Bribery we can believe in

As the Sunday deadline for passing ObamaCare swiftly approaches, Nancy Pelosi and Barack Obama are desperately doing whatever they can to convince fence-sitting Democrats. They'll stop at nothing at this point, including bribery. We already saw how effective political kickbacks can be in the Senate, where Ben Nelson was bought off with full Medicaid funding for his state. Now special dealmaking has come to the House. Here are just a few of the bribes that have been dangled in front of jittery Blue Dogs' noses.

Rep. Bart Gordon: Gordon is retiring and word on Capitol Hill yesterday was that Obama had offered him the job of NASA administrator if he voted for the bill. Gordon has served on the House Committee on Technology and Science, but otherwise has absolutely no scientific experience whatsoever. Meanwhile a provision was inserted in the reconciliation package that gives higher Medicaid funding to Tennessee hospitals that treated uninsured patients. Gordon flipped from no to yes yesterday.

Rep. John Tanner: Another retiring Tennessean, word has it that Tanner was offered the position of U.S. Ambassador to NATO. Tanner served on the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, but otherwise has no foreign policy experience. The deal for Tennessee hospitals likely played a role in Tanner's switch from no to yes as well.

Rep. Suzanne Kosmas: Kosmas met with Obama at the White House last Thursday and reportedly sought out her own deal. Talking with the president, she kept switching the conversation to NASA. Kosmas, a Floridian, represents the Kennedy Space Center and is unhappy that the president's budget is "only" providing KSC with $19 billion next year. Kosmas has yet to make up her mind, but it wouldn't be surprising if she voted yes after Obama guaranteed more generous funding.

Rep. Jim Matheson: Matheson was summoned to the White House earlier this month to meet with the president about ObamaCare. Mere hours before the appointment, Obama announced that he was nominating Matheson's brother, Scott, to the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals. The bribe doesn't seem to have worked; it triggered a public outcry and Matheson is still undecided.

Meanwhile several other congressmen have been wooed by the president with abject lies. Rep. Dennis Kucinich, who opposed the bill from the left, was convinced by the president's stories about Natoma Canfield. We now know that these stories were a lie and that Canfield likely qualifies for Medicaid, among a dozen other options. The optimistic CBO report, which fails to take into account the bill's accounting trickery, may also sway some votes.

Obama's latest health care sob story a lie

In his final push for health care reform, Obama has been turning to Natoma Canfield, a leukemia-stricken woman in Ohio who watched her insurance premiums skyrocket. Here's video of the president's speech in Ohio yesterday. Skip to 4:45 to hear Natoma's predicament.

It's a genuinely sad tale, but it's also not the entire story. Fox News checked with Cleveland Clinic, the medical center treating Canfield. A spokesman said that Canfield wouldn't be left out on the streets because of her leukemia. In fact, she was likely eligible for a host of options, including Medicaid and charity.

Lyman Sornberger, executive director of patient financial services at the Cleveland Clinic, said "all indications" at the outset are that she will be considered for assistance.

"She may be eligible for state Medicaid ... and/or she will be eligible for charity (care) of some form or type. ... In my personal opinion, she will be eligible for something," he said, adding that Canfield should not be worried about losing her home.

"Cleveland Clinic will not put a lien on her home," he said.

Obama lied about Canfield losing her home, but he also lied when he made her out to be helpless. Ohio has fairly generous Medicaid requirements for low-income individuals. We can't be sure how much money Canfield makes or has made, but she likely qualifies for something. Lack of knowledge about Medicaid eligibility is a serious problem plaguing the health care system. According to the Independent Institute, of the 47 million people who allegedly don't have health insurance, around 10 million qualify for Medicaid assistance and don't know it. Medicaid was established for the express purpose of helping low-income American afford health care. Obama could have pointed this out to Canfield. Instead he chose to use her condition for his own political purpose to promote health care reform.