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WASHINGTON – The White House and congressional leaders are preparing a detailed health care proposal designed to win passage without Republican support if GOP lawmakers fail to embrace bipartisan compromises at President Barack Obama's summit next week.
A senior White House official said Thursday that Democratic negotiators are resolving final differences in House and Senate health bills that passed last year with virtually no Republican help. The White House plans to post the proposals online by Monday morning, three days ahead of the Feb. 25 summit, which GOP leaders are approaching warily.
After the Brown election, I predicted that "Obamacare" was still going to pass, and it looks like I am right. If talks break down between the White House and Republican legislators next week, Democrats plan to use a tactic that is very similar to the "Nuclear Option" planned by Republicans, when Democrats threatened to stall Bush's appointments of judges.
What the Democrats are planning is all legal, but sets a bad precedent. I also predict that it will start a full scale war between Democrats and Republicans on the Hill, in which the GOP will use a "scorched earth" strategy, much like what the Democrats had threatened when Republicans threatened the nuclear option.
The key to the Democrats' strategy is to pass health care under "reconciliation", which would prevent filibusters, by requiring only 51 votes to pass. By doing this, the Democrats also plan to bring back the "Public Option" and pass that through the reconciliation process. This is also legal, because the public option had already been passed by the House.
In my opinion, this is bad, and for the following reasons:
1) It mandates that most Americans purchase insurance. This IS Socialistic in nature.
2) It will add more than a trillion dollars to the deficit over the next decade.
3) It will make steep cuts in Medicare, a program that many Americans have spent a lifetime paying into already.
4) It will put the Federal government in the insurance business, something that it has no business being in.
Now these are my objections to the health care bill, as it looks like it will exist in its final form. To those who disagree with me, please state your reasons.
Finally, let me add this: As things are turning out, it does not matter ONE IOTA what people think, either pro or con. This is going to be a done deal. Think about it when you go into the voting booth this November, and vote accordingly.
Article is here.
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