I was able to listen to most of the Health Care Summit today. It was a pretty depressing experience.
It became clear: the Democrats usually do not know what they are talking about.
It became clear: they know they are busting the budget, but they don’t care.
It was very odd. They simply don’t care. They don’t care that they are probably going to bankrupt the country.
It became clear that they had never even seriously considered some of the ideas that the Republicans put forth. Even though the debate has been going on for what – 9 months? – they seemed to be hearing the most simple ideas about health care reform for the very first time. In other words, when crafting the most important legislation of their lives, they had simply adopted a partisan plan wholesale, without engaging in the process of first finding out what the BEST solution to the problem would be.
The Democrats sounded childish and flighty. Over and over again, the only thing offered was some horror story about someone not getting covered, or being rejected for coverage. But anecdotes make very poor bases for policy. There was a panicky tenor to their statements. Someone out there need dentures! Someone needs an operation! What are we going to do about it?
There was absolutely no attempt to link their proposed solutions with the problems people were having. Each of the problems presented could have been dealt with – via much more focused, limited legislation. But no, they would have none of that. The whole system has to be overturned, they insisted.
Itbecame painfully clear that they had not really studied this issue. For the most part, they had simply adopted the positions and beliefs that the leadership offered them. They knew almost nothing other than partisan facts and figures.
In years past, the Congress always tried to work towards real solutions using facts and figures. Both sides were heard, and an intelligent conversation could be had. But the Democrats simply kept repeating their talking points. They had no intention of thinking, and hammering out solutions. They wanted to transform the country into something else altogether.
It was very bad.
My favorite part was when Paul Ryan of the Republicans outlined how the Democrats had manipulated the CBO process to make it seem as if the bill would reduce the deficit. No one gets any benefits for several years, but the taxes start right away. So after ten years, it looks like the deficit is reduced, but only because they have been ripping off taxpayers for years without having to give them anything in return. When you actually match up years when benefits flow and taxes are raised, the bill causes a massive deficit. Ryan pointed this out, very clearly. The Democrats stood there, with their pants down around their ankles, looking very foolish.
Obama jumped to the rescue. He started a mini filibuster, going off on tangents, bringing up other subjects, outlining his basic philosophy of health care. All the while, he used a tone of voice and a cadence that sounded as if he were expertly rebutting everything that Ryan had just said. It sounded as if he were a bit annoyed at Ryan for saying things that were not so. But nothing in what he actually said rebutted anything at all that Ryan had said.
Then, another Democrat jumped in, admonishing Ryan for disbelieving the CBO. Basically it was “Shame on you, Paul Ryan, We have to have an umpire, we have to believe that umpire. You can’t not believe the umpire” . Of course, that is not the issue. A better analogy would be this: the CBO was an accountant, and the Democrats had given him fake receipts to work from.
Obama was pathetic in many ways. The Trickster in him ruled the day. He complained about Medicare Advantage, he said how bad it was. John Mccain said if it was so bad, then why did they allow 800,000 people in Florida to keep getting it, when it would be eliminated from the rest of the country? Mccain hit a nerve. He revealed their vote buying.
Obama was a little upset – “John, I don’t think people want to hear about the process. They want us to solve their problems. ” Yeah, that’s the ticket.
At the end, it became clear we are headed for reconciliation.
“The people demand that we solve this problem”, they said.
But the people just spent the last 9 months telling them NOT to do this.
Such is your Democratic party these days.
F the people, Full speed ahead.
Penraker 