Saturday, August 29, 2009
Health Care vs. Political Longevity
This is certainly going to be interesting.
I just hope any result is not devastating to our health and economy...
I just hope any result is not devastating to our health and economy...
At National Review Online, Jim Geraghty offers this as part of his writing about the Health Care proposal:
"Come September, it’s quite possible we’ll see quite a few Democrats who got an earful and a half at their town meetings coming out and offering a dramatic justification: 'I know this is controversial, I know my constituents have serious worries, but this is the right thing to do and I’ll be willing to accept the consequences.'
There may be other members of Congress who will proudly disregard opinion in their districts. Lawmakers who call their constituents 'un-American' and 'political terrorists' and compare them to the Klan and Timothy McVeigh almost express pride in disregarding the distant mewling of the unwashed masses foolish enough to elect them. Between the two approaches, enough Democrats could find their cover and the bill could very well pass along heavily partisan lines.
The irony is that the conservative grassroots have done a lot right in this fight. They’ve identified several angles of attack (the deficit, financial incentives for end-of-life counseling, unaccountable treatment-review boards, funding for abortion, access to doctors, the gradual squeezing out of private insurers, the dubious claims of cost savings from 'preventive care' and 'wellness programs'). Unlike some members of Congress, they’ve read the bill. They’ve shown up in droves, they’ve made their voices heard, and their expressions of their deeply held views have stunned more than a few members of Congress.
Yet all of that may not be enough. This may be the legislation that Democrats are willing to sacrifice their congressional majorities over."
