Michael Catalini (National Journal) reported on last week's decision in the House of Representatives to pull a planned bill from a vote:
Leadership pulled the bill from its scheduled slot on the floor, at the same time exposing the intraparty political problem facing the GOP: Do conservatives double-down on the repeal-or-bust approach? Or do they accept the law for now but try to emasculate it wherever possible?
Opinion polls help shed light on the question. In a recent Quinnipiac University poll, more Americans disapproved than approved of the health care law 46 percent to 41 percent, and a greater number say the law will hurt (37 percent) rather than help (15 percent) them personally. That should make messaging simple, argue many conservatives. Repealing the law is a no-brainer.
“What conservatives in the party understand is that they cannot be positioned on Obamacare to say this has failed and it’s collapsing on itself later unless they’re making that case now. For a lot of those guys it’s full repeal,” said Holler.
Why pull it? Because it couldn't pass in the Senate?
That seems the most obvious reason. But who knows?
We don't claim to be experts on the Republican Party.
We frequently don't understand why they do what they do.
For example, we're against ObamaCare as well. It's not universal health coverage. It's not single-payer. All it does is make everyone a slave to an insurance company.
It offers no real health care advantage.
And realizing that and being of the left, we would have come at it from a different angle if we controlled a house of Congress.
We would have realized repeal was ahard fight but we would have noted those strong numbers. And we would have known how to drive up those strong numbers.
ObamaCare is not trusted. It took strong arming to force it through. Anyone on the left is honest and remembers then-US House Rep. Dennis Kucincih swearing that he would never vote for it and then being strong-armed by President Barack Obama to do it.
Point being, only a thin layer of self-lies allows ObamaCare to have any popularity on the left. We'd strip that layer clean.
Know how we'd do that?
Pay attention, Eric Cantor.
We'd propose that members of Congress stand with ObamaCare or call it out. How do you do that?
If ObamaCare is so great, so wonderful, so good for America, put it to another vote. Insist that Congress replace its current health care plan and stand with the people. If they're for ObamaCare, then they should be willing to give up their current plans and switch to ObamaCAre.
So we'd introduce a bill that did just that in the House that we control so that we can get a rollcall vote on it. We'd stipulate that everyone in our party would vote for the bill because if Americans are going to be forced into a health program, we want all Americans to have that 'program.'
We'd force the Democrats in the House to vote on whether or not they'd give up their plans (which taxpayers foot the bill for) and take ObamaCare. That would mean leaving their government paid for program and footing the bill for their own health care. We think Dems in the House would crater. And that would send an immediate message about the quality of ObamaCare and the fact that Dems in the House don't want to be like the rest of America. But let's say it passed. Great. Send it to the Senate which is Dem controlled. If it doesn't come to a vote what a message to America.
The House voted for us all to be equal -- even members of Congress -- and the Senate doesn't want to? You think that won't send a message to America?