Doing what they did to Clinton on Health Care..."Health Care Wimps"

[KoKo]

"The Health-Care Wimps" (Eric Alterman goes back to Clinton Plan vs Obama)

Edited on Fri Jul-24-09 09:25 PM by KoKo
The Health-Care Wimps

by Eric Alterman

What is the problem with the Democrats? Why, with a commanding majority in the House and a filibuster-proof 60 seats in the Senate, are they unable to make good on the Obama administration’s central political priority: a new, universal health-care system for the nation, something Democrats have been trying and failing to pass since Harry Truman proposed one in 1948?

Well, any question that begins with the phrase “What’s wrong with the Democrats…” tends to have multiple and overlapping responses. But in this case, most of them can be summed up in a single word: “fear.” Democrats fear 1994, when popular discontent with the Clinton administration, symbolized by “Hillarycare,” led to catastrophe in the midterm elections. Those who lost their seats were almost all among the most vulnerable Democrats from red or purple states—of the kind who managed to squeak out victories in 2008. Hence the Republican focus in their attacks on the districts of moderate Democrats.

Obama is in a similar position to that of Bill Clinton in 1993. That’s why Kristol’s attempting to lead Congress on a journey to the past—along with the entire Republican Party.
And if Demo-fraidy cats needed any help in recollecting the moment, Republican strategist William Kristol—he just plays a pundit on TV (and The Washington Post editorial page)—was kind enough to begin the week by providing a blast from the past.

Writing on the Web site of his Weekly Standard magazine, Kristol informed his troops: “My advice, for what it’s worth: Resist the temptation. This is no time to pull punches. Go for the kill.”

The argument was nearly a perfect reprise of Kristol’s infamous strategy memo, written in 1993, to House Republicans who were considering cooperating with Democrats on Hillarycare. Together with a particularly nefarious article by Elizabeth McCaughey in The New Republic, Kristol’s memo was probably the single most influential document in ensuring the failure not only of President Clinton’s health-care plan but of his first two years in office.

Having made health care the central priority of his first year, Barack Obama is in a similar position to that of Bill Clinton in 1993. That’s why Kristol's attempting to lead Congress on a journey to the past—along with the entire Republican Party. Senator Jim DeMint explained in a conference call Friday with a right-wing audience: “If we’re able to stop Obama on this, it will be his Waterloo. It will break him.”

He may be right. Bill Clinton, the progressive who ran for president on “putting people first,” never recovered from his health-care defeat. And both the president and the party that emerged from that thumping were far more cautious, conservative beasts than the ones that went in. Thing is, for much of the period, Democrats never realized that they were even in a fight; or rather they could not agree on the enemy. Clinton, like Obama, took in friendly fire from both the left and right.

Having allowed both houses to draft their own legislation—in direct contrast to the Clinton take-it-or-leave-it position—Obama is left with little in the way of control over the final product. What’s more, he cannot discipline the moderates and conservatives in his administration who fear the wrath of Republican attacks far more than any threats from within their own party. (As a rule, conservative Republicans run primary challengers against ideological apostates, while liberal Democrats rarely do—Joe Lieberman excepted.) They are concerned not only by the expense of the plan, and by the likelihood that the Republicans—together with a pliant media—will portray it as a tax hike, but also by the fact that its costs are likely to kick in immediately but its benefits may not be apparent for years.

MORE...and interesting background read of Clintons/Obama's health plan problems at......
http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2009-07-...

[Captain Hilts]

1. It's absolutely astonishing - with the Dem majority - that DEMs are, again, trying to stop this. nt

[madfloridian]

2. Not just conservative Dems trying to stop it. Also single payer groups...

are telling congress not to vote on the public option. It is scary that groups of Dems from the left and right are trying to stop a plan now.

Heckled for supporting a public option

[DURHAM D]

3. I noticed today that the MSM is now referring to health care reform as - Obamacare.

Just as in 1993 when they labeled it Hillarycare.

There will be no public option in the final bill. The final bill will not be reform but just a bunch of words on the paper.

The one thing they will f with is Medicare. They will remove covered items from the current Medicare plan which will drive retirees to pay more for the "insurance supplementals" to cover the things they are likely to need but are not paid under current (and future) Medicare plan. Citizens reaching 65 right now are paying almost as much for additional medical insurance as they did while under 65. The first $100 retirees pay for insurance goes to Medicare fund, the remainder is being paid to private insurers. The Senate and the insurance companies will see to it that the costs for post 65 yr olds medical insurance skyrockets as the boomers begin to reach 65 in 2010.

Now, as people begin to think about retiring they come to realize that their medical coverage out of pocket costs are two to three times what they thought it would be. Therefore, they don't/won't retire because they can't afford to. We need for them to be able to retire in order to address our unemployment problem. I know many people over 65 still working (who had not planned to work) just to be able to pay for their medical insurance costs.

So when you hear elected officials talk about reforming Medicare just remember - they are actually figuring out a way to put more money in the hands of (make more profits for) private insurance companies.

[Captain Hilts]

4. I don't think 'Obamacare' is as damaging. No 'we didn't elect him' background noise. nt

[DURHAM D]

5. The point of calling it Obamacare is to trivialize it. nt

[Captain Hilts]

6. His approval is high. That strategy won't work this go 'round. nt

[DURHAM D]

7. His approval rating isn't the point.

Making fun of the whole thing is the media and rightwing's point.

It is working because it is apparent that we are not going to get any real reform.