I’d like to suggest a way to bring some of the pay-go blue dogs in on health care reform: position it as a way of saving Medicare.

Seriously, the Blue Dogs can be counted on to scream about unfunded long term liabilities at some point, and the insolvency of medicare by 2019 is something they could be engaged upon. Having health care reform that can be positioned as fixing Medicare (while simultaneously extending it or other health insurance to uninsured and driving inefficiencies out of the system) gives them a way to vote yea.

Good idea.

As for the bill, I would have voted for it, but it does leave lot to be desired in its present incarnation. Not only are the tax cuts useless and the spending not enough, but I was expecting some more innovative ideas to create jobs.

* raising the top income tax rate to, say 98%

* making the estate tax 100% after the individual exemption

* taxing capital gains as income except in the case of short-term speculative gains taxed 99.9%.

The above would be pay-go that I could live with.

I have long advocated that Universal Health Care be “rolled-into” the VA’s medical and hospital systemic. For in doing so, everyone is ‘guaranteed’ the identical quantity and quality care. Consider this a tad of elgalitarianism.

My question to you, and others, is, “How would the Blue Dogs respond when Medicare becomes a defacto program since all available dollars are to be reprogrammed through the VA?”

Jaango

Seriously, the Blue Dogs can be counted on to scream about unfunded long term liabilities at some point, and the insolvency of medicare by 2019 is something they could be engaged upon. Having health care reform that can be positioned as fixing Medicare (while simultaneously extending it or other health insurance to uninsured and driving inefficiencies out of the system) gives them a way to vote yea. They can tell their constituents that they are being fiscally responsible by voting for health care.

I’m all for replacing blue dogs with more progressive politicians. We should also try to find tactics to gain their votes.

I’m reeeeeeally tired of politicians feeling like they won a lottery vs. were hired to do a job.