Republicans Plot Ways to Nullify Bill

[Ozymanithrax]

Source: Wall Street Journal

WASHINGTON—Republicans are looking beyond Sunday's expected vote on the Democrats' health-care overhaul to focus on strategies for striking back should it pass, ranging from challenges to the measure by individual states to a national repeal campaign.

Opponents say they can still defeat the bill this weekend. By talking about the tactics now, and showing how they intend to rally the public, they hope to sway wavering lawmakers to vote no. And if the bill passes, they have a head start on a strategy to knock off all or parts of the legislation.

Those tactics face long odds. But GOP leaders hope at a minimum that they can energize conservative activists and turn the electorate against the Democrats in the crucial period after the law's enactment, when both parties would be fighting to define it in the public's mind before the November elections.

"My suspicion is that there's not a single congressional district where there's an undecided congressman where this measure is popular," said Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.) on Thursday.


Read more: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB20001424052748703523204575130081241357368.html

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Republicans are taking their total opposition to health care to the next step.

[Ikonoklast]

1. They spent BILLIONS fighting this.

And FAILED.

[Ozymanithrax]

2. Let them send billions more. It's good for the economy.

[Ikonoklast]

7. All that Teabagging, for naught.

Sheep played for fools by the oligarchs, once again.

I wonder what mischief they'll try next?

The nation is changing, and demographics are against them; this may have been their Waterloo.

[Hawkeye-X]

3. Yup, our premiums are being spent lobbying AGAINST the bill

No wonder why our premiums are soooo high.

My son's premium jumped from 89 bucks to 109, and he doesn't qualify for SCHIP.

Hawkeye-X

[Ozymanithrax]

4. Sorry to hear that. Passing the bill will make it cheaper.

Republcians will just make it more expensive.

[booley]

25. Not totally

They got a lot of concessions and wasted a lot of time.

[pattmarty]

5. Since a lot of the provisions don't go into effect until years down...........

...........the road, they will have plenty of stories they can spin. The Dems are going to get fucked big time on this bill. They won't have anything positive to point to since so many things don't go into effect for years and the Republicans are going to pick the shit out of everything they can. I don't think Bush's "Medicare" reform is anywhere as bad as this bill AND the Bush bill was horseshit.

[Ozymanithrax]

8. There are many immediate effects of the bill. Check them out...

http://demopedia.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=433x229911

[pattmarty]

17. Done, and stand by my original statement.

[Warpy]

6. I don't have very deep pockets

and right now my money's going to primary opponents of Blue Dogs and other scum sucking Democratic frauds.

Come later in the season, I'll be donating to good opponents of GOP dead wood.

If I'm angry enough to part with money to defeat them, I can pretty much bet I'm not alone out here.

[Demeter]

9. I've Got to Think the GOP Is Not Very Smart About This

They are emoting, instead of strategizing.

The best thing for the GOP would be the passage of this unworkable, hideously costly kludge of an insurance company scam.

They wouldn't have to do a thing, just wait for the chaos to ensue and rack up the disaffected like pinball points.

Perhaps they are angry that the insurance companies didn't pour largess into THEIR coffers, so get back at them by trying to defeat the scam...

which personally, I am all in favor of, since it would allow single payer to live another day, until reason and time and money all conspire to force the right plan to be implemented.

Because putting in the wrong plan is worse than no plan at all. Because then there are two steps: kill wrong plan, start right plan: instead of just one.

[No Elephants]

13. Such a bad job has been done on this bill for over a year now, that it is hard to say

at this point what would be worse.

If the bill doesn't pass, Democrats, especially Obama, will be seen as incompentent and/or ineffectual. Giving people reason to vote for Republicans is never good for children or other living things. However, given the course of this saga, maybe even passing the bill is not going to salvage that situation. It's been a long, drawn out, highly publicized clusterflock.

Also, if the bill did not pass, and Republicans gained control, they'd probably pass their own bill with great dispatch and efficiency. And, the thing would become a third rail for Democrats.

I couldn't even guess which would be the worst of all possible scenarios at this point, that's how badly this has gone since Obama started meeting with the health insurers, PHRMA and Big Health Care over a year ago.

What a wasted, mangled opportunity.

[Ozymanithrax]

14. On 1 point, you are 100% wrong...

New study finds 45,000 deaths annually linked to lack of health coverage
You help one person with this bill, save one life, and its worth it.

Lack of health coverage kills 45,000 people a year.

This bill will begin to save some of them immediately.

It gives us a chance to amend the bill, or add new programs later.

You do not have to get rid of a program to enact another.

The Civl Rights Act of 1957, was a voting rights act that did almost nothing. They didn't do away with it. The Civil Rights Act of 1964, and subsequent acts just made it better over time.

[24601]

16. So what is the limit for saving one life? What are you willing to give

up in return? If money is not a limiting factor, are you willing to give up the Department of Education or everything spent on climate change?

And what do you do after you have spent everything you have to save just one life, and another presents itself to be saved?

There has to be some kind of empirical analysis and trade-offs based on costs & benefits.

[RainMickey]

19. Saves 45,000 lives annually but doesn't kick in for 4 years..

How's it going to save some immediately? I thought this thing didn't take effect until 2014. But then, what's a couple of hundred thousand lives as long as the immediate political pain isn't too great?

[Kingofalldems]

10. This bill must be alright--Fox news seems to be in full court press

against it. Had Boner's presser live this morning.

[No Elephants]

12. That's no way to assess anything. If it were the best thing for Americans and the planet, Fox and

the Republicans would still oppose it, simply because Democrats put it forward, especially our African American Democratic President.

The bill is lousy, but it's way too late to do anything about that now except pass it. It's too bad that the Democrats did not do a much better job with the opportunity they had since last year, but that's how it is.

[onpatrol98]

18. Broken Clock

Even a broken clock is right twice a day.

[No Elephants]

11. Democrats Plot Ways to Nullify Republicans.

[bluestateguy]

15. In other words ask the Courts to legislate from the bench

Got it.

[Abq_Sarah]

21. Do you believe

The mandate could possibly pass constitutional muster?

[annabanana]

20. They already "rallied the public".. It was that odd group

that squealed around the Mall last week...

[cap]

22. I think that the democrats should get real agressive right now and pass

EFCA and a few other good hearty progressive measures. Just get the GOP too busy fighting many different battles.

[WeekendWarrior]

23. Good luck with that. nt.

[underpants]

24. They are going to go to court and challenge the Constitutionality of it

at least of HOW it will pass

[AldebTX]

26. If A Court does Nullify It

Want to bet no one calls it an activist court.....