Filed under: News, Politics, President Obama
All 242 Republicans voted in lockstep to repeal the law, and nearly every Democrat voted against the repeal. The Republicans have chosen to define the Obama healthcare law as a "job killer," in an effort to tie their attacks on Obama to the economy.
"If we agree that this law needs improving, why would we keep it on the books?" House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) said. "This is what we said we would do. When you look at the facts and when you listen to the people, this is a promise worth keeping."
The Republican effort to repeal the law isn't going to go anywhere, since Senate Democrats have made it clear that they are not going to consider the bill. The Republicans have continued to try to get the Senate to vote on the measure and claim that Senators are insulting the American people with their behavior.
Democrats have begun working to defend the law, citing one story after another of constituents who've benefited from Obama's work. They've been especially quick to mention the children who are required to be covered under the law. Democrats argue that a repeal could lead to five million Americans with preexisting conditions being denied insurance coverage. They also claim that it would add $230 billion to the deficit over the next 10 years.
To counter the Republican offensive, Democrats put forth an amendment that would require members of Congress to give up their health coverage, which is provided by the government. The measure was defeated, with nearly all Republicans being the reason for the defeat. The point of putting the measure forward was to show that while Republicans are not in favor of the idea of all Americans getting access to government-provided health coverage, they are always willing to take their own coverage from the government.
It appears that after the assassination attempt of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords in Arizona, the Republicans have switched from incendiary rhetoric to hypocritical crusades. Their attacks on the president's health care law were not likely to succeed, and repeal efforts were mostly symbolic. The notion that the plan is a job killer is only a weak effort to control the minds of those who are concerned about the economy. So, rather than spending time dealing with real issues that affect the plight of the jobless in America, Republicans would rather have us presume that attacking Obama is going to help them to find jobs. The reality, however, is that just last month, Republicans turned down the chance to help jobless Americans by threatening to cut their unemployment benefits if Obama didn't allow for tax cuts for the wealthy. Given their unwillingness to provide health care to the poor and unemployed across America, Republicans continue to make their case as the party that best represents the rich.
Dr. Boyce Watkins is the founder of the Your Black World Coalition and a Scholarship in Action Resident of the Institute for Black Public Policy. To have Dr. Boyce commentary delivered to your email, please click here.