the rise.
10. Fraudulent and Bogus Elections - Sometimes elections are a complete sham - like the recent ISSUE 31. Most elections are about obtaining more money and taxes. Other times elections are manipulated by smear campaigns against or even political assassination of opposition candidates, and use of legislation to control business or peoples' rights. Fascist counties also typically use their judiciaries (example: community development corporations) to manipulate or control elections.
RE: www.ReadRoldo.com
12/26/07... Disgraced Visitors Bureau Fed $100 Million in Tax Dollars by Cuyahoga County;
