The information and documents being sought include everything on the use of taxpayer dollars by HHS for ObamaCare “public relations” contracts, advertising, polling, “message testing,” and similar schemes. Estimates suggest somewhere around $50 million in public money – possibly much more – has already been spent on propaganda propping up the health-care scheme in the public arena.
As the Obama administration spends tens of millions in taxpayer money on unconstitutional “public relations” contracts promoting its “ObamaCare” takeover of U.S. health care, lawmakers have been unsuccessfully demanding answers for months. If documents are not handed over soon, however, Congress may have to issue subpoenas.
Lawmakers first tried to get answers about the controversial schemes — critics say PR is just a nice term for propaganda gimmicks — back in May, sending a letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. The deadline to hand over information, June 1, came and went. The department never responded.
A follow up letter was sent to Sebelius on August 1, and again, HHS never turned over the material. Instead, it continually promised that the documents would be produced soon. They never were. Now, House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp (R-Mich., left of House seal, above) and Oversight Subcommittee Chairman Charles Boustany (R-La., right of House seal, above) appear to be running out of patience.
“The department’s failure to provide a single responsive document to the Committee’s reasonable requests leaves only two possibilities: either the department is unable to keep track of the work products it buys with taxpayer dollars or the department is trying to delay any response until after this year’s election,” the two Republicans wrote in a letter to Sebelius last week. “Neither explanation is acceptable.”
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