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The Spectacle Blog
Like Jeff Lord on the main site, Rich Lowry makes the case for repealing the health care bill should it become law. He cites the examples of Australia, Kentucky, New Hampshire, and Washington to give confidence that Obamacare-style reforms can be reversed once enacted. He could also have mentioned the catastrophic health insurance tacked onto Medicare, which proved so unpopular that it was repealed by a Democratic Congress.
Opponents of this bill would obviously be better off finding ways to defeat it in the first place, because it is easier to stop something in Washington than to reverse it. But if the bill has the predicted effects on the insurance market, premiums, taxes, and Medicare before most of the benefits kick in, repeal would not be impossible. Who wants to to filibuster in defense of something that public views as a mistake? If the Democrats do, it will have political consequences.
Republicans can also make repeal easier by doing one simple thing: State in advance they intend to work for the bill’s repeal if it is enacted, rather than simply consolidating liberalism’s gains as usual.
View all comments (14) | Leave a comment
More Blog Posts by W. James Antle, III
http://spectator.org/blog/2010/03/09/thinking-ahead-to-repeal
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Bob| 3.9.10 @ 2:35PM
Antle, what are you smoking? It must be good....
What the public will see soon is that the pre-existing conditions clause will be gone and they can have their children on their policies longer. Why would they want to repeal that? As with the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Bush Tax cuts that didn't improve the economy and caused huge deficits, and the prescription drug benefit, people just care about what they get now and not how much it costs. If you don't understand that, you don't understand human behavior.
Once this bill is passed, it will no longer be an issue because the Democrats will then say Republicans want to take away your ability to get health care if you get sick and they don't care about your kids in a bad economy. Do you really want to run in an election with that on your shoulders?
Eric Cartman| 3.9.10 @ 3:18PM
Well, when you're right, you're right.
Bob| 3.9.10 @ 3:23PM
Even though you hate most of my posts, I think we agree that this is a poor solution for health care. It will cost a lot and not do much. So what else is new in Washington. However, since most people in the U.S. live month to month and don't save, they just won't care. We need to radically reduce the size of government and live within our means. Tax cuts don't work because even Republicans won't make government smaller. I believe that the only way to wake up people is to make them pay for what they receive. If they have to pay for it now, then they might get mad enough to do something.
Eric Cartman| 3.9.10 @ 4:10PM
Substantively, I have no problem with most of your posts. But let's not ruin a fun thing.
While I agree with Antle that it would not be impossible to repeal or reverse much of the bill, I agree with your question of who has the fortitude to do it. Certainly not the Republicans because they haven't lived up to their own hype. It may be possible, but not plausible. I also agree it's a lousy bill that will not fix anything and will lead to greater cost. The only 100% cure is to stop the bill now. I'm afraid that once into law, the repeal measure will just be used for fundraising letters and years of tinkering at the edges.
Bob| 3.9.10 @ 4:28PM
The answer is term limits, but they don't have the fortitude for that either. By the way, it's a lot of fun riling up all of you.... especially with those pesky data charts that none of you can refute with real data. I've done the same thing with your counterparts on the left who also refuse to look at the data... It's too bad since the data supports the right much more than the left.... Now if we could only get the right to use logic and data. It's hard to do with those bible thumpers....
Eric Cartman| 3.9.10 @ 5:14PM
Those bible thumpers may have the ultimate chart and graph.
Bob| 3.9.10 @ 7:12PM
Don't know... Don't care.... But I doubt it... Most of them can't add....
SoCon| 3.10.10 @ 6:24PM
Bigot.
Angela| 3.9.10 @ 5:45PM
It is so dismaying to read this article. I read today that Pelosi may be one vote away from getting the bill passed. The writer must have heard that as well.
But, if it passes I don't believe for one second that it will be repealed. Politicians may run on that platform, but once they are elected, they will focus on pending and future legislation and just leave the status quo alone.
Cris Worth| 3.9.10 @ 5:47PM
Repeal ObamaCare...Think Again. Since when has the GOP repealed any of the Democratic largesse. Ike didn't repeal any of the New Deal, Nixon didn't repeal any of the Great Society, in fact he added on to it with the EPA, Freddie Mac, quotas and affirmative action to name a few. Once this legislation is passed, liberal special interest groups, lobbyists, the press, the Democratic party Party and all left wing fringe groups in creation will surround it with a ring of steel and the program will grow and grow and grow. Look at Social Security (1935) and Medicare (1965)...trillions and trillions and trillions. The GOP won't be ablle to stand the pressure, besides Reagan they never have. Just elect Romney, he won't spike ObamaCare but he will manage it better.
COnservative Bob| 3.9.10 @ 6:16PM
This bill must be stopped before passage as repeal will be impossible.
It will take 60 votes in the Senate and the equivalent in the house to undo this monstrosity.
I suspect that the one lesson the voting public will have learned from the last 18 months is to never give any political party this much power ever again.
As Bob so clearly points out there is a fair percentage of the population who will gladly trade a modicum of security for their liberty.
Look how well the argument has worked in the past for children and healthcare substitute grandma and social security.
Once the house passes the senate bill it is law. All of the promises of revision and fixing are smoke and mirror subterfuge, you better like the senate bill because once it passes it will be 2013 before healthcare is on the radar again.
Kill it before it passes as there truly is now tomorrow as far as healthcare is concerned… or our liberty or our constitutional republic.