Anyone get this headline from Yahoo! news?

[mr_binklesworth]

"Bush Blames 'Junk Lawsuits' for Job Woes"

Here's the link:
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20040907/ap_on_el_pr/campaign_rdp&cid=694&ncid=1963&sid=96378798

I'm quite sure this is a somewhat indirect attack at Kerry by attacking trial lawyers, but is there any sort of credibility to this charge? This sounds bloody preposterous.

You think Bush has evidence backing up the charge that lawsuits are to blame for the slow job creation?

Un-freaking-believable.

[truthspeaker]

1. Since when does Bush back up any statement with evidence?

Lack of credibility has never stopped him before.

[gatorboy]

3. Aint that the truth.

"It's true, cause I said so..."

[volosong]

21. L.O.L....JUNK PREZ RESPONSIBLE FOR JOB LOSSES

[cheshire]

2. WTF? He would confuse to opposing issues. What a moron.

[rpannier]

4. Bush blames everyone but...

himself.

[Tim_in_HK]

5. Short answer NO

Long answer: Bush is a fucking idiot

[LuminousX]

6. Just like Tax Cuts were the ultimate cure

'Trial Lawyers' are the ultimate disease. Everything that is wrong will be blamed on Trial Lawyers.

[Poiuyt]

7. Just like attacking lawsuits against perverted OBGYNs who

want to spread their love. Bush is attacking all trial lawyers because Kerry and Edwards were both lawyers. Maybe Kerry should start attacking failed businessmen.

[rkc3]

8. Spilling coffee on your lap and suing McDonald's for burns is a junk suit.

When your 6 year old daughter gets disemboweled by a swimming pool filter - that no one warned you about or could have been prevented by adding a $6.00 part to the filter system - then a punitive lawsuit is proper.

Personal responsbility does not mean "no responsibility for corporations".

Why doesn't someone point that out to this jackass.

[GaryL]

10. Bogus

That McDonald's story is has become urban legend. McDonald's had been warned repeatedly to lower the coffee temperature to less than that which produces serious burns. They refused and the woman in the case suffered serious scarring due to extensive burns from the coffee. She sued to recover medical costs only and was awarded huge punitive damages because the court was so appalled by the negligence McDonald's exhibited. The award was later reduced on appeal to the original request of medical costs for the plaintiff. Nothing junk about it. In fact, "junk" lawsuits are a another pug lie. Most frivolous lawsuits get thrown out by the judge, unless of course they're from a huge corporation trying to head off a potential lawsuit by suing the victim/plaintiff first.

[theblasmo]

11. Not Quite Junk

The third degree burns the woman suffered over 20% of her body as a result of being handed a scalding hot cup of coffee with a bad lid have left her unable to function sexually or go the bathroom without intense pain, along with extensive skin grafts. She originally only asked for McD's to pay the hospital bills, which she should have gotten, from a legal standpoint. They refused. However, juries are usually very sympathetic to the individual in these cases, and they awarded her an enourmous amount of money, several million, to be not very exact. As is usual with these amounts, which are supposed to hurt the giant mega-conglomerate, the appeals court dropped the damages to just over the amount for the hospital bills, which, again, they owed her. Rarely do corporations pay the huge settlements juries award them. The judge in the Appeals Court almost always knocks the amount down to a pittance. Sure, there's junk out there, but this was not one of them. Hearing Tucker Carlson talk about the swimming pool lawsuit as though it was just another ambulance chaser case made me ill.

[JohnnyRingo]

14. Actually, there was more to the spilled coffee suit than the average....

...person is aware.
The case was set up as "silly" by those seeking caps on injury suits by the common man.

McDonalds could have averted legal action by agreeing to turn down the temp and paying the old woman's medical bill. (3nd degree burns over 30% of her body requiring skin grafts).

It was a JURY that decided the amount of the settlement after hearing the evidence.

The industry has perpetuated it as the perfect "junk lawsuit", but one has to ask "Would YOU sue over burns requiring skin grafts...or just let it go and pay the bills yourself"?

http://lawandhelp.com/q298-2.htm
http://www.vanfirm.com/mcdonalds-coffee-lawsuit.htm

I didn't intend to berate you on this, but the misinformation about this case, and tort reform in general, is a pet peeve of mine.

[rkc3]

17. Maybe I should have used other suits such as:

the two girls who attempted to sue McDonald's for making them fat.

Or even my lawsuit against Coors for lowering my college GPA and never once having sex with girls who looked like those on the posters they handed out with your cold case. My future income potential (as well as my former sex life) was negatively impacted as a result of drinking beer in college.

[JohnnyRingo]

20. That is a better example....

...The key word, however is "attempted".
It never went to jury, as well it shouldn't have....If the legal system isn't broke, don't fix it.

If you bring suit against Coors..YOU will be resposible for your legal bills as no jury will ever hear the case.

[Protected]

9. Bush keeps talking as if he wants to remove the legal system

from this country. I think the next thing we'll hear is that the terrorists don't just "hate us for our freedom," but they also hate us because of our trial lawyers.

[apnu]

18. Sure he wants to remove the legal system...

... now that he's done using it to get him in office.

Just like a fucking republican eh? Gimme, gimme, gimme, and when there's no more -- remove, remove, remove.

And they say the word "competition" like they understand it. They want competition only when they are the winners, but God forbid they are challenged by someone! This is one of the things that ticks me off the most about Republicans. They are all Newt-style cry babies!

:puke: hypocrites

[democratreformed]

12. That's the biggest bunch of BS I've seen from him in a long time.

BS! BS! BS!

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

13. Business litigation is the number one burden of the court system

and it's mostly corporations suing other corporations. At least that's what my professors in law school used to tell me years ago. I don't know if it still holds true, but I would image that there are far more breaches of contract than there are medical malpractice torts committed.

[elehhhhna]

15. You are correct.

[spooky3]

16. Dear JKerry: Please turn Edwards loose to respond to this BS.

[Libby2]

19. I'm with you !

Great idea.