As health reform moves to a vote, Republicans suddenly want to help Democrats
Posted on March 16th, 2010 by Jason Rosenbaum in Profits Before People
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It's amazing what happens when it looks like you have the votes to pass a bill. Suddenly your enemies are your best friends!
Republicans of all stripes are coming out of the woodwork to give Democrats free advice on how to vote on health reform. Most of that advice says vote no, of course.
To take a definitive example, here's John Boehner and Mitch McConnell in the Wall Street Journal:
A little over a year ago, when President Obama first took up health-care reform, Republicans reached out to him in the hopes of working together on solutions that would lower health-care costs for families and small businesses. A bipartisan bill focused on lower costs could have been sent to the president's desk last year, and it would have received the support of the American people.
This is coming from the same John Boehner who, back in June, before the legislation's basic shape had been set, couldn't find a Republican yes vote for health reform. And the same Mitch McConnell that kept a deal out of the one place a (bad) bipartisan deal might have occurred - the "gang of six."
Mike Madden in Salon points out a few other glaring examples and states the obvious:
"From the day this passes, if it should, there will be an instant spontaneous campaign to repeal it all across the country," Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., the third-ranking GOP Senate leader, told CBS News' "Face the Nation" on Sunday. "It will define every Democratic congressional race in November, and it will be a political wipeout for the Democratic Party." Alexander isn't the only one warning Democrats about their future; the entire Senate GOP leadership is getting into the act. "House Democrats will have to decide whether they want to trust the Senate to fix their political problems," Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., told reporters last week. "I think their problems are just beginning," Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., said at a different briefing last week. Karl Rove, whose master plan for the 2006 midterm elections didn't exactly help the Bush White House, weighed in on Fox News Channel's "Fox News Sunday." " [President Obama] passes this thing, I think they lose the House of Representatives this fall," Rove said. Even Republican National Committee chairman Michael Steele is offering advice to Democrats. "Looking at the reconciliation fight that may loom ahead of us, it certainly will have represented a 'death panel' for the Democrats this fall," he said last month (bringing that extra rhetorical zest that only Steele can).
Of course, it should go without saying that when Republicans start chirping up with unsolicited suggestions for how Democrats can improve their political fortunes, Democrats would be wise to consider the source. The GOP isn't interested in helping Democrats avoid defeat this fall. This is so obvious that even typing it is hard to do without laughing, but just in case, here goes: Republicans want Democrats to lose in November's elections, early and often, if possible.
The reality of public opinion on health reform is very different from what Republicans make it out to be. Americans are closely divided on the bills in Congress, and support greatly improves when they learn what's in the bill.
As Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi told me yesterday:
If we don't' pass the bill, how do you explain that to Americans? There is incredibly urgency in cost and the health and well-being of American, and yet we as Democrats, with two Houses [of Congress] and White House, couldn't make the historic decision to go forward?
The same forces that are aligned against Medicare are against this bill. This is what what they believe. I'll give them credit for staying true to their beliefs - they don't believe in health care for all Americans and a government role in that. The budget that they have [Rep. Paul Ryan's budget] privatizes social security, offers vouchers instead of medicare, and gives block grants to states instead of Medicaid. That is what they believe.
We want to take it to the American people and say, "This is the choice you have. This is their vision, and this is ours." [The Democratic members of the House] are strong enough and courageous enough to take that message out there.
Republicans have no intention of easing up on any Democrat that votes against health reform. Instead, Democrats need to confront the Republican opposition head on. Republicans still have no plan to make good health care available and affordable to the American people, while overwhelming majorities of Americans want large changes to our health care system.
Democrats should keep that in mind before heeding their "advice."
Don't you get it???? The Republicans have NO interests in what the American people need. The Republicans have delayed and delayed this bill as long as they could so that it would take longer to implement the health reforms and they are hoping that nothing significant get implemented until after mid-term elections and after all their lies and misinformation they will have a better chance of regaining seats in both the House and the Senate. I wish the Democrats would have pass this bill before the August recess and before special interests groups like Freedom Works wouldn't have an opportunity to rally their teams of protests against the bill.
I hope that we can get this pass soon and I wish that the Public Option be included eventually which would finally gives some real competition to the insurance companies.
Don't you get it???? It's not that Republicans don't want healthcare, they DO NOT want a government TAKE OVER of healthcare. The government SUCKS at everything except the military. Let's look at some great examples of government run efficiency and success: Medicare (Broke), Social Security (Broke), Post Office (Broke), Schools (Poor performing),TARP (fraudulent), Fannie Mae (Broke), Freddie Mack (Broke), USA - 12 TRILLION dollars in debt!!!!!
NOW, do you get it!!
And if health reform were a government takeover of anything, maybe it would be worth debating the point. But it's not, so it's not.
Maybe I should add…Medicare and SS?? Why don't you bark that to millions of Americans and seniors that they should give those up?! Post Office?? Tell that to the Americans, and especially to the rural ones, who were glad that mails delivered to them everyday!! TARP?! Just like many Americans, I'm so glad that recession was stopped right on time. It could have been worst!! Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac?? Those are still there and still assist millions of millions of homeowners and buyers. 'just need more improvements and need less of those who're barking.
…schools?? Well, yeah I think we really failed that one!! You are here and barking like an insurance dog and misrepresenting facts is the testimony of that failure. Maybe now that you know you should go to another country and get yourself more proper educations! Americans need less of the ones like you and more of the ones who can help them to have control over their health care!!!
Just a little reality check. The post office is the best argument FOR government intervention you could ask for. For less than 50 cents, a half of a dollar, you can have a letter sent from a small town on the West Coast to a small town on the East Coast. I've had letter that were wildly mis-addressed arrive in my box, because some postal employee figured it out. Yeah, if you live in a big city, and the PO is DRASTICLY understaffed so you have long lines, and a bunch of assholes blaming the employees for the long lines make the clerks get surly (and who can blame them) but here in the country (Where the REAL Murricans live) the PO is nothing but good.
Benjamin Franklin Health Care Compromise
In his autobiography, Benjamin Franklin tells how Dr. Thomas Bond approached him to ask his assistance in raising money to build a hospital in Philadelphia, the first in America. Franklin, then a member of the Pennsylvania Assembly, sought financial assistance from the Assembly. When he met with resistance over the cost he drafted a bill with a contingency such that when the supporters raised 2000 pounds through private subscription that the Assembly would then pay 2000 pounds, in effect a 50/50 matching grant. Naysayers thought that they would never raise enough by private contributions but they did and the hospital was built.
Here may be a solution here to at least the financial element of the current health care legislation debate- calculate the annual cost, raise support by voluntary contributions, and when half the money is raised fund the rest. The cost to taxpayers would be much less and support for the programs would be clearly demonstrated.
The current problem is more complicated than this but with respect to funding this approach might be a good compromise and a fitting tribute to a great conciliator and the founders of America’s first hospital.
Pro-Reformers check out this intersting link and call your Reps on the fence now!
http://energycommerce.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1924:benefits-of-health-care-reform-district-by-district-impact&catid=169:legislation&Itemid=55
One of the first rules of playing pool is: NEVER take advice from your opponent. When Nader asked his dad about the chances for a third party ion the US, his dad replied that first we need a second party.
This is what I think "progressives" in the US don't get.
We don't have 2 parties here, we have one corporatist party. The two wings of it differ only in that the Dems program is to toss the proles any crumbs from the table that no one wants anyway, and the Repugs insist on sending it all to the landfill.