In his second memoir before the age of 45, a junior senator from Illinois wrote, ‘If we aren’t willing to pay a price for our values, then we should ask ourselves whether we truly believe in them at all.’ Riveting stuff, really.  

President Obama will pay a substantial political price for the recent passage of his health care reform bill. The Democratic Party will likely pay a greater price in the November midterm elections. But it remains unclear as to which American values are championed by this legislation. It is even more perplexing to imagine a congressman who truly believes that Sunday night’s vote was an accomplishment.  

The bill is an unmitigated monstrosity, a massive entitlement program that will force millions of people off their employer-based coverage and onto a government plan. It will raise taxes, and not just for the wealthy. It will create numerous inefficient regulations on the insurance companies. The national debt will increase, as will the premium costs for many Americans. These reforms move the United States closer to the European model of a welfare state.  

Having said all that, liberals are still not too satisfied with the final version of Obamacare. Staunchly progressive Democrats are furious over the lack of a single-payer system or even a public option. Perhaps Obama’s end game involves one of these measures, but thankfully the American public will not have to fend those off for a number of years.  

It’s hard to believe, but somehow Obamacare is not as left-wing as many progressives would desire. Because of this, many Democrats are labeling the legislation as pragmatic and reasonable.  
     
Nonsense. It is absurd to describe this bill as moderate simply because the liberals failed to institute a socialization of health care comparable to Canada’s system. With or without a public option, these absurd reforms will be a disaster.

Republicans remained united in opposition from beginning to end, but given that many Democrats were also unhappy with the final version of the legislation, it begs the question as to why the bill was passed at all.

In the eleventh hour, health care reform barely got through Congress in order to save Obama’s presidency. While Obama may have started his health care push on a moral high ground, the process eventually became more personal and less noble, with the focus on his political legacy instead of bringing about reasonable, effective reforms to an unsustainable system. If the bill had failed, the president would have been incapacitated and unable to pursue what’s left of his domestic agenda.  

Politico.com reported that in the days leading up to the final vote, Obama was lobbying wavering House Democrats to vote for his bill by emphasizing that ‘the fate of his presidency was on the line.’ Ultimately, this is why he got the necessary votes.

Obama has exhausted so much political capital throughout this contentious debate that he was determined to press forward and get something — anything — passed as long as it was large enough and as long as it had his name all over it. After all, this is a man who appears quite taken with himself, who wants to be known as a transformational leader, who yearns to leave his mark on the history of this nation.  

Universal health coverage is an admirable goal, as are many liberal aims. But unless Americans are willing to sacrifice their values of capitalism, free markets and personal responsibility, then universal health care will remain an unaffordable, naïve goal, as are many liberal aims.

Although it is a silver lining of meager consolation, conservatives have been handed a gift-wrapped platform for the November elections and beyond. They will campaign on an outright repeal of Obamacare. Twelve Republican attorney generals have already filed federal lawsuits against the legislation on the grounds that it is unconstitutional for Congress to mandate the purchase of health insurance.  

The past year has taught us a lot about our 44th president. At the very least, it is evident that Obama is well prepared for the continuation of this political battle. He remains in full-bore campaign mode, touring the country to give more speeches on behalf of his signature legislation.  

Strange that Obamacare would require defending after it has been passed in both chambers of Congress, but such is the nature of a bill that has no bipartisan support and is opposed by a majority of Americans.  
 
Jimmy Paul is a junior political science major. His column appears weekly and you can reach him at jdpaul01@syr.edu.

 

Published on March 23, 2010 at 12:00 pm