Bush Rewards Companies Who Cut Seniors' Coverage

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> THE DAILY MIS-LEAD

> < http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=1338755 & l=13953 >

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>

> BUSH ACTS TO REWARD COMPANIES WHO CUT OFF SENIORS' DRUG COVERAGE

>

> Late last year, President Bush promised retirees that " if there's a

Medicare

> reform bill signed by me, corporations have no intention to dump retirees

> [from their existing drug coverage]...What we're talking about is trust. "

> The White House and its congressional allies backed up Bush's assertion by

> claiming the bill included a special tax subsidy to " encourage employers'

to

> retain prescription-drug coverage " for their retirees' and not to cut them

> off.

>

> But just three months after Bush's pledge, the Wall Street Journal now

> reports that the White House quietly added " a little-noticed provision " to

> the bill that allows companies to severely reduce - or almost completely

> terminate - their retirees' drug coverage " without losing out on the new

> subsidy. " In other words, the president did not just break his promise to

> sign a bill that prevents seniors from losing their existing drug

coverage.

> He actually acted to reward companies who cut off their retirees with a

> lavish new tax break.

>

> The provision was no mere oversight by the president. The major backers of

> the provision were Lucent Technologies, General Motors, Dow Chemical and

SBC

> Communications - all major campaign contributors to the president.

According

> to the non-partisan Center for Responsive Politics, executives from those

> companies have donated almost $140,000 in hard money and $2.5 million in

> soft money to Bush and his party since 2000.

>

> Lucent hard money contributions to Bush since 2000: $14,415

> Lucent soft money contributions to RNC since 2000: $27,000

>

> Dow hard money contributions to Bush since 2000: $23,200

> Dow soft money contributions to RNC since 2000: $631,354

>

> GM hard money contributions to Bush since 2000: $92,050

> GM soft money contributions to RNC since 2000: $95,260

>

> SBC hard money contributions to Bush since 2000: $9,450

> SBC soft money contributions to RNC since 2000: $1,762,206

>

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