
Now is the time for Republicans to put up or shut up when it comes to health care reform. President Barack Obama has invited Republicans to serve up their solutions to one of this country's most enduring problems on national television.
According to the Associated Press:
In the first major move to jump-start his health care agenda after his party's loss of a filibuster-proof Senate majority, Obama on Sunday invited GOP and Democratic leaders to discuss possible compromises in a half-day, televised gathering on Feb. 25th. It comes amid widespread complaints that Democrats' efforts so far have been too partisan and secretive. The meeting's prospects for success are far from clear. GOP leaders insisted on starting from scratch. But many Democrats want to use their party's remaining parliamentary muscle to enact their plans with as few changes as possible.
Republicans have complained that Democrats have tried to jam health care reform measures down their throat, but that only happened after President Obama courted Republican leaders on the issue to no avail.
It was wise for Obama to use the Democratic super majority to get the bills passed in both houses of Congress. I believe that Democrats should have pushed reform through during the period when Scott Brown won the Massachusetts Senate seat and before he took office.
Now Republicans should stop complaining and weigh in. The status quo cannot stand. Health care costs are partially to blame for many of the issues that Republicans complain about, such as the trillion dollar budget deficit. More than 46 million Americans do not have health care. Thousands of Americans are forced to file for bankruptcy because of health care costs. It is not enough for Republicans to just criticize Democratic plans.Some Republicans suggest that we should start over.
"If we are to reach a bipartisan consensus, the White House can start by shelving the current health spending bill," said Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.
We've come too far to start over. This is the closest health care reform has come to passing in 70 years. It is not too late for Republicans to add input, but they don't want to. Republicans seem to be playing politics in advance of the midterm elections.
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., said his earlier efforts to reach out to Republicans "did not result in any serious follow through to work together in a bipartisan fashion."
I can't believe that not more than one Republican in both houses of Congress could find enough in either bill to vote yes. Republicans suggest a bipartisan commission on the deficit and then balk when President Obama proposes one. They block his nominations to important positions. They vote no on the stimulus but then hold hearings in their home district on how to get the money and pose next to fake giant checks of stimulus money. Sarah Palin looked at her hand and then criticized Obama for wanting to keep the public in the dark.
"I've said to the Republicans, 'Show me what you've got. You've been sitting on the sidelines criticizing what we're proposing; I'm happy to defend insurance reforms,'" Obama said. "'I'm happy to have these debates; I just want to see what else you've got.'"
The glue of democracy is compromise. Republicans are becoming unglued.


Comments: (5)
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By: Bill Watson on 2/09/2010 4:26PM
Free government universal health care for everyone choosing to use government systems could provide all care and medications for primary, inpatient, long-term, ophthalmology and dental care paid for by a national sales tax instead of insurance.
Everyone could have civilian government health care (NHC) like the VA’s and for all 300million people in the US and it would cost $1trillion less than the $2.6 trillion spent last year.
No one would be required to use public care but the cost savings are striking.
Employers could optout of paying for employee care.
States could offload healthcare costs to NHC.
Everyone who receives government funded health care from any source anywhere in the US whether it be Medicare, Medicaid, all states, cities, school systems everything, all employees from the President, legislators, and janitors should be consolidated into NHC.
The second system would be private only; consumers would pay to recieve private care, which would be deliverd in private hospitals, no public funding would be paid to private insurers or providers.
The private system should not be subjected to government mandates.
Going back and forth between free public, and user purchased private care, would allow ultimate freedom, and always free public care would be available.
Free universal government health care could save lives, prevent consumer hardships, and save a trillion dollars every year from health care expenditures.
Why have the President, Democrats, and Republicans all blocked this humane solution for health care from being part of the health care reform debate?
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By: paul on 2/09/2010 5:17PM
In the same article you state that you feel that the democrats should have quickly passed the health care reform before Brown took office, but also that the glue of a democracy is compromise, and republicans are coming unglued.
Let me get this straight...
If it is in your favor, it's OK to undermine the system and sneak things in. When it is not in your favor, there need to be compromises.
Smells to me like a big stinky double standard. I'm so glad our forefathers put checks and balances in place.
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By: fixer707 on 2/11/2010 12:57AM
Jeff for once give us an accurate article!!! Stop the bs, the more you write the more you look like a bumbling idiot. Get your facts straight.
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By: Michael Lofton on 2/12/2010 5:32PM
President Barack Obama and/or the Democrat/ObamaCrat Administration are a failure, un-American, the worst in what it means to serve the people, that is as it concerns law abiding U.S. citizens.
The Republican Party, any Conservatives, should remain firm. More important than Obama's losing Health care Agenda is less taxation, less government influence, policy that promotes free enterprise, private business growth and expansion, which in turn will mean more jobs, and lower unemployment.
With gainful employment, those who choose to can contract for his or her own Health Care provisions, or any other product or service.
http://againstallodds.blogtownhall.com/2010/02/10/indeed_of_more_importance_to_any_community_is_competent_representation_and_not_the_ethnicity_of_the_elected_official!.thtml
http://www.ireport.com/docs/DOC-182700
President Barack Obama is unfit to be an elected official, let alone be President of the United States. Like other no good Democratic Party affiliated elected officials, President Obama has no regard for his sworn duty to protect and defend the Constitutional rights of all U.S. citizens. Furthermore, Obama is deceiving the Black community.
President Obama doesn't deserve praise and the honor due, as it pertains to U.S. History, or for that matter Black History, and/or Black History month. President Obama doesn't give a "rat's @ss about honoring and upholding his sworn oath of office to protect and defend the Constitutional rights of all law abiding U.S. citizens, U.S. born Black men, women, and/or their siblings, being inclusive.
California, other jurisdictions, and/or the responsible and intelligent electorate at large are heading in the right direction.
"California redistricting effort is out of the backroom but not free of politics"
"Ballot measures to the rescue"
1. Lawmakers previously drew the districts -- often contorting boundaries to rope in the voters of their choice -- and will continue to determine the lines for congressional seats.”
2. Supporters of Proposition 11, which created the commission, said concerns about underrepresentation for women and minorities are overblown.
3. For the first time, voting districts for California's Legislature will not be drawn behind closed doors in the backrooms of the state Capitol. Instead, a first-in-the-nation citizen commission will do the job, and thousands of everyday Californians are jostling to serve on the panel.
4. But political reform, Proposition 14, the open-primary initiative, is not about reforming people; it's about reforming a broken system that forces candidates to run to the extremes of the political spectrum in order to win contested primaries.
http://ceyseau.net/files/President-Elect_Barack_Obama_1-7-09_and_Administration_for_posting.pdf
Indeed, more so than ethnicity or ethnic background, any Harvard graduate university degree certification, are competent representation, and not the ethnicity of the elected office holder. South Central Los Angeles, Compton, Inglewood, Detroit, Baltimore, Washington D.C., New Orleans, etc., etc., have had elected Black leaders affiliated for decades. More often than not these individuals have shown no regard for the Constitutional rights of law abiding resident whose property rights, lawful right to work, family rights, good reputation, etc., etc. Many times, the same individuals move from one elected office position to another, to promote his or her own self efficacy, and not serve the interests of the people, serving the interests of the people being the essence of what it means to be an elected official.
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By: candida bateman on 2/15/2010 3:04AM
i fell that tha unsuraty of ones reason for medical care brings tha question should goverment be reponsiable for tha cost of abuse to prescription drugs. tha law is design tohold the rights of humanaity. so there for people that seek medical assists should. we say okay me i have a pcp provider they get paid if i go are not so they follow prosegure of law. Those that see a doctor to supply street pharmist. so how do you decide. children and emergy rooms then where do that leave independent doctors so where so when tha system is abuse guess who will be blamed govorment so how do you decide children and have adults seek a medical plan that can benifent one self indivisauly or as a family makin it afford able for families. thatz a hard reform to agree to.
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