Surprising what falling Poll Numbers can accomplish 
Obama Nixes Charging Combat Wounded for Healthcare
Thursday, March 19, 2009 8:38 AM
WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama has decided to drop any consideration of billing veterans' private insurance companies for the treatment of combat-related injuries, the White House said Wednesday.
Presidential spokesman Robert Gibbs said the idea was on the table as the administration sought "to maximize the resources available for veterans."
Veterans groups complained that the proposal would reverse government policy of taking responsibility for caring for the war wounded and said it could cause difficulties for veterans in getting future insurance or even jobs.
Members of Congress leapt in to join the criticism.
Leaders of about a dozen veterans groups met at the White House on Monday to discuss it with Obama and top administration officials. They returned for more talks with White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel.
Gibbs' announcement that the idea was officially out was released by the White House in the afternoon.
"The president listened to concerns raised by the VSOs (veteran service organizations) that this might, under certain circumstances, affect veterans and their families' ability to access health care," Gibbs said. "Therefore, the president has instructed that its consideration be dropped."
Gibbs has noted that the administration is seeking an 11 percent increase in discretionary funds for the VA for this year. The proposal would have saved the Veterans Affairs Department hundreds of millions of dollars a year
The VA already pursues third-party billing for conditions that are not service-related. The process only applies to those veterans who have private health insurance.
Feds Deny Obama Will Take Guns Away from Pilots
Thursday, March 19, 2009 9:37 AM
By: Jim Meyers
Federal officials and the airline pilots union are denying a report that the Obama administration is seeking to end a program that trains pilots to carry guns in jetliner cockpits.
An editorial published in the Washington Times on Tuesday stated that “President Obama is quietly ending the federal firearms program, risking public safety on airlines in the name of an anti-gun ideology.”
About 12,000 pilots have been authorized to carry handguns while flying aircraft as part of the Federal Flight Deck Officers (FFDO) program, and the Times article called the administration’s move “completely unnecessary harassment of the pilots.”
But Sterling Payne, a spokeswoman for the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), told Fox News of the editorial: “It’s inaccurate. This program continues to grow. TSA continues to recruit and put new FFDOs on planes, and we continue to train them and do recurring training.”
Congress authorized the gun program following the 9/11 attacks to help prevent terrorists from turning jetliners into flying bombs that could be used to attack key sites like the White House.
The Airlines Pilots Association International, representing more than 52,000 pilots in the U.S. and Canada, issued a statement saying the Times story “couldn’t be further from the truth.”
Union representatives “met with TSA executives and were told in no uncertain terms that TSA embraces the FFDO program, that there are no plans to reduce or restrict its growth, and that in fact the agency fully intends to grow and expand the program,” according to the union statement.
“Government representatives acknowledged that the program needs additional funding to achieve these goals, and that they are actively seeking same.”
Obama Nixes Charging Combat Wounded for Healthcare
Thursday, March 19, 2009 8:38 AM
WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama has decided to drop any consideration of billing veterans' private insurance companies for the treatment of combat-related injuries, the White House said Wednesday.
Presidential spokesman Robert Gibbs said the idea was on the table as the administration sought "to maximize the resources available for veterans."
Veterans groups complained that the proposal would reverse government policy of taking responsibility for caring for the war wounded and said it could cause difficulties for veterans in getting future insurance or even jobs.
Members of Congress leapt in to join the criticism.
Leaders of about a dozen veterans groups met at the White House on Monday to discuss it with Obama and top administration officials. They returned for more talks with White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel.
Gibbs' announcement that the idea was officially out was released by the White House in the afternoon.
"The president listened to concerns raised by the VSOs (veteran service organizations) that this might, under certain circumstances, affect veterans and their families' ability to access health care," Gibbs said. "Therefore, the president has instructed that its consideration be dropped."
Gibbs has noted that the administration is seeking an 11 percent increase in discretionary funds for the VA for this year. The proposal would have saved the Veterans Affairs Department hundreds of millions of dollars a year
The VA already pursues third-party billing for conditions that are not service-related. The process only applies to those veterans who have private health insurance.
Feds Deny Obama Will Take Guns Away from Pilots
Thursday, March 19, 2009 9:37 AM
By: Jim Meyers
Federal officials and the airline pilots union are denying a report that the Obama administration is seeking to end a program that trains pilots to carry guns in jetliner cockpits.
An editorial published in the Washington Times on Tuesday stated that “President Obama is quietly ending the federal firearms program, risking public safety on airlines in the name of an anti-gun ideology.”
About 12,000 pilots have been authorized to carry handguns while flying aircraft as part of the Federal Flight Deck Officers (FFDO) program, and the Times article called the administration’s move “completely unnecessary harassment of the pilots.”
But Sterling Payne, a spokeswoman for the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), told Fox News of the editorial: “It’s inaccurate. This program continues to grow. TSA continues to recruit and put new FFDOs on planes, and we continue to train them and do recurring training.”
Congress authorized the gun program following the 9/11 attacks to help prevent terrorists from turning jetliners into flying bombs that could be used to attack key sites like the White House.
The Airlines Pilots Association International, representing more than 52,000 pilots in the U.S. and Canada, issued a statement saying the Times story “couldn’t be further from the truth.”
Union representatives “met with TSA executives and were told in no uncertain terms that TSA embraces the FFDO program, that there are no plans to reduce or restrict its growth, and that in fact the agency fully intends to grow and expand the program,” according to the union statement.
“Government representatives acknowledged that the program needs additional funding to achieve these goals, and that they are actively seeking same.”
Bad form.
