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News & ArtsWednesday, September 16, 2009
Health The Baucus Bill
Posted by Eli Sanders on Wed, Sep 16, 2009 at 8:22 AM
As Megan noted in The Morning News, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Montana) has finally unveiled his "bipartisan" health insurance reform bill. Here's the PDF.
There's no public option and that bipartisan support Baucus was taking so long to court—well, it's just not there.
He's got a bill full of the compromises meant to attract Republican support, but no Republican support. Not even Olympia Snowe, at this point, has committed to backing the bill.
1
Repubs are just trying to do everything they can to kill it. F*** them and pass the one we elected you to pass!!!
2
@1 Welcome to Slog where it's ok to say fuck.
Fuck this bill and the Democrats obstructing the public option.
Fuck this bill and the Democrats obstructing the public option.
3
Baucus should be defeated in his next primary for putting corporate money before public good. This is precisely the kind of vile corruption that is undermining this country. I would hope there are others who say this is a bullshit bill. Others in leadership are more deserving of committee chairman's position on the finance committee than Baucus clearly is.
4
I do not believe Max Baucus was ever attempting to attract Republican support. He was attempting to please his paymasters in the insurance industry.
Baucus genius lay in his instinctive awareness that he could do something evil (enrich insurance companies by ramming through a mandate divorced from the public option that would render such a mandate anything other than an act of cruelty) by feigning something at least nominally praiseworthy (reaching out to Republicans in the full awareness that no matter how many bones he threw to insurance companies, he would not garner a single fucking Republican vote).
You begin to wonder what the point of a Democratic majority is.
Baucus genius lay in his instinctive awareness that he could do something evil (enrich insurance companies by ramming through a mandate divorced from the public option that would render such a mandate anything other than an act of cruelty) by feigning something at least nominally praiseworthy (reaching out to Republicans in the full awareness that no matter how many bones he threw to insurance companies, he would not garner a single fucking Republican vote).
You begin to wonder what the point of a Democratic majority is.
5
Didja read about Obama getting the whole AFL CIO fired u and resady to go for the public option? His plan to threaten Baucus with replacement (the governor would gladly become senator) or promise to fund a federal health efficiency center in Bozeman with 5000 federal doctor jobs? didja hear how Obama denied meeting with Snowe and admitted she's up for ambassadorship to Canada but this has NO CONNECTION to getting her vote on health care? didja hear how he's sending Billdawg and Hillary to stump arkansas to get the two dem senators from that state in line? didja hear how he plans to fill Tiger Stadium and he's swamping LA with OFA volunteers to ensure if Landrieu votes for public option, she'll still win reelection? How he's putting a few billion more into levees in NOLA with her getting the photo op up and down the river? Didja hear how Obama's organizing the Million Humans March on Columbus Day on the national mall and how he will dominate the airwaves for two weeks leading up as people converge then on the big day we will see 10 hours of speeches and movies about human stories of folks dying from our current system and showing real life folks in bankruptcy and crying about how daddy lost his job due to wall. st. shenanigans then lost his health care so now junior has to work in the doughnut shop to try to pay the $50,000 co pay so no one's going to college in that family but they're still trying because they believe in paying their bills? It's just that junior needs health care too his leg hurts but he can't go to a doctor because he can't afford it?
Didja hear any of that?
Didja hear how Obama's been meeting with the 11 key persuadable senators in the last two weeks, sticking his finger in their face and twisting their arms?
Obama's already given up on the public option folks. don't blame the GOP, it's their "job" to lie and fight progress. We won the election, our leaders are lame, blame them.
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Didja hear any of that?
Didja hear how Obama's been meeting with the 11 key persuadable senators in the last two weeks, sticking his finger in their face and twisting their arms?
Obama's already given up on the public option folks. don't blame the GOP, it's their "job" to lie and fight progress. We won the election, our leaders are lame, blame them.
6
Whatever Baucus' motives, his bill isn't going to make the cut when the House and Senate go into conference - assuming the Senate can muster 60 votes to get their version through in the first place, which doesn't appear likely, given that not only is there not a single member on the GOP side supporting it, but a lot of liberal Democrats are against it as well, for obvious reasons. It's a travesty, he knows it, and there's simply not a snowball's chance in hell this bill is ever going to become law.
I've always thought this was the main reason why Obama has taken a "hands off" approach on health care legislation. When it goes down in flames (as appears to be the case - at least from my somewhat cynical perspective) he can assign the blame where it rightfully belongs: on wishy-washy so-called "moderate" blue-dog Dems and obstructionist Republicans in the Senate.
I've always thought this was the main reason why Obama has taken a "hands off" approach on health care legislation. When it goes down in flames (as appears to be the case - at least from my somewhat cynical perspective) he can assign the blame where it rightfully belongs: on wishy-washy so-called "moderate" blue-dog Dems and obstructionist Republicans in the Senate.
7
Fail all over it.
Our government is broken, and the corporations are getting even stronger. Everyone knows these Senators are bought and paid for by lobbyists, and now they're dictating law in open defiance of the will of the people.
Watch what happens when the Supreme Court allows unfettered corporate donations to political campaigns. Our votes will be even more meaningless. Maybe we'll stop having elections all together.
Have a nice day.
Our government is broken, and the corporations are getting even stronger. Everyone knows these Senators are bought and paid for by lobbyists, and now they're dictating law in open defiance of the will of the people.
Watch what happens when the Supreme Court allows unfettered corporate donations to political campaigns. Our votes will be even more meaningless. Maybe we'll stop having elections all together.
Have a nice day.
11
Great post by Quintus Slide @4:
Baucus has never had any interest in bipartisanship, and that Gang of Six effort has been nothing but an effort to A. water down the bill and B. stall it. It's a wonder Obama let him get away with it. But hey, maybe I'm missing something and Obama's a few chess moves ahead of me.
Oh, and Baucus is the poster child for what happens when you give just as much power to a legislator who represents fewer than a million people as you do to a legislator who represents many millions. Nature abhors a vacuum, and huge amounts of corporate money will always flow to small-state senators.
I do not believe Max Baucus was ever attempting to attract Republican support. He was attempting to please his paymasters in the insurance industry.
Baucus has never had any interest in bipartisanship, and that Gang of Six effort has been nothing but an effort to A. water down the bill and B. stall it. It's a wonder Obama let him get away with it. But hey, maybe I'm missing something and Obama's a few chess moves ahead of me.
Oh, and Baucus is the poster child for what happens when you give just as much power to a legislator who represents fewer than a million people as you do to a legislator who represents many millions. Nature abhors a vacuum, and huge amounts of corporate money will always flow to small-state senators.
12
Welcome to representative democracy.
now they're dictating law in open defiance of the will of the people.
Welcome to representative democracy.
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