Barr condemns ‘socialized’ re-insurance; demands executive accountability

In a pair of press releases issued today, Libertarian presidential hopeful Bob Barr condemns a plan to subsidize insurance for natural-disaster prone areas and sticks up for former White House spokesman Scott McClellan in calling for an accountable executive branch.

Both press releases appear in their entirety below.

Bob Barr Criticizes Plan to Bail Out Insurance Industry

Atlanta, GA — Congress should not socialize insurance for natural disasters, warns Bob Barr, the Libertarian Party nominee for president. “With a growing budget deficit and massive unfunded future liabilities, we must cut, not increase, federal expenditures,” he insists.

The House has passed and the Senate is considering legislation for the federal government to provide “reinsurance” in all fifty states to subsidize large insurers in the event of a natural disaster, such as a hurricane. “It comes as no surprise that some of America’s biggest insurers are lobbying for this legislation, which would enrich their bottom lines if they had to pay out under their policies,” observes Barr.

The bill, supported by both Democratic presidential contenders, also would lower premiums for people who choose to live in disaster-prone areas, encouraging even more growth. This subsidy program, says Barr, “would be a triple play against the American people: taking their money to bail out big corporations, subsidize home owners who want to live on the beach, and promote even more damage to environmentally sensitive areas.” After years of spending wildly under Democrats and Republicans alike, Congress must say no to special interest bail-outs.

Barr represented the 7th District of Georgia in the U. S. House of Representatives from 1995 to 2003, where he served as a senior member of the Judiciary Committee, as Vice-Chairman of the Government Reform Committee, and as a member of the Committee on Financial Services. Prior to his congressional career, Barr was appointed by President Reagan to serve as the United States Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia, and also served as an official with the CIA.

Since leaving Congress, Barr has been practicing law and has teamed up with groups ranging from the American Civil Liberties Union to the American Conservative Union to actively advocate every American citizens’ right to privacy and other civil liberties guaranteed in the Bill of Rights. Along with this, Bob is committed to helping elect leaders who will strive for smaller government, lower taxes and abundant individual freedom.

Barr Says Limit Government to Make Executive Accountable

McClellan Confirms Bush Administration Resembled Clinton Administration in Lack of Accountability

Atlanta, GA — The revelation that the Bush administration engaged in a sustained “political propaganda campaign” to mislead the American people over Iraq demonstrates the need for real change in Washington, observes Bob Barr, the Libertarian Party candidate for president. “We need a president who cares more about protecting the people’s liberty than in getting reelected,” he says.

Barr points to Scott McClellan’s observation that the Bush presidency “wandered and remained so far off course by excessively embracing the permanent campaign and its tactics.” The Clinton administration was little different, notes Barr, who served as one of the House impeachment managers in Bill Clinton’s case. Neither party can be trusted to protect the people’s liberties.

Thus, all of us, from the Congress to the public, “has a responsibility to hold the president accountable for his actions,” says Barr. But “it is not enough to talk about change,” he insists. Policy must change too, particularly “the relentless bipartisan effort to expand government control and power,” Barr explains. We must adopt “a policy of limited government and fiscal responsibility at home and peace and nonintervention abroad.” That is the only sure way to safeguard the liberties of Americans.

Barr represented the 7th District of Georgia in the U. S. House of Representatives from 1995 to 2003, where he served as a senior member of the Judiciary Committee, as Vice-Chairman of the Government Reform Committee, and as a member of the Committee on Financial Services. Prior to his congressional career, Barr was appointed by President Reagan to serve as the United States Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia, and also served as an official with the CIA.

Since leaving Congress, Barr has been practicing law and has teamed up with groups ranging from the American Civil Liberties Union to the American Conservative Union to actively advocate every American citizens’ right to privacy and other civil liberties guaranteed in the Bill of Rights. Along with this, Bob is committed to helping elect leaders who will strive for smaller government, lower taxes and abundant individual freedom.