Yes! If there was any ambiguity about whether Obama thought the public option was important, he cleared it up today when he not only mentioned he was still for it (in addition to Nancy Pelosi mentioning a bill without the public option won’t pass the house) but also took a shot at Republicans, claiming they wanted him to fail this entire time on health care and use it as a catalyst to win seats in the House and Senate in 2011.
So let’s dissect this:
Obama is swinging back to the left. No more trying to win over centrists and conservative democrats by playing an unaggressive agenda. I think that part of his recent problems contributing to decreasing approval ratings: he looked like he was in over his head. People perceived an uncharacteristic lack of confidence in Obama. But now, he is jumping on board with pushing an aggressive health reform agenda, which may not be the solution the average American believes it wants, but definitely one which is sorely needed. The combination of a public option with other provisions written into the current bill will seriously target the costs of health care in America and bring it down, hopefully very quickly.
Bi-partisanship is dead and gone. I hate to say it, but even if this is the health care people may need, he will make few friends by going about it this way. Not that he should be worried about popularity contests when work needs to be done, but it is important for any reform of this magnitude to carry some unifying provisions. Not everyone believes that health care reform should occur in this way. So this reform should be about opening up access to individuals without ignoring the repercussions for people who have legitimate concerns. Compromise requires sacrifice. This is not a winner-take-all. I can see a bill that passes the House under party lines creating overwhelming backlash, using up any political capital Obama has left. It may be annoying as all get-out to continue to appeal to stubborn colleagues, but at the end of the day, extending the hand is all Obama should be obligated to do; the rest is up to critics to accept it and come to the table ready to make legitimate concessions and to seek realistic gains.
Republicans are playing for 2011. Let’s be real. Republicans are thinking reinvention. They are thinking forward to the next time they can have legitimate control, and what they need to do to seek that control. It is politics at its finest – and it is the wrong mentality. I have long believed since Obama took office, the GOP role was to remain the persistent objector and hope that Obama and his administation would make faulty policy decisions, allowing them to come back in 2011 and run on platforms that say “We told you so, look what Obama did to __________ (insert issue area here)”. And it is not just Republicans; Democrats do this as well, such as during the Bush Administration. It just so happens that the gambles of persistently objecting paid off because some of Bush’s policies were indeed faulty judgment calls. This strategy prevents real dialogue from occurring no matter what party is controlling the branches of government because both parties are always thinking ahead to who will keep and maintain power in the future, and not how will they fix and address problems in the present with the leaders and representatives they have.
Truth be told, I am happy that Obama called it like it was, and has stopped the backpedaling, vague statements. If you truly believe that America can benefit from including the public option, say it! If you believe it is absolutely essential, say it! There has to be some things that you cannot negotiate on, based on principle. Then there are the other provisions, that you might believe are helpful, based on analysis, but maybe not absolutely essentially. Both Republicans and Democrats can be a bit better about identifying true negotiables and non-negotiables when it comes to sitting down at a table and working toward true compromise on potentially divisive issues.
Popularity: 1%