By Matthew Alvarez
MIAMI- President Barack Obama came to Miami Dade College’s Wolfson campus Thursday afternoon to defend his signature legislative accomplishment, the Affordable Care Act.
He used his speech to highlight the results of the law six years after it was passed, in the midst of a presidential election that may decide the ACA’s fate.
Obama showcased the ACA’s success in states that took advantage of its programs. However, Obama discontentedly addressed our governor (Republican Rick Scott) on Florida’s hostility toward the act.
If Florida were to take advantage of the ACA federal incentive and expand Medicaid, Obama said that more than 700,000 Floridians would have access for coverage.
Hearing some of the crowd’s displeasure with our state government, Obama stopped himself to comment: “If your governor – don’t boo, vote.”
To which the audience proudly cheered.
Even though Obama was focused on building up the ACA, he also wanted to shed light on the fact that it’s not perfect.
The primary problems, according to Obama, lie in two areas: states who are not supporting the act and private marketplaces that have low competition or low consumer incentive.
“That shouldn’t be surprising. If state leaders purposely try to make something not work, then it’s not gonna run as smoothly as if they were trying to make it work – common sense. You don’t have to go to Miami Dade to figure that out.” Obama said.
Miami Dade College students waiting for Obama’s speech. Photo Credit: Matthew Alvarez/ RISE NEWS
The President argued that Obamacare should not be directly blamed for these problems, and outlined a number of solutions such as state cooperation, encouraging states to experiment with ACA implementation, and adding a public plan fallback.
The public plan fallback would give more economic options to rural areas where there is a lack of private competition, which was originally a republican idea.
Attendees, who were mostly MDC students, had been lining up outside the venue since 11:00 am, waiting in the South Florida heat to get to hear what our commander in chief had to say.
The Freedom Tower, which is near Miami Dade College’s Wolfson campus. Photo Credit: Matthew Alvarez/ RISE NEWS
Faculty, visitors, and select students alike were eager to see the president face to face; a rare opportunity for South Floridians.
It was clear that the Miami Dade College community welcomed the President, as they erupted into applause as soon as he took the stage with a surprised smile, returning the favor as he excitingly greeted everyone in the room.
The President spent the bulk of his speech giving context to the ACA and addressing how it has successfully reformed our healthcare system.
He emphasized the statistics – our un-insured rate is lower than ever; insurance companies can no longer discriminate based on gender and pre-existing conditions; there have been no significant changes for the 80 percent of Americans who get coverage through employers, Medicare, or Medicaid; children have been able to stay on their parents plans longer; the inflation rate for premiums has slowed down (but are still increasing); and most importantly, the ACA has insured over twenty million people who previously did not have any coverage.
Photo Credit: Matthew Alvarez/ RISE NEWS
“I don’t want to see anybody left out without health insurance.” Obama said. “I don’t want to see any family having to choose between health insurance now, or saving for retirement, or saving for your kid’s college education, or just paying their own bills. So the question we should be asking is what do we do about these growing pains in the affordable care act and how do we get the last nine percent of Americans covered?”
On the issue of partisanship, Obama welcomed working with Republicans.
He cited that a lot of the ideas for the ACA originated from Republicans, who then turned on the act once Obama himself became heavily involved.
“I don’t care whose idea it is, I just want it to work. They can even change the name of the law to Reagan-care, or they can call it Paul-Ryan-care. I-don’t-care.” He joking added. “Breaking gridlock will only happen when the American people demand it.”
Obama gave his thanks to Miami Dade College for helping spread awareness and putting together free workshops to sign up for affordable healthcare plans through the ACA.
MDC has been preparing to start giving enrollment assistance on November 1st through January 31st, 2017.
Photo Credit: Matthew Alvarez/ RISE NEWS
During this period, MDC students can receive help on getting a health insurance plan or looking at better alternatives.
While directing people how to look at insurance plans, Obama sarcastically repeated throughout his speech: “And you just need to go to Healthcare.gov – which works really well now.”
Miami Dade College hosts students from all walks of life, and the President’s choice of venue was no accident or favor.
A crucial component of the healthcare system is young and healthy citizens (half of which the room was filled with), since their insurance plans pay for the old and sick, which have a profound effect on premiums.
Although the college body broadly supports the ACA, many Cuban students (who tend to be republican) are against Obamacare due to its association with perceived socialist values.
Photo Credit: Matthew Alvarez/ RISE NEWS
Arseni Kusakin, a Miami Dade Honor student in attendance, was very interested in what Obama had to say.
“I hadn’t really considered it cause it didn’t really affect me on a personal level.” Kusakin said. “I like that he was calling for people to work together, I think especially now that’s pretty important. There’s so much divisiveness in this country, and I like that he drove that point home.”
Obama made appearances throughout South Florida later in the day, leaving a trail of traffic and political rallying in his wake.
As early voting officially kick starts in Florida next week, Obama is certainly trying to get the call out to participate, and making his case on which candidates will continue to follow his values and vision along the way.
RISE NEWS is a grassroots journalism news organization that is working to change the way young people become informed and engaged in the world. You can write for us.
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WATCH: This Video May Destroy U. Of Florida’s Powerful Secret Society
UPDATE- 1:04 AM EST 2-15-2016
Accusations of corruption in student government at the University of Florida are being put out in the open by a prominent UF student activist who previously helped to perpetuate a notorious secret society on campus.
Sabrina Philipp, a senior at UF was featured in a video detailing her experiences as a leading member of the “system”, a secret organization that helps Greek affiliated students move up in student government and influences actions taken by it.
The “system” is connected to the Florida Blue Key, a prestigious leadership honorary group that operates as a secret society that helps direct student government from the shadows, according to some students.
The UF student newspapers published a detailed expose into the way Florida Blue Key operates in 2012.
From the Independent Florida Alligator 2012 report:
“For students aspiring to hold public office one day, the path seems simple.
Go to UF. Get involved in Student Government. Get tapped to join Florida Blue Key. Make the right connections.
Even students who have no taste for politics yearn to join the prestigious honor society that boasts alumni like former senator and Gov. Bob Graham and current U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson.”
According to Not My System, the group that published Philipp’s video on Facebook, “the system” is made up of three different blocs: a political bloc, social bloc, and third bloc.
“Each is led by a bloc leader that represents the interests of various Greek organizations, communicated to them through their house leaders,” Not My System explains on its FB page. “Through massive Greek mobilization and voter suppression, the System has been able to control Student Government at the University of Florida for decades. This System is damaging to everyone involved except for its elite. Students are not given the opportunity to pursue positions based on their merit, but rather must rest on their laurels.”
Despite attempts to expose the “system” in recent years, many have still denied its very existence.
But Philipp’s video could prove to be an important moment at UF.
This all comes on the eve of student government elections taking place this week in Gainesville, with the next Student Body President, Vice-President, Treasurer, and 50 senators up for election.
The “system” has drawn comparisons to “The Machine” at the University of Alabama and other secret student organizations that sometimes try to influence college politics.
WATCH:
Student Government at the University of Florida is run behind closed doors and we want to open them.
The System is real. Hear it from someone who was at the top of it. #NotMySystem
Posted by Not My System on Sunday, February 14, 2016
Have a tip about the way “the system” works at the University of Florida? Send us an email to [email protected].
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Bernie Sanders Is A Sore Loser And It’s Hurting His Legacy
Bernie Sanders has every right to stay in the race, but the longer he stays in, the more trouble he is causing within the party itself, and therefore the greater chance Donald Trump has to be President.
In early May, the Nevada Democratic Convention saw violent outbursts following an announcement that a slight majority of the state’s delegates would be allocated to frontrunner Hillary Clinton.
Some supporters of the Vermont Senator in attendance expressed their displeasure with this by throwing chairs, screaming, and threatening state party chairwoman Roberta Lange.
Sanders response to these violent outbursts from his supporters is more worrisome than anything.
While he condemned it, he did not do much to convince his voters from refraining from it in the future.
The chaos in Nevada led some to predict similar reactions to the National Democratic Convention in Philadelphia come July.
To this idea, Sanders did not dismiss the extrapolation that such ferocity erupting at the convention would be terribly damaging to the Democratic Party as a whole.
Photo Credit: Gage Skidmore/ Flickr (CC By 2.0)
Instead, the senator told the Associated Press that the convention could be “messy.”
“I think if they make the right choice and open the doors to working-class people and young people and create the kind of dynamism that the Democratic Party needs, it’s going to be messy,” Sanders said. “Democracy is not always nice and quiet and gentle but that is where the Democratic party should go.”
The messiness that Sanders speaks to here was elaborated on more by the senator himself further.
“So what? Democracy is messy. Everyday my life is messy. But if you want everything to be quiet and orderly and allow, you know, just things to proceed without vigorous debate, that is not what democracy is about,” Sanders said.
This idea sounds nice. But his adage that his candidacy is going to change democracy is a tad overzealous.
He is not a bad candidate by any means, but it is becoming clearer every day that he simply does not know when to quit.
Clinton holds a ten percent lead in California, according to Real Clear Politics.
It is a key state should Sanders wish to stage the comeback he believes he can, but so far it looks as if that is another empty dream just as so many other states quickly became over time.
What gets Sanders and his supporters so angry is their unending insistence that some sort of foul play must have taken place and that it makes for the only possible reason that Sanders is not going to beat Hillary Clinton.
However, there is no real evidence of that actually happening on a scale large enough to make a difference. While it may seem that everyone and their brother is voting for Bernie, the results in many contests throughout the country show us that it is simply an untrue assessment of this race.
Now Clinton is by no means a perfect candidate and it would be unreasonable to expect all Bernie supporters to worship the ground she walks on once she wins the nomination, but the candidate himself citing this election, should it come down to Clinton and Trump, as a choice between the lesser of two evils is troublesome.
That statement along with so many others that have been made over the election will make it incredibly hard for any sort of endorsement of Clinton by Sanders in the future to seem genuine.
Clinton is simply not the lesser of two evils. Electing Donald Trump as the 45th President of the United States would make the country a laughingstock.
Photo Credit: Phil Roeder/ Flickr (CC by 2.0)
His brash and offensive campaign is not indicative of real American values and thus the notion that Clinton is somehow only slightly better than him remains utterly ridiculous.
Obviously Sanders wants to be president, but it becomes more evident every day that that will not become reality.
As he continues to attribute his losses to corruption within the system or other seemingly outlandish claims, it shows that he is unable to come to the realization that his “revolution” simply did not work.
Likewise, the violence that some of his supporters are inciting shows that they too are a part of the problem.
Of course, a majority of Sanders voters are sensible and will vote for Clinton come November even if it is done so begrudgingly.
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But the longer Sanders stays in and the more he claims that corruption has persisted because he has lost based in part on rules that have existed for decades, the more fuel it adds to the fire for the Bernie Bros and their Bernie or Bust mantra.
The Bernie Sanders Revolution, if it can even be called that, is not strong enough to make a lasting claim. While he has pushed the party and Clinton herself further left, it remains that that is all will come of his candidacy.
While whether or not the nominating process is fair is a worthwhile debate, there is just absolutely no substance behind the claim that the system is rigged to hurt Sanders in this election.
Successful politicians own up to losses and show an ability to compromise. That is what Clinton did when she lost to Barack Obama in 2008.
She swallowed her pride, accepted the loss, and even took a position in the cabinet of the very man who beat her to realizing her dream of becoming president.
Sanders is not showing an ability to do that here. His attacks on Clinton only become harsher over time, rather than a tad softer as it becomes clear he has no real path to the nomination.
While he cannot give up the values he has attested to so strongly throughout the campaign, he must do what every other runner up has done and show he has a strong enough ego to begin to work with his opponent rather than still trying to tear her down this late in the game.
If the polls as they stand today emulate any results that come out of California on June 7, it will become even clearer that Sanders needs to accept that he will not win the nomination.
But it remains important to his legacy that he does so sooner rather than later so his image as a sore loser can begin to be erased and so that his ideas can stand as his real legacy.
RISE NEWS is a grassroots journalism news organization that is working to change the way young people become informed and engaged in public affairs. You can write for us.
Cover Photo Credit: Phil Roeder/ Flickr (CC By 2.0)
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Boko Haram Attacks Key City in Nigeria
Boko Haram jihadists attacked a key city in northeast Nigeria on December 27, 2015 evening, residents said, the second assault in days as Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari’s deadline to eradicate the militants is set to expire. The jihadists invaded Jiddari Polo, an area on the outskirts of the capital of northeastern Borno state, Maiduguri, at around… Read More
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