Moments after gunman Adam Lanza's mass murder of 26 people—including 20 children—at Sandy Hook Elementary last week, President Barack Obama called on the nation's leaders to set politics aside and take “meaningful action” to prevent future tragedies like the one in Newtown, Conn.
In less than a week's time, those efforts are taking shape in Washington as some lawmakers have made a connection between the nation's recent spate of shooting sprees and the need for stronger mental healthcare services—and adequate federal funding for those services—in America.
Two days after the massacre, Sen. Joseph Lieberman (I-Conn.) appeared on “Fox News Sunday” calling for a federal commission on mass violence. “It's like the slogan we use in Homeland Security: 'See something; say something,'” Lieberman said. “If you see a younger person that really looks like they are really troublesome, get them mental health help,” he continued. “Is there enough mental health help available for these kids?”
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The charge that AARP's lobbying is driven primarily by the profits it derives from its Medigap insurance plans, which supplement standard Medicare coverage, has been a staple of congressional Republicans since the seniors group threw its considerable weight behind passage of Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.
Now some high-ranking Democrats are joining in the attack. Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) blasted the powerful seniors' group Tuesday for basing its Washington lobbying priorities on its financial profits. The chairman of the Finance Committee's Health Subcommittee accused the 20-million strong seniors group of failing to back congressional Democrats' efforts to block Medicaid changes as part of a major year-end debt deal.
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