Public protests are turning the tide against Democratic healthcare reform efforts
In what amounts to a total about face, the Obama Administration appears ready to accept healthcare reform without a public option. Today, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said that the “public option is not essential.” Another prominent Democrat, Senator Kent Conrad of North Dakota, who is the Chairman of the Budget Committee said there were never enough votes in the Senate for the public option and that it is pointless to keep aiming for that. In recent weeks, with immense public interest and rowdy town halls, support for the Democratic healthcare reform proposals has crumbled. The public option was a large part of the problem in many people’s eyes and with Republicans in Congress.
While this is a victory of sorts for people opposed to healthcare reform efforts by Democrats for any number of reasons, this also is not a done deal. As Senator Conrad said, the Senate will not pass any such legislation, but the House of Representatives is likely to force a public option in health care reform through. Nancy Pelosi and her liberal followers view the public option as the center piece for their liberal version of healthcare. The reason is that a public option will eventually lead to a single payer system, which makes them salivate for. As I wrote yesterday, the Democratic Party is divided into essentially three camps. One camp is the moderate, like the Blue Dogs, who want what is best for the people and are pretty much opposed to many of the proposals out there. The second camp is full of die hard liberals who want universal healthcare, no matter what. The third camp is full of those who want to win and make sure that a plan, ANY plan gets through. It looks like the moderates and the ones that want to win may end up beating the liberals. Democrats will look awful if they cannot get a health care reform bill out of Congress. With their huge majorities and the fact that they control the White House, gives them no excuses. If they fail to pass a plan, President Obama and congressional Democrats will look very bad and cannot blame the Republicans for it.
Other concerns need to be addressed still, such as funding, rationing, and the privacy of medical records. While America has won a concession, we are not entirely out of the woods on the matter. There are some determined to pass their version of socialistic healthcare and they do not take rejection well. Town hall protests need to continue and people need to stay engaged in the issue, because a majority of America is opposed to the efforts that the liberals making on health reform.
Here is a clip of Secretary Sebelius today on CNN when she stated that the public option is "not essential" to health care reform:
Comments
I hate this website and it's terrible articles. I wish people like you and the rest of the ignorant masses would just hop onto an island and just secede from the union.
Tom Heneghan Intelligence Briefing
"There can be no doubt that alleged President Barack Obama's attempt to shove a socialist health care program down the American People's throat is a massive DIVERSION to keep the American People from understanding what is facing them, which is a second major collapse of the toxic derivative market, collapsing U.S. banks a second time and operationally send the United States into massive chaos....
We can not afford this health care plan. It also violates the 10th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
... Now, folks, given the fact that our U.S. banks are still zombie institutions that can not loan money to their own citizens and use Taxpayers' money to trade on their behalf to enrich themselves, how can we implement a health care plan that would increase taxes on the American People when the average American can not even get a loan from a bank."
If I thought for a second the Federal Mafia would let us leave, I'd gladly move to a State that would secede from the "Union".
Wasn't that one useless state wanting to secede? You know, the one with the highest rate of obesity, the highest death penalty rate, the one with all the wonderful hicks and their gigantic pickups...Texas I think it's called. The one with all the lunatic Republicans and smelly immigrants.
I wish all the socialists would hop onto an island and secede from this republic!
Obama and the Dems often argue that we must reform healthcare so we can insure the 47 million who are currently uninsured. But let’s look at the 47 million more closely:
11 million are noncitizens.
12 million are eligible for public programs but not enrolled.
9 million are temporarily unsinsured due to a job change, but Cobra is available.
7 million earn more than $84k but have chosen not to buy health insurance.
8 million earn less than $84k and apparently don’t want or can’t afford insurance.
So let’s think about this for a moment. We’re going to scrap the entire healthcare system for a new one just so that we can provide coverage to 8 million people? Have we lost our minds??? Just say “NO” to Obamacare because it’s too expensive and it solves nothing.
It's just not giving insurance to the uninsured. It's also about eliminating the insurance companies provisions to decline coverage to those who do not meet their criteria. "pre-existing conditions" anyone?
I am in full support of the Obama administration and cannot surmise why the Republcans are against such an important issue. Where is your alternative plan?
i can't believe some of these mindless, hateful comments that were posted on here (regardless of side). why can't we keep this debate/discussion thoughtful and respectful. let's talk strictly facts and not leashing out. many people appear to be fearful or fustrated and are now just leashing out and saying what evers on the top of their heads that they feel. just because they think they can. so is this about attention? wanting to be heard, regardless if its good or bad, right or wrong, clean or dirty?! this healthcare issues have made people come out and say things that dont even pertain or equate to the debate/discussion at hand. all the mud slinging, but no real discussion of real, hard, honest, facts in these postings.
Hey NIC:
In regards to that wonderfully delicious self-realization monologue of yours, I didn't read any facts about the healthcare debate. Where are the numbers? Where are the quotes from the proposed legislation? You gave none of that, yet you hypocritically chastise everyone on this board for name calling and supposed bashing.
Please, spare us the pseudo-logical nonsense and provide some facts.
Obama promised to not raise taxes of any kind on individuals who make less than $200k, but he raised cigarette taxes by 62 cents a pack. There are 43 million smokers in the US and the vast majority of them make less than $200k. At a minimum, I'm certain Obama will raise cigarette and alcohol taxes in order to pay for his healthcare plan. And now that we've seen him lie about taxes, I'm quite sure he'll raise all kinds of taxes that will affect everyone. The man is a fraud and he's very corrupt. He's a disgrace to our country and I can hardly wait to see him leave office. Don't believe a word he says, and the same is true for the Democratic leaders in Congress.
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