Dems Reap All the Red-Baiting Pain with None of the Socialist Gain

Democrats did not offer a truly socialized health care system like
they have in the United Kingdom. They did not just pass a universal
single payer health care system like "Medicare for all." Not only did
the bill not include a public option, but the regulations on the private
insurance companies are extremely loose. Despite passing an extremely
industry friendly, pro-private market, health insurance expansion bill,
Democrats were still attacked by Republicans as socialists pushing a
"government takeover" of health care.

Similarly, the bill with the Nelson
abortion language and President Obama's executive order will be
perhaps the biggest political and policy victory for the anti-abortion
movement in decades. On the policy front, it will likely cost millions
of women the abortion coverage they now have, and, on the political
front, you have a Democratic president signing an anti-choice executive
order. Yet, even on the same day as their huge victory, Republicans were
still calling the health care bill the most pro-abortion piece of
legislation since Roe v. Wade. Bart Stupak (D-MI), through brilliant
negotiation and an iron will, scored a huge victory for the "pro-life"
movement, yet he was rewarded by a Republican screaming out at him "baby
killer."

Democrats did almost everything they could to bend to Republican
criticism. They dropped the public option, rolled back a woman's right
to choose, and added cruel, costly, and stupid restrictions on
undocumented immigrants buying of health insurance; yet the Republicans
still levied the same attacks, regardless. Fearing the "government
takeover of health care" line, Democrats dropped the incredibly popular
public option leaving themselves with the politically
toxic individual mandate forcing people to buy only private
insurance. Yet, even with the public option gone, the Republican screams
about how it is a socialist nightmare remain unchanged.

Democrats get accused of being socialist and baby killers no matter
how hard they try to appease Republicans or kick their own progressive
base. They have taken all the political blame for "socialism" without
the political and policy upside of providing people with a popular
public program like Medicare available to all.

If this health care fight finally taught congressional Democrats that
Republicans will always tell insane lies and that they simply can't
ever be appeased with policy changes, it just might have all been
worthwhile. If you are going to get the blame either way, do the
legislation the smart way to at least get maximum credit when it works.

Sadly, I doubt the lesson was learned.