David Sirota on the Obama Administration’s imported drug turnaround
Today, at OpenLeft, Sirota says that we have been betrayed. A president who ran on allowing Americans, who pay the highest prices in the world for their Pharmaceuticals, to import cheaper drugs from Canada, now has made a statement that questions the wisdom of that position, citing the potential danger posed by drugs made in Canada or Europe. (Canada and Europe being part of the axis of evil now?)
This is straight-up disgusting. And it is an absolute betrayal - a betrayal on behalf of one of the wealthiest and most profitable industries in the world: the pharmaceutical industry.
As Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-ND) - like candidate Obama - says the safety canard now being thrown out by the Obama administration is “completely bogus” and he further notes that both the Clinton and Bush administrations have used that completely bogus argument to prevent importation in the past. As a result, “U.S. consumers are charged the highest prices in the world for FDA-approved prescription drugs.”
As I said, the fact that an administration headed by President Obama - a guy who promised to support importation - is now helping the drug industry crush importation is disgusting, especially when you consider that this same administration that cites its cost concerns is trying to stop a measure that would bring down inflated drug costs.
We’ve been betrayed.
Last week Afghanistan, before that Single Payer, now this? What’s going on, and who is that man in the White house, again? Yes, I know, he’s not the answer to all my liberal prayers, and he’s only been in office for 11 months, but could he just cut us a break on one or two?
Anybody know what’s going down with Gitmo? NSA? Environment?
Disgusting.
Related posts:
- Obama supports Drug Reimportation after working to defeat it - Is it “later” yet?
- David Sirota, Health Care, the Great Compromise
- David Sirota on Humiliation and the Massachusetts vote
- Where do your pills come from? What ever happened to “safety”?
- It does make you wonder - Candidate Obama vs President Obama
LK, where have you been? It’s not like this stuff was a secret–Obama was very clear during the campaign that he wasn’t pushing for single payer, and that he was going to take a strategy like this on Afghanistan. You can’t be “betrayed” by someone doing WHAT THEY SAID THEY WOULD DO, as opposed to what you wished they would do.
He said that he promised to support importation of drugs, now he’s not. That is a betrayal.
Ralph Nader in 2012
Eric Massa in 2012
Nader’s a self-absorbed schmuck.
But Ralph is our self-absorbed ##%^&
Seriously some of you will never forgive Nader for what you think he did in 2000.
First of Gore actually won the election
Second if he had lost it it was his fault He ran to the right and would no doubt have governed much more to the rights than he talks now,
As we see with Obama we need to dump the dems and save our souls and the soul of our country.
There is a predictable scenario here which could well bring the right to power with more ferocity than before
It goes way beyond the 2000 election — Nader does nothing to help third party candidates other than himself. Ask yourself, when was the last time Nader campaigned for a Green Party candidate or a progressive third party candidate? Has he ever campaigned for a third party candidate? I’ve never heard of him doing it. Hence, I say he is a self-absorbed schmuck.
Nevermind dumping the dems as you say… if you really want progressives in office, you need to fight for electoral reform. Otherwise, your efforts will all be in vein because it would only help the Republicans. I’m not about to help Mitt Romney, Mike Huckabee, or Sarah Palin get into office so that they can take us back to the Bush years.
We have been given this same lame advice to stay with the dems for years, Where has it got us. We must stop repeating the fruitless and unsuccessful polices of the past 30 years. We can;t go left with the current democrats and the party is captured by big business.
Unless I am wrong any effective majority will be wiped out in 2010.
What happens after that is anybody;s guess but it won;’t be good
PS Massa is very likely to lose in this sweep
Enjoy him while he lasts
Sirota has an update to the original column which I believe highlights part of the ancillary frustration in this post. The main point of this post, of course, was clear - President Obama punted on drug re importation.
http://openleft.com/diary/16405/theyre-for-it-and-against-itat-the-same-time
For example - Have a look at the “Public option.” Did you know that President Obama fought for the Public option? Really per the Press Secreray Gibbs…
http://www.americablog.com/2009/12/wh-spokesman-gibbs-says-president-did.html
Gee - I must have missed all this support.