The Least Popular Reform in U.S. History

The Gallup poll found that 48% of respondents wanted their Congressional representatives to vote against the bill, while 46% wanted them to vote for it. In the Quinnipiac poll, 53% were opposed vs. 36% in favor.

It is difficult to imagine a case in the history of the Republic where the disproportion between the ambitions and the popularity of a proposed piece of legislation has been as great as this.

I have been watching Arkansas TV, and there is a deluge of commercials on this topic. Most of them are pro-reform. According to these ads, the health care reform bills will save Medicare; they will reduce overall health care spending; they will reduce the deficit; they will lower individual health care costs without raising taxes on most Americans; and they will leave all medical decisions up to patients and their doctors. Wow.

Of course, everything in that list is a lie. The current bills do nothing to put Medicare on a sound financial basis. Instead, they propose cutting billions more out of the program. Better than that, the CBO has noticed that the Senate bill counts the Medicare cuts twice! It also counts on cost savings gimmicks like the Doctor's fix (cutting reimbursements to Doctor's under Medicare) that Congress obviously won't make. If it did make them, it would push almost all Doctors out of the Medicare system. This is apparently what the New York Times means when it says that the bill "has been carefully and responsibly drafted so that it is fully paid for without busting future budgets."

Nothing it he process so far suggests that Congress is capable of forcing real sacrifices. For that reason, no reasonable person can believe that it is really going to cut the deficit. But even if, as the New York Times says, the bill is responsibly drafted, that doesn't mean that it reduces health care costs. The trillions that the bill will cost have to come from somewhere. That's money that can't be spent on other things. There is no prospect of significant reductions in other spending.

The audacity of this legislation is breathtaking.

Comments

[George Mason]

Secrets; Obviously you sent a copy of this to Hillary Clinton back in the '80's.

[William]

As a Christmas Gift, I'm sure =|;)

[Stan Gibilisco]

I am convinced that our President, several of his staffers, and a significant minority in Congress want to impose European-style socialism in the United States. They intend to do so by driving up the deficit to the point a European-style tax system (including a value-added tax) seems to be the only way out.

I believe that these are sincere in their beliefs, to the point where they are willing to lose in 2010 and 2012 if they can manage to impose -- and I do mean impose -- a socialist system on the people of the United States.

Perhaps these people fail to realize that after the blowout elections in 2010 and 2012, many of their actions might be reversed. However, I suspect that they see their goal and they intend to drive towards it with complete abandon, even to the point of self-destruction.

Well, they sure got guts, you know what I'm sayin'?

[jhm47]

This fight isn't over yet. If we ultimately do lose, and this incomprehensible, unread, monstronsity of a bill does pass, the dems will pay dearly in November. I, for one will NEVER again vote for a democrat, no matter how well qualified he/she might be. They've had their chance, and have shown their true colors.

[Tom]

jhm47,

Well I, for one, will NEVER again vote for a Republican. Over the last year they've shown that they are not interested in helping the people who voted for them and that they're more interested in scoring cheap political points than they are in doing their jobs.

Are the Dems perfect? No. But at least they're trying to make our country better. I'd rather have that than the nothing we're getting from the Republicans.

[William]

Tom,

Thinking that the Federal Government is "here to help" is a big reason our country faces bankruptcy today. Out country was founded on freeDOM NOT freeSTUFF...