How Bipartisanship Will Kill Health Care Reform

The recent defection by eight House republicans on cap-and-trade notwithstanding, trying to get repug votes for anything this administration wants is still a mug's game.

The repugs play the dems on every bill. They did it to the stimulus, and they're doing it to energy policy and financial regulation. They demand substantial changes as the price of their support, then when the bill is watered down to utter impotence, they vote against it anyway.

This is the final, completely exposed stage of the game repugs have been playing for 30 years. They have no interest - none - in governing. Their goal while in the majority and/or holding the White House is to undo the New Deal, destroy the middle class and further enrich the corporate elite and obscenely wealthy. Their goal - their ONLY goal - while in the majority is to stop the Democratic majority/president from governing, and destroy its reputation with the public.

There is, in fact, no such thing as a republican party in terms of constitutional government. We have one political party capable of governing - the Democratic Party - and one insane adolescent bent on destroying everything if it can't get its way.

But on health care reform, playing that repug game will be catastrophic.

Democrats are willing to weaken their own bill in the hopes of winning support from a discredited minority that not only has an interest in seeing the reform effort fail, but which is almost certain to vote against the final bill, no matter what's in it.

This isn't an effective way to negotiate -- or to govern.

Indeed, most of the focus over the last couple of weeks has been about the public option, and the fact that Republicans consider it a deal-breaker. It is, we've been told, the one line the GOP minority cannot cross. But looking at the big picture, Republicans haven't said, "We can support the rest of the reform agenda, outside of a public plan." In fact, Republicans haven't actually endorsed anything in the reform agenda at all.

SNIP

But thus far, for all the whining about the public plan, I'm not seeing the evidence that they're actually willing to embrace the rest of the health reform agenda, either. In which case, you may as well go forward with a robust public plan.

Late last week, Josh Marshall posted evidence that at least one Senate Blue Dog appears to get it:

On Thursday, (Sen. Rockefeller (D-WV)) admitted he expects little bipartisan support.

"There is a very small chance any Republicans will vote for this health-care plan. They were against Medicare and Medicaid [created in the 1960s]. They voted against children's health insurance.

"We have a moral choice. This is a classic case of the good guys versus the bad guys. I know it is not political for me to say that," Rockefeller added.

"But do you want to be non-partisan and get nothing? Or do you want to be partisan and end up with a good health- care plan? That is the choice."

Jay Rockefeller, of course, is the Senate DINO who hid and protected the Smirky/Darth administration criminals who tortured innocent detainees and the traitors who wiretapped innocent American citizens. My guess is he'll cave at Mitch McConnell's slightest frown.

Meanwhile, you know the public option is gaining support in Congress and the insurance corporations are running scared when Fake News attacks the most effective, popular and inexpensive single-payer health care system in the country: VA.

Anonymous Liberal gets the last word:

So the goal here should not be bipartisanship. The goal should be come up with the policy that is most likely to be effective and then browbeat every last Democrat in the Senate until they're on board. I don't say that about every issue, but on this one, there is no other sensible option.

Cross-posted at They Gave Us A Republic ....