Obama's Running Mate (Brutal Takedown of Mitt Romney and RomneyCare)

Wall Street Journal ^ | 5/12/2011 | The Editors

[mojito]

...Like Mr. Obama's reform, RomneyCare was predicated on the illusion that insurance would be less expensive if everyone were covered. Even if this theory were plausible, it is not true in Massachusetts today. So as costs continue to climb, Mr. Romney's Democratic successor now wants to create a central board of political appointees to decide how much doctors and hospitals should be paid for thousands of services.

The Romney camp blames all this on a failure of execution, not of design. But by this cause-and-effect standard, Mr. Romney could push someone out of an airplane and blame the ground for killing him. Once government takes on the direct or implicit liability of paying for health care for everyone, the only way to afford it is through raw political control of all medical decisions.

Mr. Romney's refusal to appreciate this, then and now, reveals a troubling failure of political understanding and principle. The raucous national debate over health care isn't about this or that technocratic detail, but about basic differences over the role of government.

[....]

In reality, his ostensible liberal allies like the late Ted Kennedy saw an opening to advance their own priorities, and in Mr. Romney they took advantage of a politician who still doesn't seem to understand how government works. It's no accident that RomneyCare's most vociferous defenders now are in the White House and left-wing media and think tanks. They know what happened, even if he doesn't.

[mojito]

Yes, a repost. But more FReepers need to see this smackdown.

[scorchedearther]

Give a commie liberal democrat an inch and they will take a mile.

[AU72]

There has to be an end to “Me Too” Republicanism.

[South40]

I hadn't seen it. So thanks for the repost.

Romney is a putz.

[Servant of the Cross]

Republicans cannot credibly run on repealing Obamacare with Romney as the nominee.

Romney Gives Mass. Health Reform an 'A' (in July, 2009)

"The portrait depicts the governor seated at the front edge of his desk wearing his trademark business suit. Beside him is a small framed photo of his wife, Ann, and ... [wait for it] ... a copy of the health care reform law he called his greatest achievement.

Romney is an unrepentant abortionist/statist lying political whore! Just to be absolutely clear, there will never ever be a RINO Romney campaign on FR!! If he somehow becomes the nominee, FR will be running a full-time campaign to DEFEAT him!! If you wish to support him then I suggest you sign off FR and onto Wankers for Mitt!! … Jim 'Thompson' Robinson

[Vigilanteman]

Gee, socialism doesn't work even when successful business people do it. Who would've thunk it?

Now, will someone please explain to the Chamber of Commerce why their pipe dream to pay third world wages by importing millions of third worlders to drive down labor costs and still sell quality products and services at premium prices to the rest of us won't fly?

[misterrob]

Republicans cannot credibly run on repealing Obamacare with Romney as the nominee

[EagleUSA]

Romney is toast. He should have admitted his socialist mistake years ago but he is not a conservative. RINO. No way will he survive the primaries.

[Lazlo in PA]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7pVqZzHm3Z4

[mojito]

This seems to have gotten the Romney campaign's attention:

“Romney camp responds to Wall Street Journal editorial”

http://dailycaller.com/2011/05/12/romney-camp-responds-to-wall-street-journal-editorial/#ixzz1MAXLAprQ

The “response” is to say that RomneyCare is in the past, and Mitt is only interested in his vision for the future.

“Wankers for Mitt” just about sums it up.

[Lazlo in PA]

“The WSJ has been writing editorials against the Massachusetts health care plan since before the plan was actually put into place,” Romney spokeswoman, Andrea Saul told The Daily Caller.

Maybe because anyone with a third grade education saw Romney's plan for what it was. A big government boondoggle. The only person who didn't see and still refuses to see this is Romney himself.

Myth is a political dead man, especially since polls on the repeal of Obamacare are still in the high 60%.

[ez]

Dear Mittens,

Not so much...

Sincerely,

U. R. Toast

[arrogantsob]

Romney is not too popular in these parts.

[Brookhaven]

Wow.

This is worth going to the site and reading in its entierty.

This is NOT just a commentary on RomneyCare, it is a blistering, full out, frontal assualt on Romney as a candidate.

And in the WSJ no less. It’s one thing for a GOP candidate not to have the entusiastic support of the WSJ, it’s another thing to have the WSJ activly working against them. Yet, that is exactly what this looks like. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a WSJ article/comentary that went after a GOP candidate in the primary since...ever! This is an article designed to sink a candidates campaign.

“Once government takes on the direct or implicit liability of paying for health care for everyone, the only way to afford it is through raw political control of all medical decisions. ...Mr. Romney’s refusal to appreciate this, then and now, reveals a troubling failure of political understanding and principle.”

“The raucous national debate over health care isn’t about this or that technocratic detail, but about basic differences over the role of government. ...Mr. Romney’s fundamental error was assuming that such differences could be parsed by his own group of experts, as if government can be run by management consultants.”

“In reality, his ostensible liberal allies like the late Ted Kennedy saw an opening to advance their own priorities, and in Mr. Romney they took advantage of a politician who still doesn’t seem to understand how government works.”

“Presidents lead by offering a vision for the country rooted in certain principles, not by promising a technocracy that runs on “data.” Mr. Romney’s highest principle seems to be faith in his own expertise.”

“... the debate over ObamaCare and the larger entitlement state may be the central question of the 2012 election. On that question, Mr. Romney is compromised and not credible.”

[aMorePerfectUnion]

RINOmney:

Fake Religion
Fake Conservativism

No thanks to both.

[Radagast the Fool]

I live in Massachusetts, and my health insurance premium just went up almost 50%. So much for Romneycare keeping costs down!!

Between that, $4+ gasoline, and the rising cost of food, things are really getting difficult.

Many small businesses, ie.,family-run gift shops, restaurants, etc., have closed their doors forever; and some of these businesses have been in the family for two or more generations, and were great places to shop. Romneycare was pretty much the death-knell for them!

Almost every strip mall has at least one empty storefront-and the empty storefronts have been empty for many months.

Even the local indoor mall (Macy,s Sears, etc.,) seems to have more empty storefronts than occupied ones, so it’s hitting the bigger retail stores too.

Romney was not good for this State, and Cadillac Deval, AKA Zero Junior, is just making things worse.

[Brookhaven]

Romney’s response:

“Give Mr. Romney credit as a rare Republican willing at least to discuss health care. In that he’s miles ahead of GOP Congressional leaders, who won’t even vote on pro-market reforms,”

In other words, at least Romney did something, even it it was the wrong thing.

That’s exactly the problem with Washington (and politicians in general). They don’t understand that (1) not every problem has to be solved by government, and (2) somethings doing nothing is preferable to doing something.

Yea, Romeny did something, and made a things WORSE.

Typical liberal mindset. He had good intentions, so it doesn’t matter that he made things worse.

[gusty]

Sounds like Mitt has hired Mark McGuire as his flak.

[556x45]

In the distant past, before RomneyCare, MA had a plan for those not able to buy health insurance. It failed b/c the costs were far beyond what was predicted. Many under the program used emergency services for any and everything plus these sorts are generally less healthy than most so the bills to the state piled up at an alarming rate. None of the program proponents envisioned such costs. (Is this sounding familiar yet?) In the end the cost was so large the state just quit paying its obligations to the hospitals. Yup, you read that right, they refused to pay what they said they would under the law. The hospitals sued the state eventually getting their money. So, here we are again exc everyone is included in the plan ostensibly to spread the costs over a larger population. In reality costs have greatly increased and care has become poorer. Really nothing more than spreading the misery over a greater population resulted.

[rockrr]

Good point. And now he’s doubling-down on stupid by pretending that romneycare isn’t a disaster. I receive this as good news because it makes the case for NOT voting for him easier.