Health Care Debacle

I try to avoid politics on this blog, but Pelosi's spectacle on National Health Care currently going on in Washington is leaving me almost in despair of our country's remaining free of a socialistic system. Can you imagine? This Health Care bill was shamefully passed in the Senate on Christmas Eve through backroom deals such as Landrieu's "Louisiana Purchase" and Nelson's "Cornhusker Kickback" -- hundreds of millions (or potentially more) of taxpayer money that is being given to these individual politicians. Hey, I'm a taxpayer -- don't I get a say in the allocation of my funds? In the House, despite similar machinations (water rights in California, a ride on Air Force One) Pelosi isn't sure she has the 216 votes needed to pass this. Now she has ginned up the so-called Slaughter Rule, a special "rule" (named for House Rules Chairman Louise Slaughter (D.-N.Y.)) that would deem the Senate health care bill passed in the House WITHOUT AN ACTUAL VOTE ON THE BILL as required by Article I, Section VII of the Constitution.

Under Slaughter's plan, the House would pass a special rule governing debate on a budget reconciliation bill being crafted to make "fixes" in the Senate health care bill desired by House Democrats. Under this rule, the Senate health care bill itself would be "deemed" to have passed the House if the full House of Representatives subsequently passes the budget reconciliation bill.

If this Health Care bill is "deemed" to have passed the House, will it even be legal? If this bill is then given to the president, will this be an impeachable offense for Pelosi, and for Obama if he signs it since they are supposed to uphold the Constitution? I'm not a lawyer, but the Constitution seems pretty clear to me in its process for passing bills. This one is so far-reaching it is astounding that they dare try.

What part of "GOVERNING AGAINST THE WILL OF THE PEOPLE" do these people not understand??? Oh I'm sorry, they don't care.

In my view it is the Ring of Power from Tolkien's trilogy, the power of Sauron, that has seduced these politicians. How sad that this nation, the dream of our Founding Fathers and so many people of all countries in many generations, may be irrevokably changed through the aims of just a few people.

Of course we need health care reform. My point though: should we trust the government to do this? What system have they ever made better and delivered under budget?

This is not a bill that is being celebrated: it's being rammed through by one party, in secret, with many machinations and loud protests going on outside. It's not pretty. We can't even know what's in the bill: as the Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi says, we won't know "until it's passed."



Unbelievable!!!