Monday, December 7, 2009

Calling Their Bluff on Health Care Reform; A Way Forward


Last week, kook Senator, Doctor Tom Coburn (R-Okla) and morally corrupt Senator, Adulterer David Vitter (R-La) introduced an amendement that would require all members of congress to enroll in the public-option choice if allowed under the legislation, thinking that no senators would agree to such a thing, thus in effect, killing the inclusion of the public-option in the health care reform bill.  Senators Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Al Franken (D-Minn.), and Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) thinking that if the public option is good enough for the people, it's good enough for them, decided to join them  and tried to sign on as co-sponsors of the amendement.  Good for them.
Deciding that they didn't want the democratic senators to call their bluff, Coburn and Vitter expanded their amendement to include not only congress, but the president and his staff.  Coburn and Vitter will be joined in this more expansive amendment by Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) and Richard Burr (R-N.C.). A Coburn spokesman said that Democrats were encouraged to join the GOP on this amendment.
"Coburn, said that his amendment isn't a gimmick, but rather a serious attempt to mitigate the harms he believes would come about through the existence of a public option. If the president and other political heavyweights are enrolled in it, his thinking goes, they'll make sure it runs well."While I oppose the public option, Republicans and Democrats can agree that we should live under the laws we pass. I can also think of no better way to ensure that the public option is responsive to our citizens than by having the politicians in charge of the system enrolled in the same program. If a low-income, single mom has to wait in line for a life saving treatment, so should our national leaders and their families. Enrolling national leaders in the public option may be the best way to prevent the government from rationing care," Coburn said ."
Good for them as well.  If offering an amendement from the party of "no" finally leads to honest debate and compromise, all the better.  I encourage all Democratic Senators to support this amendement, debate and compromise honestly with the Republicans, and come up with a bill that all can support.  In reality, I have little to no confidence that Republicans would sign on to any bill in any form.  In my opinion they are bankrupt of ideas and will not want to alienate the fringe in our society who actually make up the base of their party, who want them to do nothing, by actually doing their jobs and passing legislation.  Stay tuned

3 comments:

  1. Don't be sorry. We need to be honest. You bring up a good point about Kennedy. However, I guess a further point of mine might be that I don't think he was a hypocrite. He did have alcohol problems until a few years ago. He did try to shirk responsibility from Chappaquidic at the time. But he never stood on the floor of Congress and made speeches about how alcohol and leaving the scene of an accident were good.
    Perhaps I should have titled my post more on the lines of "the hypocrasy of being a senator" Coburn and Vitter have stood in the well and espoused their moral superiority and voted that way, much as Senator "I am not a homosexual" Craig did. You're right though, if we had a morals test few in Congress would pass.

    Did you get a chance to listen to the "David Spilllane Playing The Uilleann Pipes" video? It was really nice.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Sorry you hate your job. I'm sure it's not easy. Elsewhere, you said you worked at Bally's. Were you a dealer? Growing up and as an adult, I have always been a good boy and follow rules. However, Bally's has the distinction of being the only casino I have ever been thrown out of and officially told that if I ever set foot in the place again, I would be arrested! Two friends and I attempted to get into a club that I think was probably just off the casino floor. They carded us. Two of us were like 22, one of us 20. Well, we turned around and left the entrance but were still on the casino floor. Of course, you have to be 21 to gamble. We got past one row of slots and looked around. Security guards from the left, right, and in front of us just all started to move towards us! Well, they got us. Took us downstairs into a cell with handcuffs. Had our pics and ID's taken, sat for about an hour, then escorted out the back door with the admonition of never returning. We did a couple years later but that's probably the closest I've come to a run in with the law. Live and learn.

    ReplyDelete
  3. @Sheila, my point is, there are sexual miscreants in both parties. It's not about the weirdness, it's about the hypocrasy:
    Jetton Tried to Ban "Deviate Sexual Intercourse"
    "Rod Jetton (R), the Missouri power broker who is accused of assault in a S&M encounter gone bad, apparently fought to ban "deviate sexual intercourse" in his state -- at least when it involved same sex couples, TPM reports."

    Now, the Kansas City Star reports Jetton "will be leaving politics to deal with false allegations and spend time with his family," according to a statement issued by his lawyer.

    ReplyDelete