Latest Emails Show the Extent Of Obama’s Ties To The Pharmaceutical Industry

On the campaign trail Barack ‘Blaze a Blunt’ Obama promised not to sell out to special interests, but to stand up for change. Yet when big pharma came knocking at his door with a pile of money, he quickly changed his tune. The latest batch of emails released by House Republicans prove Obama will give in to any industry, so long as it serves his personal political purpose regardless of promises made to the contrary.

Back in 2009, drug industry lobbyists sought to stop Obama from supporting a bill aimed at lowering medicine prices by allowing the reimportation of certain pharmaceuticals. The obvious lever: support for his plan to overhaul healthcare. On June 3, 2009, a lobbyist sent an email to the presidents chief healthcare advisor, Nancy-Ann DeParle. Her response was that the administration had “made a decision, based on how constructive you guys have been, to oppose importation on the bill.”

During his campaign, Obama attacked the pharmaceutical industry, but as we all now know, when the chips are down, Obama folds like a wallet. The emails also detail Obama’s deep reliance on big pharma to finance the adevertising campaign in support of his healthcare overhaul. With Obama on the end of big pharma’s leash, no wonder he continues to crackdown on medical marijuana.

Basically, the prescription drug industry gave Obama 80 billion dollars in support of his healthcare plan in exchange for favorable treatment on other issues. From the beginning Obama promised to open up the decision making process to public view, but when the big drug boys came calling, all bets were off, and Obama starting making back-room deals. I wonder how many back-room deals he’s made with respect to cannabis?

As an example of Obama’s two-faced dealings consider this email sent by a union boss after meeting with Jim Messina, Obama’s then Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations, to discuss financing the healthcare overhaul advertising campaign, “They plan to hit up the ‘bad guys’ for most of the $, they want us to just put in enough to be able to put our names in it – he is thinking @100K.”

Ultimately, the deals were made, and Obama gave up his principles for dough. Bryant Hall, then senior vice president of the pharmaceutical group, said it best, “We got a good deal.”

Democrats have rushed to the President’s defense claiming it’s just business as usual. Hold on just a minute. I seem to remember something about change. Beyond his general statements, Obama specifically attacked big pharma on the campaign trail stating:

The pharmaceutical industry wrote into the prescription drug plan that Medicare could not negotiate with drug companies. And you know what? The chairman of the committee who pushed the law through went to work for the pharmaceutical industry making $2 million a year. That’s an example of the same old game playing in Washington. You know, I don’t want to learn how to play the game better. I want to put an end to the game playing.

Yeah right bud. We now know that was just the sort of double talk we’ve come to expect from Obama. I hope when his head stops spinning it’s still facing forward, or ‘Million Dollar Mitt’ might beat him in November. Obama had better snap out of it before it’s too late. I really don’t want see how bad things can become in this country under another dunderheaded Republican–do you?

Source: http://republicans.energycommerce.house.gov/Media/file/PDFs/20120531ObamacareDeals.pdf