Sarah Palin Endorses U.S. Senate Candidate Carly Fiorina

Uploaded on March 13, 2010 by CarlyForCA All rights reserved.

SACRAMENTO, CA – In yet another sign of the groundswell of conservative support building behind her campaign, U.S. Senate candidate Carly Fiorina today earned the endorsement of former Alaska Governor and Republican Vice Presidential nominee Sarah Palin. “Carly is the Commonsense Conservative that California needs and our country could sure use in these trying times. She’s not a career politician. She’s a businesswoman who has run a major corporation.

She knows how to really incentivize job creation. Her fiscal conservatism is rooted in real life experience. She knows that when government grows, the private sector shrinks under the burden of debt and deficits. We can trust Carly to do the right thing for America’s economy and to make the principled decisions she has throughout her professional career,” said Governor Palin. “Please consider that Carly is the conservative who has the potential to beat California’s liberal senator, Barbara Boxer, in November. I’m a huge proponent of contested primaries, so I’m glad to see the contest in California’s GOP, but I support Carly as she fights through a tough primary against a liberal member of the GOP who seems to bear almost no difference to Boxer, one of the most leftwing members of the Senate.”

Palin served most recently as governor of Alaska, a post to which she was elected in 2006. Palin was a candidate for vice president in 2008, serving as Senator John McCain’s running mate and making her the Republican Party’s first female vice-presidential nominee. Previously, Palin was a member of the Wasilla City Council from 1992 to 1996 and was mayor of Wasilla from 1996 to 2002.

“I am honored and grateful to have Sarah Palin’s support. She, too, is a political outsider and a strong fiscal conservative, and we share a common concern for the direction our country is headed in under Barbara Boxer and her allies in Washington,” said Fiorina. “Californians across the state have had enough of Washington insiders and their political games, and together, I am confident we will help restore integrity to our nation’s capital by bringing Barbara Boxer’s 28-year career to an end.”

Yesterday, Fiorina earned the endorsement of the National Right to Life Political Action Committee, the largest pro-life political action committee in the nation. Previously, Fiorina was endorsed by the National Right to Life Committee’s California affiliate, the California Pro-Life Council, and the Susan B. Anthony List, another national pro-life political action committee.

Sarah Palin: Let’s Shake It Up In California

Sarah Palin talks to Nome, Alaska, native 1st Sgt. Dewey Green. Palin visited the Soldiers of 3rd Battalion, 297th Infantry Regiment, Alaska National Guard to learn about their mission in Kuwait. Derivative work: Ferrylodge, original photo by Pfc. Christopher Grammer, 50th Public Affairs Detachment.

I’d like to tell you about a Commonsense Conservative running for office in California this year. She grew up in a modest home with a school teacher dad, worked her way through several colleges, and then entered an arena where few women had tread. Through a combination of hard work, perseverance, and common sense, she proved the naysayers wrong to reach the top of her field, where she led with distinction – facing hard truths, making tough decisions, and showing real leadership through a rocky transition period. Where others had failed, her company had weathered the storm and settled on a stronger new foundation. Her name is Carly Fiorina, and I’m proud to endorse her for U.S. Senate.

Carly is the Commonsense Conservative that California needs and our country could sure use in these trying times. Most importantly, she’s running for the right reasons. She has an understanding that is sorely lacking in D.C. She’s not a career politician. She’s a businesswoman who has run a major corporation. She knows how to really incentivize job creation. Her fiscal conservatism is rooted in real life experience. She knows that when government grows, the private sector shrinks under the burden of debt and deficits. We can trust Carly to do the right thing for America’s economy and to make the principled decisions she has throughout her professional career.

Please consider that Carly is the conservative who has the potential to beat California’s liberal senator, Barbara Boxer, in November. I’m a huge proponent of contested primaries, so I’m glad to see the contest in California’s GOP, but I support Carly as she fights through a tough primary against a liberal member of the GOP who seems to bear almost no difference to Boxer, one of the most leftwing members of the Senate. Carly needs our support in this crucial election year when we have a real chance of putting an end to the Pelosi/Reid “Big Government” agenda.

I hope you’ll join me in supporting Carly. Visit her website here, and follow her on Facebook and Twitter. Read up on her positions and plans to help get us on the right track.

California is still Reagan Country, and Carly promises her “Reagan Conservative” values will be put to good use for her state and for our great nation. Shaking it up in California is long overdue. Let’s help Carly do it!

- Sarah Palin

Update: I’d like to add a few things about my Carly endorsement because some reaction right out of the chute calls for more information:

Carly has been endorsed by the National Right to Life, the California Pro-Life Council, and the Susan B. Anthony List. She is pro-life, pro-traditional marriage, pro-military, and pro-strict border security and against amnesty. She is against Obamacare and will vote to repeal it and prevent the government takeover of private companies and industries. Carly is also a strong supporter of the Second Amendment. Like me, she is a member of the NRA, has a 100% NRA rating, and she and her husband are gun owners. She is pro-energy development and believes as I do in an all-of-the-above approach to energy independence. She is against cap and tax. And most importantly, Carly is the only conservative in the race who can beat Barbara Boxer. That’s no RINO. That’s a winner.

- Sarah Palin

This endorsement was originally posted on Facebook.

Carly for California 915 L Street, Suite C-378 Sacramento, CA 95814 (877) 664-6676

Carly Fiorina, Tom Campbell Exposed As A FCINO: Fiscal Conservative In Name Only VIDEO

SACRAMENTO, CA – Demon Sheep. Carly for California today released “FCINO,” a Web video exposing Tom Campbell as a “Fiscal Conservative In Name Only.” Since his flip-flop into the Senate race, Campbell has been calling himself a fiscal conservative based on his time as a member of Congress nearly two decades ago, hoping that voters will ignore his recent support for more government spending, increased borrowing, a $16 billion tax hike and a 32-cent gas tax increase.

“California voters beware: Tom Campbell is a wolf in sheep’s clothing when it comes to his campaign rhetoric on taxes and government spending. He is a fiscal liberal masquerading as a ‘Fiscal Conservative In Name Only,’” said Carly for California Deputy Campaign Manager for Communications Julie Soderlund. “The last thing California needs is another tax-hiking, big-spending senator – Barbara Boxer has done more than her fair share of that over the last 18 years. And given his record of support for higher taxes, more borrowing and increased government spending, there is no reason to believe Taxin’ Tom would be any different.”

Facts About The Web Video

VOICE OVER: Purity. Piety. Our fiscal conservative leaders. Men and women we admire. Aspire to be. Wholesome. Honorable. True believers. Men like Tom Campbell. Who would never lead us astray, his pedestal so high. Leaving but one way to fall.

GRAPHIC: Purity. Piety. Wholesome. Honorable. True Believers. Leaving but one way to fall.

VOICE OVER: Tom Campbell. “Fiscal genius.” Who would remember that as the Governor’s Chief Budget Officer – Campbell was the architect of our disastrous 2005 budget? A budget so bloated with increased ongoing spending commitments and borrowing that it literally set the stage for the recent decline of California.

GRAPHIC: Tom Campbell. Fiscal genius?

FACTS:
Campbell Was A “Key Player” In Shaping The 2005 Budget. “In his role, Campbell was a key player in crafting the $117.5 billion budget that Schwarzenegger signed on July 11 (the earliest such an agreement has been reached between the governor and the Legislature in five years).” (Bree Hocking, “Ex-Rep. Tom Campbell: Up To The Elbow Patches In State’s Budget Mess,” Roll Call, 8/15/05)

Campbell “Helped Craft” Gov. Schwarzenegger’s 2005 Budget. “A fiscally conservative, socially liberal Republican, Campbell was known as a courtly policy wonk who held firm against raising taxes. He helped craft the governor’s second budget, which left education groups crying foul, but resulted in fewer-than-expected reductions to social programs. Campbell was also in the center of recent failed negotiations with Democrats to head off special election warfare.” (Kate Folmar, “Governor’s Budget Guru To Quit Post,” Contra Costa Times, 9/8/05)

Campbell “Conceded That The Budget Contains Significant Borrowing.” “Tom Campbell, Schwarzenegger’s new finance director, conceded that the budget contains significant borrowing. But he said there wasn’t anything deceptive about it.” (Gary Delsohn, “Plan Relies Heavily On Borrowing,” Sacramento Bee, 1/11/05)

VOICE OVER: That’s fiscally conservative, Tom?

GRAPHIC: Fiscally conservative, Tom?

VOICE OVER: Who would remember that was the Tom Campbell Budget? We would. A budget about which the respected, non-partisan California Legislative Analyst Office wrote, “multi-billion dollar operating deficits…will persist” even in the best of times.

GRAPHIC: The Tom Campbell Budget. “…multi-billion dollar operating deficits…will persist…” – California Legislative Analyst Office, November 2005

FACTS:
California’s Official Nonpartisan Fiscal And Policy Advisor: “We Project That Multibillion-Dollar Operating Deficits…Will Persist Throughout Most Of The Forecast Period.” “Even assuming continued steady economic growth, we project that multibillion-dollar operating deficits (that is, annual shortfalls between revenues and expenditures) will persist throughout most of the forecast period. Eliminating these shortfalls will require significant actions. Beyond this, an economic downturn or even sharp slowdown sometime in the next several years would add several billions of dollars to the projected shortfalls, and while this is not our baseline forecast, it could always occur.” (“California’s Fiscal Outlook: LAO Projections 2005-06 Through 2010-11,” Legislative Analyst’s Office, November 2005)

VOICE OVER: And, Tom, while proclaiming your new-found fiscal conservatism, you seemed to have forgotten that you supported last year’s budget saying its tax increases were “the right thing to do.” Your current brilliant solution to California’s budget mess is to raise our gas tax – already the highest in the country – by 32 cents a gallon? Could there be a worse solution? Is that fiscally conservative, Tom?

GRAPHIC: Supported $12.5 billion tax increase. Supported gas tax increase.

FACTS:
In February 2009, Tom Campbell Wrote That Passing A Budget Loaded With Tax Increases “Was The Right Thing To Do.” “So, I do not criticize the State Senators and Assemblymembers, Democratic and Republican, who put together the current state budget fix. I predict we’ll have to revisit it; perhaps soon. For now, however, it was the right thing to do.”(Tom Campbell, “On The California State Budget,” FoxandHoundsdaily.com, 2/25/09)

Campbell: Gov. Schwarzenegger And California Legislators Did The Right Thing By Passing $12.5 Billion In Tax Hikes. “After five years as governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger came full circle on Friday: The film star who promised to rescue California from its fiscal wreckage without raising taxes signed into law $12.5 billion in tax hikes. With that, the Republican governor broke one of the few bonds left between his shrunken party and California’s mainstream voters, marring its hard-won image as a guardian against higher taxes. … The party’s lone gubernatorial contender defending the tax hikes is Tom Campbell. A former Silicon Valley congressman and state finance director under Schwarzenegger, he all but guaranteed himself pariah status among the party’s rank and file by saying the governor and Legislature did the right thing.” (Michael Finnegan, “The State Budget Crisis: Financial And Political Fallout,” Los Angeles Times, 2/21/09)

Campbell Said The Legislature Was Right To Pass The Budget Loaded With Tax Increases. “Campbell said the Legislature was actually right to pass the budget last week. Rather than tell lies or risk being tarred and feathered, he skipped the convention a wise call to move to Orange County, where he’ll be a visiting law professor at Chapman Law School.” (Editorial, “So, Whitman And Poizner, How Would You Have Balanced The Budget?,” San Jose Mercury News, 2/23/09)

Campbell Proposes Raising California’s Gas Tax By 32-Cents. “Campbell, who was Schwarzenegger’s finance director in 2004-05, also has employed a potentially risky strategy by outlining on his Web site exactly how he’d close the state’s $24 billion deficit. Perhaps the most unusual piece is a temporary 32-cent gas hike; he’d use the money to prevent the firing of teachers, an increase in class sizes and elimination of community college courses. In a talk before the Silicon Valley Leadership Group on Friday, Campbell acknowledged that recommending a gas tax was ‘third-rail politics.’” (Ken McLaughlin, “Can Tom Campbell Upset Billionaires Running For California Governor?,” San Jose Mercury News, 6/19/09)

Campbell Proposes A “Steep Increase In The State’s Gasoline Tax.” “Yet analysts say Mr. Campbell has an equalizer: a state-budget mess that plays to his strengths as an economist. When Sacramento lawmakers this year slashed spending and raised taxes to close a cumulative $60 billion budget shortfall, the candidate traveled California to tout alternative solutions that rankle loyalists in both parties, but which he said are longer-lasting and less harmful to the state’s economy. Democrats scorn his ideas for permanent cuts to welfare and social services in lieu of one-time fixes, while Republicans strongly oppose his proposal for a steep increase in the state’s gasoline tax.” (The Wall Street Journal, 8/18/09)

VOICE OVER: And sadly, we’re just getting started. You also campaigned for a ballot measure last Spring that would have extended a supposedly temporary tax hike in the sales tax, the income tax, and vehicle license fees for another two years. At the end of the day, that’s another $16 billion in new taxes you supported, Tom.

GRAPHIC: Supported extending $16 billion “temporary” tax.

FACTS:
Earlier In 2009, Campbell Publicly Supported Tax Increases Overwhelmingly Rejected By California Voters. “Campbell’s other gamble is to be The Republican who backs Proposition 1A, the spending-cap-but-it-comes-with-tax-increases measure that will be on the May 19 special election ballot. Whitman and Poizner both oppose the measure being championed by Schwarzenegger, Democratic legislative leaders and the handful of Republicans who voted for Sacramento’s most recent budget. That’s right – Campbell is supporting a measure that continues the current budget’s sales tax, income tax and vehicle license fee increases for another two years.” (Debra Saunders, “Campbell Is Banking On His Experience,” San Gabriel Valley Tribune, 4/12/09)

Campbell Supported An Extension Of Temporary Tax Hikes In 2009. “One potential Democratic gubernatorial rival, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, endorsed Proposition 1A last week. A Republican hopeful, former Rep. Tom Campbell, also has backed the measure. Proposition 1A would limit future spending growth and transfer money into a “rainy-day fund” to be used in economic slowdowns. That part has drawn fire from some labor unions. But Proposition 1A also would extend $16 billion worth of temporary tax hikes on sales, income and vehicles by as many as two more years, which has angered anti-tax groups.” (Kevin Yamamura, “Brown Says Prop. 1A Will Help ‘Next Governor’,” Capitol Alert, 4/14/09)

VOICE OVER: When in Congress, you supported a tax on the Internet. And you were publicly critical of the Bush tax cuts. I suppose we should not be surprised then, Tom, that you are the only Republican candidate to refuse to sign the “Tax Payer Protection Pledge” – no matter what office you were running for that particular week.

GRAPHIC: Supported an Internet tax. Criticized the Bush tax cuts. Refused to sign “no tax increase” pledge.

FACTS:
Campbell “Supports States Levying Sales Taxes On Internet Purchases.” “Campbell is no panderer. His congressional district is a high-tech haven, yet, unlike many Repubs, he supports states levying sales taxes on Internet purchases. ‘Otherwise, where do you get your money for police and fire departments?’ Campbell explained. ‘I took that stand because it was right.’” (Debra J. Saunders, “Campbell, The Anti-Pol,” San Francisco Chronicle, 9/3/00)

“He Also Would Not Rule Out Taxing Sales On The Internet.” (Peter Nicholas and Evan Halper, “State Gets A New Finance Chief,” Los Angeles Times, 11/5/04)

Campbell Publicly Criticized The Bush Tax Cut Plan In 2000. “Is Rep. Tom Campbell (R-Calif.) endorsing Ralph Nader for president? Campbell, the GOP challenger to Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D), actually remains a backer of Texas Gov. George W. Bush’s (R) presidential campaign. But for the first time, the House Republican this week publicly criticized Bush’s tax- cut plan and said he was ‘disappointed’ by the campaigns of both Bush and Vice President Al Gore.” (“California Campbell Takes Shot At George W. Bush,” Roll Call, 10/12/00)

Campbell Publicly Refused To Sign A No-Tax Pledge As Launched His Senate Campaign In January 2010. “Campbell, however, said he would not sign a No-Tax Pledge because, he argued, no one can anticipate every situation that might arise.” (Joel Fox, “Campbell Defends Fiscal Record As He Campaigns For U.S. Senate,” Fox & Hounds, 1/19/10)

Campbell Is Very Specific About Taxes: He Won’t Sign Anti-Tax Pledge And Proposed Raising Taxes On Gasoline. “Few people are paying attention. But Campbell’s still pumping out eye-glazing specifics, including these: Taxes. He won’t take the ‘no tax’ pledge because that would ‘handcuff’ a governor. He wants ‘flexibility.’ In fact, he proposed a one-year gas tax increase to balance the state budget rather than borrow and raid local treasuries.” (George Skelton, “What If He Had The Money,” Los Angeles Times, 10/12/09)

VOICE OVER: Tom Campbell. Is he what he tells us? Or, is he what he’s become over the years? A FCINO. A Fiscal Conservative In Name Only. A wolf, in sheep’s clothing. A man who literally helped put the state of California on the path to bankruptcy and higher taxes?

GRAPHIC: Tom Campbell. Fiscal conservative? Has he fooled you?

VOICE OVER: Fiscal conservative? Or just another same old tale of tax and spend. Authored by a career politician who helped guide us into this fiscal mess in the first place.

GRAPHIC: Might there be a better choice?

VOICE OVER: Might there be a better choice? Someone who has not made a career of politics. A political outsider. Perhaps a proven fiscal conservative, who has accomplished enormous things in life. Now, that sounds like the right choice for California.

FACTS:
“A Woman Who Started Her Career As A Secretary And Went On To Become The First, And Only, Woman To Lead A Fortune 20 Company Is Not To Be Underestimated, But Respected.” “By no means am I suggesting that Fiorina is a lightweight. A woman who started her career as a secretary and went on to become the first, and only, woman to lead a Fortune 20 company is not to be underestimated, but respected.” (The Washington Post, 11/5/09)

San Francisco Chronicle: Fiorina “Tough-As-Nails.” “Tough-as-nails former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina kicked off her U.S. Senate campaign this week with defiant words for a ruthless opponent – her cancer.” (San Francisco Chronicle, 11/7/09)

NPR: “Her Resume Is Impressive.” “Fiorina says she’s a political newcomer who can bring her business sense to Congress. Her resume is impressive. As the former CEO of Hewlett-Packard, she was the first woman to ever lead a Fortune top 20 company.” (“Former Silicon Valley CEO Targets Boxer’s Senate Seat,” National Public Radio, 11/5/09)

“She’s Charismatic And Commanding.” “Fiorina, who yesterday revealed her plans in the Orange County Register, has a personality tailor-made for campaigning: She’s charismatic and commanding.” (Fortune / CNN Money, 11/5/09)

Fiorina Rose From The Rank Of Secretary To CEO. “Ms. Fiorina adds that she learned the values of hard work and entrepreneurship after she left Stanford University with a degree in medieval history and philosophy and was ‘unemployable.’ She worked as a secretary at a real-estate firm until she joined a management training program at AT&T in 1980. She rose to oversee marketing and sales for the largest division of Lucent Technologies before taking over HP in 1999.” (The Wall Street Journal, 11/27/09)

Fiorina Impressed Last Year With “Her Strong Defense Of The Republican Ticket And Her Broad Knowledge Of Economic Issues.” “Few if any political analysts think liberal Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer is in danger of being denied a fourth term, but this race is drawing a lot of attention because of former Hewlett-Packard Chief Executive Carly Fiorina’s candidacy, her star power and the millions she can pour into her campaign. Mrs. Fiorina, a top economic adviser in Sen. John McCain’s presidential bid, has never run for public office before, but she impressed party pros last year with her strong defense of the Republican ticket and her broad knowledge of economic issues.” (The Washington Times, 11/10/09)

Fiorina’s Senate Endorsements “Cover A Range Of Backgrounds Within The Republican – From Conservative Tom Coburn To Moderates Such As Susan Collins And Olympia Snowe.” “Carly Fiorina has collected the endorsement of eight GOP senators, a day after announcing a run for the U.S. Senate in California. The endorsements, announced Thursday, cover a range of backgrounds within the Republican Party—from conservative Tom Coburn to moderates such as Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe. They also include John McCain, who said he benefited from Fiorina’s no-nonsense style when she served as economic adviser during his failed presidential bid last year.” (The Associated Press, 11/5/09)

TEXT CREDIT: CARLY FOR CALIFORNIA

VIDEO and PHOTO CREDIT: fcino.com

Field Poll Shows Strength of Carly Fiorina’s U.S. Senate Bid

Sacramento, CA – Carly for California Deputy Campaign Manager for Communications Julie Soderlund issued the following statement regarding the Field Poll survey on the U.S. Senate race in California, which was released today:

“We continue to be encouraged by the polling in this race, which shows that Carly is a strong candidate both in the primary and in the general election and that voters are highly dissatisfied with Barbara Boxer’s continued support for bigger government and higher taxes.

Tom Campbell is a career politician who has now run for statewide office three times, so one would have expected that his high name identification would come through more strongly in this poll. But once voters learn that Tom has spent the last five years supporting increased government spending and higher taxes and now refuses to commit to voting against more tax increases in the Senate, we expect his numbers to fall fast – just like Martha Coakley’s did in Massachusetts.”

TEXT CREDIT: CARLY FOR CALIFORNIA

Barbara Boxer Supports Out-of-Control Federal Spending

Sacramento, CA – U.S. Senate candidate Carly Fiorina today made the following statement after Senator Barbara Boxer voted to raise the federal debt ceiling to $12.39 trillion: “Families and businesses across the nation understand that when someone has a spending problem,

you don’t perpetuate it by giving that person more money. But that’s exactly what Barbara Boxer did this morning by voting to raise Washington’s credit card limit instead of taking action to force the federal government to spend our tax dollars responsibly and to live within its means.

“California’s taxpayers can no longer afford Boxer’s support for this kind of out-of-control spending, which does nothing other than push off today’s irresponsible decisions to our children and grandchildren. As a U.S. Senator, my top priority will be bringing fiscal responsibility back to Washington, creating jobs, reigning in government spending and reducing our national debt.”

TEXT CREDIT: CARLY FOR CALIFORNIA

IMAGE CREDIT: CarlyforCalifornia

Carly Fiorina Weekly Republican Address 12/05/09 VIDEO FULL TEXT TRANSCRIPT

Carly Fiorina Weekly Republican Address 12/05/09 VIDEO FULL TEXT TRANSCRIPT

Remarks by Carly Fiorina, California Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate, as provided by the Senate Republican Communications Center.

Hello. This is Carly Fiorina. And today I’d like to speak to you as one of the more than two and a half million women in America who have been diagnosed with breast cancer — and beaten it.

Like everyone else who’s diagnosed with cancer, I never thought it would happen to me. I was fit, healthy, and active. I even got regular check-ups. But earlier this year, just two weeks after a clear mammogram, I discovered a lump through a self-exam.
Soon after that came the diagnosis, the surgery, the long and difficult treatment regimen, and the painful experience of wondering whether I would make it, whether I’d pull through.

I’m fortunate to live near one of the greatest cancer centers in the world. I’m fortunate to have the incredible love and support of family and friends.

And, my diagnosis gave me time to think about my future — because one of the things that happens when you have to face your fears, including the fear of dying, is that you can face your future with renewed hope and enthusiasm.
My doctors tell me I have won my battle with cancer. And I realize that this makes me one of the lucky ones. Last year alone, more than 40,000 Americans died from breast cancer. Aside from lung cancer, breast cancer is the most fatal form of cancer for American women. Nearly 200,000 new cases were reported last year alone.

That’s why a recent recommendation on mammograms by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, a government-run panel of health care professionals that makes recommendations on prevention, struck such a nerve.

The task force did not include an oncologist or a radiologist, in other words, cancer experts did not develop this recommendation. They said that most women under 50 don’t need regular mammograms and that women over 50 should only get them every other year. And yet we all know that the chances of surviving cancer are greater the earlier it’s detected. If I’d followed this new recommendation and waited another two years, I’m not sure I’d be alive today.
What’s more this task force was explicitly asked to focus on costs, not just prevention. As it turned out, costs were a significant factor in this recommendation. Will a bureaucrat determine that my life isn't worth saving?

All this takes on even greater urgency in the midst of the ongoing health care debate in Washington. We wonder if we are heading down a path where the federal government will at first suggest and then mandate new standards for prevention and treatment. Do we really want government bureaucrats rather than doctors dictating how we prevent and treat something like breast cancer?

The response we’ve gotten to these questions has been less than encouraging. In the face of a national outcry over the recent task force recommendations, the Secretary of Health and Human Services said the Preventive Services Task Force doesn’t set federal policy. The real question, though, is whether bodies like this would set policy under the $2.5 trillion, 2,074-page plan that’s now making its way through Congress?

Unfortunately, the answer to that question isn’t encouraging either. The health care bill now being debated in the Senate explicitly empowers this very task force to influence future coverage and preventive care. Section 4105, for example, authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services to deny payment for prevention services the task force recommends against.

Another section requires every health plan in America to cover task force recommended preventive services. In fact, there are more than a dozen examples in the bill where this task force is empowered to influence care.
There is a reason American women with breast cancer have a higher survival rate than women in countries with government-run health care. Unlike those countries, our government doesn’t dictate what prevention and treatments women can get.

While some defend the idea of a government task force, my experience with cancer tells me it’s wrong. Cutting down on mammograms might save the government some money that it will then spend on something else. But it won’t save lives. And isn’t that what health care reform was supposed to be all about?

This is just one in many examples of serious problems with this healthcare reform legislation. Rather than remaking the entire national healthcare system at the cost of higher taxes and exploding deficits, we should build on what works, such as expanding access to integrated care and to community clinics that will give those most in need appropriate care at a reasonable price.

Congress should reform medical malpractice to match what we have in California where frivolous lawsuits are a thing of the past. We should permit consumers to purchase health insurance from any company in the country, expanding consumer choice and driving down cost and unnecessary mandates.

People want to know that their care will stay where it belongs: in the hands of doctors and patients. Unfortunately, the path Congress is on in this debate is not giving us the confidence that it will. Thank you. ###