(Continued from page 19)

ers.
• The demarcation may be as simple as Democrat and Republican.
• Newly released federal figures show more people are picking private insurance plans or being routed to Medicaid programs in states with Democratic leaders who have fully embraced the federal health care law than in states where Republican elected officials have derisively rejected what they call "Obamacare."
• On one side of the political divide are a dozen mostly Democratic leaning states, including California, Minnesota and New York. They have both expanded Medicaid for lower-income adults and started their own health insurance exchanges for people to shop for federally subsidized private insurance.
• On the other side are two dozen conservative states, such as Texas, Florida and Missouri. They have both rejected the Medicaid expansion and refused any role in running an online insurance exchange, leaving that entirely to the federal government.
• ___

• BANGKOK (AP) -- Since being ousted as Thailand's prime minister in a 2006 military coup, Thaksin Shinawatra has been a very busy man. The billionaire bought and sold England's Manchester City football club, acquired a titanium mine in Zimbabwe, started a lottery in Uganda and acquired a Nicaraguan passport. He met with Vladimir Putin and Nelson Mandela.
• But most of all, opponents say, he has been busy running Thailand from afar, pressing to return to power through schemes that have widened the country's already dangerous political rifts and led to bloodshed on the streets.
• His latest attempt to erase a 2008 corruption conviction and come home a free man was a gross miscalculation, igniting massive demonstrations in Bangkok against his sister, Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra. His return now seems unlikely, but analysts say his wealth, powerful allies and a devoted following among the rural masses mean he will continue to exert significant influence.
• And the 64-year-old Thaksin will probably remain the most divisive figure in modern Thai history, demonized by the middle class and urban elites as a cocky, corrupt upstart who challenged the traditional power structure, including the monarchy, and adored as a near-saint by have-nots for providing them with handouts and a sense of empowerment.
• "He bought everything in this country. He would even buy your soul," business

(Continued on page 21)