MEMPHIS, Tenn. (CBSDC) - A medical company is blaming President Obama's health care law for the layoffs of nearly 100 people.
Smith & Nephew says a 2.3 percent excise tax on medical devices in the "Obamacare" law caused the layoffs in the Memphis and Andover, Mass., offices.
"The nearly $30 billion tax on medical devices that took effect Jan. 1, 2013, has impacted a number of companies across the U.S.," the company said in a statement to WHBQ-TV.
Joe Metzger, senior vice president of corporate communications for the company, tells the Memphis Business Journal that they were "not immune" to the tax burden.
"Unfortunately, and in order to absorb this cost burden into our business, this has meant less than 100 positions have been made redundant across various departmental functions in our Tennessee and Massachusetts sites," Metzger told the Business Journal. "The company is providing the affected employees with a comprehensive severance package and outplacement support."
Let's remind everyone that Rep. John Tierney supported Obamacare.
Well here it is! The Boston Globe has endorsed Republican Richard Tisei for Congress.
Tisei's mix of libertarianism and fiscal conservatism makes an excellent blueprint for New England Republicans. Even as the national Republican Party veered to the right during Tisei's years on Beacon Hill, he avoided hot-button social issues and instead staked out a common-sense, reform-oriented direction for the Senate GOP caucus. That approach eventually yielded results; Tisei and other legislative Republicans were pushing nuts-and-bolts pension reforms, for instance, well before the Legislature as a whole was willing to implement similar ideas.
The kind of bipartisanship that Tisei practiced on Beacon Hill is increasingly difficult in Washington. And to be sure, Tisei's stances on some issues may be too conservative for some voters. He promises, for example, to work for the repeal of Obamacare. (Never mind that he voted for the Romneycare that inspired it.) But Tisei, unlike others in his party, isn't in denial about problems with the current health care system, and he's amenable to compromise. He refused to sign Grover Norquist's no-new-taxes pledge. The pro-Tierney ads and mailers that tie Tisei to GOP vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan's harsh, unworkable budget plan are based on comments taken mostly out of context.
Tierney's evasions are too much even for the Boston Globe prompting the newspaper to move from its default position of endorsing Democrats.
Richard Tisei is running a great campaign. He remains a class act.
LYNN - Republican challenger Richard R. Tisei said he could work with Democrats, but Democratic US Representative John F. Tierney scoffed at that assertion, in a 6th Congressional District debate today.
"I have a record of being able to work with Democrats," Tisei said in the debate at North Shore Community College. "I don't just talk the bipartisan talk, I walk the bipartisan walk."
But Tierney said it was "comical" to hear Tisei talk about being bipartisan, charging that 99 percent of the time in Tisei's State House career he had sided with the Republicans.
Tierney also argued that, once in Congress, Tisei would vote for Representative Paul Ryan, the House Budget Committee chairman now running for vice president, and Representative Eric Cantor, the House majority leader, and other "ideological extremists" as leaders.
Things got testy, but the involvement of U.S. Rep. John Tierney's family in an illegal gambling ring never came up during a one-hour-plus debate yesterday with the Salem Democrat and Republican challenger Richard Tisei.
Instead, Tierney repeatedly blasted Tisei for a Young Guns Action Fund ad - proof that Tisei is "lashing out on a personal, negative campaign," Tierney charged.
Tisei later fired back by holding up a mailer sent out by pro-Tierney forces claiming he would work to end Medicare.
"The reason nothing gets done is things like this get sent out scaring the heck out of everybody," Tisei said.
What's exactly wrong for voting for Paul Ryan? Tierney's strategy isn't working.
A third candidate will be on the ballot in the 6th District in Massachusetts. Libertarian Daniel Fishman has been gathering signatures since last June and submitting nomination papers to local city clerks and registrars throughout the North Shore. It now appears he will have well in excess of the 2000 signatures required to be on the ballot.
Fishman has lived in Beverly since 2003, and his grandparents immigrated to Lynn at the turn of the last century. A developer who writes software to improve Special Education, Mr. Fishman has come full circle -- when he moved to MA in 1994 he worked in the classroom with autistic students.
"It's been said that all that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing. I believe that our country is falling down. I can no longer do nothing. The rise of both the Tea Party and the Occupy movement hints at a problem that we are just beginning to realize: our American style of democracy does not scale to 300 million people.
"Look at the Affordable Care Act. The Supreme Court ruled it as constitutional, but the House has voted to repeal it 33 times. Do we honestly think the majority of the House is out of touch with their constituents? Or are we seeing ruthless winner take all politics? What has happened that in spite of the objections of many Americans, we as a nation are going to force a system upon them that they clearly don't want. Even if you support the ACA, is that what our democracy should be?
"Even worse, the current system set up by the Republicans and Democrats in cooperation with each other is that neither side will show any fiscal restraint when they are in power. Either party is happy to borrow money and spend what the country doesn't have in order to return something to the people. Republicans spent money on wars to give Americans a sense of security. Democrats spent money on Healthcare to give Americans a sense of security. Both parties have conspired against the public by taking out debt in the people's name when there was not the political will to raise taxes to pay for anything.
"We can change the system. The current state of government is absurd to all who see it, but the Republicans and Democrats are masters at winning election. Common sense requires common people, and this year a common effort. How dare we, on the cusp of the 50th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act, say that the system cannot change. How dare we not try?
"In the beginning the corporation was created by government to enable efficiencies in business. Now government is created by corporations to enable efficiencies in business."
The fourth installment of our journey around the state takes us to the North Shore, encompassing Essex, Northern Middlesex, and Northern Suffolk counties. This is a rather blue area thanks to the cities of Gloucester and Lynn, but also has the red areas of Ipswitch, Rowley, Boxford, and Andover. It is also home to one of the most competitive Congressional districts in the country, so this will be a vibrant area for state politicos, and even national ones.
Lynnfield, MA - Richard Tisei, candidate for Congress in Massachusetts' 6th Congressional District, today announced he had received the endorsement of U.S. Senator Scott Brown.
"I've known Richard Tisei for 25 years as both a friend and a colleague in the State Senate," said Brown. "We need more independent-minded fighters like him in our delegation if we're going to get the economy moving and get America going the right direction again."
Senator Brown, who was born in Wakefield and grew up in what is now the 6th Congressional District, won the district handily in 2010, as did the Baker-Tisei gubernatorial effort the same year. Tisei was re-elected 12 times as representative and senator in the southern portion of the Congressional District, where a majority of the voters are registered as independents.
"I'm grateful to Senator Brown for his endorsement today," said Tisei. "Scott Brown proved that a candidate with a positive message about economic growth, jobs, and freedom can win in Massachusetts. The people are crying out for change in Washington. That's why they elected Scott Brown in 2010 and why I believe they'll elect me in 2012. America can do so much better and it's time that the voice of the people is heard in Washington."
Many speak about a broken Washington, DC, that cries for new leadership. The CLASS Act is living proof of the problems that plague Washington, and why it is time for change in Congress.
The CLASS Act ("Community Living Assistance Services and Supports") was passed as part of ObamaCare and hailed as a long term care insurance program that would help seniors maintain independence at home and avoid nursing home placement.
At the time, Congressional leaders promised that every senior in the nation would be eligible for this new government run program and that this new benefit would be financed solely by enrollee premiums without federal subsidy. Seniors would pay premiums for 5 years before receiving benefits of up to $50/day to pay for homemaker and other services. In addition, low income enrollees would pay a premium of only $5/month, and be subsidized by those paying full premiums.
If it sounded too good to be true, it was! Even before passed into law, Richard Foster, Chief Actuary of the Center for Medicaid and Medicare Services, reviewed CLASS for financial solvency.
One day after claiming the entire field to himself, GOP congressional candidate Richard Tisei today blasted incumbent Democrat John Tierney's failure to curb the nation's unsustainable public debt. Tisei, a former State Senator, also scored Tierney for rejecting the proposals made by the Super Committee last year. He said that Tierney was well to the left of President Barack Obama.
Here is the text of the press release:
(Lynnfield, MA, Jan 24, 2012)-Republican Congressional Candidate Richard Tisei issued a statement today in anticipation of the President's State of the Union message to the nation this evening and the failed leadership of Congressman John Tierney on the country's massive public debt.
"Washington has a massive spending addiction. Over the past decade, both parties have spent taxpayer dollars like there is no tomorrow," said Tisei. "I hope that President Obama will offer new proposals to deal with the debt during his speech tonight. Government debt is a ticking time bomb and is growing at levels which are clearly unsustainable. Unfortunately, Congressman Tierney has been an obstructionist on the matter of our astronomical debt."
"It is an embarrassment that today marks the 1,000th day since the U.S. Senate passed a budget (April 29, 2009) . President Obama's own party soundly rejected his FY-2012 budget last year (97-0). As of January 20, 2012, the debt stands at more than $15.2 trillion dollars - and President Obama just last week asked for an additional debt limit increase," noted Tisei. "Annual interest payments on the debt have reached more than $200 billion a year."
"This state of affairs is completely unacceptable. A Congressman should be a trustee and steward of taxpayer dollars. Instead, John Tierney actually stood to the left of President Obama when the President and Congress came to a bipartisan agreement last year that would shave spending and extend the debt limit," said Tisei. "Could there be a better example of how out of touch John Tierney has become on our massive debt?"
"President Obama described that bipartisan compromise as 'an important first step to ensuring that as a nation we live within our means' and then John Tierney arrogantly rejected the bipartisan deficit deal that both Sen. John Kerry and Sen. Scott Brown supported," said Tisei. "On the critical issue of spending, John Tierney is to the left of President Obama as well as Sen. Kerry and is clearly part of the unacceptable gridlock in Washington."
"I share the anxiety of the taxpayers that spending is out of control and that Washington is not solving the problems that must be addressed," said Tisei. "When I go to Washington, I will fight for bi-partisan solutions to these monumental problems which threaten America's future. I will work with anyone who is willing to roll up their sleeves with me as we go forward and begin tackling our massive and unsustainable spending addictions. Having a Congressman who will energetically speak out on these issues is an important first step. With the help of the voters in November, I pledge to be that Congressman."
Our campaign launched a new web video from voters across the 6th Congressional District. If you are ready for a new direction in Washington, and want to join these passionate supporters by endorsing our campaign, please click here to sign up.
(Welcome to RMG Richard - promoted by Rob "EaBo Clipper" Eno)
I wanted to share with the RMG community our recent video from the campaign kickoff last week in Wakefield.
We are recruiting volunteers to join our campaign to win in the 6th Congressional District. Please sign up here to join our team and thank you to all of the supporters that came out to our successful kickoff event.
In a sentencing shocker this afternoon, Rep Tierney's wife, Patrice, has been sentenced to 30 days in jail followed by 5 months of house arrest.
The Herald http://www.bostonherald.com/ne... reports that this is substantially more than the prosecution asked for as part of their deal:
Prosecutors did not request jail time for Patrice Tierney, asking for 90 days house arrest, but U.S. District Court Judge William Young did give her prison time
Taken with the Wilkerson sentence does this portend sentences with teeth for politicians? Or are they just an abberation and things will revert to as they were shortly?
Regardless, this sentence is sure to have some politicians a little more nervous tonight, eh Speaker DiMasi?
The wife of US Representative John F. Tierney is poised to plead guilty tomorrow to federal tax charges for managing a bank account that her brother allegedly used to deposit millions of dollars in illegal gambling profits he raked in from an offshore sports betting operation based in Antigua.
Federal prosecutors filed documents that were unsealed today in US District Court in Boston charging Patrice Tierney, 59, who is married to the Salem Democrat, with four counts of aiding and abetting the filing of false tax returns by her brother, Robert Eremian, of St. John's Antigua.
Another Democratic tax cheat, who knew? Does this help Bill Hudak? You get it does! And while the left-wing media plays up the tired narrative about "extremist" Hudak-as-a-birther, what will it make about this latest news? This is a game-changer. Given the foul mood voters have about incumbents generally, this should really hurt Tierney, a do-nothing Congressman. It should also demoralize his base in the district.
Let's see John Kerry builds a yacht overseas ignoring and evading American craftsmanship and taxes while Mrs. Tierney launders funds for her gambling offshore brother. All this while Democrats like Tierney rail against tax cuts. Hypocrisy writ large!
Well that didn't take long. Dan Kennedy, self-appointed guardian of the Mainstream Media and hyperliberal, is now applying the birther smear to Congressional candidate Bill Hudak.
Sen.-elect Scott Brown has endorsed a candidate for Congress who has asserted that President Obama was born in Kenya rather than the United States, and who drew complaints from his neighbors during the 2008 presidential campaign for putting up signs on his property depicting Obama as Osama bin Laden.
And Dan Kennedy is hoping that the media soon links Brown to Birthers.
But Brown has already been caught expressing falsehoods about Obama. As Blue Mass Group discovered last week, Brown once raised the possibility that Obama had been born out of wedlock, an assertion for which there is zero evidence.
The question now is whether Brown has the guts and integrity to admit he made a mistake and withdraw his endorsement of Hudak.
Not only would Brown's repudiation of Hudak be the right thing to do, but it would be for the good of the Republican Party as well. Brown won overwhelmingly in Tierney's district, which you'd think would make the Democrat vulnerable this fall. But if the Republicans can't come up with a candidate more credible than Hudak, Tierney will likely roll to re-election.
Tierney's wasting no time is he? Apparently the silent one from the Sixth hasn't learned much from the Coakley campaign of planting red herrings to save his pitiful performance in Congress.
I haven't seen much/any commentary on Hudak's run against John Tierney. I'd vote for a rock instead of Tierney, as I'm sure many here would. Is there little North Shore representation from the posters at RMG? This race seems to be garnering little interest. There are a lot of Republicans up this way that would love to get rid of Tierney. Is he THAT unbeatable? What's the story? Any insiders out there that can shed some light? I know some folks have suggested that Hudak is slightly eccentric (to be polite), but he is campaigning hard and seems to be everywhere at once up here. He has also been letting the Brown campaign use his Danvers office for phone banking, as well as pushing Scott's campaign in his weekly newsletters. This guy seems to be a team player, and heck like I said a rock would be better than Tierney. Thoughts anyone?
Citizens for Limited Taxation is reporting that Congressman Tierney was a no-show at yesterday's "Town Hall" meeting sponsored by a Republican rival Bill Hudak.
The Kennedy funeral could be one reason why Tierney side-stepped yesterday's event which was attended by approximately 200 people in Danvers. However, as CLT notes, Tierney has been studiously avoided attending any Town Halls in his district.
By the way Bill Hudak is an impressive candidate who can articulate the issues. Keep an eye on him. His star is rising.
