White House Officials Dare GOP to Use Health Care Reform Against Democrats in 2010 Elections
Republicans have been throwing down the gauntlet to the White House and Democrats, arguing that if health care reform is passed they’ll use it against the Democrats in 2010. And now some White House officials have their response: we dare you to do just that — and welcome it:
Expressing an increasing confidence that a massive health care overhaul will pass Congress — despite dire warnings from Republicans about its impact on Democrats in November — White House officials on Sunday dared the GOP to bring it on during this fall’s 2010 midterm election.
“We’re happy to have the 2010 elections be about the achievement of health care reform. That’s a debate I think we’re obviously comfortable having,” White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said on “Fox News Sunday.”
“Make my day,” added senior White House adviser David Axelrod.
“If the Republican Party wants to go out and say to that child who now has insurance or say to that small business that will get tax credits this year … you know what, we’re actually going to take that away from you and we don’t think that’s such a good idea, I say let’s have that fight,” Axelrod told ABC’S “This Week.” “I’m ready to have that and every member of Congress ought to be willing to have that debate as well.”
White House aides and House Democratic leaders have expressed increasing confidence they will get the 216 votes needed in the House to pass a Senate version of a health insurance overhaul that is not exactly what any Democrat wants but is more than no bill at all.
In a possible sign of the swinging momentum, President Obama postponed plans to travel abroad this week in anticipation of a vote that will determine the fate of his signature issue and could indicate his wherewithal for the remainder of his term.
At the center of all this broo-haa-haa are differing perceptions.
GOPERS clearly feel that if Democrats ram it through it’ll help mobilize it’s party base more than ever and enrage a good chunk of the independent voters block. They see it as an issue of government, spending and government power. What is unsaid is an underlying confidence that the Republican’s info machine of talk and cable radio show hosts, blogs, and reporters covering official party bigwig statements will whip up anger against the Democrats, White House and big government.
The WHITE HOUSE clearly feels that once the plan is passed the press and public will learn more about how it specifically works, which will be far different from how it is painted by Republicans and that party’s new and old media infomachine. And it may have something there: if it does pass, the press will do lots of stories about what the bill contains and its imact — stories that will neutralize any allegations that were inaccurate. The White House is also using as its model the experiences of the highly controversial passages of Social Security under FDR and Medicare under LBJ.
The one sticking point is whether Democrats in all of this shoot themselves in the…donkey. If health care reform passes it’s not difficult to project a scenario where the party’s base — which is not happy with the proposed plan as it is — will be thoroughly angry and demorilized. And it’s not difficult if this happens and the Dems lose bigtime — bigger than anticipated in the already gloomy-for-them year of 2010 — the party will suffer a setback that could take a decade or a generation to overcome.
So the stakes couldn’t be higher — but all hinges on what actually happens to health care reform.
12 Responses to “White House Officials Dare GOP to Use Health Care Reform Against Democrats in 2010 Elections”
The perception probably won't change at all, because it's been talked about for over year. The reality won't change much, because the bill won't change much when it passes. The real effects will be felt as it slowly kicks in. By then, the key elections will be over.
I think the main risk Obama and the Democrats face is they will be perceived as neglecting the economy at the expense of this bill, which will show minimal positive effects for years.
The US public caring about Kafkaesque procedures for longer than a weekend?
There are not enough l's and o's for the required LOLs.
I agree but I really don't think he is gonna take much heat on the economy either. It is still to early to see but from the stories I read this summer is when the stimulus is supposed to go into high gear as far as jobs go since the planning phases on many projects are wrapping up. If that is the case and he is also hovering around 50% with the economy where it currently sits he and in turn possibly even they may not be doing all that bad. To be honest with where the economy is he should be at around 40% approval or less so who knows what it could be if it does rebound.
The only political danger I see from dems in regards to health care at this point is not passing it, whatever it is in the end. For those supporting it they support those that do as well and for those that do not they will likely vote R next time anyway just because the dems tried. What seats the dems loose in the current climate seems to be coming more down to republicans just wanting to vote republican again which will balance things but I am starting to think it will not be near as extreme as many had hoped, I am one that hoped a little. Obama would look awesome compared to a R controlled chamber unless headed by a really savy person.
While Baghdad Bob Gibbs might be “happy” to have the 2010 elections be about the (alleged) achievement of health care reform, I suspect that there are a ton of “elected” officials that are wishing it'd just go away.
Since the implementation is put off until 2013, passing the bill creates a huge amount of uncertainty with no resolution until years later. While Davie Axelrod thinks he is being cute, the reality is that such an idiotic plan will be bad for the economy due to the uncertainty and inability to plan for the future.
Besides, whatever is passed now will be changed multiple of times before it is implements (See Abortion, cost savings, illegal immigrats).
This subject underscores why it would behoove the Dems to make this health Bill as sweet as possible for the public [hint: Public Option] and to enact it as soon as possible. Because as November nears, all that will be needed is to remind the public who will be newly in love with not choosing between making their mortgages or paying private premiums, that if the GOP takes over Congress, they will whip that Option away from them fast enough to make their heads spin.
That oughta do 'er.
This is bluff and blunder, and the GOP will happily oblige the White House on this, all the way to huge victories come November.
Now, if they would just accept the fact that this is a dead bill, and focus on jobs and the economy, all this will likely be forgotten by election time by voters, and it will be a more normal mid-term for a first-term President – some losses in both houses, but no major overhaul.
If so, that's more amateurishness, clumsiness, out-of-touch behavior, or downright stupidity from ObamaCo.
“if they would just accept the fact that this is a dead bill, and focus on jobs and the economy”
I suspect it's not just a problem of being labeled “ineffective” even by “near-Left” Dems that is feared right now, but also about health care as an issue, on which they've staked enormous “face” or “political capital.”
Obama's taking a big risk delaying his trip to try to get something with “health care” stamped on it as well as help get the Dems in Congress to break through the GOP “wall.” Both, I suspect, are important to him. If they get through (should, via reconciliation) Obama will probably climb in the polls, even if the bill itself is bad (Congress, I suspect, will likely get the most disapproval, especially if they follow it with more bad legislation, and if Obama doesn't rush to urge passage of much or any of it).
A big risk. This could hurt Obama as well as (likely) the Dems this November.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB100014240527487…
Meanwhile, not only with clumsily combining the student loan takeover with health care “reform,” the Dems are already showing they are going to continue rushing to pass bad legislation, federal overreach, too far left, and I wonder what we may anticipate (fear) from the Obama administration, as well.
I wonder what the re-election-minded Dems will think of Chris Dodd's “avant-garde” financial reform bill, and what influence the Obama administration may have had and what that, again, also means for us. [gulp]
http://blogs.wsj.com/economics/2010/03/14/sen-d…
http://blogs.wsj.com/economics/2010/03/14/sen-c…