Government is grinding to a halt. And that is a good thing. We are having spirited, nuanced debates about what is or is not good for this country. And that is a good thing. And in the end, we will probably do nothing. And that is a good thing. There are, at my count, one hundred and two references to no or not in the United States Constitution. It is a document that speaks first and most to all the things government should not, must not, and cannot do. It is a document intended to limit the power of government and its actions. It is intended to slow heavy handed interference in the lives of the American people. The father of the Constitution, James Madison, said of Congress “Ambition must be made to counteract ambition.”
So when Republicans, moderates and independents stand up and say NO to unpopular ideas that kill jobs, redistribute income to buy votes, corrupt the census, and abandon international friends because they like America, it’s a genuine American tradition that’s being followed. Its Progressives and Leftist radicals who are foundering out beyond the bounds of what it is to be American.
The American people do not want, and moderate Democrat House members are not likely to sacrifice themselves on the alter of, government run health care. Likewise, the American people DO agree on medical malpractice reform, interstate insurance options, letting individual states create health reform laboratories and decide what works best for THEM, and health savings accounts. Unfortunately, the Democrats are not about to let such reforms harm their beloved special interest groups like trial lawyers and federal employee unions.
When the Premier (think Governor) of Newfoundland, Danny Williams, came to Florida for a “routine procedure”, the difference between the two health care systems was laid bare. Williams was forced to choose between a sternotomy which would have broken bones and laid him up for weeks, or getting the minimally invasive procedure done in America and getting right back to work. The procedure required an incision under his arm, and he was up and about the next day. What’s worse, is if Williams HAD had the operation done in Canada, he would have been roundly criticized for “jumping the queue”.
That’s socialized medicine ladies and gentlemen. Archaic surgery practices, barbaric morality, and unprincipled envy. Once you have it, no one can decide what operation is “best” for them, unless everyone else can get it too.
You see folks, that’s what it’s all about. Most people in America can get health care when they need it, and more importantly when they WANT it. But Progressive don’t like that. So, their answer is… EVERYONE waits in line. The “spreading misery equally” principle.
Want to pay more for your health care? Obama will take care of that for you.
This after pledging to lower everyone’s health care by $2500 a year.
Want to lose the health care you have? Obama will take care of that for you too, and tell you it’s for your own good.
The Health Care summit didn’t change any moderate minds. The five vote margin in the House is gone for Democrats. Murtha, the arrogant, thieving pig, is dead and four other Yes votes are retiring or moving to other political ground. The only Republican “yes” is now also a no.
So what we have is… failure to communicate. Some men you just can’t reach. So you get what we had here last week. Which is the way he (Obama) wants it. Well, he gets it.
Super article… Keep it up!
I love how conservatives point to the concept of “limited government” that supposedly appears in the Constitution, and when they apply that concept, they almost ALWAYS apply it solely to Congress. Yet, if the Constitution limits the power of any aspect of government, it’s the power of the Executive. The Founders were keenly aware of this, coming out from under the thumb of British rule. But these same conservatives have been virtually silent as more and more power has been vested in the President over the past couple decades (and most strikingly during the Dubya administration). So conservatives are quite inconsistent when it comes to the application of limited government. That is, unless a Democrat is President….and Democrats control Congress.
On top of that, most conservatives were earily silent during the period 2000-2006 as a Republican-led Congress led us from budget surplus to staggering deficit. So much for limited government.
But lets talk about Congress for just a moment; the Constitution states “The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States” The high court has interpreted that as a VERY broad power indeed. In fact, it’s been over 70 years since the high court found a spending provision of Congress to be unconstitutional. Providing for the “general welfare” has been interpreted very broadly by the court…it has concluded that the Founders intended to vest Congress with quite a bit of power when making determinations about the “general welfare” of the country. Some conservatives have expressed certainty that a healthcare insurance mandate will be declared unconstitutional…never gonna happen.
“That’s socialized medicine ladies and gentlemen. Archaic surgery practices, barbaric morality, and unprincipled envy. Once you have it, no one can decide what operation is “best” for them, unless everyone else can get it too.”
This is #7 on my list of “You know when you are a Republican when . . . ”
In this case, its “You know you are a Republican when subsidizing health care is socialist, but subsidizing corporations that provide health care is perfectly reasonable.”
Corporate America . . . socializing risk and privatizing profit since 1980.
Whew, and I thought I had already read the worst non sequiturs. Add that one to my list. Imagine, tax breaks to an entity providing thousands of tax paying jobs… and that leads to health care? Wait, the government gave you a subsidy to buy your car, which you use to get to your health care… why not just buy your health care for you too? Follow the logic?
Real Americans want Real reform. The declining minority Republican party is not “real” Americans.They are “some” Americans.The only way that Republicans can keep believing “that Government doesn’t work” , is by doing everything in their power to “Break” it.
A batch of state polls by the non-partisan Research 2000 shows that in multiple states represented by key Dem Senators who will have to decide whether to support reconciliation, the public option polls far better than the Senate bill does, often by lopsided margins.
Here’s a rundown, sent over by the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, which commissioned the polls:
* In Nevada, only 34% support the Senate bill, while 56% support the public option.
* In Illinois, only 37% support the Senate bill, while 68% support the public option.
* In Washington State, only 38% support the Senate bill, while 65% support the public option.
* In Missouri, only 33% support the Senate bill, while 57% support the public option.
* In Virginia, only 36% support the Senate bill, while 61% support the public option.
* In Iowa, only 35% support the Senate bill, while 62% support the public option.
*In Minnesota, only 35% support the Senate bill, while 62% support the public option.
* In Colorado, only 32% support the Senate bill, while 58% support the public option.
“Imagine, tax breaks to an entity providing thousands of tax paying jobs”
You got it now! According to the NEJM, “Between 1969 and 1999, the share of the U.S. health care labor force accounted for by administrative workers grew from 18.2 percent to 27.3 percent.”
Good thing all those administrators (not to mention managers and CEOs) are out there watching out for our health! With administrative spending for health care higher than virtually any other OECD country, we must be getting better everyday.
BTW, the car analogy doesn’t work so well. The government did not “give me” a subsidy to buy a car to promote availability or affordability of heath care. This is exactly the logic that is given, however, in terms of the subsidization of corporate health care providers. Nice try though.
*You can read Healthcare 101…because this argument was way too partisan rhetoric. But as they say…even a broken clock is right twice a day.
How about this? Health Saving Accounts for Small Businesses. These Small Businesses then creat their own “Self Insured” Cooperative with say 10 of their closest competitors and have the Government give them the tax write off for creating and maintaining Health Insurance for their employees?