(Seattle, WA) Every hour of every day, someone in America dies because of a lack of access to affordable healthcare. Millions more lie awake in bed at night, worrying about some symptom or potential health issue that they or another family member are experiencing but cannot get looked at because they have no health insurance. Our broken and inequitable health care system is like a deep, festering wound that never heals.
One year ago, Barak Obama promised the nation that things would change. He told us: Yes, we can provide affordable healthcare to all. Yes, we can take meaningful action to combat global warming and yes, we can create jobs and fix our broken financial system. The Democrats amassed commanding majorities in the House and Senate. For a fleeting moment, it seemed like all things were possible.
Flash forward to today. An obscure special election in Massachusetts has thrown the entire Democratic agenda into disarray. Obama and company place responsibility for the loss of this critical Senate seat squarely in the lap of the hapless Democratic candidate Martha Coakley. White House political wizards Rahm Emmanuel and David Axelrod say they did not see this coming. If only Coakley would have asked for help earlier, all would be well. So, if health care reform goes down the tubes we can blame her, right?
Not so fast. If Mr. Obama wants to find someone to blame, he should look in the mirror. Letting health care reform ‘bubble up’ from below was a terrible tactical error. Legislation could have been passed last summer if the administration would have provided a clearer roadmap at the beginning of the process. Obama was riding high in the polls, the people were with him and they were yearning for change. It was clear from the beginning that getting a bipartisanship bill through Congress was going to be impossible. Valuable time was lost trying to placate the whims of one or two Republican senators.
Well, time’s up. The political capital has been spent. Recession weary voters are tired of hearing more promises. Trust in government is near an all time low. Any attempt to use esoteric procedural maneuvers to ram a revised bill through the Senate will be viewed with suspicion. Bending or breaking long standing Senate traditions will only further harm the already dysfunctional institution.
Fortunately, there is still one viable option on the table. Speaker Pelosi and her colleagues can swallow their pride and pass the Senate version of health care legislation. If there is one lesson we can learn from the Massachusetts race and falling Administration poll numbers, it is that while ideology driven political elites fight to steer the country in their respective directions, the American people almost invariably veer towards the center of the road. The public is already uncomfortable with the more moderate Senate proposal. It’s the best we can do, so lets get the job done now.
Written by: Dr. Jonathan Harrington 1/20/2010
Jonathan Harrington
