Quote:
Originally Posted by Villages Kahuna
You can't blame one party for the hodge-podge of rules and regulations that make up this healthcare bill. The President and the Democratically-controlled Congress set out to get healthcare for 32 million people. Let's not kid ourselves--that was their main agenda item.
The Dem's proposed government insurance to provide that coverage--a pretty easy extension of Medicare to cover another 32 million people. The Republicans and some of the more centrist Democrats violently opposed that idea and with the encouragement and money from the insurance companies they drove the bill towards private insurance coverage, a far more complicated proposition given the state-oriented system of private health insurance. Heck, the GOP refused to even consider any kind of method for increasing the competition between insurers, including language that would permit competition across state lines, the objective of which was to drive down costs. (There's that insurance lobby at work again.)
But one way or another, the President and the Pelosi/Reid cabal was going to get coverage for all Americans one way or another--something that Presidents since Teddy Roosevelt have tried to get. They traded off anything and everything necessary to achieve that singular goal. If the GOP and the centrist Democrats were going to block the idea of the government providing the insurance for the uninsured, then the leadership came up with the idea of requiring employers and even individuals to buy insurance from private insurance companies. The result is the Rube Goldberg bill that emerged.
But neither party was totally responsible. Their politics and total unwillingness to compromise on anything was.
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Well, VK your posts drive me crazy. I agree with so much of what you post but you either cannot resist or do it subconsciously and that is steer it to praising this President and congress in some way.
Listen, I dont doubt that the President began with a motive of insuring more people, but again, he talks a good game....he would have accepted anything at all in this bill, and to me that is not being President...that is being a politician TOTALLY. Trading off "anything and everything" to acheive that goal is not what I want my President or congress to do.
I dont agree with your assesment of the bill from a political standpoint. For example you mention the competition across state lines and imply that the Republicans killed that because of pressure from the insurance companies, unless you are aware of a lot I dont know which is very possible.
I recall during the big time public meeting that the Republicans brought this up...the President said he thought it was a good idea...had it in the next time he talked about it and then, as with all the Republican ideas that he thought were good...THEY DISAPPEARED. Correct me on this if you know something I dont know !
I still think that future bodies of congress will be absorbed in this bill because of how it was structured. It makes no sense AND IT WILL LEAVE MILLIONS UNINSURED, soon to be really confused as immigration is tackled. It is also so much more costly than what you say and certainly much more than our congress says. It is based on borrowing savings....a tax that is never goiing to be enacted.....perhaps not a ponzi scheme as some Republicans call it but certainly the foundation is flimsy at very best !