The Health Care Bill

Last night, the House passed H.R. 3962, the Affordable Health Care for America Act. When I saw the vote, I was astonished. Among the 220 representatives who voted for it, I wondered if there was even one who, as the announcement of the bill’s passage came, thought, “What have I done?”

All over the news, the bill is being hailed as a victory for the president and the Democrats in Congress. A victory for them, perhaps. But it is a crushing blow to the nation as a whole. Now, in addition to holding you hostage with threats of unfunded retirement, terrorism, food poisoning, plane crashes, lack of shelter, unemployment, education, etc., you’re going to be held hostage with health insurance. This bill is yet another nail in the coffin of limited government, and anyone who believes it will deliver on its promises is either too young to know better, already dependent on the government for his basic necessities, or unwilling to come to terms with the an axiom that history has shown us time and time again: government programs don’t work.

I, as a candidate for Congress, have had to ask myself if this is really the purpose of government. Does this bill really fit the description of “governance”? Is this why our government was instituted? Is this really the outcome of the great American experiment? Would the Founding generation approve of this behavior from the federal government? Can we save the world with politics and legislation? Is it really that simple? On all counts, no. For if this is what American government was designed to do, we would not have needed a Constitution or a division of power. A ruling aristocracy would have done just fine.

While I appreciate most House Republicans who voted against the bill, I am unappreciative of the fact that they had their own plan waiting in the wings. They deserve credit for trying to stop the Democrat plan, but it needs to be recognized that many of them were ready to vote for their own particular version as an alternative. That is not what I want. I don’t want a federal bill at all. I want to see federal legislation in the medical industry repealed. It is hypocritical of anyone to vote against a bill on the grounds of limited government, only to turn around and present a bill of his own.

It is my hope that any Congressman who voted in favor of H.R. 3962 has committed political suicide by doing so. I see "Repeal Pelosicare!" as being a powerful plank in next year’s midterm elections. They’ve handed us a 1990-page manifesto of their own incompetence, and are unfit to be federal lawmakers. How much more clear can they make it?