Gen. Colin Powell calls for universal (single payer) health care in the U.S.

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

They're going to call you a RINO Powell.

Former Secretary of State and longtime Republican Colin Powell is calling for a universal health care solution in the U.S.

“We are a wealthy enough country with the capacity to make sure that every one of our fellow citizens has access to quality health care,” he said Thursday at a Seattle fundraiser for prostate cancer. “(Let’s show) the rest of the world what our democratic system is all about and how we take care of all of our citizens."

The retired four-star general, a prostate cancer survivor, spoke at the Prostate Cancer Survivors Celebration Breakfast, organized by UW Medicine and the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center.

Powell took the opportunity to share some of his own experiences and to publicly call for a health care solution similar to those in Canada, Japan and other countries that have a universal, single-payer system.

In the case of his own cancer diagnosis, he recovered, thanks to what he described as universal health care offered through the U.S. military.

“I am not an expert in health care, or Obamacare, or the Affordable Care Act, or however you choose to describe it, but I do know this: I have benefited from that kind of universal health care in my 55 years of public life,” Powell said. “And I don’t see why we can’t do what Europe is doing, what Canada is doing, what Korea is doing, what all these other places are doing.”


http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/blog/health-care-inc/2013/12/colin-powell-calls-for-universal.html?ana=e_ptl_hc

[pangaia]

1. Well, well, well.

Will wonders never cease.

[VanillaRhapsody]

2. How the worm turns....when you have faced your own mortality!

He is trying to buy his way into Heaven now...

[Autumn]

3. The General is right.

Still a douche who willingly lied about WMDs. But he's right in calling for a universal health care solution in the U.S.and I'll give him acolades for that.

[surrealAmerican]

4. If only he'd said this five years ago ...

... you know, when it really mattered ...


Better late than never, I guess.

[RiverNoord]

18. I disagree

He's very good at telling astounding lies when he's pretty sure they're BS - seriously, mobile WMD labs? - and then coming out later with, 'well, in retrospect...'. Had he resigned and come out against the invasion of Iraq, there would have been no war. That's the power he had.

Too big of an act of dishonor for me to ever respect or appreciate any damn thing he ever has to say about anything.

[kelliekat44]

48. Surely you jest? To believe that this nation would have not gone to war in Iraq simply because

Powell resigned is laughable at best.

[RiverNoord]

56. No - it's not.

If Colin Powell, the Secretary of State of the United States and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff during the first Gulf war, resigned, stated that the case for war was contrived and full of lies, and that he did not believe that Al Qaeda had any connection to Iraq, there would have been no war.

I stand behind that statement. It would have destroyed the case for war, it's possible that the Congress/Senate would have stood up and taken notice, and, if not, generals would have been resigning en masse.

He had that power. He didn't use it.

[laundry_queen]

5. Not good.

Let me explain why.

I've heard little bits and pieces coming from the right when complaining about the ACA about how even universal health care would be better than the ACA. I've been thinking: "shit. Watch them adopt single payer and be the heroes while everyone trashes democrats for their shittier-than-single-payer plan." I know that is in territory but I wouldn't put a fucking thing past them.

Now this. I sure hope I'm not right. Maybe they are testing the waters? Not sure I believe Powell's love of single payer. If he's being genuine then good for him to say so publicly, but if he's not then look out dems.

[Jackpine Radical]

6. Whether or not the Republicans come out for single-payer (don't worry--they won't),

the Dems would if they had any courage or concern for the people whom they are supposed to be representing.

I think the Good Soldier Powell is being honest here. He has occasionally shown some humanity.

I'm glad I'm said what he did. But I'm not forgetting WMD or the My Lai coverup either.

[laundry_queen]

19. You are probably right about Powell.

Like I said, I was probably wearing the tinfoil a little too tight

But yeah, it's disappointing the Dems haven't come out in support of it (as a party, I mean). I'm Canadian - I know how much my American friends deserve the same great health care I get. I'm sad you guys don't have it yet.

[NoOneMan]

51. I think they easily could

Its a business decision. Its great for self-employed. Its great for small businesses. Its lowers costs. It lowers per capita health costs. It lets America stop worrying about this mess and get back to work

Republicans could easily corner this issue heartlessly on the cost angle alone.

You hear that Democrats? Better move fast

[Jackpine Radical]

53. The Republicans would tear themselves apart over accusations of "socialism"

and the big ins. cos. wuld be out in major force spending whatever it takes to take down anybody supporting UHC.

[Mz Pip]

14. Single payer is the way to go.

If the Repubs somehow, miraculously, are the one to pull it off, so be it.

But they won't be. Neither will the Dems. We've got a ways to go before either political party gets it.

[laundry_queen]

21. Of course it is.

It's the best, cheapest and most humane & fair way to distribute health care (imo). I'm Canadian and as I've said, I'm sad at the system you guys have. It's too bad that the political parties are bought and paid for by the insurance companies - I think it's clear here why they don't 'get it'.

[Iggo]

16. I hope you are right, and they adopt single payer.

[laundry_queen]

29. Single payer is the best.

I'm very thankful for my single payer health care as a Canadian. If Republicans pulled it off, I'd be happy for you.

[Doctor_J]

38. Yep, our party pissed away the opportunity of a lifetime in 2009-2010

I am pretty sure at this point we were given Obama (hillary probably would have been much the same) to destroy the party.

[pnwmom]

46. What could they do? We've already had Democrats push for single-payer.

So if the Rethugs started pushing, it would be a case of "join the club." We'd end up with an overwhelming majority voting yes in both houses.

[NoOneMan]

52. Its never been put to a vote. We don't know how many Democrats actually support single-payer

[Comrade Grumpy]

7. It would be nice for the Democrat presidential candidate in 2016 to call for that.

Universal health care. It shouldn't be that hard.

[Vincardog]

8. The Democrat presidential candidate in 2008 did campaign on it. Unfortunately he 'forgot' it Jan. 21

[merrily]

26. Obama campaigned for public option, against single payer.

In 2008, he said single payer would never work in the U.S.

Compared it not to Medicare, but to the Post Office, and laughed.

I like the Post Office, but there is a lot of anti Post Office propaganda that comment played into.

[Doctor_J]

39. Then he lied during the campaign, too

since Medicare IS SP. Good catch

[Mass]

9. Probably a socialist.

RINO is how they call Boehner, McConnell, and Cantor. At this point, the word means establishment Republican, not somebody who strays from the Republican orthodoxy.

[democrank]

10. Well said, General Powell.

Universal health care for all.

[SoCalDem]

11. Um... Colon... The rest of the word has been showing US

for DECADES.. how it's done properly.. and we have willfully ignored them..

[KG]

12. piss on Colin Powell

fucking war criminal.

[Nanjing to Seoul]

15. When he's right, he's right. I loathe that man too, but he's correct on this one issue.

[merrily]

27. Agree, but single payer is too important. Take help where you can find it.

[slipslidingaway]

31. + 1000. Agree or disagree on the current issue, it does not mean you have to buy everything ...

they say or have said.

If you catch a ball, and it was throw by a Repub, do you put it down or do you run with it?

[alp227]

13. they've considered Powell a RINO ever since he endorsed Obama.

no surprise there. crazy how COLIN POWELL is more progressive on ths issue than obama!

[demigoddess]

36. that's because Powell has had military health care

and Obama really hasn't. I know military health care. you don't pick your doctor and you sometimes wait in line, but you don't have any worries about paying for it and you don't have to deal with insurance companies jacking the prices up. They also train many doctors and nurses. Went to an appointment once and five extra guys walked in, interns.

[indepat]

17. My Dearest General/Secretary Powell: The reason the U.S. can't do what Europe is doing,

what Canada is doing, what Korea is doing, what all these other places are doing is Republicans in Congress and those they do the bidding for do not want universal health care and, for good measure, do not want a living minimum wage, do not want required employee annual and sick leave and do not want any of the employee benefits typically mandated in most other advanced countries. But Republican do want to cut social security and Medicare benefits rather than to sequester funds for an obscenely (44% of world total with 5% of the population) bloated MIC. You see, my dear General/Secretary, Republicans don't want anything that promotes the general welfare: rather, Republicans solely want only what promotes the interests of large corporations and the uber-wealthy.

[merrily]

25. You know Democrats passed ACA, right?

[indepat]

41. Certainly am aware that the mostly right-wing-think-tank originated ACA was passed with Democratic

majorities in both houses, but single payer couldn't make it even with those Democratic majorities and a Democratic President.

[merrily]

44. Republicans are not responsible for Democrats deciding to pass ACA

instead of single payer. Republicans are to blame for a lot, but that decision is on the Democrats.

Not one Republican vote in either house was necessary to pass ACA. So, it was all up to the Democrats what they passed. If you want to blame Blue Dog Democrats or the President or the lobbyists, fine. But Republicans had nothing to do with making Democrats pass ACA instead of single payer or public option.

Blaming Republicans for what Democrats and only Democrats passed is not fact-based.

[indepat]

49. Thanks for ratifying a good part of my thesis. That Democrats are responsible for doing the bidding

of right-wing causes is shamefully obvious.

[JEFF9K]

20. Obamacare has too much "Republican" in it. We need single payer.

[SleeplessinSoCal]

22. Can we not get there state by state . . . like Vermont?

I thought that was part of the law. What on earth would become of the health insurance industry? It would cease to exist. How will that happen?

[jeff47]

43. It will happen state-by-state.

VT is the most likely route for small, blue states - jump to single-payer.

Insurance companies will fight like hell against it in large, blue states like CA. There's too many $$ to just let that slip away. So most likely CA and similar states will institute "Public Options" - going straight to single-payer will be too politically difficult.

But with no need to profit, those options will be cheaper than private insurance. And since they won't produce mountains of dead bodies, people will switch to them. That will cause insurance money to slowly dry up, and insurance companies will be forced to pull out of the state, resulting in de-facto single payer.

After the blue states, purple states will notice people getting better healthcare for less money. And many of them will follow suit - either straight single-payer or de-facto single payer via public option.

Then we'll probably go back to the federal level - the federal exchanges will get a public option. Ironically, the red states that refused to set up exchanges will get single-payer faster than the ones that did set up exchanges.

After that runs for a while, insurance companies will have a lot less money, and it will be obvious to everyone that single-payer is the way to go. And so we'll drop the Medicare eligibility age to 0.

[SleeplessinSoCal]

50. What you describe will probably take 50 years. I don't know if our political system will exist.

Between our (America's) own lack of interest in actually being healthy, 'Bubbles' and think tanks, there's a lot to prevent it from happening at all. The effort to keep the status quo will grow because of what you described. It's the Conservative's nightmare. How the ACA emerged from the Heritage Foundation in the first place is mind boggling.

[jeff47]

55. The ACA emerged because conservatives like it better than single-payer

It was an attempt to create a system without single-payer, but dealing with the worst problems from the free-market system. Essentially, the existing system is so terrible that if they had to come up with something to "fix" it or single-payer would be the only fix.

And yes, it's going to take a while to accomplish all that. But it's also the fastest and easiest way to single-payer from where we were. There's no way in hell there would be 60 votes in the Senate for single-payer....I'm not even sure we could get a simple majority. But the Senate is the worst battleground for us to fight upon. "Red" states are over-represented, so it's as uphill a battle as possible.

Taking it to the states means we now fight the battle in places like the CA legislature. Which is 75% Democratic at the moment. Yes, the powers that be will fight against it. But now they are fighting the uphill battle.

[russspeakeasy]

23. Too bad he pissed away his credibility.

[merrily]

24. Finally, the truth. Who knew it would come from Powell?

Life is full of surprises.

[Dawson Leery]

28. k/r

[upi402]

30. shut up general - go wash the blood off the uniform you stained

Fuck him

[JVS]

32. Nice of him to speak up now instead of 5 years ago

[madrchsod]

33. the right wing has also hated powell

limpballs used to call him the "little general". cheney hated him during the first gulf war and tried everything to make him look bad. powell knew he fucked up when he said that bullshit about weapons during bush`s escalation of the war on iraq.
the right wing hates powell and always will.

[Kurovski]

34. If he's trying to get on my good side after that whole Iraq thing...

well...well...I dunno.

Single payer, eh? Hmmm.

[GReedDiamond]

35. Here's what the General is thinking...

...{I feel guilty about all the human suffering I helped to cause with that whole Iraq War thing, and I'm a little regretful about that whole My Lai thing too - but maybe I can redeem my Legacy by trying to balance out all of that suffering, by supporting the worldwide proven, obvious approach to healthcare.}

He is a Classic "Centrist."

[bonniebgood]

37. The General and Jeb Bush is eyeing for the white house. The General and

Jeb Bush have decided to run on Single payer and Immigration. Bingo ticket to the white house where
they will forget it once they are elected. Mark my word.

[Iggo]

40. Fucking lying-ass war criminal.

Drop dead, Powell, you piece of shit.

[polichick]

42. He's still trying to redeem himself - he was on the wrong side for a long time.

[Coyotl]

45. Bravo. I'll agree on the condition we don't all have to become liars.

Any news on how many heads have exploded so far?

[BluegrassDem]

47. Colin Powell aiming for the Plan B should Hillary choose not to run?

Sounds like it. He could switch parties and run for president as a Democrat.

[rucky]

54. This is obvious - even to a war criminal

which is why the Democratic leadership advocates single-payer and talks about it all the time... right?