Conservative House Dems Coming Around On Health Care Reform?

Primary Kucinich and Massa!! What's that? It's OK to oppose and vote against the Democrats signature issue as long as you do so from the left?

Kucinich has voted with the Republicans on every major issue this year, just like those Blue Dogs. Yet he remains a "darling" of the nutroots because he spouts a bunch of firery rhetorich. He's as worthless as Walt Minnick and Bobby Bright.

Circular firing squads are dumb.

Who cares about the House? Clearly its the House of Lords, er I mean "Senate", that holds all the cards in the debate.

The Reo-Cons are cranking up a 'repeal health care reform' cry to use in November. And, because of it, Blue Dog Dems - who are listening - are going to be scarred to support any Democratic bill. Here's why.

It's a matter both of expectations and of reality. Let's be frank about this. With this bill, the Democrats have guaranteed that $2,000 of every $10,000 paid in health insurance premiums can be used by the insurers for non-health care, non-value-added activities, such as lobbying, fighting patient claims, profits, bonuses and CEO salaries.

Health Reform, as crafted, is plainly and simply another form of corporate bailout, similar to the financial bailout, where tax payer dollars are used to continue the shift of wealth from citizens (real, in-the-flesh ones) to corporations (paper, fat cat ones). It is a Democratic theme, certainly a theme of this administration, to shift taxpayer money to corporations through government schemes of one kind or another.

Republicans favor corporations, too, but the pubic expects the Republicans to favor the rich over the working class; after all, it's their mantra. But, because voters expect the Democrats to speak and act for them, the Democrats are going to be harmed in the election by the charge (accurately leveled) of hypocrisy.

The nation expected more of the Democrats; the nation expected a party that put the interests of the citizens (the real ones) ahead of the paper ones.

With the TeaBaggers (disguised Republicans) offering a fax-populist opposition to government (any kind) and the bills 80/20 give away fitting perfectly into the story line, Blue Dogs will need to position themselves correctly in the mind of the voters, and that means voting against the 'reform' as a government 'give away' (they wont even have to be explicit about a 'give away' to whom!).

1/2/01

It would be better to use a more appropriate title for this legislation. The single significant aspect is the individual mandate to purchase private insurance and so rather than "health care reform" this legislation should be called "Mandate of Private Insurance".

The whole conversation around HCR has been a little(or a lot) like the "Patriot Act". Another example of Orwellian doublespeak from the people who brought us WMD in Iraq.

Why are our congressional leaders allowed to roundly ignore the wishes of the American people of Medicare type access to healthcare. Everybody knows this bill is a hoax.

Conrad C. Elledge