Research Briefing

Editorial Boards Call Dems’ Government-Run Health Care Experiment “Far-Reaching,” “Arrogant,” And “Radical”

The Washington Post: “[W]hat Is Intended As A Final Sprint Threatens To Turn Into Something Unseemly And, More Important, Contrary To Democrats’ Promises Of Transparency And Time For Deliberation.” (Editorial, “Health-Reform Vote Deserves A Reasonable Process,” The Washington Post, 3/16/10)

• Changes In Obama’s Reconciliation Bill “Not All Minor ‘Fixes’; Some Could Have Far-Reaching Consequences.” “More worrying is that Congress and the country have yet to see the changes, for which Democrats hope to win quick House approval and which they then hope to speed through the Senate under a procedure that would bar filibusters. These changes -- the so-called reconciliation bill -- are not all minor ‘fixes’; some could have far-reaching consequences.” (Editorial, “Health-Reform Vote Deserves A Reasonable Process,” The Washington Post, 3/16/10)

 The Cincinnati Enquirer: “Arrogant Approach To Health Care” (Editorial, The Cincinnati Enquirer, 3/16/10)

• Bending The Rules “Is Yet Further Damning Evidence Of Congressional Leaders’ Arrogant, Condescending Attitude Toward The People They Ostensibly Were Elected To Serve.” (Editorial, “Arrogant Approach To Health Care,” The Cincinnati Enquirer, 3/16/10)
• “Now, Despite The Deep Reservations Of A Majority Of Americans, Congressional Leaders Plan To Ram Through Their Proposal This Week - Bypassing Normal Congressional Procedures.” (Editorial, “Arrogant Approach To Health Care,” The Cincinnati Enquirer, 3/16/10)

 The Minneapolis Star-Tribune Says Reform’s “Achilles’ Heel Is Cost Containment.” “Even tough critics of the health care reform bills acknowledge that the legislation would accomplish a worthy goal: extending coverage to 30 million Americans without insurance. At the same time, health reform’s staunchest advocates admit that its Achilles’ heel is cost containment, a big problem when the nation’s annual health care tab is $2.4 trillion and climbing.” (Editorial, “Health Reform’s Hidden Game-Changers,” Minneapolis Star-Tribune, 3/13/10)

The Seattle Times: “At This Point, The Responsible Vote Is ‘No.’ Take A Break, Let The Economy Recover, And Start Over.” (Editorial, “The U.S. House Should Reject The Health Care Bill And Start Over,” The Seattle Times, 3/15/10)

“This Bill Offers No Real Control Of Costs.” “A good health insurance bill might help the economic recovery. But it would do this only if it controlled health care costs, so that when an American worker received a raise, he or she might actually see some of it. But this bill offers no real control of costs. It is all about coverage.” (Editorial, “The U.S. House Should Reject The Health Care Bill And Start Over,” The Seattle Times, 3/15/10)

The Columbus Dispatch: “In Short, Obama Is Desperate For A Win.” (Editorial, “On Health-Care Vote, Lawmakers Should Pay Heed To The People,” The Columbus Dispatch 3/14/10)

• “They Should Vote For The American People. That Means Saying No To The Health-Care Overhaul Plans Now Before Congress.” (Editorial, “On Health-Care Vote, Lawmakers Should Pay Heed To The People,” The Columbus Dispatch 3/14/10)
• Obama Wants Another Unsustainable Entitlement While “Medicaid Already Is Driving State Budgets Into The Red.” “The federal government already runs two of the biggest medical programs in the country, Medicare and Medicaid, and both are headed for insolvency. Consider that the health-care overhaul calls for putting half of the 31 million uninsured onto state Medicaid rolls at a time when Medicaid already is driving state budgets into the red.” (Editorial, “On Health-Care Vote, Lawmakers Should Pay Heed To The People,” The Columbus Dispatch 3/14/10)
• “No Proposal To Make Over A Sixth Of The U.S. Economy … Should Be Rammed Through In The Face Of Such Opposition.” “If almost half of Ohio’s congressional delegation is undecided, the American people are not. Recent opinion surveys find that half or more of Americans oppose the proposed overhaul. The number favoring the plan rarely tops 40 percent. No proposal to make over a sixth of the U.S. economy and to radically alter the health-care prospects of all Americans should be rammed through in the face of such opposition.” (Editorial, “On Health-Care Vote, Lawmakers Should Pay Heed To The People,” The Columbus Dispatch 3/14/10) 

The Orange County Register: Dems Will “Make Radical Changes To A Sixth Of The U.S. Economy.” “The debate over Obamacare is replete with arcane details and debates over process, and we have discussed some, including how dubious it is to make radical changes to a sixth of the U.S. economy by a bare majority vote when most citizens oppose or are dubious about the plan. The search for votes will almost always include favors paid for by taxpayers, and ‘reconciliation’ is a process almost guaranteed to produce polarization rather than reconciliation.” (Editorial, “U.S. At Crossroads With Obamacare,” The Orange County Register  3/12/10)

• A “Decisive Step Toward Becoming Just Like The European Welfare States.” “[I]t is important to remember that if the Senate bill passes, with or without modifications done through reconciliation, it will change the character of America in ways that are unlikely to be reversed. We will have taken a large and perhaps decisive step toward becoming just like the European welfare states, with much larger government involvement in every aspect of our lives in exchange for a promise of security ...” (Editorial, “U.S. At Crossroads With Obamacare,” The Orange County Register  3/12/10)
• And “A Formula For Stagnation.” “We believe the genius of America has always resided in the freedom and independence of its citizens, in the willingness of people to accept the risk of failure as well as rewards of success, so long as the society is open enough to allow people numerous second chances. Accepting the soft embrace of government-promised security is a formula for stagnation, and we don’t think America is ready for that yet.” (Editorial, “U.S. At Crossroads With Obamacare,” The Orange County Register  3/12/10)
• “Once The Government Can Force You To Buy A Health Insurance Policy, Its Control Not Only Over Our Health – Already A Life-And-Death Matter – But Over Other Aspects Of Our Lives Can Only Escalate.” (Editorial, “U.S. At Crossroads With Obamacare,” The Orange County Register  3/12/10)
• “A One-Size-Fits-All Policy For The Entire Diverse Nation.” (Editorial, “U.S. At Crossroads With Obamacare,” The Orange County Register  3/12/10) 

The Wall Street Journal: “We Have Entered A Political Wonderland, Where The Rules Are Whatever Democrats Say They Are. Mrs. Pelosi And The White House Are Resorting To These Abuses Because Their Bill Is So Unpopular  ...” (Editorial, “Slaughter House Rules,” The Wall Street Journal, 3/16/10) 

• Dems “Consuming Their Own Majority … Leaving Behind A Procedural Bloody Trail.” “Democrats are, literally, consuming their own majority for the sake of imposing new taxes, regulations and entitlements that the public has roundly rejected but that they believe will be the crowning achievement of the welfare state. They are also leaving behind a procedural bloody trail that will fuel public fury and make such a vast change of law seem illegitimate to millions of Americans.” (Editorial, “Slaughter House Rules,” The Wall Street Journal, 3/16/10)  

The Washington Times: “Desperate Democrats Will Try Anything To Ram Their Government Takeover Of Health Care Through Congress.” “Desperate Democrats will try anything to ram their government takeover of health care through Congress, even if that means upending traditional parliamentary practice in the Senate. Threatening to misuse the reconciliation process to sneak through the health care bill apparently isn’t enough to get the job done. Despite growing public anger over Democrats running roughshod over existing rules, the Senate is set to escalate the mayhem by trying to suppress the filibuster.” (Editorial, “Deep-Sixing The Filibuster,” The Washington Times, 3/16/10)