The House vote hands Republicans a gift...

Original piece | March 22, 2010 | Andy Logar

[bcafrotc]

The House vote Sunday, passing the Senate’s health care reform bill, is potentially a gift to Republicans that will keep on giving to November and beyond.

Had the bill been defeated, the Democrats would have shifted attention to legislation such as cap-and-trade and immigration “reform” (read amnesty), the former very likely inflicting incalculable harm to our economy, the latter the same to our cultural identity and heritage. Thankfully, it now seems unlikely that Democrats, though still in strong majority positions, will wholeheartedly embrace other nation-changing legislation prior to November’s elections. Instead, time between now and November will be spent on spin and damage control because they perceive correctly that the electorate is angry, very angry.

Also, had the bill been defeated, the Republicans would have likely slid back into their usual modus operandi of maintaining the health industry status quo ante, with perhaps minor tweaks, such as tort reform. But much more is needed in the area of health insurance reform, a subject that the GOP inexcusably all but ignored when they held sway in Washington.

Now that the Senate bill has passed the House, reconciliation is almost a fact certain as is Obama’s signature, the Republicans are totally in the spotlight with all eyes shifting to them. That is a good place to be but only if their act is a better one. All those opposed to Obamacare and the unseemly machinations that have taken place, will be very receptive to a well-orchestrated Republican effort to take back control of the House in 2010, the Senate and the Presidency in 2012, followed by a repeal of Obamacare in 2013. But that’s not enough - Republicans must offer the electorate far more than just repeal of essentially bad legislation - as it will undoubtedly prove to be as related background facts finally emerge. Though its over 2,000 pages of legislation is fatally flawed in numerous ways it is not to say that all Obamacare ideas should be dismissively swept away – not at all – the very best need be pointedly kept on the sidelines and integrated into new legislation.

Americans want and deserve genuine health care insurance reform because most agree the current system is turning dysfunctional. More than ever before, it is the GOP’s responsibility to articulate their better version based on minimal governmental intrusion, a robust private sector working within a new legal construct across state lines with maximal competition between providers and heavy penalties for engaging in the many shenanigans of which the insurance industry - to a great extent - has been justly accused.

Finally, the Republicans must make a New Contract with America - arrived at in the light of day, before C-Span cameras with debate and participation open to both sides of the aisle. There must ensue what will devolve into truly bipartisan legislation to produce evolutionary not revolutionary, long overdue changes, to the nation’s health care insurance system.

Anyway, that’s my opinion and I’m sticking to it.

Andy Logar

[YHAOS]

"Thankfully, it now seems unlikely that Democrats, though still in strong majority positions, will wholeheartedly embrace other nation-changing legislation prior to November’s elections."

Andy is dreaming.

[Col Frank Slade]

Andy is clueless.

They are going to push harder with the little time left.

[SirJohnBarleycorn]

Thankfully, it now seems unlikely that Democrats, though still in strong majority positions, will wholeheartedly embrace other nation-changing legislation prior to November’s elections

This completely misreads the nature of the DemocRat regime in power.

If this were at all true, then after the defeats in New Jersey, Virginia and Massachusetts the Obama-Pelosi-Reid-Axelrod Democrats would have refocused their agenda with an eye to the November elections.

There will now be an all-out effort on amnesty. They will need the new voters in 2012 to reelect Obama. They have the votes in the House and the Senate. The only hurdle is the filibuster in the Senate.

If they are so arrogant as to have Biden overrule the Senate Parlimentarian this week on the Health care package, they will use the same tactic on amnesty.

They probably see a silver lining to running against a Republican congress in 2012, as long they have millions of new voters who are strong supporters of socialism.

[43north]

I wish this were true.

The commie-in-chief and his minions are now going to REALLY start piling on. The directions are in obamao’s bible according to St. Paul (Alinsky).

Economy? What economy...

[hopespringseternal]

Yep. They are absolutely going to try to give 20 million illegals the vote to make up for what they lost. People need to realize that we are now a thugocracy modeled on the city of chicago.

Judging from the republicans' past performance, we are screwed. They are perfectly content to be the minority party and really have no coherent, marketable strategy for governing.

[YHAOS]

"They are going to push harder with the little time left."

I would say so. Yes.

[YHAOS]

"They are absolutely going to try to give 20 million illegals the vote to make up for what they lost."

. . . not to mention Cap and Trade, Card Check, etc.

[Longhair_and_Leather]

"Though its over 2,000 pages of legislation is fatally flawed in numerous ways it is not to say that all Obamacare ideas should be dismissively swept away – not at all – the very best need be pointedly kept on the sidelines and integrated into new legislation."

Not with repeal. The whole point is to start over, and the 2,000 pages need only be repealed with one. That will bypass the normal rules that apply to legislation, making it easier to pass, emasculating the demonrats.

[AZLiberty]

Oh, right, like Pearl Harbor handed FDR a gift, or 9/11 handed GWB a gift. There has to be a better word than “gift”.

[Viking2002]

Agreed. That dude is high if he thinks The Occupation will rest on it's collective laurels for the next six months. In fact, I think some of these bastards are so intent on an all-out assault on the Constitution, they even have personal evac routes planned to countries who don't have extradition treaties in place with us. If the sheeple don't acquiesce quietly, they'll leave the nation in a state of civil war. There is no other rational explanation for their motivations. Scorched earth: absolute power or absolute chaos.