Oh, the humanity!
In order to push Obama's health care agenda to the next step on Saturday, Democrats had to make a stunning concession:
Last night, 23 Democrats voted against providing 36 million Americans with health insurance while reducing the deficit, but in favor of the Stupak amendment to restrict reproductive rights for low-income women.
This brings us to Rule 4 of Saul Alinsky's Rules for Radicals: "Make the enemy live up to its own book of rules. You can kill them with this..."
Conservatives try in vain to make Democrats live up to their own rulebook, but the mainstream media generally give liberals a pass, allowing them to go totally ACORN 99% of the time. As far as the Democrats' friends in the press are concerned, there really aren't any rules. The ends always justify the means.
But lefties do have sacred rules — and their health care legislation is so multifaceted and so all-encompassing that it's forcing the Democrats to try to live up to the entirety of their own book of conflicting dos and don'ts.
Here are some of the liberals' most cherished beliefs and values:
- Health Care is a right (unless it's too expensive, or you're too old).
- Elective abortion is a right (no exceptions).
- It is immoral for government to undermine a woman’s ability to make her own life choices (except to force one one woman to pay for another woman's abortion).
- Government should ration health care (except abortion).
- Government should not place a bureaucrat between you, your insurance provider, and your doctor (except when regulating health care services not involving abortion).
It's a complicated maze of conflicting "moral" values, to be sure. But liberals have managed to stay out of trouble because they have never had the opportunity to take on a project that would put their convictions to the test to the extent that this health care legislation will.
In the wake of Pelosi's compromise with pro-Life Democrats, Abortion enthusiasts are seething. They feel that they've been thrown under the bus.
But what's a good Democrat to do? They might have the votes to pass sweeping health care legislation (their prime moral imperative), but not if they try to change the status quo on the use of federal funds for elective abortion procedures.
In trying to live up to their own book of rules, the Democrats are self-destructing.
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Excellent analysis of the pro-life Stupak amendment
11 comments:
I think a lot of voters are seeing the real values and principles of their elected officials, which is to say very little in both categories.
Thus, why my sense of thinking that there will be a good amount of "throwing the bastards out" come 2010 election season.
There is a paradigm shift in media. This may not always be the case, and I think many already see that thanks to this new media.
Even the media, well, maybe the media have consciences, or at the very least, eyes. If they are true journalists, which is doubtful, they won't want to let the story that is Obama go unchecked for too long, at least, I hope not.
I was following the vote on facebook. I saw many conservatives that were angry that the republicans voted for the abortion ammendment.
While I hate the healthcare bill, they stood by principle. Which is more than the democrats can say. Of course it is not being reported that way.
I would much rather have people stand by principle and lose a few battles than throwing your true belief system under the bus.
They put that in there knowing full well that they will find away around it later. Quite stunning hypocrisy.
Those Democrats who voted against the bill on previously voiced objections to the federally funded abortion provisions may well be conservatives worth keeping in office.
The rest we should keep our eyes on.
(Well, all of them we need to keep our eyes on! But, you know what I mean!)
Thank you so very much for this tribute. Just another example of how completely unqualified this
person is to be our President. There seems to be no end
to his display of ineptitude. This man’s priorities are
certainly not in the interests of our Country!
Note to Michelle Obama– I’ve never been more ashamed of my President!
CG: It will be a very bad year for incumbents.
BB: At least the honeymoon is over. The New Media have definitely helped to end it sooner.
EM: I guess it depends on how big the story is. But the MSM LOVE Obama and they're heavily invested in his success (whatever that might mean). They really don't want to take him down. The ACORN story is a case in point.
JCG: It's an intriguing question...if Republicans had helped to defeat the abortion amendment by voting "present" could they have made it harder to pass the bill? Theoretically yes, I suppose, but the Stupak amendment wouldn't have had chance if the BluDog Dems didn't know the Republicans would back them up.
I do think the Stupak Amendment is a good sign. If they strip it, the lefties loose the pro-life dems and the republicans, even Cao. But if they don't strip it, they're going to loose the far left.
They passed the bill on Saturday with a razor thin majority. I don't see how they're going to hold it all together for the next vote.
Proof: I think you're right. If they think they're going to get clobbered in the next election no matter how they vote, what can we expect them to do? Maybe some of the Blue Dogs should be encouraged to join the GOP. If the tent is big enough for Cao, why isn't it big enough for Bobby Bright, Parker Griffith, Collin Peterson, Heath Shuler or Gene Taylor?
TME: The Dems are qualified ...to ruin the country.
what a disaster this is!
WHT: We can still crush it.
The pro-life congressman stood up for the rights of citizens so that our tax dollars will not fund abortions. At least they stood up on principle.
But, in saying that, this health care bill is a disaster.
Teresa: Now we see what determined conservatives can accomplish even with Democrats in charge.
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