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Bob Hopkins: Political reality

Bob Hopkins
Silverthorne

After reading Liddick’s latest on incivility, I have to respond. Republicans get things done. No discussion, no debate, no transparency, just listen to the leaders, the think tanks, the industry, and VOTE. They have sweet memories on secret energy policy deals, gutted regulations, unfunded Medicare pharma deals, and unfunded wars. Nothing was more impressive, however, than the memory of Dick Armey, Dennis Hastert and Tom Delay strong-arming the House for years, partisan voting at its best. We all should remember the ceremony when Cheney marched to Capitol Hill to vote on Trent Lott’s Senate bill, breaking the 50-50 tie when Republicans rammed the $1.6 trillion tax cut down the Democrats’ throats, reconciliation at its finest, no super-majority or 60 votes needed.

Now we have health care. Republicans believe in free enterprise, in the free market, in capitalism, unlike the socialist democrats. What Liddick and Limbaugh need to start saying out loud is “there’s no free lunch.” That’s the issue here, it takes money to buy medical care. Everyone knows what personal responsibility means. I have yet to see a single church sell car magnets proclaiming “Support Equal Health Care for All.” Republicans have the financial savvy to know that using the fear of future debt, most independent voters will think we cannot afford to provide MRI’s, chemo, ER visits, dialysis, physical therapy, to 30-40-50 million poor, especially when the majority of independent voters have insurance.

Let the fractious Democrats argue and debate and compromise themselves into inaction and oblivion, with more than enough help from their own fellow senators nicknamed “Democrats in name only.” In America, Republicans and their well-funded think tanks and their cable media outlets know that lots of uninformed people vote, and Democrats still don’t know how to get those votes. That’s reality.


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