I don’t blame Obama for the health care debacle so far, although Clive Cook says I should.
And Kirby from CT Bob thinks it’s time for him to step up to the plate.
But I agree with Ross Douthat who says Don’t Blame Obama
Health care reform is the Democratic Party’s signature issue. Its wonks have thought longer and harder about it than any other topic. Its politicians are vastly better at talking about the subject than Republicans: if an election is fought over health care, bet on the Democrat every time. And for all the complexity involved, it’s arguably easier to tackle than other liberal priorities. It’s more popular than cap and trade, it’s less likely to split the party than immigration and it’s more amenable to technocratic interventions than income inequality.
If the Congressional Democrats can’t get a health care package through, it won’t prove that President Obama is a sellout or an incompetent. It will prove that Congress’s liberal leaders are lousy tacticians, and that its centrist deal-makers are deal-makers first, poll watchers second and loyal Democrats a distant third. And it will prove that the Democratic Party is institutionally incapable of delivering on its most significant promises.
It’s the Blue Dogs and Purple Cows of the Democratic Party I blame – including all 5 Connecticut congressman who have yet to take the “no public option, no health care reform” pledge.
