Why Liberals Are Panicked

By Charles Krauthammer, Orange County Register, Friday, Nov. 15, 2013 - Excerpts

 

"The centerpiece of this vision (the welfare state) is, of course, Obamacare, the most sweeping social reform in the last half-century, affecting one-sixth of the economy and directly touching the most vital area of life of every citizen.

 

As the only socially transformational legislation in modern American history to be enacted on a straight party-line vote, Obamacare is wholly owned by the Democrats. Its unraveling would catastrophically undermine their underlying ideology of ever-expansive central government cradle-to-grave care for an ever-grateful citizenry.

 

For four years, this debate has been theoretical. Now it's real. And for the Democrats, it's a disaster.

 

1) It begins with the bungled rollout. If Washington can't even do the website - the literal portal to this brave new world - how does it propose to regulate the ecosystem of U.S. medicine?

 

2)Second, arrogance. Five million freely chosen, freely purchased, freely renewed health care plans are summarily canceled. Why? Because they don't meet some arbitrary standard set by the experts in Washington.

 

3) For all of his news conference gyrations about not deliberately deceiving people with his "if you like it" promise, the law Obama so triumphantly gave us allows you to keep your plan only if he likes it. THAT'S THE VERY DEFINITION OF PATERNALISM.

 

4) LASTLY, DECEPTION. The essence of the entitlement state is government giving away free stuff. Hence Obamacare would provide insurance for 30 million uninsured, while giving everybody tons of free medical services - without adding "one dime to our deficits," promised Obama.

 

This being inherently impossible, there had to be a catch. Now we know it: Toss millions of the insured off their plans and onto the Obamacare "exchanges" where they would be forced into more expensive insurance packed with coverage they don't want and don't need so that the overcharge can be used to subsidize others.

 

The reaction to the incompetence, arrogance and deception has ranged from ridicule to anger. But more is in jeopardy than just panicked Congressional Democrats. THIS IS THE SIGNATURE LEGISLATIVE ACHIEVEMENT OF THE OBAMA PRESIDENCY, THE EMBODIMENT OF HIS NEW ENTITLEMENT-STATE LIBERALISM. If Obamacare goes down, there would be little left of its underlying ideology....

 

If it does fail, the effect will be historic. Obamacare will take down with more than Mary Landrieu and Co. It will discredit Obama's new liberalism for years to come.

 

George H. Kubeck - www.//cinopsbegoneblogspot.com  Obamacare is a necessary education for the American people to learn what economic progressivism (Socialism) is all about.