This weekend, the House of Representatives passed the much debated Health Care Bill. This historic and monumental legislation passed by a razor thin 220-215 vote. The passage of this bill brought to mind several points that I’d like to bring out here.
There are 257 Democrats in the House, meaning this bill passed without even the full support of the President’s own party. In fact, a last minute Republican amendment is the only reason that several Blue Dog Democrats were able to tolerate the bill, meaning that the Conservatives accidentally made the passage of this bill possible. On the bright side, President Obama, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid can claim bi-partisan support, thanks to RINO (Republican In Name Only) Joseph Cao, the lone GOPer to vote in favor of the bill.
I consider myself to be a compassionate conservative (and no, that’s not an oxymoron and no, you’re not being funny or clever when you suggest it is). This bill is tough for me because I love the idea of everyone being cared for. I’m all for providing health care to everyone who needs it, in theory. The problem is that I just don’t believe this can work in practice.
We just can’t afford it. The government’s own Budget Office laid it out months ago, but the President and Congress chose to ignore their own non-partisan projections. In typical Government fashion, this new legislation allegedly will create over one hundred new commissions, committees, and agencies – all of which will have a hand in the health care pot.
I am feeling slightly conflicted about this situation. Part of me is horrified at the prospect of the United States of America taking another step toward Socialism. But then I remember that this is the federal government, and they will find a way to debate, stall, squabble, and mismanage until this becomes nothing more than a taxpayer funded bureaucratic mess with no real impact other than to drain a little more money from my check each and every payday. It makes me sad to think that that is the best we can hope for out of our elected officials.
This is one time I’d love to be wrong. But time will prove that I’m not.
