The final vote is done…welcome to nationalized medicine, brought to you by Barack Obama and the Democrat party.
Please understand that when I say a death-blow to America, I’m not suggesting that this nation will evaporate overnight. No, I’m talking about a slow, almost behind-the-scenes death in terms of freedom and prosperity – America as we know it today. We’ve had government slowly taking over more and more of our daily lives for decades; this is merely the last leap that overtakes a massive chunk of freedom, crossing a threshold that is likely to be the final straw that breaks the proverbial camel’s back. If America was a soldier, she would have already sustained a thousand small cuts and scrapes (and a couple of really nasty broken bones), each of which is bleeding just a little, but this one is the equivalent of chopping off a leg. It’s a massive injury that, when combined with the thousand small cuts, will prove too much in the end.
Unless the almost inevitable landslide election in November can actually force an all-out repeal (which is extremely unlikely given that Obama will still be President, unless the landslide gives the GOP veto-proof majorities), things will probably settle into a pattern of gradual but steady decay that won’t seem quite so terrible at first. But, just as a frog in heating water boils to death because the increase is gradual, one day in the near future Americans will suddenly look around and wonder, “Hey, why is the government telling me what to do all of the time? This isn’t what they promised us!”
Too late. Game over. The frog is boiled, and America is no longer a free and prosperous nation full of opportunity. America as we know it has died.
Here is the pack of lies our Destroyer-in-Chief just sent out:
Friend —
For the first time in our nation’s history, Congress has passed comprehensive health care reform. America waited a hundred years and fought for decades to reach this moment. Tonight, thanks to you, we are finally here.
Consider the staggering scope of what you have just accomplished:
Because of you, every American will finally be guaranteed high quality, affordable health care coverage.
Every American will be covered under the toughest patient protections in history. Arbitrary premium hikes, insurance cancellations, and discrimination against pre-existing conditions will now be gone forever.
And we’ll finally start reducing the cost of care — creating millions of jobs, preventing families and businesses from plunging into bankruptcy, and removing over a trillion dollars of debt from the backs of our children.
But the victory that matters most tonight goes beyond the laws and far past the numbers.
It is the peace of mind enjoyed by every American, no longer one injury or illness away from catastrophe.
It is the workers and entrepreneurs who are now freed to pursue their slice of the American dream without fear of losing coverage or facing a crippling bill.
And it is the immeasurable joy of families in every part of this great nation, living happier, healthier lives together because they can finally receive the vital care they need.
This is what change looks like.
Well, that’s true. Another big change will happen in just 8 months, and I’m pretty sure he won’t like that one.
Here are some initial thoughts from the professionals on the passage of DemCare. This is a long post, but there is a lot of good reading on this already. I urge you to take some time and understand where we are, what it means, and where we’re going.
First the negatives…
If Barack Obama does nothing else in his term in office, this will make him one of the most consequential presidents in history. It’s a huge transformative event in Americans’ view of themselves and of the role of government. You can say, oh, well, the polls show most people opposed to it, but, if that mattered, the Dems wouldn’t be doing what they’re doing. Their bet is that it can’t be undone, and that over time, as I’ve been saying for years now, governmentalized health care not only changes the relationship of the citizen to the state but the very character of the people. As I wrote in NR recently, there’s plenty of evidence to support that from Britain, Canada and elsewhere.
More prosaically, it’s also unaffordable. That’s why one of the first things that middle-rank powers abandon once they go down this road is a global military capability. If you take the view that the US is an imperialist aggressor, congratulations: You can cease worrying. But, if you think that America has been the ultimate guarantor of the post-war global order, it’s less cheery. Five years from now, just as in Canada and Europe two generations ago, we’ll be getting used to announcements of defense cuts to prop up the unsustainable costs of big government at home. And, as the superpower retrenches, America’s enemies will be quick to scent opportunity.
Longer wait times, fewer doctors, more bureaucracy, massive IRS expansion, explosive debt, the end of the Pax Americana, and global Armageddon.
Hillbuzz: “Benedict Arnold. Samuel Mudd. Bart Stupak. We nominate Bart Stupak for that special place in American history reserved for men who abandon all principles, forsake their countries, their Gods, and their values, and do something unimaginably terrible to bring eternal disgrace upon themselves and all their descendants.”
Kathryn Jean Lopez, NRO: Congratulations, Democrats. Beginning now, you own the health-care system in America. Every hiccup. Every complaint. Every long line. All yours.
Matthew Continetti, Weekly Standard:
Do not believe anyone who tells you they understand the path American politics will take after this vote. It is truly unique. And yet a few things are clear. One, the idea of the “pro-life” Democrat should be tossed into the dust-heap along with such outmoded concepts as cold-fusion. Two, Obama will achieve a short-term bump in his political capital, and likely his poll ratings, because he will have achieved something that every Democratic president since Harry Truman has been unable to accomplish. And three, Obamacare is a testable proposition. The proponents of this legislation have made distinct claims regarding its costs and consequences that should not be forgotten — especially when America encounters its first debt crisis some years from now.
Chuck DeVore, RedState:
The passage of this phony healthcare “reform” is a tremendous blow to the cause of fiscal restraint, limited government, Constitutional principles, and free enterprise. In short, it strikes directly at America’s core principles. This is shameful moment in the history of our country — and especially the Democratic Party, which has apparently come unmoored from whatever remaining attachment it had to the ideals of our Founders. In place of a dedication to “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,” there is only a rapacious impulse to ever-expanded state control, and an avaricious imperative to seize ever-more of your rightful possessions.
The Democrats are beyond reason. They are beyond appeals to common sense and patriotism. The corrupt milieu that produced President Barack Obama has metastasized and seated itself in Washington, D.C. — and we saw it on full display in the razor-thin passage of this healthcare “reform.” Every trick, every pressure, every shameless deal was done. Down to perverting the rules of the American Congress, the Democrats stopped at nothing.
Perhaps most pathetic was the spectacle of Michigan Congressman Bart Stupak, who exchanged his pro-life principles for a hollow promise from the most pro-abortion President in American history. That executive order won’t stand up to judicial scrutiny — the President cannot override the law by fiat — and pro-life organizations like National Right to Life and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops understand that it’s a worthless scrap of paper. Yet Rep. Stupak’s desperation for thin cover to do the wrong thing is useful in one way: it illustrates the union of moral vacuum and maneuvering deception at the core of the Democratic effort for Obamacare.
Bob Moffitt, Heritage Foundation:
The Obama health care legislation is universal in scope and will profoundly impact the personal lives of more than 300 million Americans. It will restrict our personal freedom while undercutting the independence and authority of the several states.
This unprecedented congressional action will give Washington control over the content of health benefits packages; the kind of health insurance available to Americans and the organization and regulation of health insurance markets. This has been accompanied by one of the most shocking Congressional exhibition of arrogance and special interest deal-making in memory.
In 1774, in response to the first Tea Party, the British Parliament issued a series of acts designed to control the colonists, stop their protests and restrict their liberty. The Americans called these “The Intolerable Acts.”
Obamacare is today’s Intolerable Act. In poll after poll, in town hall meetings, in popular protests and in special elections, ordinary Americans have declared their firm opposition to this scheme, only to be derisively dismissed.
This imposition of legislation is intolerable for two reasons:
- Process: The outrageous way in which this massive restructuring of one six of the economy has been pushed through.
- Substance: Huge obligation shifted to future generations, a huge lurch toward European-style welfare states.
…
Fortunately, there are no permanent victories or defeats in Washington. For millions of Americans and for Heritage, Round One of this fight is over. Tomorrow morning, we are answering the bell.
Erick Erickson, RedState:
We can’t Bart Stupak go without a parting gift. Judas, after all, got 30 silver coins to sell out our Lord. Stupak needs something for selling out all the children sent off to be slaughtered thanks to his “compromise” that any President can pen away to oblivion — notwithstanding the questionable legal assumptions behind it.
Let’s send him 100 silver coins. It’s only a $4.00 investment on your part.
Order them and send them to:
Congressman Bart Stupak (you’ll not want to use the word honorable)
1229 W. Washington St.
Marquette, MI 49855
(906) 228 3700
Now, so as not to completely depress everyone, here are some positives…
This is a dark day in American history; one of the darkest. But there are many reasons for optimism. Here are a few:
* The health care battle is just beginning. Next, the Senate will try to enact the House’s “fixes” to the original Senate bill. Some Senators say that won’t happen. If not, then President Obama has the option of signing the original Senate bill–now passed by the House–Cornhusker Kickback and all. I assume he would do that, but the resulting blowback from House Democrats, not to mention the American people, would be something to behold.
* The health care bill’s taxes will go into effect promptly, but its substantive provisions are, for the most part, deferred for four years. This means that we have plenty of time to repeal the legislation. Sure, it will take a new Congress and new President. But repealing this disaster of a bill will by a rallying cry for the American people for years to come. Moreover, even if the Republicans only take over the House in November, and not the Senate, won’t it be possible to throw roadblocks in the way of the bill’s implementation? Won’t budget appropriations be necessary to sustain the various federal tentacles the bill seeks to establish? What will happen if the House simply refuses to fund them?
* I’ve never been prouder to be a Republican. The party’s Congressional leaders have fought this battle to the end on behalf of the American people–with intelligence, toughness, persistence and good humor. The contrast between the parties has never been starker than in today’s debate. If any intelligent Democrats were watching–there must be some left–they had to be embarrassed for their party.
* Paul Ryan has emerged as one of the conservative movement’s strongest spokesmen. In the years to come, I think we will hear the words “I’m a Paul Ryan Republican” with increasing frequency.
* The health care debate has energized the conservative movement and awoken the sleeping giant, that is, the American people. The Democrats misinterpreted their electoral victories in 2006 and 2008 as a mandate for socialism. Now a majority of voters are intent on disabusing them of that misapprehension. Just about all of the political energy today is on the right–a remarkable fact, only sixteen months after the Democrats’ high-water mark in November 2008.
* Barack Obama has used his political capital–pretty much all of it–on unpopular legislation that will continue to rile the voters for years to come. As a result, Obama is a remarkably unpopular second-year President. And he hasn’t even experienced any bad luck yet. It is hard to see how he will be able to regain his footing.
So, be of good cheer. To paraphrase a great American, we have not yet begun to fight.
State-level battle begins: Texas attorney general Greg Abbott Facebooks: “I am organizing a conference call tonight for AGs across the country. We will discuss our litigation strategy about the healthcare bill. I will update you on Facebook after the conference call.”
Remember, at least 30 states are in the process of moving to prevent the federal mandate that is the heart of DemCare. That’s damned close to the 2/3 it would take to force a vote to make DemCare unconstitutional. This should be an interesting constitutional showdown.
There are not enough words to describe the foulness of what Barack Obama and the Democrat party has just done to America, and the American people. One day, our children and grandchildren will look back on this day as the day that America took a body blow and fell. I just hope that history is accurate in depicting precisely who was responsible for it. And, God willing, I hope America is able to rise again, breathing fire and crushing all who would smother freedom with the suffocating blanket of big government.
I close this post with rock star conservative Paul Ryan:
The words on every Republican’s lips from now on should be:
REPEAL IT.
Period.
Speaking of which, you can go here to sign an online pledge that you will only support candidates who vow to repeal DemCare in its entirety. No more Diet Democrats…now is the time for die-hard, freedom-loving, non-compromising, Founders-understanding, Constitution-following Americans in Congress. The last beacon of freedom in the world hangs by the slimmest of threads, and quite literally depends on it.
There’s my two cents.
I'm a gun-owning, Bible-thumping, bitter clinger conservative in the heartland. You can disagree with me if you want (you do, after all, have a right to be wrong)...just don't be rude or stupid and we'll get along just fine! :)
There's My Two Cents 
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