Obamacare Update

Yesterday, I had posted about the news that the White House is retreating from the 'public option', and warned about the likelihood that it was probably just being renamed. Now, it appears that the White House is retreating from the retreat:

An administration official said tonight that Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius “misspoke” when she told CNN this morning that a government run health insurance option “is not an essential part” of reform. This official asked not to be identified in exchange for providing clarity about the intentions of the President. The official said that the White House did not intend to change its messaging and that Sebelius simply meant to echo the president, who has acknowledged that the public option is a tough sell in the Senate and is, at the same time, a must-pass for House Democrats, and is not, in the president’s view, the most important element of the reform package.

They also blamed the media of getting it wrong.

Ah-hahahahahahahahahaha...!!! Which media? The one that has leg tingles and calls him God? 'Cause they're soooooo hostile to Obama...

Okay, now that I've composed myself, let's get back to the substance of the issue. Nancy Pelosi is still adamant that the 'public option' is still very much in play, but the Intrade market -- where real people wager real money on what they think will happen -- gives it just a 14% chance of passing. And you've seen yourself how much grass roots opposition there is out there. One liberal analyst says that if the 'public option' goes away, they'll lose as many as 100 votes from Democrats:

Hot Air unequivocally picks apart Wiener's statements:

Except for “some financial problems,” people like Medicare? That’s akin to asking, “Other than that, how did you like the play, Mrs. Lincoln?” Medicare has $36,000,000,000,000 (that’s trillion with a T) in unfunded liabilities in the next 25 years. That’s not “some financial problems,” as Weiner puts it in today’s worst understatement, and ObamaCare promises to make the problem worse — by expanding the program and its coverage.

Amazingly, CNBC doesn’t call him on this statement. Aren’t they supposed to be reporting on financial matters?

Next, Weiner says that opponents are scaring seniors by claiming that Obama will cut Medicare. I wonder where they got that idea? I guess that would be from Obama himself, who proposed almost $500 billion in cuts to Medicare and Medicaid to pay for ObamaCare, which the House used in its version of the bill.

But the topper of that statement comes from saying that consumers of Medicare love the system. At best, it’s tolerable, made so only by Medicare Advantage, which allows its consumers to buy supplemental insurance for broader coverage, better choice of providers, and a wider range of services. Guess what Obama, Weiner, and the rest of the liberals in Congress want to cut to pay for their “reform”? Medicare Advantage, a program demonized by Obama at every opportunity.

And I say that as the spouse of a Medicare consumer. If Weiner’s been within a hundred miles of a Medicare EOB, I’d eat my hat.

I simply do not understand how liberals can honestly say that since Medicare is great, we should go ahead and expand it to nationalized medicine. Do they not feel that the system needs to be sustainable over the long haul? Any idiot with a quarter of a working brain can look at Medicare's vast cost overruns and figure out that it simply won't work for very much longer...and yet, we're supposed to dump hundreds of millions of new people into the same system and expect that to work indefinitely? I don't get it. I guess I don't drink enough Kool-Aid.

The bottom line is that, whether they call it a 'public option' or not, the key to watch out for is taxpayer funding and government control. If any plan includes those things, it's going to end up being nationalized health care. Remember those old speeches? Obama said it might take as long as 20 years to get there...but such nationalization is exactly what he wants. Some warnings that put things into perspective:

...if October 15 comes and goes without a bill, the Democrats are fully willing and able to use “reconciliation” to nuke the filibuster and pass it with just 50 votes, which may well be enough for a public option to get through the Senate. Why not do it? The Dems are going to own the bill one way or another, whether they do it with 50 Democratic votes or 60, and passing a bill with a public option would at least give their own side something to celebrate. The way they’re going now, they’re going to end up with something no one likes and take a beating for it forever from both sides. (link)

Do not believe that the public option is going away. Do not believe that the Democrats are going to give up on universal healthcare. They are not. They are going to change the language and keep the same goal and plan. It may take them longer, but they will continue pushing forward.

Now we are at the hour of danger. Republicans, wanting to appear reasonable, might cut a deal and go with co-ops. If they do, they are voting for a government take over of healthcare.

Keep the pressure up. (link)

It makes it a bit easier to do that when watching people like Democrat Rep. Eric Massa:

Yep, you heard that right - he said he'd vote for Obamacare, even if it meant ignoring his entire constituency and knowing that he would be sent home at the next election.

This, then, is the danger we face right now. Are there enough Democrats like Massa willing to fall on their own swords to pass Obamacare? If there are, this country is in very, very serious trouble.

There's my two cents.