Americans vehemently reject ObamaCare. So what makes Democrats determined?
Democrats believe health care is a right. Start with this premise and everything else will make complete sense. Rights – whether the right to vote, to assemble freely, or to avoid self-incrimination – exist regardless of public sentiment, poll results, or even, in the case of health care, the Constitution.
Democrats don’t care how much ObamaCare costs. When President Barack Obama addressed Republicans, Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin carefully outlined the costs of this “reform.” He explained why costs are rising rather than falling. For someone truly interested in cost-benefit analysis, these points require refutation. But as MSNBC host Ed Schultz said, when it comes to health care reform and money, “I don’t care what it costs.” The owner of an NFL team fired his coach despite the team’s winning record. He explained: “I gave him an unlimited spending account – and he overspent it.” For Democrats, “economic justice” has no price.
Democrats see election defeats as a tiny price to pay for health care “reform.” Predictions range from moderate losses in the fall elections to a bloodbath that ends with Republicans taking over the House and possibly even the Senate. And Democrats say, “So what?” Once health care reform becomes law, that’s it. Only impeachment by Republicans with a filibuster-proof Republican majority in the Senate could reverse it. Plus, President Bill Clinton was re-elected when Republicans took over the House. And although he gives no credence to Republicans, Clinton later governed closer to the center, turned House Speaker Newt Gingrich into a convenient whipping boy, cruised to re-election and left office with a budget surplus. Democrats say Obama could have done a lot worse.
Democrats blame Americans’ confusion about the benefits of ObamaCare on Republican “lies.” Democrats say ObamaCare will lower costs while maintaining the same or better quality of health care. Republicans say the opposite. Massachusetts’ RomneyCare, similar to ObamaCare, did not lower costs. The three gigantic benefit programs – Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid – are in stern financial trouble. Initially, program cost estimates were greatly underestimated. None of this is a cautionary lesson. Republicans are lying.
Democrats believe they really care about people and Republicans don’t. Obama tells the story of an uninsured, self-employed woman from Ohio who is being treated for cancer at the Cleveland Clinic. He says the woman is at risk of losing her home because of hospital bills. Never mind that the Cleveland Clinic offers millions of dollars in uncompensated care annually. Never mind that a world-famous medical facility has stated that it has no intention of attacking her home. And never mind that the hospital says the woman probably qualifies for several charity programs.
Democrats say, “If you like things the way they are, don’t worry.” Eighty-five percent of Americans have health insurance and 89 percent of them are satisfied with it. This poses a problem for “reform.” MSNBC’s Chris Matthews once wrote that because HillaryCare failed to reassure the complacent, it went out of business. “People,” Matthews said, “have seen their hard-won benefits and options stripped away in order to fund the health care needs of all comers. Instead of providing health care to the “working family,” Hillary Clinton offered “universal coverage” to those who didn’t work, financed by those who did. It was an offer that people readily and quickly rejected.
Democrats say, “If you like your plan and your doctor, you can keep them.” But won’t some employers abandon their employee plans, pay fines and pass the costs on to taxpayers? And won’t some doctors, as surveys suggest, limit their practice or give it up altogether? No, because well, they just won’t do it.
Democrats bask in the Obama-loving liberal established media. The media is rooting for health care “reform” and is desperate to ensure the president “wins,” while accepting ridiculous claims at face value. ObamaCare promises to expand health insurance to 30 million people; promises financial assistance to people who cannot afford insurance; requires all employers to offer health insurance or pay penalties; requires every American to buy insurance or pay a fine; and promises to attack “unjustified” increases in insurance premiums while requiring insurers to enroll people with a pre-existing condition without losing anyone’s coverage. And all this would legally be achieved without increasing the deficit!
Democrats believe that if people are too stupid now to see the benefits of ObamaCare, they will one day. If not, your opponents will be powerless and unable to do anything. Some people don’t want to see the best. That’s why God created Democrats.
Democrats ultimately want a Canadian-style single-payer system. ObamaCare will result in cost overruns, driving caregivers out of business, degenerating quality, rationing, stifling innovation, and bureaucracy over who gets what, how, and when. What then?
When the complaints become deafening enough, Democrats will be ready – with a plan to “reform” “reform.”
