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Cato Dispatch for July 23, 2009

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(Links to outside sources were active as of the date of this dispatch; however, not all news sources maintain links to current stories indefinitely. Some links also may require registration.)

Health Care Reform Coming Down to the Wire
Violence Increases in Afghanistan
Cato Scholars Testify on Capitol Hill

Health Care Reform Coming Down to the Wire

President Obama and the Democratic congressional leaders are pushing hard to finish and vote on legislation that will effectively lead to a government takeover of the health care system.

Health care reform is needed. However, reforms that increase the role of government and an already massive federal budget deficit – as many proposals would – are bad medicine. The Cato Institute is undertaking nationwide outreach on how free-market reforms increase consumer choice and improve health care's quality and affordability.

The Cato Institute is running ads in major newspapers and on radio stations nationwide to inform the public that health care reform is necessary – but only the right kind of reform. These ads aren't cheap, so please consider making a contribution to support Cato's health care reform efforts.

As part of the campaign, Cato health care analysts are working to dispel myths about health care reform. Writing in the New York Post, Cato senior fellow Michael D. Tanner outlines the three big lies of Obamacare:

1 "If you like your current health-care plan, you can keep it."

"In the end, millions of Americans would be forced out of the insurance they have today and into the government plan. Businesses, in particular, would have every incentive to dump their workers into the public plan. The actuarial firm the Lewin Group estimates that as many as 118.5 million people, roughly two-thirds of those with insurance today, would be shifted from private to public coverage."

2 "You will pay less."

The Congressional Budget Office has made it clear that the reform plans now being debated will increase overall health-care costs. … The final health-care bill is expected to cost more than $1 trillion over the next 10 years. That means much higher taxes, and not just for the wealthy."

3 "Quality will improve."

"Anyone who thinks a government takeover of the health-care system will improve quality of care has only to look at the health-care programs the government already runs: The Veterans Administration is overwhelmed with problems, Medicaid is notorious for providing poor quality at a high cost — and Medicare has huge gaps in coverage."

Violence Increases in Afghanistan

Reuters reports, "Violence across Afghanistan has hit its highest level since 2001, when the Taliban's austere Islamist government was ousted for failing to hand over al Qaeda leaders wanted over the Sept. 11 attacks on the United States.

"Thousands of U.S. Marines and British troops have launched major operations in southern Helmand this month, the first major offensives of U.S. President Barack Obama's new regional strategy to defeat the Taliban and stabilize Afghanistan."

Writing in The Huffington Post, foreign policy analyst Malou Innocent says it's time for the United States to leave the region:

Remaining in Afghanistan is more likely to tarnish America's reputation and undermine U.S. security than would withdrawal. …The United States can continue to disrupt terrorist havens without perpetuating a large-scale military presence on the ground. Moreover, going after al Qaeda does not require Washington to pacify the entire country.

America's objective has been to eradicate the parties responsible for the atrocities committed on September 11th. The United States should not go beyond that objective by combating a regional insurgency or drifting into an open-ended occupation.

Cato Scholars Testify on Capitol Hill

Cato scholars have been called upon to testify on Capitol Hill on a variety of pressing issues. This week, Cato scholars Daniel J. Ikenson, Tim Lynch, and Mark A. Calabria testified to different committees about the auto bailouts, the over-federalization of criminal law, and the foreclosure crisis, respectively.

Speaking about the ramifications of the auto bailouts, Ikenson said, "Once you put down the flags and shut off all the television ads with their Heartland, apple-pie America imagery, the truth of the car business is that it transcends national boundaries. A car or truck sold by a 'Detroit' auto maker such as GM, Ford or Chrysler could be less American—as defined by the government's standards for 'domestic content'— than a car sold by Toyota, Honda or Nissan—all of which have substantial assembly and components operations in the U.S."

In his testimony to the House subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security, Lynch said, "The federal criminal code has become so voluminous that it not only bewilders the average citizen, but also the most able attorney. Our courthouses have become so clogged that there is no longer adequate time for trials."

On the foreclosure crisis, Calabria told the House Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law, "The current foreclosure relief efforts have largely been unsuccessful because they have misidentified the underlying causes of mortgage default. … It is not exploding ARMs or predatory lending that drives the current wave of foreclosures, but negative equity driven by house prices declines coupled with adverse income shocks that are the main driver of defaults on primary residences."

Chris Moody, editor, cmoody@cato.org