Many different explanations have been given about the triumph of Senator Scott Brown in winning the Senate seat previously occupied by Ted Kennedy:
• The voters overwhelmingly rejected the healthcare liberal agenda
• It is time to stop this socialist administration from taking over the government of this country
• People want freedom, and independence, and they want to be able to exercise their right to make their own decisions without government interference
• Congressional seats do not belong to anybody: they belong to the people of the State
• The Federal Government should not interfere in matters better left to the States
• The radicals and their liberal agenda are a threat to our democracy and to our freedoms
• The liberals want to spread the wealth around giving it to those who do not work and getting it from those that produce and create businesses
Put on your thinking hat and consider this:
First, people, not only in Massachusetts, but everywhere else in the nation are fed up with the incumbents, both Republicans and Democrats, because of their incompetence and inability to think and solve real problems. A clear example of this incompetence is their inability to discuss intelligently the healthcare issue, in spite of the fact that it has been talked about for more than 50 years, and it was discussed in Congress for more than a year now. Many other examples could be mentioned here, but this incompetence is the same when discussing matters of education, energy, the role of government in society, church and state relationships, etc. All of these are issues of paramount importance to be critically analyzed if a modern society wants to progress.
Second, Massachusetts has a Health care system that covers 95% of the people and most of them are happy with what they have. What benefit do they get by signing up for a proposed bill that was rewritten in the Senate to make everybody happy except the people the reform bill was supposed to help? None! They voted against the wrong kind of reform (reform to keep lobbyist happy and to spread the pork around amongst the signers), not against smart legislation to change the way our healthcare system is bankrupting the country.
Third, and finally, just because you want to succeed a Kennedy, does not mean that you do not have to work hard and show intelligence. It does not mean that the voters owe you an appointment. You have to demonstrate that you deserve the position and that you will defend the gains they have already accomplished.
It makes sense to me.
February 20, 2010
Showing posts with label Healthcare Reform. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Healthcare Reform. Show all posts
Saturday, February 27, 2010
My conclusions from the meeting with the President.
If there was any doubt in my mind about the significance of Jim Demint’s (Senator, South Carolina) statement that he wants President Obama to fail, I had more than enough proof yesterday. To my knowledge, no Republican has clearly and publicly rejected that statement. It seems that most, if not all, Republicans agree with him. From watching yesterday’s meeting where the President invited the opposition (better said, the minority) to present their ideas about ways to solve the healthcare crisis, I have come to the following conclusions:
• Republican ideology is making the US Senate an obsolete and counterproductive institution, unnecessary in our democratic system. Senators are looking after their personal interests and the interests of those who financially support them, rather than working for the well-being of the Nation, or even their own constituencies.
• Republicans in the Senate, and in the House, do not want to achieve solutions to the problems our society faces, as long as our elected President is in power, or as long as he supports a proposed change.
• The minority party is using its constitutional right to dissent, to stop government from functioning and from doing its job of debating issues, and coming to conclusions in a timely manner. This abuse causes a failure to enact legislation necessary to solve society’s problems. The majority is allowing them to stop progress.
• The Senate was not designed to be a forum to express ideological differences amongst the members without resolution, nor to paralyze all legislative action, but to enact legislation useful and helpful to promote the economic well being of society. In this respect, those senators are not doing their job and should either resign from their elected positions, or be replaced by the voters.
• What we are seeing today is a minority that has no public mandate, is being obstructive and counterproductive, and is ruling a majority government. The majority party is not doing what it was elected to do. Do we really have a majority in congress?
• The threats, name-calling, abusive treatment, and misrepresentations, of the minority opposition can be allowed in our Democracy, as long as they neither paralyze government nor make institutions ineffective as to their intended purpose. When the latter is the case, it is time to respect the voice of the majority, which is 51%.
• The inability of our elected representatives to read (they could not read a 1200 page healthcare bill in one year), to think, to reason, and to make decisions is endangering our Democracy and destroying our sustainability as a prosperous economic system and a world-respected superpower.
The enemy of our Nation is not only outside the country but also within our own system. Let us try to be smart and get rid of it. There is no better place in the world to live than the United States of America. There is no better economic system invented so far, either. Let us be smart, diligent, willing and recognize that Democrats have the mandate.
Let us count the votes and see who the DINOS (Democrats in Name Only) in the Senate are. For one year, they blamed the lack of progress on a few Blue Dogs. They argued that four or five conservative senators were stalling legislative progress. Let us expose the Blue Dogs as the face of the now extinct Republican Party. Let the true Democrats move ahead with necessary Health Care Reform.
February 26, 2010
• Republican ideology is making the US Senate an obsolete and counterproductive institution, unnecessary in our democratic system. Senators are looking after their personal interests and the interests of those who financially support them, rather than working for the well-being of the Nation, or even their own constituencies.
• Republicans in the Senate, and in the House, do not want to achieve solutions to the problems our society faces, as long as our elected President is in power, or as long as he supports a proposed change.
• The minority party is using its constitutional right to dissent, to stop government from functioning and from doing its job of debating issues, and coming to conclusions in a timely manner. This abuse causes a failure to enact legislation necessary to solve society’s problems. The majority is allowing them to stop progress.
• The Senate was not designed to be a forum to express ideological differences amongst the members without resolution, nor to paralyze all legislative action, but to enact legislation useful and helpful to promote the economic well being of society. In this respect, those senators are not doing their job and should either resign from their elected positions, or be replaced by the voters.
• What we are seeing today is a minority that has no public mandate, is being obstructive and counterproductive, and is ruling a majority government. The majority party is not doing what it was elected to do. Do we really have a majority in congress?
• The threats, name-calling, abusive treatment, and misrepresentations, of the minority opposition can be allowed in our Democracy, as long as they neither paralyze government nor make institutions ineffective as to their intended purpose. When the latter is the case, it is time to respect the voice of the majority, which is 51%.
• The inability of our elected representatives to read (they could not read a 1200 page healthcare bill in one year), to think, to reason, and to make decisions is endangering our Democracy and destroying our sustainability as a prosperous economic system and a world-respected superpower.
The enemy of our Nation is not only outside the country but also within our own system. Let us try to be smart and get rid of it. There is no better place in the world to live than the United States of America. There is no better economic system invented so far, either. Let us be smart, diligent, willing and recognize that Democrats have the mandate.
Let us count the votes and see who the DINOS (Democrats in Name Only) in the Senate are. For one year, they blamed the lack of progress on a few Blue Dogs. They argued that four or five conservative senators were stalling legislative progress. Let us expose the Blue Dogs as the face of the now extinct Republican Party. Let the true Democrats move ahead with necessary Health Care Reform.
February 26, 2010
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
It is Time for Democrats in Congress to show their Teeth!
The American people went to the polls in November to show their overwhelming support for the ideas that, then candidate Obama, was telling us were necessary to change the direction of this country. We elected him because he promised real change in the most important areas of public policy: healthcare, energy, and education.
The fact that the majority of the people voted for him is an indication that the people are expecting real results. It was also because of his success and the support for his initiatives that many representatives in Congress were able to retain their seats, and will be able to continue serving in the future.
The majority of the people, at least 60-65% of those who voted for change, are expecting the President to implement his promise of change even without the support of the minority opposition. We did not elect the President to get along with the minority, at the expense of not getting the programs he promised enacted this year. When it comes to healthcare reform, for example, we are expecting Universal, Single-payer insurance for all Americans. Additionally, and most important, a public option, to bring competition to the system and keep it honest and transparent.
We do not care if a minority of Republicans in Congress likes it or not. This is a Democracy, and the majority of the people voted for change. That is it! There will never be another opportunity for real change like this one, and the American people will not forgive those representatives in Congress who will not support change and vote in favor of healthcare reform.
Let us not forget that this is not a Republican Administration. They have had their say and they will never change the status-quo because a change is not favorable to them. They are the minority in America. After all, most of them already have good coverage, paid either by their employers, or by themselves, because they can afford it. That is why Republicans in Congress talk about the goodness of the system, because it is good for them, but not for the majority of Americans. There is where they go wrong: they have ignored the call of the people for change, and have not done anything, except continue supporting a system with higher costs, lower quality, and the promise of never getting any better.
It is indeed time for Democrats in Congress to show their teeth!
The fact that the majority of the people voted for him is an indication that the people are expecting real results. It was also because of his success and the support for his initiatives that many representatives in Congress were able to retain their seats, and will be able to continue serving in the future.
The majority of the people, at least 60-65% of those who voted for change, are expecting the President to implement his promise of change even without the support of the minority opposition. We did not elect the President to get along with the minority, at the expense of not getting the programs he promised enacted this year. When it comes to healthcare reform, for example, we are expecting Universal, Single-payer insurance for all Americans. Additionally, and most important, a public option, to bring competition to the system and keep it honest and transparent.
We do not care if a minority of Republicans in Congress likes it or not. This is a Democracy, and the majority of the people voted for change. That is it! There will never be another opportunity for real change like this one, and the American people will not forgive those representatives in Congress who will not support change and vote in favor of healthcare reform.
Let us not forget that this is not a Republican Administration. They have had their say and they will never change the status-quo because a change is not favorable to them. They are the minority in America. After all, most of them already have good coverage, paid either by their employers, or by themselves, because they can afford it. That is why Republicans in Congress talk about the goodness of the system, because it is good for them, but not for the majority of Americans. There is where they go wrong: they have ignored the call of the people for change, and have not done anything, except continue supporting a system with higher costs, lower quality, and the promise of never getting any better.
It is indeed time for Democrats in Congress to show their teeth!
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