Obamacare Is Killing the GOP
Republicans' obsession with the law will be the party's undoing
BY NOAM SCHEIBER, TNR
It’s not an exaggeration to say Republicans have bet their future on the disaster they expect from Obamacare. “The implementation of the law over the next year is going to reveal a lot of kinks, a lot of red tape, a lot of taxes, a lot of price increases,” RNC spokesman Brad Dayspring told The New York Times last month. “It’s going to be an issue that’s front and center [in 2014].” GOP intellectuals see Obamacare as the centerpiece of the party’s strategy even well beyond then. “Republicans are likely to seize on every sad [implementation] story as justification for dramatic changes—and in 2016, mount campaigns designed to replace the system in whole or in part with plenty of material to use in their cause,” the conservative wonk Ben Domenech wrote approvingly in March.
And, of course, the party’s base is completely, unremittingly, obsessed with the issue. The mere anticipation of an implementation quagmire is “reinvigorating the movement," Jenny Beth Martin, a national Tea Party official, told The Hill in early May. "We're doing street rallies and protests over the next month to three months, initially. We're working to recruit candidates that can talk about this."
I happen to be agnostic about whether health care implementation will help the GOP in 2014. On the one hand, anything that energizes conservatives in a low-turnout election should benefit Republicans, much as it did on 2010. On the other hand, as The Washington Post’s Greg Sargent points out, much of the public antipathy toward Obamacare is already baked into the polls. The people who disapprove haven’t liked it from the get-go; similarly for the people who approve. It’s possible that a series of implementation snafus will move those numbers at the margins—a new poll suggests public opinion has soured a bit lately, perhaps as a result of all the “train wreck” chatter. On the other hand, it’s also possible that implementation will go relatively smoothly and people will embrace the program, netting Democrats a few more votes.
(More here.)
BY NOAM SCHEIBER, TNR
It’s not an exaggeration to say Republicans have bet their future on the disaster they expect from Obamacare. “The implementation of the law over the next year is going to reveal a lot of kinks, a lot of red tape, a lot of taxes, a lot of price increases,” RNC spokesman Brad Dayspring told The New York Times last month. “It’s going to be an issue that’s front and center [in 2014].” GOP intellectuals see Obamacare as the centerpiece of the party’s strategy even well beyond then. “Republicans are likely to seize on every sad [implementation] story as justification for dramatic changes—and in 2016, mount campaigns designed to replace the system in whole or in part with plenty of material to use in their cause,” the conservative wonk Ben Domenech wrote approvingly in March.
And, of course, the party’s base is completely, unremittingly, obsessed with the issue. The mere anticipation of an implementation quagmire is “reinvigorating the movement," Jenny Beth Martin, a national Tea Party official, told The Hill in early May. "We're doing street rallies and protests over the next month to three months, initially. We're working to recruit candidates that can talk about this."
I happen to be agnostic about whether health care implementation will help the GOP in 2014. On the one hand, anything that energizes conservatives in a low-turnout election should benefit Republicans, much as it did on 2010. On the other hand, as The Washington Post’s Greg Sargent points out, much of the public antipathy toward Obamacare is already baked into the polls. The people who disapprove haven’t liked it from the get-go; similarly for the people who approve. It’s possible that a series of implementation snafus will move those numbers at the margins—a new poll suggests public opinion has soured a bit lately, perhaps as a result of all the “train wreck” chatter. On the other hand, it’s also possible that implementation will go relatively smoothly and people will embrace the program, netting Democrats a few more votes.
(More here.)
Powered by Blogger
2 Comments:
Let's rephrase the headline :
Obamacare Is Killing the Democrats
Democrats failing to explain the benefits law will be the party's undoing
Fear is a difficult emotion to overcome ... and when everyday you hear another story about how bad this is going to be, you begin to believe it. Heck, look at the case involving 10-year-old Sarah Murnaghan to be moved to the adult lung transplant list ... did that have anything to do with ObamaCare ? The organ allocation practice has been ongoing for years and there are at least 40 other Pennsylvanians with more serious conditions but she has become the "poster child". Heck, The 2006 Uniform Anatomical Gift Act (revised 2009) allows a directed donation from a donor family and supercedes the organ allocation rules.
But that will never be discussed.
The Dems better wake up and start holding informational forums (and be willing to take the protests).
Funny thing is that just last week, I bumped into someone praising Medicare and how much they like the coverage ... something that they probably would not have said until they started to participate in it.
Let's rephrase the headline :
Obamacare Is Killing the Democrats
Democrats failing to explain the benefits law will be the party's undoing
Fear is a difficult emotion to overcome ... and when everyday you hear another story about how bad this is going to be, you begin to believe it. Heck, look at the case involving 10-year-old Sarah Murnaghan to be moved to the adult lung transplant list ... did that have anything to do with ObamaCare ? The organ allocation practice has been ongoing for years and there are at least 40 other Pennsylvanians with more serious conditions but she has become the "poster child". Heck, The 2006 Uniform Anatomical Gift Act (revised 2009) allows a directed donation from a donor family and supercedes the organ allocation rules.
But that will never be discussed.
The Dems better wake up and start holding informational forums (and be willing to take the protests).
Funny thing is that just last week, I bumped into someone praising Medicare and how much they like the coverage ... something that they probably would not have said until they started to participate in it.
Post a Comment
<< Home