From this morning’s fundraising email from the NRCC, signed by [Joe] Wilson:

There has been a lot of debate on what is true in the debate over government-run healthcare. But Democrats continue to spin and mislead the public in an attempt to stifle honest and open debate …..If we can raise more money than the Democrats, we’ll send a message .

From the DCCC’s fundraising email, signed by Paul Begala:

“You Lie!” That was one Republican Congressclown’s response to President Obama’s call for action on health insurance reform…Classy….But now the very liars who heckled President Obama for calling them out are raising millions of dollars off of their rude, dishonest attack — and even claiming victory in the media for it!

We think this sets up the Republicans perfectly for not just a fundraising email, but a full blown TV ad, that should say something like this:

Can you believe it America?  Congressman Wilson helped point out the hypocrisy of the Obama Administration’s push, as Democrats continue to continue to spin and mislead the public. We need to raise money to correct this stifling of open and honest debate by those dastardly Democrats, and now those same Democrats are actually, scandalously, trying to raise more money off of our fundraising that was pointing this out!

“We’ll see your two lies, and raise you one hypocrisy, a misrepresentation, and two government social workers thrown in.”

But the Democrats should then re-raise, with an ad that goes something like this:

Can you believe those absolutely classless, ”classy” Republicans, America!!  First they tried to raise money off of Joe Wilson’s outrageous attack upon the President, and did so by trying to project their own constant dissembling on the health care bill onto us, just like they always do!  Then, when we pointed this out – to raise funds to show these vicious lie — they used this against us to fund raise some more; by re-spinning those same lies! (And calling us “dastardly.”  America, make them apologize).  Even signed once again by “Classy” Joe Wilson.  Help us raise money now to defeat these lies about the truth we were telling about the lies they were telling about the truth!!!!

Of course the Republican camp will then run another ad, which will say something like this:

Hey, would somebody simply explain to the American people what this is all about so that we Republicans can stop lying so easily about it and actually have an informed discussion over the issue and see what we can do about these outrageously spiraling taxpayer funded medicare and medicaid expenses, which eat up more government funds than anything save perhaps national defense?

Yeah, Right.

Steve Kroft: You ran for this job, saying that you were not a big spending liberal, and that you were definitely, under no circumstances, a Socialist. And I know you inherited a unique set of circumstances. But in nine months you have effect nationalized two automobile companies, sections of the banking industry.

President Obama: Oh, wait, hold on, time out a second Steve, come on now.  Let’s think about it. On the banking issue, when I walked in, the banking system, the financial system was on the verge of collapse. And what have I done?  I’ve essentially taken the program that was voted on by the previous Congress, supported by the previous Republican President, and we’ve made it work.    So, that didn’t originate under my watch. 

With the auto companies, before I took office,  Uncle Sam was writing them billions of dollars worth of checks, without holding them accountable.   And what we said was, if you are going to get taxpayer money, then you’ve got to be accountable to taxpayers, by restructuring.

But what I think is a legitimate concern, because this did happen under my watch, is that we initiated a big recovery act:  800 billion dollars. And the reason we did so, is that every credible Democratic  and Republican economist, at the time that we came in, said that if we don’t have a stimulus of some sort, this is potentially going to get a lot worse.

Obama also claims that health care reform in the long run should not cost a dime more.  He asserts — somewhat correctly — that the most out of control spending in our budget, is on Medicaid and Medicare.  In 2005 for example, Medicare and Medicaid spending was projected at 481 billion dollars, more than on national defense and homeland security combined.    (And that’s not counting state Medicaid, over another 100 billion. ) These costs have been rising rapidly every year before and after, and are projected to continue to rise rapidly.

We also spend almost two times more per person on health care than any other industrialized nation in the world, but yet our overall rate of health care success is little better (and in some cases worse.)

The question is this: Do these current proposals cut waste, or simply expand the current system.

We think health insurance — at least health insurance that racks up enormous overhead, profits, paperwork, and other ”middleman” costs while covering most routine things that insurees could afford themselves (at least, could afford if they were not paying an arm and a let, so to speak, on health insurance), rather than just for true “security protection” catastrophic losses — is a big part of the problem. Not the solution.