I agree with Congressman Joe Wilson. The President has misrepresented what the Democrats are proposing to do with our health care. Unfortunately, the rules of decorum prevent Republicans from saying what they think out loud unless it agrees with what President Obama has already said. After all, we know how well the Democrats follow the rules they impose on the minority party when THEY are the minority party, don’t we? While I much prefer Senator DeMint’s opposition strategy and admire his restraint during the President’s speech last night, I can tell you that there are many of my fellow conservatives who were yelling at our TVs and radios – mostly similar sentiments to those of Joe Wilson. This doesn’t make Wilson a Super-Patriot or the next “Republican revolutionary”. It just makes him someone who temporarily forgot that he gave up the right to challenge the President of the United States during his speech on national TV when he got elected to Congress. AND he apologized for it. Get over the indignation and let’s move on to what we were talking about – health care.
As far as the question of illegal immigrants getting health care under the House bill, sure the language forbids it, but when there are no explicit enforcement requirements, what guarantee is there that this won’t eventually happen? It’s happening now in the border states, especially in California and Texas. So that’s a legitimate concern.
There was nothing game-changing about the President’s speech last night. We will continue to oppose the proposals currently on the table, because these aren’t serious attempts to address the costs and inefficiencies we have with our health care system right now.
Are you kidding me? This is a joke right?
The GOP would be the first to call what Wilson did anti-Americanism. I can’t imagine what would happen if a Democrat did the same thing to George W. Bush.
As for the content that Obama wants to provide insurance to illegal immigrants, that’s just absurd and along the same lines as the GOP’s embrace of death panels and socialist takeovers. The whole Party is one big conspiracy theory.
Moreover, the content of the bill specifically mentions, like you say, that illegal aliens would not receive tax payer assistance. Much like we can’t forbid illegals to buy a loaf of bread, the bill won’t prevent illegals from purchasing public insurance with their own money. What’s wrong with that?
All this is is another scare tactic by the right wing. Next week it will be Obama wants to kill babies through a public option. Then it will be Obama wants to prevent whites from having insurance. All the hot-topic wacko buttons the GOP is built around will be touched before this is all over.
Any further discussion of Wilson is designed to distract attention away from the Democrats and the Left’s inability to win the public policy debate of healthcare reform.
No amount of carping about death panels or any other straw man argument about lies and disinformation will change the fact that The American people aren’t going along with ObamaCare as its been presented thus far.
The Democrats should spend less time whining about the minority party’s opposition and more time crafting a bill that might actually be deemed acceptable by the American people because its actually a set of ideas worth enacting.
I have zero problem with illegals buying their own health insurance with their own money. I wish they would. But where’s the incentive to do that when there’s a possibility that somewhere down the road federal and state governments will pick up the tab for that expense? For that matter, where’s the incentive for US citizens to pay for their own health insurance and take responsibility for their own health care costs under ObamaCare (as it’s been presented to us)?
If there was a commitment to preventing illegals from taking advantage of government-funded health care, then why did the Democrats previously vote down amendments clarifying this point? Whatever they may do or say now, the Democrats will find a way to get illegals covered, if only as a result of the inevitable “comprehensive immigration reform” legislation that we can expect from the Obama administration.
It’s curious to me why you, Chris, don’t seem to have much interest in discussing the alternatives I have already presented in previous posts, and instead choose to focus on the peripheral issues surrounding the health care debate.
Do I wish that some of these protesters would stick to cold hard facts and leave the crazy stuff to the privacy of their own homes? Absolutely. But there’s more upside than downside when the American people start paying attention to what the federal government is doing, no matter which party is in power. In every political movement there is some level of fringe participation. In the case of the tea party movement, there is no official leader. If/when one is selected, then there will be more policing of that fringe group. Until then, there’s nothing the average person can do about that.
“But wheres the incentive to do that when theres a possibility that somewhere down the road federal and state governments will pick up the tab for that expense?”
They already do. We are already paying for people with no insurance, illegal or otherwise. According to that argument, we should do away with Medicare and Medicaid, two government programs that do just what you are worried about.
“Whatever they may do or say now, the Democrats will find a way to get illegals covered, if only as a result of the inevitable comprehensive immigration reform legislation that we can expect from the Obama administration.”
Sounds like a phobia actually. You can do better than that Lisa.
“Its curious to me why you, Chris, dont seem to have much interest in discussing the alternatives I have already presented in previous posts, and instead choose to focus on the peripheral issues surrounding the health care debate.”
Your alternatives are not plans put forth by your Party. Why discuss it? Your Party is going around fear mongering about death panels and government takeovers. Anything else is ignoring what’s really going on.
Tea Baggers and their lies are not fringe. Actual elected Republican officials (Members of Congress) are going around the country talking about death panels, concentration camps, government takeovers, etc. This is mainstream Republicanism. I understand your concern, but it was noticeably absent when Bush was in power.
CNNMoney.com’s Shawn Tully points out that ,”…the Baucus legislation would impose the equivalent of a giant tax hike on middle-class families, who would have far less money left over after buying insurance than they do today.”
Pointing out that the latest form of Obamacare would represent a substantive departure from Obama’s pledge to not raise taxes on the middle class is not whining about death panels.
Rather, it’s a point for which the proponent of ObamaCare have no good answer. Which is why when George Stephanopoulos pressed Obama about this last Sunday, Obama had to use his Alinsky tactics by seizing on the fact that the dictionary was used rather than actually answering the question.
I’ve seen this kind of debating tactic once or twice before.
Yes Jaz, and the Baucus bill is not Obama’s. It’s Baucus’.
Who is here defending the Baucus bill? You are totally confused.
The main Republican opposition has indeed been “death panels,” socialist takeovers, and whatever other conspiracy theories Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh come up with.
I know, I know ObamaCare doesn’t include anything anyone objects to. If it ever does, they simply adjust it or insist the particular complaint is not part of what Obama is for.
I call this the shifting goal posts theory.
At some point Obama will have to fully endorse a particular piece of legislation. Until then, despite Obama’s pronouncement that “the time for debate is over”, the time for debate hasn’t even really started yet.
Jaz, that’s not what I said at all. You’re just making stuff up. You’ll do anything to shift the focus away from how Republicans are behaving. At some point Republicans will have to do more than make up conspiracy theories. Just yesterday a Republican Member of Congress posted a socialist picture of Obama on the House Floor. You’re right, the debate hasn’t even really started yet.
Fine, the Repubs are behaving badly. Now, back to the issue of healthcare reform.
Newsflash: Obamacare is unconstitutional socialism.