Posted on 03/28/2012 1:23:55 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
If the Supreme Court strikes down all or part of President Obama’s health care law, it will have unraveled a legislative compromise that many liberals had viewed with suspicion from the beginning.
In one of the ironies of recent politics, Mr. Obama was a late convert to the merits of the individual mandate that now appears to be in danger of being declared unconstitutional.
But the president’s embrace of the mandate — and his willingness to abandon a so-called public option to get a health care deal — was a hard pill to swallow for many of his Democratic supporters.
The Affordable Care Act promises to provide health insurance to millions who lacked it. But it also stops far short of the idea that health care is a basic right for everyone living in the country. And it embraces the market-based system of private health care delivery that has long existed in America.
For many progressive activists and voters, the decision by the court in June could reopen a debate that they thought they had lost two years ago. Rather than be dismayed if the court overturns the health care law, some liberals may see it as an unexpected opportunity.
Politically, there is almost no chance of a new effort to achieve universal health care coverage before the election in the fall. But if the current law is overturned, eventually there would be a new push from Democrats to achieve the goals they have pursued for decades.
Still, it’s far from clear how progressives might regroup if the court rules against the mandate, as Tuesday’s questions from the justices suggested they might.
Here are three possibilities:
SALVAGE: If the justices invalidate the individual mandate but stop short of declaring the entire law unconstitutional, progressives could try to fix it
(Excerpt) Read more at thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com ...
I haven’t read the article, but I know what they will do. They will keep whittling and chiseling away at our rights and country as we know it until they have transformed it beyond recognition.
The Latest spin on MSNBC and Daily Kos is that overturning Obamacare opens the door for Dems to run on UNIVERSAL, GOVERNMENT-RUN HEALTHCARE.
Talk about trying to spin a defeat.
But sadly, they are probably right. FREE SH**T FOR EVERYBODY!!
How about they stop stealing my stuff and promptly go to hell?
They won’t use the words “government run”,
because that would be too honest, for one,
and secondly, that’s a loser.
Whine?
Cry?
Run around in circles?
Flap their arms?
Stamp their feet?
Riot and burn down every major city in every blue State?
The liberals won’t do anything. The country doesn’t have the desire or energy to endure another legislative mess, it’s no longer the same Congress, and the President already has expended the last of his good will and political capital. The liberals will have to be content with bitter griping over lines of coke.
If the dems turn around and repackage that same crap as "Free Healthcare paid for by the Rich!" then I suspect opposition erodes.
If the mandate had started putting people in jail, I think you'd have converted a lot of the free-sh!t lovers into big government haters permanently.
I don't believe this was a brilliant dem conspiracy, but I won't be surprised if we haven't slit our own throats on this.
Just rewards for the arrogant progressive left, insisting on fundamentally changing the social compact in totla disreagrd of Constitutional considerations and withou a scintilla of bypartican support. The BILLIONS of dollars wasted on this folly is criminal—CRIMINAL!
Hint to the liberals....I do not think that a public option would send up to our constitution either because it would be government take over of an industry and the government is limited in it’s powers to be able to do that.I suggest if that is what you all ant relocate to a country that offers that like Cuba.
If they want to biggest commit political suicide in history of American politics then please let them go ahead and advocate socialized medicine with the so called public option or single payer program…We should really encourage these fools to push this insanity and they are going to be crushed beyond belief in the coming elections.
The latest spin is that the mandate was a Republican idea and they blew it agreeing with Repubs. LOL!
They are actually calling it a bi partisan plan today.
Street riots
What did Alan Greyson say,”Die, die quickly.”
Liberals will continue their fight to increase the size of government through vote buys.
Their political foundation is built upon the vote buy.
“The latest spin is that the mandate was a Republican idea and they blew it agreeing with Repubs. LOL!”
Anyone want to bet if this thing goes down in defeat, Bart Stupak is going to be found in a closet with a rope around his neck?
“With the fall of Obamacare the Democrats lose the ability to get single payer health care through incramentalism. And if they can’t do it bit by bit they will never be able to do it all at once.”
Actually, they will continue to work toward single payer health care through incrementalism with the help of Republicans. SCHIP and Medicare prescription drug benefits were expanded under President G.W. Bush.
There are a number of “compassionate” ways the Democrats can expand healthcare if Obamacare is declared unconstitutional. One approach would be to extend Medicaid to the unemployed. Expanding health care to family members of children receiving SCHIP is another. Expanding Medicare to early retirees is another. After all, if the recession causes one to retire early isn’t it only fair the early retiree receive Medicare?
The last 50 years have shown the Democrats keep pushing the envelope on programs even when they are defeated. One only wishes the Republicans could show such perseverance.
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