Ann Coulter flips her cork

Oh Yeah, she’s lost it.

If only the Democrats had decided to socialize the food industry or housing, Romneycare would probably still be viewed as a massive triumph for conservative free-market principles — as it was at the time.

It’s not as if we had a beautifully functioning free market in health care until Gov. Mitt Romney came along and wrecked it by requiring that Massachusetts residents purchase their own health insurance. In 2007, when Romneycare became law, the federal government alone was already picking up the tab for 45.4 percent of all health care expenditures in the country.

Until Obamacare, mandatory private health insurance was considered the free-market alternative to the Democrats’ piecemeal socialization of the entire medical industry.

In November 2004, for example, libertarian Ronald Bailey praised mandated private health insurance in Reason magazine, saying that it “could preserve and extend the advantages of a free market with a minimal amount of coercion.”

A leading conservative think tank, The Heritage Foundation, helped design Romneycare, and its health care analyst, Bob Moffit, flew to Boston for the bill signing.

via Ann Coulter – February 1, 2012 – THREE CHEERS FOR ROMNEYCARE!.

It’s terrible when Conservatives go into the tank for a candidate. This is living proof.

Audio: Mark Levin challenges Ann’s Column

Others: Campaign 2012, The Other McCain, The Right Scoop, Riehl World View, iOwnTheWorld.com, Hot Air, The Gateway Pundit, Mark America, THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and Patterico’s Pontifications

Breaking News: Rick Santorum’s daughter Bella admitted to hospital

My Jesus be with this sweet little one.

Video:

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Story:

The three-year-old daughter of Republican presidential hopeful Rick Santorum has been admitted to Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and the candidate has cancelled his Sunday morning campaign events to be at her side.

Santorum campaign spokesman Hogan Gidley said Saturday night that the former Pennsylvania senator and his wife, Karen, were with Bella at CHOP. Gidley said Santorum planned to return to campaigning as soon as possible in Florida, where the Republican primary is Tuesday.

Bella Santorum has Trisomy 18, a genetic condition in which a child has a third copy of material from chromosome 18, instead of the usual two, causing a wide array of physical and mental problems.

Bella was not expected to survive until her first birthday – half of infants with Trisomy 18 do not survive their first week, according the National Institutes of Health. Some children have lived to their teenage years, but with significant medical and developmental issues.

The Santorums have been frequent visitors to CHOP with their daughter, and concerns over Isabella’s health have canceled previous Santorum campaign events.

During his campaign, Santorum and his wife have spoken openly about the challenges and rewards of raising a child with such a condition.

The Santorums have six other children; they lost a baby boy, Gabriel, shortly after his birth in 1996. Bella was born in 2008; two years later, Santorum wrote about her in an Inquirer column.

“All children are a gift that comes with no guarantees,” he wrote. “While Bella’s life may not be long, and though she requires our constant care, she is worth every tear.”

via Santorum daughter admitted to hospital | Philadelphia Inquirer | 01/28/2012.

Of all my criticisms of the GOP field, this is not one of them. Rick Santorum is a good father to all of his children; especially Bella.

The only thing I will say, because I am fair and balanced type of a blogger; is that Rick Santorum should be grateful that he actually has healthcare to help take care of his daughter. Because there are many, like myself, who have no healthcare insurance at all. Not that I believe that it should come from the Government. However, I believe that Mr. Santorum should be a bit more mindful that there are some, that are not of his financial status, and their children would most certainly not be as lucky as Bella.

Having said all of that; My prayers go out to the Santorum family during this difficult time.  May the Lord Jesus hold Bella in the palm of his hand.

Others: Michelle Malkin and Atlas Shrugs

Video: Miracle baby goes home

This video comes via “The Morning Spew” (H/T to Hotair.com)

…and to think, liberal Democrats believe that this little precious bundle of joy is annoyance and should have been terminated. Bastards they are, all of them. 😡

This is why illegal immigration bothers me

Via Preston Wright on Facebook:

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The American Militia’s website

Bet this would be an interesting book to read.

Man, and I thought the Clinton’s were dysfunctional:

Then-White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel offered his resignation to President Barack Obama in the winter of 2010 after a series of columns appeared depicting him as the lone element keeping the Obama presidency intact. According to then senior adviser David Axelrod, Emanuel understood that the stories “were an embarrassment” to the president. The president, already suffering from a setback to his health care reform effort, declined Emanuel’s offer to resign, despite being convinced that his chief of staff was the main source for the columns.

“I’m not accepting it,” Obama replied. “Your punishment is that you have to stay here and get this bill done. I’m not letting you off the hook.”

That revelation is one of the more explosive included in “The Obamas,” a new book by Jodi Kantor of The New York Times about the first few years of the Obama administration and the strains that it produced on the president’s marriage — strains that were ultimately overcome.

The dramatics that surrounded the passage of health care reform — culminating in Emanuel’s near-resignation — reflect the type of struggles that routinely pitted Emanuel against the first lady during the first two years of the Obama administration. The two jockeyed for influence over the president even before he formally took office. — Via ‘The Obamas’: Book Reveals Friction Between Rahm Emanuel, Michelle Obama (UPDATE)

Bet that would make a very interesting read.

Get the Book:

Update: As much as I hate to admit it; this guy does have a point. This is why I watch the comment section around here, like a hawk.

A message of goodwill

As someone who feels that politics has become a bit too polarized and hateful; I want to send a message of goodwill to a blogger across the political divide.

It appears that a progressive blogger has had a health scare. From the Blog Rumproast:

We have a sad and urgent message about our dear friend and Rumproast blogger StrangeAppar8us: for the past ten days, he has been hospitalized and fighting for his life.  He is stabilized now to some degree, but is on a long, difficult road about which nothing is certain but that it will include disability. We wish we could tell you, our wonderful readers and friends, more, but we are committed to honoring Strange’s privacy, which is also the wish of his family. The day after he was hospitalized, I flew to Pennsylvania, accompanied by his friend and Rumproast founder Kevin K. and his lovely wife. Marindenver is here with him now as well.

We will be doing everything we can for Strange, including setting up fundraisers and putting together his work, but for now we have an immediate need for homes for his three cats, most likely permanent homes, though I hope with all my heart someday he may be reunited with at least one. They are all seven years old, spayed and neutered, and I am hoping he may get one back someday, but we have no idea if that will ever happen.

Sometimes in the zeal to defend what we believe in, we lose site of what is important. This is important; politics is a thing that I write about, it is not who I am. I am not so locked into a partisan mindset that I do not care about the well-being of others. There are some on the right that would use this as a chance to smear the “limo left” as I call them; I will not do that, just because I do not believe that it is the time or the place for that.  

There is a time for politics and there is a time for real life; this is one of those times. Your health is everything and when that goes, it is over. I wish “StrangeAppar8us” all of the very best and for a strong and quick recovery. I hope that there are homes of the kitties found; yes, I will confess, I too, have a fondness for cats and other such little furry animals.

Some might consider me a faux Conservative for saying things like this. To them I simply request that they find the shortest pier that they can find and take a long jump from it. This is not about partisanship my friends; this is about humanity and grace. It would be abhorrent of me to say anything other than what I have written.

Again, I send my prayers and best wishes to “StrangeAppar8us” and his family; and to the many friends of his in the progressive blogosphere.

Others: Balloon Juice and Zandar Versus The Stupid