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Specter hints Kemp died of GOP agenda

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celticlord

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Specter hints Kemp died of GOP agenda - Washington Times

Sen. Arlen Specter, Pennsylvania Democrat, said part of the reason that he left the Republican Party last week was disillusionment with its health-care priorities, and suggested that had the Republicans taken a more moderate track, Jack Kemp may have won his battle with cancer.
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Such is the caliber of the man the Democrats wooed to champion their causes. Says a lot about the caliber of those who did the wooing--and none of it very good.
 
A lot of your kook leftists can't contain themselves from saying some pretty stupid things.
 
Sen. Arlen Specter, Pennsylvania Democrat, said part of the reason that he left the Republican Party last week was disillusionment with its health-care priorities, and suggested that had the Republicans taken a more moderate track, Jack Kemp may have won his battle with cancer.

Mr. Specter, responding to a question from CBS' Bob Schieffer over whether he had let down Pennsylvanians who wanted a Republican to represent them, said he thought his priorities were more in line with those of the Democrats.

"Well, I was sorry to disappoint many people. Frankly, I was disappointed that the Republican Party didn't want me as their candidate," Mr. Specter said on "Face the Nation." "But as a matter of principle, I'm becoming much more comfortable with the Democrats' approach. And one of the items that I'm working on, Bob, is funding for medical research."

Mr. Specter continued: "If we had pursued what President Nixon declared in 1970 as the war on cancer, we would have cured many strains. I think Jack Kemp would be alive today. And that research has saved or prolonged many lives, including mine."
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Specter hints Kemp died of GOP agenda - Washington Times

For all you folks saying the GOP needs more people like Specter... yeah, I think not.
 
I don't believe the kind of speculation in which Senator Specter engaged is very helpful to a substantive policy debate. Had the cancer research suggested by the Nixon Administration been more aggressively pursued, more progress would very likely have been achieved given the historical experience in the field of medicine. However, that is a very different argument from one's speculating that progress with respect to a specific case, namely Jack Kemp's case, would have been sufficient to preclude his untimely death. I suspect that Senator Specter was responding out of emotion in making his remark, but his remark risks politicizing an issue for which politicization can only undermine the development of a bipartisan consensus needed to pursue more aggressive funding of cancer research.
 
How effective is government funded research vs. privately funded research for cures? Anyone got any links on comparing the two?

Answering my own question!

Government funding for medical research amounts to approximately 36% in the U.S. The government funding proportion in certain industries is higher, and it dominates research in social science and humanities. Similarly, with some exceptions (e.g. biotechnology) government provides the bulk of the funds for basic scientific research. In commercial research and development, all but the most research-oriented corporations focus more heavily on near-term commercialisation possibilities than "blue-sky" ideas or technologies (such as nuclear fusion). One of the most famous exceptions is the innovation-favouring environment of the 1970s at Xerox Parc, where various ideas including the computer mouse were developed. Similarly, IBM's research into quantum computing has been going on for some years, and it will likely be some years more before it yields commercially available technology.
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[ame]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Research_funding[/ame]

And the answer is... not that much.

Government funded research is less then 40% of all research out there. Another instance of the myth Government and it's money solves all ills while the private sector holds things back.
 
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Specter's comment was over the top. The GOP agenda did not kill Kemp. The GOP agenda killed the elephant, which the Republican party then replaced with this:

logo_rhino.gif
 
donsutherland1 said:
I don't believe the kind of speculation in which Senator Specter engaged is very helpful to a substantive policy debate. Had the cancer research suggested by the Nixon Administration been more aggressively pursued, more progress would very likely have been achieved given the historical experience in the field of medicine. However, that is a very different argument from one's speculating that progress with respect to a specific case, namely Jack Kemp's case, would have been sufficient to preclude his untimely death. I suspect that Senator Specter was responding out of emotion in making his remark, but his remark risks politicizing an issue for which politicization can only undermine the development of a bipartisan consensus needed to pursue more aggressive funding of cancer research.
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What you're really saying is that Arlen Specter with his years of experience in politics played the fool, and should have known better. Furthermore he used Jack Kemp as an excuse for himself. The truth is Arlen Specter is a liberal, and belongs in the Democratic Party.
 
I find it so funny that so many Republicans who defended Joe Lieberman for going 'Independent' on Democrats for what was basically ONE issue(National Security) are now attacking Specter. When Lieberman did it he was standing up for what he believed in! When Specter does it. He's a rhino! a librul! I need a smoke.
 
Regardless of my disagreements with the Republican Party on health care, this was nothing more than a political ploy by Spector. I think it's disgusting that he would use Kemp's death to accentuate his politics. It also proves how little he knows about cancer research. My uncle was part of a Nobel Prize winning team on cancer research a bit more than a decade ago, and I've talked with him about this issue. Cancer is not that simple. The GOP didn't kill Jack Kemp. I may respect Spector for standing up for what he believes, but I don't respect him for this comment.
 
Arlen Specter is the epitome of what is often so hated about politicians and he has no shame, frightful combination.
 
Hatuey said:
I find it so funny that so many Republicans who defended Joe Lieberman for going 'Independent' on Democrats for what was basically ONE issue(National Security) are now attacking Specter. When Lieberman did it he was standing up for what he believed in! When Specter does it. He's a rhino! a librul! I need a smoke.
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Lieberman went independent for what he believed in or his core principles. Specter did it purely for political reasons much like this comment. He is playing the partisan game and Lieberman was not.

The 2 are not really comparable.
 
Hatuey said:
I find it so funny that so many Republicans who defended Joe Lieberman for going 'Independent' on Democrats for what was basically ONE issue(National Security) are now attacking Specter. When Lieberman did it he was standing up for what he believed in! When Specter does it. He's a rhino! a librul! I need a smoke.
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If I thought Specter did it with even an ounce of earnestness for a any issue or principal whatsoever other than his awareness that he can't possibly win as a Republican next time around I'd have no issue with him. But he'll basically be anyone's bitch just to stay relevant.
 
chevydriver1123 said:
Doesnt Specter know that Cancer is very hard to beat and people like him should know that he is one of the lucky few that do.
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It all depends on the type of cancer. There are quite a few different types of cancer which the majority of people survive(Prostate, Thyroid, Melanoma, etc.):

0000MK-377.jpg
 
I can't blame you for making this crap up, because every right wing media outlet is saying it. Specter did not say "the GOP killed Kemp". Here is the totality of what he did say:

If we had pursued what President Nixon declared in 1970 as the war on cancer, we would have cured many strains. I think Jack Kemp would be alive today. And that research has saved or prolonged many lives, including mine.
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Now, that seems like a true statement. What part of this actual quote do you disagree with?
 
You know, folks, this is a good example of the difference between partisanship and integrity. I think Blackdog nailed it. Lieberman did what he did on principle. Spector for political gain. Lieberman seems to care about the issue. Spector seems to care about winning.
 
WillRockwell said:
I can't blame you for making this crap up, because every right wing media outlet is saying it. Specter did not say "the GOP killed Kemp". Here is the totality of what he did say:



Now, that seems like a true statement. What part of this actual quote do you disagree with?
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It's not the quote. It's the implication of the quote.
 
WillRockwell said:
I can't blame you for making this crap up, because every right wing media outlet is saying it. Specter did not say "the GOP killed Kemp". Here is the totality of what he did say:



Now, that seems like a true statement. What part of this actual quote do you disagree with?
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I disagree because cancer research has never stopped. It has not even lightened up. We have made a great deal of progress in the area. The problem with a cure is the many types of cancer.

His statement is political hackery at it's best.
 
EgoffTib said:
The OP seems to imply that the GOP agenda involved letting people with cancer die. The actual quote clears up a lot.
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I agree that based on the actual quote, the OP is inaccurate. However, this does not alter the obvious intent of Spector bringing Jack Kemp's name into this. As Blackdog said, it's partisan hackery. Cancer research has certainly progressed. We have much better treatments for things like prostate and cervical cancers, and I know of several women who had breast cancer and have lived 10+ years without a reaccurrance. His comment was for political gain.
 
CaptainCourtesy said:
It's not the quote. It's the implication of the quote.
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I disagree with you a little bit, but I have to post this response in 2 parts.

1) What he said is much different than what is being portrayed by the GOP. This is an excellent example of why the Republican party comes off these days as a bunch of used car salesmen who constantly misrepresent what they are selling.

2) However, there can be no doubt that Specter made that statement for political purposes, and that his own political compass is broken.

So my answer now to the OP is that Specter is right, but he is also wrong. Huh???? LOL.
 
CaptainCourtesy said:
I agree that based on the actual quote, the OP is inaccurate. However, this does not alter the obvious intent of Spector bringing Jack Kemp's name into this. As Blackdog said, it's partisan hackery. Cancer research has certainly progressed. We have much better treatments for things like prostate and cervical cancers, and I know of several women who had breast cancer and have lived 10+ years without a reaccurrance. His comment was for political gain.
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I concur. The OP, at least to me, made it sound like some sort of conspiracy about the secret GOP agenda and cancer. The quote sounds nothing like that. It does, as you have said, sound as though he was just taking a shot at the Republicans.
 
Wait a minute. Left, right, libertarian, ALL AGREE?!!! I sense a rip in the space-time continuum occurring momentarily. Anyone needing to be saved, my time displacement device is fitted with a Temporal Containment Envelope (TCE). Should keep us safe for several hundred years.
 
Hatuey said:
I find it so funny that so many Republicans who defended Joe Lieberman for going 'Independent' on Democrats for what was basically ONE issue(National Security) are now attacking Specter. When Lieberman did it he was standing up for what he believed in! When Specter does it. He's a rhino! a librul! I need a smoke.
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Liberman got ran out of the party.

Specter left because his poll numbers suddenly went into the toilet.

Apples, oranges.
 
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