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36 Hours: ObamaCare in Oklahoma

Capitol Editor Patrick B. McGuigan

OKLAHOMA CITY – Forget “48 Hours.” The first 36 hours after announcement of the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling on the Affordable Care Act – much more widely known as “ObamaCare” — created a tsunami of commentary, conflicting analysis and controversy about what it all means.

Governor Mary Fallin, a strong critic of the law, said she would move slowly in response. She estimates implementation could cost the state a half-billion dollars. 

While legislative leaders backed Fallin, the state Democratic Chairman assailed her for not calling a special session to create a health exchange. Fellow Republicans, including Attorney General Scott Pruitt (who had sued to kill the law), backed her. 

Several legislators said the state should avoid implementation while repeal efforts advance during the presidential election season. Rep. Jason Nelson of Oklahoma City wants an intensified fight “against the implementation of this destructive federal law.”

Whatever else results, the ruling united the state GOP dramatically, just days after a divisive primary fight between “Tea Party” and “mainstream” conservatives.

The bluntest critique of ObamaCare came from the Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs, the state’s leading think tank. Jonathan Small, fiscal director, said the ruling was bad, but left room for policymakers “to empower people to escape from the Medicaid ghetto and give them the dignity of having their own health insurance.”

The Oklahoma Health Care Authority sketched who would be eligible for mandated insurance benefits, without arguing the merits. The agency stressed the High Court said states have a choice whether to cover more people through Medicaid, and that it anticipated further federal guidance. Of comfort to ObamaCare’s critics, the authority said it will “look towards Oklahoma’s leadership for direction as to future action.”
 
Here and there, the outcome has fans. Dr. Katherine Schierman, a military veteran and activist Democrat, praised the ruling. Dr. Boyd Shook, a venerable liberal who runs a free clinic, said the first word from his mouth was “Alleluia.” Then, he set to work thinking through the challenges of implementation, including the state’s long-standing shortage of primary care physicians.

Oklahoma City University Law Professor Andrew Spiropulos expressed shock that Roberts, and not Justice Anthony Kennedy, provided the swing vote to uphold the law. The result was surprising because, he said, “on point after point” the legal analysis “read like a conservative lawyer’s dream.”

In the end, the conservative thinker opined, “the Court’s decision to leave matters to the people may be best for all concerned.”

Note: McGuigan is the author of three books, including “Ninth Justice: The Fight for Bork” (University Press of America, 1990), with Dawn M. Weyrich, and the editor of seven books on legal policy.

Iran: There will be war – we’ll win

Staff Report

WND.com reports that just days after the breakdown of talks with the West over Iran’s nuclear program, the deputy chief commander of the Revolutionary Guards publicly announced that there soon will be war – and that Allah will ensure his forces are victorious.

The last round of talks between Iran and the P5+1 (the United States, Britain, France, China, Russia and Germany) ended in Moscow last week without any agreement on Iran’s illicit nuclear program.

Gen. Hossein Salami, in a televised interview, boasted that, “Iran has complete control of all the enemy’s interests around the world and is on a path to reach equivalency with world powers.” The commander emphasized that Iran’s nuclear program is irreversible, the Islamic Republic News Agency reported.

Salami said war is inevitable, and the Iranian forces are ready.

“The current sanctions will only help Iran with its progress, and the Iranian ballistic missiles can target the enemy’s moving carriers with 100 percent accuracy,” he warned the West. “The Guards’ operational plan includes a radius of deterrence in the region in which all interests of the enemy have been identified, and in case of war, those interests will be attacked.”

The Revolutionary Guards have more than 1,000 ballistic missiles capable of reaching all U.S. bases in the region, all of Israel and some capitals in Europe. In collaboration with China and North Korea, they are also working on intercontinental ballistic missiles.

Salami said the Guards are on high alert, adding, “Our forces in relation to our internal security will complete their mission with all of their capability.”

Referring to sanctions on Iran, Khamenei said, “America itself is surrounded by serious problems, which cannot be solved. … Their main goal is to separate the Islamic republic from the support of its people. … Allah willing, this conspiracy will also be defeated.”

Click here for more from WND.com. 

WSJ economist on costs

Staff Report

Stephen Moore, an economist with the Wall Street Journal, appeared on Fox News recently to discuss the ramifications of the president’s new health care law…and his analysis is sure to come as a shock to those who haven’t been following the matter closely.

Though Barack Obama assured the middle class he would not raise taxes on those making less than $200,000 a year, Moore’s research shows that in reality, a significant percentage of the burden will be shouldered by those making $120,000 or less by the year 2016.
 
Here are rough numbers of how the costs will increase over the next few years:

“Why do you think that somehow,” host Alisyn Camerota asked, “this equates to a tax to everyone?”
 
“Well, the court decided this the other day, didn’t they Alisyn?” Moore responded with a smile.
 
“And you know there’s an old saying that if it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it’s a duck.  I’ll tell you this, for Americans who are going to have to pay these fines, penalties, taxes, whatever you want to call them…What we found is it’s going to be pretty darn expensive.  The taxes phase in over time so next year they might be pretty modest, by about 2015 or ‘16, for families that choose not to buy health insurance, you’re talking about a fine, Alisyn, that could be over $2,000 a year.”
 
From there, Camerota said that she had an example of these fines, “or taxes, as you call them.”
 
Rather than reiterate that a primary reason the bill was upheld was because it was determined to be a tax by the Supreme Court, Moore concluded: “You remember the president’s promise that when he was elected, no one making under $200,000 would pay a dime more in taxes…Again, whatever you want to call it Alisyn, fines, taxes, penalties, but three quarters of those costs will fall on the backs of families who make less than $120,00 a year, so it’s a big punch in the stomach to middle class families.”
 
Watch the entire exchange on The Blaze by clicking here. 

WSJ economist on costs

Staff Report

Stephen Moore, an economist with the Wall Street Journal, appeared on Fox News recently to discuss the ramifications of the president’s new health care law…and his analysis is sure to come as a shock to those who haven’t been following the matter closely.

Though Barack Obama assured the middle class he would not raise taxes
on those making less than $200,000 a year, Moore’s research shows that
in reality, a significant percentage of the burden will be shouldered by
those making $120,000 or less by the year 2016.

Here are rough numbers of how the costs will increase over the next few years:

“Why do you think that somehow,” host Alisyn Camerota asked, “this equates to a tax to everyone?”
 
“Well, the court decided this the other day, didn’t they Alisyn?” Moore responded with a smile.
 
“And you know there’s an old saying that if it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it’s a duck.  I’ll tell you this, for Americans who are going to have to pay these fines, penalties, taxes, whatever you want to call them…What we found is it’s going to be pretty darn expensive.  The taxes phase in over time so next year they might be pretty modest, by about 2015 or ‘16, for families that choose not to buy health insurance, you’re talking about a fine, Alisyn, that could be over $2,000 a year.”
 
From there, Camerota said that she had an example of these fines, “or taxes, as you call them.”
 
Rather than reiterate that a primary reason the bill was upheld was because it was determined to be a tax by the Supreme Court, Moore concluded: “You remember the president’s promise that when he was elected, no one making under $200,000 would pay a dime more in taxes…Again, whatever you want to call it Alisyn, fines, taxes, penalties, but three quarters of those costs will fall on the backs of families who make less than $120,00 a year, so it’s a big punch in the stomach to middle class families.”
 
Watch the entire exchange on The Blaze by clicking here. 

Arvest Mortgage hits record of $1 Billion

Staff Report

Arvest Bank today announced that for the tenth consecutive year, Arvest Mortgage Company has originated more than $1 billion in new mortgage loans. This is the earliest that the milestone has ever been reached indicating both growing strength in the housing market and a robust environment for refinancing.
 
“A number of factors have helped us reach $1 billion in mortgage loans this early in the year. Our 240 plus locations, knowledgeable associates, access to a wide variety of mortgage options and our award-winning customer service are all contributors to this success.

"In addition, low mortgage rates continue to encourage homeowners to refinance and a new, improved version of the government’s Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) has recently allowed more homeowners to do so,” said Steven Plaisance, president and chief operating officer of Arvest Mortgage Company.

Mortgage loan volume at Arvest is expected to increase 125 percent during the first two quarters of 2012 over the same time period in 2011 based on the June forecast. Mortgage refinancing is expected to account for 68 percent of that total.

Plaisance continued, “We pride ourselves on being able to provide customers with service after the sale because we retain servicing on 99 percent of the loans we make. That means our customers can call us after their loan has closed with any need related to their mortgage loan.” 
 
For three years in a row, Arvest Bank ranks “Highest Customer Satisfaction with Retail Banking in the Southwest Region” according to the recently released J.D. Power and Associates 2012 Retail Banking Satisfaction Study.  Arvest Bank operates more than 240 bank branches in Arkansas, Oklahoma, Missouri and Kansas through a network of 16 locally managed banks, each with its own board of directors and management team. These banks serve customers in 90 communities with 12-hour weekday banking at most locations. Arvest also provides a wide range of banking services including loans, deposits, treasury management, asset and wealth management, life insurance, credit cards, mortgage loans and mortgage servicing. Arvest operates a mortgage company, asset management company, insurance division and mortgage servicing company. Arvest is an equal housing lender and member FDIC.