This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
A congressional report has found that Joe Biden's aides arranged for the autopen signings of executive actions, directed policy and orchestrated his public appearances, literally exercising presidential authorities without his knowledge or consent, as his cognitive decline advanced.
The 90-page report, "The Biden Autopen President: Decline, Delusion, and Deception in the White House," charges that Biden's close associates actually ran the government during his final months in office.
U.S. Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., the chief of the House Oversight Committee, concluded the findings have raised "constitutional and criminal concerns" about actions "Biden" took while in office.
A report at Fox News said the committee has demanded a complete investigation into the autopen signatures that Biden's associates arranged.
"Faced with the cognitive decline of President Joe Biden, White House aides — at the direction of the inner circle — hid the truth about the former president's condition and fitness for office," charged the report. And there was a "haphazard documentation process" for pardons made by Biden.
The committee said those procedures "left room for doubt over whether the former president made those decisions himself," the report said. In fact, the report simply said those actions now are "void."
"In the absence of sufficient contemporaneous documentation indicating that cognitively deteriorating President Biden himself made a given executive decision, such decisions do not carry the force of law and should be considered void," committee members concluded.
"The Department of Justice should immediately conduct a review of all executive actions taken by President Biden between January 20, 2021, and January 19, 2025. Given the patterns and findings detailed herein, this review should focus particularly on all acts of clemency. However, it should also include all other types of executive actions."
Further, the report raised concerns about Hunter Biden's influence, since former Biden chief of staff Jeff Zients has told investigators he was in the room for many discussions, including the preemptive pardons issued to Biden's family.
Comer's report said, "Zients testified that President Biden included his son, Hunter Biden, in the decision-making process for and meetings about pardons. This apparently included the meeting to discuss the pardons of five Biden family members, Dr. Anthony Fauci, General Mark Milley, and the members of Congress who served on the Select Subcommittee to Investigate the January 6th attack on the United States Capitol, and their staff."
A Biden regime spokesperson told Fox News Digital the investigation was "baseless," even though 14 witnesses testified to Oversight, mostly top Biden aides.
Even during that testimony, Comer suggested, the aides were hiding things.
"Throughout the Committee's investigation, senior Biden White House aides presented a perspective of President Biden's cognitive health completely disconnected from that of the American public," the report said. "Not one of the Committee's 14 witnesses was willing to admit that they ever had a concern about President Biden being in cognitive decline. In fact, numerous witnesses could not recall having a single conversation about President Biden's cognitive health with anyone inside or outside of the White House."
According to a report in the Washington Examiner, Comer's report found, "Biden's aides misled the American people and hijacked the powers of the presidency. … Executive actions performed by Biden White House staff and signed by autopen are null and void."
For example, the committee found 32 of 51 clemency warrants were signed by autopen, "without any contemporaneous documentation linking Biden to those discussions," leaving no evidence the president agreed to the actions.
The Examiner explained, "A Jan. 19 episode detailed in the report describes a 'game of telephone' in which chief of staff Jeff Zients authorized the autopen for a final batch of pardons, including for his son Hunter Biden and four other family members, as well as Anthony Fauci, and Gen. Mark Milley, based only on secondhand accounts of a meeting he never attended. An aide emailed approval from Zients's account, initialed 'JZ,' without confirming with Biden directly, according to the report."
The report also criticizes ex-White House physician Kevin O'Connor, Biden's longtime doctor, "noting that he had 'business dealings with and financial connections to President Biden's family.' Investigators said those ties, combined with political incentives to keep Biden viable for reelection, created 'a motive to conceal the president's decline while running the government in his stead,'" the Examiner explained.
Comer's report also revealed former aides confirmed an entire system of pre-scripted press cards, controlled questions, teleprompter use, schematics outlining the number of steps he would take and the time he would use during any public appearance.
Democrats on the Oversight Committee cited Biden's own statements rejecting evidence he was unaware of decisions, and said the Republican report is conjecture.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
A suburb of Atlanta is being challenged for a scheme it created that allows anyone to silence the speech of anyone else, if they don't like the speech.
The dispute, which appears to be a direct challenge to the First Amendment, erupted because someone objected to the Christian message being offered on a city street, and with a city permit, by preacher Jason Cantrell.
It is the American Center for Law and Justice that explained he has, for years, shared the Gospel on a public sidewalk outside an abortion business.
"He preaches to passersby and offers encouragement and prayer to women entering," the organization said.
Like many speaking in public areas, where street noise and more can interfere, he used, with a city permit, a small system to amplify his voice.
This summer, Forest Park police issued him a citation anyway.
He was cited "after officers claimed he had been asked three times to turn the volume down. The problem wasn't that Jason didn't have a permit – he did. Instead, the city's permit includes a troubling clause stating that it becomes 'null and void' if any complaints are received about the noise level," the legal team noted.
The officers simply declared his permit void and ticketed him.
"In other words, the city has created a system in which anyone who dislikes a message can silence a speaker simply by complaining. That is not how the First Amendment works," the ACLJ explained.
Under the city's scheme, "officials have made lawful speech entirely contingent on whether listeners react favorably. Once anyone complains – regardless of whether the sound exceeds legal limits – the city automatically treats the permit as void. That means police can punish a speaker who was fully in compliance with the permit's terms, simply because others objected to the message being spoken," the ACLJ noted.
That's called a "heckler's veto" and long has been demanded by critics of Christian messaging, but also long has been struck down by the Supreme Court.
"The Constitution does not allow speech to be restricted based on listener reaction or public hostility," the legal team said, and the Forest Park plan "does exactly" what the high court has forbidden.
Cantrell's efforts to follow the requirements were confirmed because the city renewed his permit even after police ticketed him, although the faulty condition remained.
"Jason's case underscores how such policies operate in practice. When the government ties speech rights to audience approval, unpopular or religious expression will always be the first target. A preacher's message about faith or the sanctity of life may be deeply meaningful to some and uncomfortable to others – but under our Constitution, discomfort is not a basis for censorship," the ACLJ said.
While Cantrell now faces a misdemeanor municipal court case, the ACLJ said the problem is far bigger.
"The First Amendment guarantees that government officials cannot suppress speech simply because someone complains about it. That protection applies equally to street preachers, political advocates, and protestors of every viewpoint. Forest Park's policy violates those principles by giving private citizens – and by extension, the government – uncontrolled discretion to silence speech they dislike."
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
One of the revelations about the corruption involved in Jack Smith's lawfare against President Donald Trump during Joe Biden's time in office was that the federal government was weaponized to spy on the telephone records of Republican senators.
That scheme now has resulted in a pledge by one of those senators, Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., to sue.
A report from Just the News notes that phone records of multiple senators were seized by Smith during that time frame.
He had brought several lawfare cases against Trump, and internet commentaries suggest he wanted to file more cases against Trump, and he might have been collecting information on GOP senators in order to create a larger case by naming more defendants.
Blackburn, in a statement to Just the News, confirmed, "The infringement is deep and wide."
The actions violated her personal civil liberties and her protections as a member of Congress, the report said.
She cited the 1st and 4th Amendment protections of free speech and privacy, her separation of powers protections and even the Stored Communications Act because her carrier Verizon "retained and turned over information on her geographic locations when she made calls," the report said.
She charged that Smith and his minions in the federal government, under Biden, misbehaved badly.
"I can assure you this, we will be suing the Biden DOJ, Jack Smith and his CR-15 team, which, of course, has already been fired by (current FBi Director) Kash Patel, thank goodness," the senator said.
"These guys just hated Donald Trump, and they hated us because we supported Donald Trump, and we were standing with Donald Trump."
She continued, "The common thread that runs through this is all eight were Republicans. We all supported President Trump, and we had valid questions about the outcome of the 2020, election."
She said, "It just shows you how Jack Smith and Arctic frost, they were so out over their skis, and they were out to get President Donald Trump, and they wanted to convict him of conspiracy. And of course, when you look at what they were doing with us, they were probably looking for obstruction or co-conspirator charges…"
WND previously reported that Smith's targets believe he should be disbarred.
It was the New York Post that confirmed a letter from elected officials, led by Blackburn, to Attorney General Pam Bondi, accuses Biden's DOJ of having "spied on duly elected members of Congress."
It demands that Smith be investigated by the Office of Professional Responsibility.
"As part of Jack Smith's weaponized witch hunt, the Biden DOJ issued subpoenas to several telecommunications companies in 2023 regarding our cell phone records, gaining access to the time, recipient, duration, and location of calls placed on our devices from January 4, 2021, to January 7, 2021," Blackburn charged.
The letter continued, "We have yet to learn of any legal predicate for the Biden Department of Justice issuing subpoenas to obtain these cell phone records."
Other lawmakers joining the demand were Sens. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., and Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, and Rep. Mike Kelly, R-Penn.
Smith is accused of using his power as a government appointee to infringe on the constitutional rights of elected officials and "trampled on this separation of powers principle that underlies our system of government."
The lawmakers continued, "This is especially true given the invasion of our privacy was directly connected to our core legislative functions protected by the Speech or Debate Clause of our Constitution. To the best we can tell, Smith's team went on this fishing expedition for one simple reason: we are Republicans who support President Trump."
They asked for Smith to be referred for disbarment to the Tennessee Board of Professional Responsibility and the New York Attorney Grievance Committee, since he is licensed to practice law in both states.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Casino gambling was approved by voters for the historic Colorado mining towns of Black Hawk and Central City some decades ago.
Since then, there have been many controversies over the industry that is given to installing Las Vegas landscapes at the 8,000-foot elevations of the Colorado foothills towns.
For example, the historic Lace House, in the way of one casino project, simply was picked up and moved to another, non-historic, location and made part of a tourist stop.
Multiple tall casinos, up to about 35 stories, now tower above the valley in Black Hawk that used to be flooded in the spring, in an "ick" procedure, when, according to local personalities, wealthy Central City residents would release water to flush the sewage that had accumulated on the streets and ditches over the winter, downhill to Black Hawk.
Central City patrons were the elites of their time, patronizing their own opera house, at times used as a stage by some of the elite performers including Joseph Jefferson, Edwin Booth, Fanie Barlow, Buffalo Bill, P.T. Barnum's circus, later Samuel Ramey and Beverly Sills.
Central City, in another controversial move, spent millions annexing land and building an 8-mile-long "main street" to access an exit from Interstate 70 that would have gamblers direct access to their town.
The towns are in Gilpin County, which has its own history of scandalous and offensive behavior including racism. Even after the casinos started appearing, the county paid $700,000 to settle a lawsuit by a black county resident who, stunningly, was identified in official sheriff's department documents as "N***** Roy."
Now it is G3 Gaming, of Raleigh, N.C., that is proposing the Gregory Gulch Gaming Resort project, which would be 100,000 square feet, 1,000 slot machines, 50 gaming tables, gift shops, restaurants, 600 hotel rooms, 2,000 parking spaces and 120 housing units for workers in the very valley that connects Central City's heights to Black Hawk, downhill.
The 27-story project, however, would tick off locals, for sure.
A description of the agenda in the Denver Post noted the building would cut off Central City homes from any sunlight for months out of the year.
The report described how resident Bob Powe sits on his front porch, with coffee, to watch as the sun reaches his house of Casey Street.
"The warmth from the sky, Powe said, is vital in this Gilpin County town that's perched at 8,500 feet, and where during the fall and winter the sun sits low on the horizon and shades Central City for part of the day," the report described.
Even those few hours now are endangered, he said.
"This house depends on the sun to heat it up," the 74-year-old said. "After 160 years, they're trying to take away my sunshine."
Climate change activists appear not to have gotten involved in the dispute, yet.
City officials whose decision on the project is not yet final suggest it gives Central City an opportunity to compete against Black Hawk, where two tall casino hotels already are located.
The issue is money, Central City's boom at the opening of gambling has dwindled while downhill Black Hawk's hasn't. Central City got about $1 million in state gaming tax revenue in fiscal 2025, while Black Hawk got $12.2 million.
Said one Central City official, "My concern is, at this point in time, Central City is dying."
Powe said that the new tower would simply destroy the view from many Central City points.
"He has posted 'No Tower' and 'Not Black Hawk' signs around his home," the Post said.
Even worse, "You'll be able to look right into the hotel windows and they'll be able to look right at me. This will destroy my privacy, the view and the sunshine," he said.
Central City's present height limit for buildings is 53 feet. G3 wants its project to soar 345 feet.
City officials estimate they could collect $8 million a year from G3's work.
Central City was founded in 1859 when gold dust as found, exploding quickly to 15,000 residents. Theaters, hotels and Central City still recognizes its historic prostitution industry with annual Lou Bunch "bed races" on its main street.
Peter Droege, chief of a foundation that works to preserve and restore the historic Belvidere Theater, suggested a project the size of an airport at the town's entrance may be too much.
"I support economic development as long as it conforms to the historic nature of the town," he told the Post.
The title to his home traces back some 150 years to the man who originally discovered gold there.
"Central City just has a historic quality that not many other communities in the country have — where you drive into it and it feels like you are stepping back in time," he said in the report.
Central City's district, where about 300 now live, actually produced some 6.3 million ounces of gold, 200 tons, that would be worth around $18 trillion on today's market. Bob Dylan once performed in the town, failing to launch his later successful career, and Stetson hats were invented there.
Multiple movies and television shows have been created there.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
With the high-profile election of New York City mayor just two weeks away, the question of President Donald Trump's potential endorsement of a candidate is in focus as it could sway the result.
On Sunday, the president was asked directly about the contest by Maria Bartiromo of Fox News, and Trump appeared hesitant, saying, "I guess I haven't made a decision really."
"I think it's not good to have a communist. Would I rather have a Democrat than a communist? Barely. They're almost becoming the same thing."
Trump calls front-runner Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani a communist, while former Democrat Gov. Andrew Cuomo is now running as an independent. Republican Curtis Sliwa is also in the race, trailing in the polls.
But would Cuomo even accept an endorsement from Trump?
He told Fox News on Monday: "I'm running as an independent, so I wouldn't ask for President Trump's endorsement. I don't want to accept endorsements like that."
"I think President Trump is analyzing the polls, and he says Cuomo is the only person who has a chance to beat Mamdami, which is what the polls say, and he says Curtis Sliwa basically is inconsequential, which also what the polls say."
Cuomo continued to hammer away at Zamdani in the interview, saying: "His answer is always the same: tax business, tax the rich, raise taxes, raise taxes, provide everything free – free transportation, free food, free, free, free. New Yorkers know there is no free."
"You keep taxing businesses and wealthy people in New York City, there will be nobody left."
"It's very clear what is happening here," Cuomo added.
"This is still an ongoing civil war within the Democratic Party where you have this extreme radical left. That's what Zohran Mamdani represents. They are socialists, they are anti-business, they are anti-police, they are anti-law-and-order, they are anti-Israel. And I am a 'moderate' Democrat."
"I know how to govern and the far left doesn't even think about how to govern. You know Zohran Mamdani never had a job, 34 years old, he's been an assemblyman. He passed three bills, worst attendance record in the New York State Assembly. They don't get that being mayor means you have to operate. You have to manage."
When asked about criticism his campaign lacked energy and imagination, Cuomo replied: "I don't think those accusations are fair. I'm out there every day in every community. I'm at the opening of an envelope."
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
WND reported a week ago that there was a campaign under was to seek the disbarment of Jack Smith, the one-time Joe Biden-picked special prosecutor who ran multiple lawfare cases against President Donald Trump, which eventually failed.
Now that request has formally been submitted.
It is the New York Post that has confirmed a letter from elected officials, led by Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., to Attorney General Pam Bondi, accuses Biden's DOJ of having "spied on duly elected members of Congress."
It demands that Smith be investigated by the Office of Professional Responsibility.
"As part of Jack Smith's weaponized witch hunt, the Biden DOJ issued subpoenas to several telecommunications companies in 2023 regarding our cell phone records, gaining access to the time, recipient, duration, and location of calls placed on our devices from January 4, 2021, to January 7, 2021," Blackburn charged.
The letter continued, "We have yet to learn of any legal predicate for the Biden Department of Justice issuing subpoenas to obtain these cell phone records."
Other lawmakers joining the demand were Sens. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., and Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, and Rep. Mike Kelly, R-Penn.
Smith is accused of using his power as a government appointee to infringe on the constitutional rights of elected officials and "trampled on this separation of powers principle that underlies our system of government."
The lawmakers continued, "This is especially true given the invasion of our privacy was directly connected to our core legislative functions protected by the Speech or Debate Clause of our Constitution. To the best we can tell, Smith's team went on this fishing expedition for one simple reason: we are Republicans who support President Trump."
They asked for Smith to be referred for disbarment to the Tennessee Board of Professional Responsibility and the New York Attorney Grievance Committee, since he is licensed to practice law in both states.
They charged that the scheming from Smith and his team "harkens back to a dark chapter in American history that we have not seen since the days of J. Edgar Hoover, and the completely corrupt investigation and prosecution by the FBI and DOJ of the late Senator Ted Stevens of Alaska. We must ensure that we never return to these disgraceful eras."
The other found lawmakers targeted by Smith's spying included Sens. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., Bill Hagerty, R-Tenn., Josh Hawley, R-Mo., and Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo.
Commentators have speculated the spying was done by Smith as part of a scheme to possibly file additional legal cases against Trump should Kamala Harris win the election, and the lawmakers' telephone data would be used as evidence.
Harris, of course, lost in a landslide.
Blackburn previously sent letters to Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile asking why the phone carriers let "this invasion of privacy … occur wholly unchallenged."
Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, the chief of the Senate Judiciary Committee, described the scandal as "arguably worse than Watergate."
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
The terrorists of Hamas, who agreed to participate in President Donald Trump's stepped peace agreement to resolve a war they launched against Israel two years ago when they invaded and killed 1,200 and kidnapped hundreds more, have thrown a wrench into the works.
They had agreed that they would release all living hostages and return the bodies of those killed in captivity to Israel.
They returned 20 living hostages, but now claim they are unable to return all the bodies of the 28 dead hostages that have been listed.
A report in the Washington Examiner said the terrorists handed over 10 bodies, but one of those was not a hostage at all.
Now Hamas is claiming to have returned "all the remains it had without additional equipment."
The report suggested the terror organization perhaps knows of the location of other victims, but it cannot "access" those locations.
"The al Qassam Brigades, Hamas's military wing, said it 'committed to what was agreed upon and handed over everyone it had in terms of living captives and what it had in terms of bodies that it could recover,'" the report said.
But the extraction of the remaining bodies will require "special equipment," the terrorists said.
The report described how the hostages taken Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas launched its war against Israel, were handled in a "decentralized" plan, meaning they were spread out across the Gaza Strip. That means some of them could have died during military force conflicts between Israel and Hamas.
One U.S. adviser explained, "On top of all that debris is a lot of unexploded ordnance, and presumably, under that unexploded ordnance and that debris, there are many bodies. Now, there's a lot of different intelligence on where someone might have been killed, where they might have been injured, and we've got a lot of information with regard to that. And we've got a huge, huge effort in understanding all of those things."
The development, the report said, could result in sanctions against the terrorists, including "limiting promised aid" or even "continuing the war."
It will depend on whether the Hamas explanations come across as "genuine," the report said.
The Washington Examiner cited a statement from Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz, who said, "If Hamas refuses to abide by the agreement, Israel, in coordination with the U.S., will return to fighting and work to completely defeat Hamas, change the reality in Gaza and achieve all the goals of the war."
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Amid a nation torn apart by leftist agendas of racism and sexism, even body-mutilating campaigns for transgenderism, where Democrats and other progressives protest when suspects in criminal cases are charged and law-enforcement efforts actually are blocked, where for years Democrat presidents have ridiculed and belittled the Christian faith, a huge event developed in Washington, D.C.
It followed an agenda that hit high points when Barack Obama ridiculed a group of people for "clinging" to their Bibles, then told the international community America no longer is a Christian nation, and when Hillary Clinton derided her "basket of deplorables" to include members of faith, and Joe Biden made among his highest priorities the LGBTQ agenda which sets itself in direct opposition to the basic teachings of Christianity.
The event, in fact, was a communion service with tables stretching more than a mile.
In the Christian church communion involves members of the faith taking a small token, often a wafer or cracker, and a bit of juice or wine as a representation of the body and blood of Jesus Christ, whose own sacrifice as the blameless lamb took on the sins of the world, providing forgiveness and an open door to salvation for eternity through acceptance of that gift.
A report at CBN said thousands of people gathered on the National Mall to "lift up the name of Jesus."
"The blowing of the Shofar symbolized the National Mall becoming Holy Ground for planting seeds of spiritual renewal. Thousands of believers came together, representing all 50 states, as well as Puerto Rico and Israel," the report said.
Speakers declared, "Jesus, we need your leadership. We repent!"
"Breaking up into small groups, some knelt, sat, or stood. All holding hands as they fervently prayed for God to have an impact on the nation," the report said.
CBN explained participant Andrea Lafferty said, "And when they sang about the blood of Jesus. You know bloodshed in America. They've taken it from beyond pro-life to meaning bloodshed in our schools, in our streets. This is a new opportunity for us to speak life into our awesome nation."
David Bradshaw organized the event, under the name of Communion America, and told CBN, "I believe that God is calling the Church outside the four walls. And so we're believing for tables of communion and outbreaks of worship and outreach on every university in America."
The communion table on the mall stretched for a mile or more between the Washington Monument and the U.S. Capitol.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
A multi-point plan released by President Donald Trump for peace in the Middle East, specifically between Israel and the Hamas terrorists who launched a war against the Middle East democracy on Oct. 7, 2023, has taken effect, with a ceasefire on Friday, Israeli troops being pulled back and a countdown on for the release of the hostages still held by the terrorists.
Trump had announced that Israel and Hamas both "signed off" on the plan, meaning "ALL of the Hostages will be released soon, and Israel will withdraw their Troops to an agreed upon line."
He called it a "GREAT Day for the Arab and Muslim World, Israel, all surrounding Nations, and the United States."
A report at CBS said the Israeli military confirmed the ceasefire had started, and U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff confirmed Israeli troops were leaving parts of Gaza.
Hostages are expected to be returned to Israel by mid-day on Monday.
Also pending is the release by Israel of dozens of Palestinians who had been jailed for a variety of reasons.
Trump is expected to visit the Middle East on Monday.
"The Israel Police is completing preparations for the visit of the President of the United States, Mr. Donald Trump, to Israel, this coming Monday," explained David Filo, head of the police operations division.
The Israeli Ministry of Justice has identified about 250 prisoners who are Palestinian and are to be released under the terms of the Trump plan.
The report added that, "The Rafah crossing from southern Gaza into Egypt will reopen on Tuesday in coordination with European Union authorities and the White House."
There also were reports Gazans had started returning to northern parts of the enclave adjacent to Israel even as Israeli troops were withdrawing.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Friday, according to the report, that Israel is "tightening the noose around Hamas from all sides," and vowed that Gaza would be demilitarized following the Israeli government's approval of a peace plan to end the war.
The plan has the IDF redeploying within 24 hours of approval of the agreement, which will be accomplished over the weekend.
Within 72 hours after the IDF completes redeployment to the agreed-upon borders, all hostages, living and dead, will be released and returned to Israel, reports confirmed.
Hamas is, under the plan, losing a great deal of its control and power that it has exercised over Gaza for years now, and Trump wasn't even ready to assure that there will be a "Palestinian state," saying, "we're going to see how it all goes."
"And there's a point at which we may do something that would be a little bit different and may be very positive for everybody," Trump said.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
A major sticking point in reopening the government is the extension of expiring Affordable Care Act subsidies. Without these subsidies, insurance premiums will double for those receiving them.
Because of this, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., is breaking ranks with the Republican Party.
It should be obvious that government benefits, once granted, are virtually impossible to take away, and a subsidy "cliff" will be politically disastrous. The subsidies were necessary to mask the fact that affordable options were being taken away, and extremely expensive coverage mandates were being imposed. The cliff was needed to mask the long-term cost of the bill.
So, what can be done now? One suggestion is a conditional extension of the subsidies combined with measures to reduce costs, based on an understanding of why costs are outrageous. The graph below shows the enormous increase in administrators, and the legislation associated with it.
Graph courtesy of AuthenticMedicine.com
All that administration is supposed to decrease "unnecessary" care. It is time to ask how many tests could be bought for the price of the staff used to deny them. For the price of a $1 million administrator, 2,000 CT scans at $500 (possible in independent facilities) could be obtained, or 82 spine surgeries (lumbar laminectomies at $12,230 at the Surgery Center of Oklahoma.
We don't know how much time is wasted by physicians and nurses in documentation that serves no purpose except to justify billing – but it may eat up half their time.
Republicans reneged on their promises to repeal the ACA. So, how about promising that "if you like your ACA plan you can keep your ACA plan," but the following changes will be made to allow affordable alternatives to arise:
Additional information:
Association of American Physicians and Surgeons reform proposals