Thread: Baucas Health Care bill

Originally Posted by Highstakes72

A centrist bill would pass. There are votes for that. Your example of private insurance lapses is meaningless as pleny of examples of government run healthcare failures are abound as well. Frankly, I do not share the level of faith you do in the government. Of course my opinion might be jaded due to my excessive exposure to a dozen or more agencies therein...but what has shaped your opinion? You still havent answered my funding question by the way...How are taxes on the healthcare industry going to make healthcare/products cheaper for everyone?

Clearly a centrist bill won't pass with bipartisan support. Republicans really don't have a coherent plan, but some of the things they have said were tax credits and tort reform, as if those would magically fix everything. As for the tax issue, I never defended those. I just pointed out what they were on. I am not in favor of these and there is a reason I am not a fan of this bill, and this is one of them.

Originally Posted by Highstakes72

You claim the Republicans are blocking progress...with no votes to do so. The problem is on your side of the spectrum not mine.

Yet again, that is not what I said. You are putting words in my mouth. It is the conservative Democrats that are holding back progress. My problem with the Republicans is that no matter how many concessions they get, they won't vote for it.

Originally Posted by Consultant

There is dirt all over this issue, dont be so dishonest as to proclaim that Republicans are being obstructionist because of contributions.

Oh, Max Baucus as gotten something like $4 million. Kent Conrad has taken alot, too, as well as other conservative Democrats like Ben Nelson. There is no wonder, then, why Baucus' bill is the favorite of the industry. I never said that contributions were why Republicans were obstructing it. It is one reason, but I doubt the main one.

True Red, I was a bit broad with that statement. All passive publicity is good publicity. The idea is that if your name is mentioned repeatedly, even in a negative context, after a certain amount of time, only the name remains. People will forget about the kids in Mexico, but their brains might flash to Wal-Mart the next time they need tires or something.

In this case, it works like the lawn signs politicians use. If you don't care enough to educate yourself on the issues, and you go to vote, you'll vote for the guy you've heard of. How many insurance companies can the average Joe name? One or two, most likely. If they see one's name around, for whatever reason, they are more likely to trust it or choose it when their open enrollment comes along, thinking they are getting a better company.