I was talking about the bill today and someone asked if McCain would have done any better. Now this person is a 100% liberal but their point was that the Republicans are voting against the bill because of strict parliamentarian considerations and if it was a Republican president who was "just trying to get a w", by passing any sort of health care bill, then it would be a lot easier to do.
McCain would have to do it because something has to be done. Everyone knows that. I think she was right to say it would have been easier for McCain to pass a bill but then the question is what sort of bill? With the Democrats still a majority in both houses but now the pressure upon the Republicans to co-operate would the end bill have been more progressive? Would the progressive block have been able to exert some pressure and get a deal instead of (let’s face it, we know they will) crumbling at the first sign of pressure?
I have stated previously that I doubt McCain could have passed a bill which had a huge new regressive tax on the working poor / lower middle class. Shafting the progressives with that sort of thing is Obama’s strength. At the least then the Republican bill might have had to have either a lower tax on the poor or else drop the mandates altogether and go for a smaller bill (which is currently about the best that could be hoped for as an outcome, but only if the progressives fight to defeat Obama which they’ll never do).
True, the Republican bill would have been a huge industry giveaway with next to nothing for the people — but we got that anyway.
Would the Republicans have managed to steam roller progressives into giving up abortion coverage? Obama could and did.
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Greetings! This is sort of a test, since my comments won’t post under my own blogs, I’m visiting the redoubtable DavidByron’s blog to try here, and as usual I half agree with this post. Obamacare sucks, but as I predicted a couple of weeks ago, both parties realized Obama had to pass some kind of public option, or the whole sham two-party system would be so blatantly exposed that even idiotic American voters would see through it.
Well I can see your comment.
Perhaps you have been put on moderation too Jacob?
I find that once they start censoring political opinion they start to do it more and more; it becomes easier to do, easier to justify.
[modnote: mods do not censor political opinion.]
With Republicans You can’t belive anything they say for a start.
They have been against anykind of healthcare for decades.
To think McCain would have been able to pass anything, is questionable.
If something did get passed, it would as mentioned be huge giveaway to the special interests, and do little good for the people.
The presciption drug plan, although sinior’s love it, just pays for the drugs at what ever the drug company want’s, not at reasonable prices, so benefits the rug companies way more than the seniors.
A good part of the Country is still fooled that the Republicans have any good ideas, and that they have what’s best for anything, or anyone at heart.
If people would realize that the republicans ideology, has nothing to do with people, only money and power, this Country would be way better off.
Even the things that sound good like low taxes, and smaller Government, and getting Government out of our lives, fiscal responsibility, and morals are tools to achieve building and empowering the corrupts systems they believe in.
So — on this issue, at least — McCain would have been the lesser of two evils?
You do recall that the McCain campaign’s “health care reform” proposal had a strong resemblance to the much-ridiculed Republican “plan” that was released this week, right? He said the problem is that we’re all over-insured and employer-based insurance is preventing the free market from working its magic, so the solution is to do nothing but kill employer-based insurance and make everyone buy individual policies, and everything will be fine. However inadequate you think Obama’s efforts have been, do you really think a president providing pressure in that direction would have produced a better bill?
Facts not in evidence. Democrats believe “something has to be done”; Republicans believe no such thing, unless that “something” is tax cuts or restricting lawsuits. The condition of our health care system is not appreciably different than it was a year ago, and a Republican president would no more believe “something has to be done” than the one we had for the past eight years did.
Whether you like the final result or not, the only reason this has gotten as far as it has is because a winning Democratic candidate made it his major domestic campaign issue. There’s no need to talk about whether President McCain would have produced a “better” bill; if McCain were president, there never would have been a significant effort in Congress at all.
NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! McCain has poven that noting HE said then was worth anything, and nothing He’s done since meant anything.
The guy just thought He should be President, because His ego is bigger than His wifes fortune.
He bought that HE was a Hero, just like to many of us.
Remember that during His campaign He said I know where Bin Laden is and I will Get Him.
A true American if knowing all this would have told the guy He lost to so He could have went and got Him.
Not go on talk shows cut the guy up, while sitting there with that underlying smug grin, and a deadly burn from losing being shown up in His eye’s.
This guy has never been a public servant, but a blood sucker on the people’s payroll for most of His life.
McCainObama has proven that noting HE said then was worth anything.I don’t want to re-fight the last election. I’m just pointing out what more and more lefties are realizing: you elected a snake oil salesman.
Still Better than the snakes belly that we had before HIM.
“Still Better than the snakes belly that we had before HIM.”
Yeah, that’s Obama’s campaign in a nutshell: I ain’t George Bush.
I wasn’t on FDL at the time, but I posted elsewhere something like, “Any competent, reasonably moderate Republican could beat this unknown 1st term Democratic Senator. Any competent, reasonably moderate Democrat could beat this half-senile old fart Republican. The problem is that both candidates suck.”
Our Government, our politics, our politicians, and our economy sucks, what’s new.
We only had two choices, picked one, got one, and have to live with it.
When Sara gets in next time She’ll fix it all, “right.” Or maybe Huckleberry, or Rommmmmmmmmm ny, or one of the other putz’s. At least Mr. Appilacian Trail won’t make it.
Marginally, but yes.
I also think he’d be better on the wars, again, marginally.
Palin was the loose cannon. She was the only hope of getting anything done. A real pot-luck there. She could have ended up doing anything which is good considering the “change” mood of the nation. Of course it was equally likely she’d screw it up but I’ll take a 50-50 over a sure thing.
It even looks like Biden might have been better. Mr credit card whore himself.
Uhuh. I bet mods never lie either, eh?
I honestly don’t see what the point is of your half-hearted attempt to defend a secretive system that has no accountability whatsoever. It is what it is. It’s not like anywhere else of any prominence does any different (although I have to say the process here is especially clandestine — almost anywhere else you’d at least be given a warning or a pretext or SOMETHING before being censored). Everywhere censors politically and everywhere denies it. The bottom line is if your politics don’t match up with the mild right-wing centrist corporate status quo, you won’t get to post for long.
Simple answer: No