GOP's concern trolling getting a bit desperate (on health care reform)

[ProSense]

GOP's concern trolling getting a bit desperate

by kos

It's so sweet of the Senate Republican leader to have the Democrats' best electoral interests at heart!

The Senate Republican leader, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, warned Democrats on Tuesday that Republicans will use the issue of health care to bludgeon them in the November mid-term elections if Democrats succeed in passing a comprehensive overhaul.

"It will be the issue in every race in America," Mr. McConnell said at a news conference in the Capitol.... His comments reflected growing Republican concern over President Obama's resolve to secure passage of a comprehensive health care measure, which would be viewed as big Democratic achievement.

Gee! I guess that means if health care doesn't pass, that McConnell and his gang will give Democrats a pass this November, with Republican candidates dropping out of key contested races all across the country? That would be swell!

Benen:

Indeed, in the bigger picture, I get the sense GOP leaders are actually getting a little panicky about this. After 100 years of talking about health care reform, Democrats may actually deliver. After seven presidents tried to get this done, President Obama may be the one to cross the finish line. For all the GOP bravado, some Republicans might actually realize that the reform bill, if given a fair hearing, is likely to be pretty popular with the public.

So, we're left with foolish threats like the ones we heard from McConnell this morning.

Indeed. Health care reform will be an issue this election. The only question is whether Democrats can run on its accomplishment, or its failure. It's not too hard to see which one will play better to voters.

Otherwise, Republicans would be begging Democrats for an up-or-down vote on the reform efforts, rather than trying to delay, obstruct, and defeat.

[Arkana]

1. Republicans don't want this to pass because it will become the new third rail.

No President, Republican or Democratic, will touch it. Programs like Social Security, Medicare, etc. are the bane of Republicans' existence, but they are so enormously popular that they are untouchable.

[lordcommander]

8. DING! DING! DING! n/t

[DrToast]

11. More importantly, their base will demand they campaign on repealing it

And they won't because they'd get crushed.

[applegrove]

2. GOP is pathetic. They'll loose on that issue. People are seeing them as the

party of no. It will work great to get costs down and they are afraid of any good government policy which this is.

[tabasco]

3. How thoughtful of Mitch the Bitch.

I hate that gutless, chinless piece of shit.

[Bill219]

4. From Roger Ebert's Twitter account

http://twitter.com/ebertchicago


If the GOP is really convinced health care reform will destroy the Democrats, why don't they allow it to pass?

16 minutes ago via web

Retweeted by you and 100+ others

[Cha]

5. Ah, the logic of Roger Ebert!

thanks. With gops ..you know it's the opposite of what their hypocrical mouthpieces say.

[ProSense]

6. LOL! n/t

[4lbs]

12. You can always count on Roger Ebert for these gems.

:D

[Clio the Leo]

7. Perhaps they will give us some of their teabagger money...

... since they're so worried about us losing. :)

[depakid]

9. The Dems gotta have something to wave around...

-better not to have given Republicans such unpopular provisions to wave around in return, but oh well.

Reminds me of the Aesop tale about the eagle and the arrow fletched with his own feather.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

10. Yeah, voting for the IWR right before the 2002 midterm elections really helped us, didn't it?

The Repubs ran against us over national security/war on terror anyway accusing us of not being sufficiently patriotic- and won. Hopefully, we have learned by now NOT to trust them when they are so clearly untrustworthy

[ProSense]

13. It certainly didn't help that

the Republicans cheated.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

14. I had forgotten about that

I believe that there were some Diebold-related *questions* about the Cleland/Chambliss Senate race in Georgia (a rather ugly race in and of itself) as well- if memory serves.