Debacle: Democrat Pandemonium Over Health Care

This was written last month:

As usual Obama's "Era of New Responsibility" begins with blaming other people, of course he was in the Democratic controlled congress from 2006 to his inauguration, but for some reason that fact often disappears when he is trying to blame Republicans. I guess the CBO was running the country the past 8 years. The Democrats, who have been divided on health care, in no small part to Obama's hands off policy in regards to legislation have two basic proposals floating around as shown here:



The Baucus plan tends to be bi-partisan in nature and costs less money. Rangel and the House have created a partisan bill that would raise taxes to unsustainable levels. Additionally in the Senate Chris Dodd has passed a bill similar to the house version. In a way Obama may have allowed himself to be out maneuvered by this. By having competing bills, including the Baucus one which the GOP could latch onto, he has created a situation where centrist Democrats have the ability to ally with the Republicans and pass legislation more to their liking. As it is many Democrats are getting very nervous:

Yesterday the white house showed its hand and that a public plan could be negotiated away. This was followed today by a clarification that they still wanted a plan in the deal. No wonder the White House is now being described as amateur hour. Now we have this from the Liberal in the House:

House Democratic officials say a public option will remain in their version of a health reform bill, even now that the White House has acknowledged it may be dropped later.

“This is just for the Senate,” a House leadership official said about the administration’s concession on a public option. “There is no way it passes the House the first time around without a public option.

“The liberals (around 100-plus) won’t allow it. It if comes back from conference committee without public option and there is the right pitch that it is this or nothing, then it may pass the House.”

So pretty much no one has a clue what is going, and these are the people writing the legislation! And who is to blame? Obama, the genius who never bothered to explain what he expected in health care reform and let Congress run hog wild, leading to competing and contradictory bills that divided the democrats and devastated his credibility.