Here's another thing that didn't work. (I write as if health-care reform or insurance reform or whatever it's called this week is already a loss, a historic botch, because it is. Even if the White House wins, they lose, because the cost in terms of public trust and faith was too high.)
Every big idea that works is marked by simplicity, by clarity. You can understand it when you hear it, and you can explain it to people. Social Security: Retired workers receive a public pension to help them through old age. Medicare: People over 65 can receive taxpayer-funded health care. Welfare: If you have no money and cannot support yourself, we will help as you get back on your feet.
These things are clear. I understand them. You understand them. The president's health-care plan is not clear, and I mean that not only in the sense of "he hasn't told us his plan." I mean it in terms of the voodoo phrases, this gobbledygook, this secret language of government that no one understands—"single payer," "public option," "insurance marketplace exchange." No one understands what this stuff means, nobody normal.
And when normal people don't know what the words mean, they don't say to themselves, "I may not understand, but my trusty government surely does, and will treat me and mine with respect." They think, "I can't get what these people are talking about. They must be trying to get one past me. So I'll vote no."
Go. Read It.
Related:
The President should never use the term "wee weed"... never again. Someone send him the memo.
Presidents also should not whine, they look like...well, ummmm...whiners.
The Politico with "White House health plan back to square one".
The problem with that title is the White House never had a plan, Obama said healthcare, then threw the whole thing over to Pelosi's Congress... big mistake and it has cost him his approval ratings, in a massive way and they are still dropping.
Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele's position on Harry Reid's threat of using the archaic "reconciliation" rules to jam Obamacare through.
Reconciliation lets the Senate pass some measures with a simple majority vote. Non-budget-related items can be challenged, however, and some lawmakers say reconciliation would knock many provisions from Obama's health care plan.
Do it, dare ya!!!!!
Steele told reporters that he thinks if Democratic senators think they have the votes, they should try a tactic that would allow them to get around a bill-killing filibuster without the 60 votes usually needed. Steele said he didn't think Democrats would do it because of potential voter backlash.
"Get it to the floor. Up or down, baby," Steele said at a news conference at the state GOP headquarters. "Put it on the table. And if you don't think you've got enough votes to get to 60, you've got the nuclear option. You've got 51."
Steele was in Little Rock for a closed-door round-table discussion of health care and to headline a fundraiser for the Arkansas Republican Party.
The national Republican chairman said he thinks his party has been unfairly cast as an obstacle to President Barack Obama's health care efforts and challenged Democrats to push legislation through on their own.
"You want it done? Pass the bill," Steele said. "But they know it's poisonous and they know the American people will not tolerate it. They're scrambling now and they're beginning to turn on each other because they've got a big problem, a political one, and they can't solve it."
Put up or shut up.
Go against the majority of Americans and suffer the consequences because it will be political suicide for every moderate and every blue dog Democrat.
Plenty of reading material.
Have at it.
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