Monday, October 08, 2007

Poster Child of Democratic Radio Address not so poor after all...

How would you like to qualify for SCHIP and attend this exclusive private school?


Graeme Frost, the 12-year old chosen by congressional Democrats to give their radio address and rebuke Bush for not expanding the SCHIP child health care program does not fit the profile of a child in need.
In fact, The Free Republic investigated the story and discovered that the boy and his brother attend an exlusive private school in Baltimore that costs $20,000 per pupil a year in tuition. The photos of the school's athletic center and performing arts center above demonstrate the exclusivity of this highly-selective school.
The Frost family also claim that they are raising their children on a combined income of $45,000 a year, but neglect to mention that in addition to Mr. Frost's carpentry job and Mrs. Frost's work for a medical publishing firm, Mr. Frost also runs his own business and owns a substantial piece of commercial property in Baltimore. Incidentally, the Frosts themselves live in a 3,000 sq. ft. home in a neighborhood where the average home is valued at between $400,000 and $500,000 dollars.

Between paying $40,000 to send their children to an exclusive private school, working two jobs, owning a business, driving a gas-guzzling GMC Suburban, owning a 3,000 sq. ft home, and owning commercial real estate in Baltimore and possibly earning income from renting out property, one would think the Frosts could cut back somewhere to provide health insurance for their children. Could they consciously be choosing not to provide their children with health insurance?

Democratic efforts to re-package SCHIP as a safety net for the working poor and not an expansion of government-run healthcare to the middle class seem to have backfired. Do they want to make it that easy for opponents to say "Democrats want to use your tax dollars to fund health care for middle-class families who don't want to spend their own income on their own children"?

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