During the first presidential debate on October 3, 2000 between Al Gore and George Bush, Jim Lehrer asked the Texas Governor whether he would overturn the FDA's approval of the abortion pill RU-486 if elected.
Guess what a very influential minority heard in his answer? Guess what the rest of us missed?
Part I of II.
GOV. BUSH: I don't think a president can do that. I was disappointed in the ruling because I think abortions ought to be more rare in America. And I'm worried that that pill will create more abortion -- will cause more people to have abortions. This is a very important topic and it's a very sensitive topic because a lot of good people disagree on the issue. I think what the next president ought to do is to promote a culture of life in America -- as the life of the elderly and the life of those living all across the country, life of the unborn. As a matter of fact, I think a noble goal for this country is that every child born and unborn ought to be protected in law and welcomed in life. ...Surely this nation can come together to promote the value of life. Surely we can fight off these laws that will encourage to -- to allow doctors to take the lives of our seniors. Surely we can work together to create a culture of life...
The Culture of Life Foundation is a non-profit organization whose mission is to "provide the leadership and financial resources to promote a universal commitment to protect and nurture all human life from conception until natural death." It was founded in 1997 by pro-life individuals and corporate leaders responding to Pope John Paul's Evangelium Vitae (1995) which proclaimed The incomparable worth of the human person.
The Pope decried what he called a new cultural climate embodied in public opinion and increasingly in the law, resulting in "crimes and attacks against human life" such as abortion and euthanasia. He called on bishops, priests and church laity to vigorously defend what he called "The Gospel of Life".
Some very influential and wealthy Americans responded, and The Culture Of Life Foundation and Institute was founded. It's a 501(c)3 Charitable Organization, whose primary activities include scientific research to uncover "the latest pro-life medical and scientific facts", disseminating these "facts" to the media and to medical students, as well as limited lobbying against stem cell research.
The Culture Of Life Board of Directors currently includes author Mary Cunningham Agee, former Major League Baseball Commissioner Bowie Kuhn, and former UN ambassador/television host/perpetual candidate for political office Alan Keyes, among other prominent members.
The Chairman of the Board of Directors is a man by the name of John M. Whelan, who in the private sector acts as the President and C.O.O. of Golden Rule Insurance Company. His name might not ring a bell, but he and former company chairman J. Patrick Rooney have been long time financial supporters of the Republican party and its candidates, not to mention highly successful lobbyists on behalf of their company.
In fact, they even managed to dodge a house subcommittee investigation in progress when the Republicans took back the House in 1994.
According to this Washington Post article from 1995, Golden Rule contributed $620k in soft money to Republican candidates in the 1993-1994 elections ($69k to Democrats). Whelan and Rooney personally contributed $152k to GOPAC, at the same time Newt Gingrich was serving as the group's chairman. The article noted that the tax cuts package being proposed by Republicans at the time would "lift profits of Indiana-based health insurer Golden Rule Insurance Co., one of the party's biggest donors. The firm has waged a five-year lobbying campaign on behalf of Medical Savings Accounts , which it pioneered."
Is the name J. Patrick Rooney ringing a bell yet? Here's another hint from the WaPo article:
"But many businesses have responded coolly to MSAs, because they have tended not to save them money, and many health experts have warned they favor healthy patients and push up insurance costs for the very sick. The Republican plan provides tax incentives that make MSAs more attractive."
The Republicans weren't able to deliver in 1995; the proposed incentives for the insurance industry were fiercely opposed and defeated. But their efforts did not go unnoticed, and their end goal was clear to Mother Jones in '96:
As the GOP's plan to dismantle Medicare has moved forward, no other corporation has lobbied as effectively, nor positioned itself as well to reap big dividends from the Republican legislation, as Golden Rule. While doctors, hospitals, drugmakers, and other, larger insurers are going to garner pieces of the Medicare carcass, the relatively obscure Midwestern company--thanks to its unique alliance with the Republican leadership and a network of far-right think tanks and industry groups--is poised to gain a disproportionate chunk.
It was obvious that Whelan and Rooney's best chance for enactment of the tax incentives necessary for MSA's to take off lay with a new administration.
An administration more open to their "culture of life", not to mention their large campaign contributions. Which takes us back to the presidential debates in October 2000.
MR. LEHRER: Governor, both of you have talked much about Medicare and health care for seniors. What about the more than 40 million younger Americans who do not have health insurance right now? What would you do about that?
GOV. BUSH: Some of the healthy folks, healthy young kids say, "I never get sick, therefore I'm not going to have -- don't need health care right now." And for those, what I think we need to do is to develop an investment-type vehicle that would be an incentive for them to invest, like medical savings accounts with rollover capacity. In other words, you say to a youngster, "It would be in your financial interest to start saving for future illness."
You can guess (if you don't already know) how Rooney and Whelan's fortunes changed under President Bush's so-called reform of Medicare:
Using his fortune to open doors in Washington, Rooney has relentlessly preached his gospel. Last year, Congress saw the light: GOP lawmakers inserted a
$6.4 billion tax break for HSAs into a Medicare prescription-drug bill. And a recent survey by Mercer Human Resource Consulting says 75% of employers are likely to offer the accounts by 2006.
A courtly 76-year-old, Rooney has never hidden the fact that he stood to profit from his crusade. After pioneering HSA sales with his old company, Golden Rule Insurance, he sold out to UnitedHealth Group Inc. (UNH ) for $893 million just before Congress passed the tax break. He promptly founded Medical Savings Insurance Co. to sell more HSAs.
"I'm doing the right thing, and I think the Lord will be pleased about it," Rooney said.
Can he get an Amen? Anybody?