If President Obama had his way, single payer would be law today

[steve2470]

I firmly believe that. I really think he has a good heart and truly cares for the American people. ACA was the best we could get with the a************e Republicans.

Baby steps, baby steps, single payer one day.


Steve

[Aristus]

1. I agree.

I get a little tired of Democrats laying the blame for all the world's ills on the President.

We have Republicans for that.

[Loudly]

2. Medicare for All needs to be the campaign slogan for 2014.

Anti-ACA sentiment absolutely requires it, and cannot be mollified.

[steve2470]

3. here are my thoughts

1- The idealistic side of me completely agrees with you.

2- The cynical, as realistic as possible political side of me is wary. It astounds me that the ACA, as mild as it is, gets such fury from some of the American people. What would happen if we went all out for Medicare for All ? I guess we have to take the plunge. There is no dipping toe into the water, unless it's to tweak the ACA.

[Loudly]

5. Essentially, every complaint about ACA is quieted by Medicare for All.

Even the "we can't afford it" objection is overcome by expansion of the risk pool, since Medicare in its present form is skewed toward end-of-life care, the most expensive kind.

[steve2470]

6. I agree with you

However, I think the RW and Republicans would be screaming socialism. It would be a very tough fight. Can we win it right now ? Only if massive amounts of money and people time are put into it. Otherwise, it will go down in flames. I hate to be so negative, but freaking hell, people are calling ACA socialism ! What BS.

[Loudly]

8. The problem (for them) of decrying Medicare as socialism

is that it is an existing and overwhelmingly popular program.

So why is it good to offer it to seniors and bad to offer it to everyone else?

I'm not worried about messaging that one at all.

What worries me is trying to thread the needle of how the benefits of ACA are worth the dislocations.

That seems like an utterly futile endeavor in an election year.

[steve2470]

13. they tried to defeat Medicare in 1965 with the socialism scare tactic

so yes, that reassures me about framing it as Medicare for All. Medicare is a hugely popular program.

[LostOne4Ever]

4. Totally agree!

But some people think just by waving a magic wand Obama can make a little thing called politics magically vanish, and then get mad at HIM for the REPUBLICANS BEING ASSHOLES!!!

Sorry, venting a bit about one of the ACA threads in GD

[ebbie15644]

7. where he failed was not offering a Medicare "buy in"

[VanillaRhapsody]

9. He didn't fail that...it wouldn't have passed....

[ebbie15644]

11. He didn't even try

[VanillaRhapsody]

12. It would have been a waste of time AND in doing so...might have jeopardized what we

did get. Don't let the good be the enemy of the perfect.

[classof56]

15. Well said!

[1StrongBlackMan]

16. Besides ...

If Single-payer were all and all, why has only one (maybe, 2) jurisdiction(s) taken advantage of the ACA provision that allows states to their own public option?

[VanillaRhapsody]

18. Exactly...nothing stopping them from doing it themselves if it were as "easy" as some seem

to think it is....

[ebbie15644]

17. Agree to disagree

[Sherman A1]

10. Sure

[Thinkingabout]

14. He went for what he could get, now the GOP has proclaimed ACA as a bad bill

And it is the GOP health care plan, now they do not have an alternate plan. Medicare was passed and has improved over the years and it was the Democratic plan. Why it has taken so many years to get any health care passed while many other countries has done this and it works well for them. I have been fortunate to have had health insurance but have always supported health care for all. President has a lot on his shoulders but I will always remember him for getting ACA passed. Thanks Mr President.

[VanillaRhapsody]

19. THIS ^^^ is partly HOW he painted them into the corner they are in....

Now they are eating their own....

Thanks Mr President indeed!

[Thinkingabout]

21. Yes, they backed themselves into a corner, it is not perfect and they need to work together to do a

job 100 years in the making.

[sheshe2]

20. Thank you Steve.

You are right, obstructionists thy name is Republican.

[Whisp]

22. Absolutely.

but there will always be a slice of Stupid that truly believes he is the evil satan man, sent to destroy us all - and laugh at his handiwork of destruction while watching the suffering.

And I don't mean the Baggers.

[steve2470]

23. seen my thread in GD about no war in Ukraine ?

It's revealing.

[steve2470]

24. holds my head

I think I need to hide in here a while. The feedback on my thread in GD is...amazing.