>> “There is an unseemly conservative obsession with the mandate, IMO” <<
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What is so unseemly?
The mandate is the essence of what is wrong with Obamacare. The rest of the bill just tampers with a medical system that has completely failed its prime mission anyway. (The Hypocratic oath has been turned on its head)
The mandate is to single-payer health care as school choice vouchers are to a government school monopoly. The mandate was created to try to peel off enough Democrat votes from single-payer in the ‘90s to pass a less onerous and more conservative health care bill. Just as conservatives would love school choice vouchers now rather than see kids forced to go to public schools. It’s all very relative. But once a health care mandate is off the table, everyone should be assured single-payer will get a big boost and more unity on the left than it’s ever had before. It will be passed if they get the presidency and Congress again.