Republican Lawmakers : Put your money where your mouth is

[NightFox]

Interesting article in the Wall Street Journal, wherein Kimberly Strassel makes a strong argument that Congressional Republicans should put their money where their mouth is and challenge the recent Congressional "exemption" from the full weight of Obamacare. What about it USMB Republicans ready to write your critters in Congress and tell 'em to put their own financial interests on the line to get rid of Obamacare? This is an opportunity for Republican Lawmakers to demonstrate that they have some actual principles to backup their rhetoric.

Source: The Wallstreet Journal
Date: 08/29/2013
Full Article: Strassel: A Test of GOP Resolve on ObamaCare - WSJ.com

Republicans are busy debating what gives them the most "leverage" in their fight to get rid of ObamaCare. One powerful tool, it happens, is an issue that few of them so far have wanted to talk about.

The issue is the White House's recent ObamaCare bailout for members of Congress and their staffs. The GOP has been largely mute on this blatant self-dealing. The party might use what's left of its summer recess to consider just how politically potent this handout is, and what—were they to show a bit of principle—might be earned from opposing it.

The Affordable Care Act states clearly that all members of Congress and their staff must buy their health insurance through an ObamaCare exchange. The law just as clearly does not reconstitute the generous government premium subsidies that members and staff currently receive. Since most members and staffers earn too much to qualify for subsidies in the dreaded ObamaCare exchanges, they were looking at an enormous financial hit come January.

Democrats in particular freaked out, and so the White House in early August conjured out of thin air a bailout for the political elite. The Office of Personnel Management announced—with no legal authority—that Congress could keep receiving its giant subsidies. Oh, and the OPM also declared that each member of Congress also gets to define which of his staff is covered by the law. Chances are many staffers will never have to deal with the exchanges at all.

This deal ought to have led to a wild GOP protest, both on philosophical and legal grounds. Instead, there has been nary a peep of complaint

The charitable explanation is that the announcement came after Congress had left for recess, giving Republicans little opportunity to unify around a response. The less charitable explanation is that Republicans themselves are under huge pressure from their own staffers to shut up and keep the subsidies flowing.

Some members, like Arkansas's Tim Griffin, went so far as to post on his Facebook page a "myth vs. fact" explanation (read: defense) of OPM's ruling. The responses on his Facebook page were scathing.

Few things infuriate Americans more than special privileges for Washington. The public could care less that insurance hikes might lead to a Washington "brain drain." (Most would view that as progress.) Americans scrabbling for work, struggling to pay bills and facing soaring insurance premiums are not sympathetic to congressional complaints that the loss of their subsidies is unfair. As word has spread about the White House fix, a bipartisan fury has started to build at town-hall meetings, at rallies, and in letters and phone calls to Congress.
... <snip>....
The special deal is also an opportunity to oppose, yet again, the White House's extralegal actions.

Mostly, it is an opportunity to insist that Democrats either fully experience their experiment in social engineering—by living without subsidies within the ObamaCare exchanges they created—or give every other American relief. The reality is that Democrats, far more than Republicans, wanted this fix. They are terrified of their own creation. As leverage goes, there's little to compare with Democratic self-interest.

Imagine forcing Democrats, daily, to justify this self-dealing—a gravy handout reviled equally by independent, Democratic and Republican voters. Imagine the House attaching to a must-pass piece of legislation, say, a provision that requires Congress and staffers and administration officials to live uniformly and subsidy-free in the ObamaCare exchanges, or give a pass to ordinary Americans. Let's see Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid handle that one.

 

[ba1614]

There's almost as many hypocrites in todays republican party as their is in the democrat party. They are all there for themselves and their elite buddies.

 

[NightFox]

There's almost as many hypocrites in todays republican party as their is in the democrat party. They are all there for themselves and their elite buddies.

You'll get no argument from me on that one and if the Republicans do not take up Strassel's proposal in a serious way they'll just once again demonstrate that they're every bit as slimy and duplicitous as the Democrats are.

I guess we'll see what happens when they return from "recess", I for one don't hold out much hope that Republican Lawmakers will do the right thing. IMHO it's worth writing a letter to your Republican Representative and Senator(s) though, perhaps even making a phone call or two.

 

[sealybobo]

There's almost as many hypocrites in todays republican party as their is in the democrat party. They are all there for themselves and their elite buddies.

You'll get no argument from me on that one and if the Republicans do not take up Strassel's proposal in a serious way they'll just once again demonstrate that they're every bit as slimy and duplicitous as the Democrats are.

I guess we'll see what happens when they return from "recess", I for one don't hold out much hope that Republican Lawmakers will do the right thing. IMHO it's worth writing a letter to your Republican Representative and Senator(s) though, perhaps even making a phone call or two.

See? Almost as many hypocrites in the GOP as there are in the DNC. ALMOST. And you agreed with the dope. I can tell when someone leans right. No need to lie friend.