The Politics Of Repealing Health-Care Reform

Last night, many Republicans privately think they were handed a gift: a bloody piece of prime rib to stoke unrest in their base. Between now and November, conservatives will grouse shrilly about the coming evil of reform. We’ll hear how it will ruin the country, and bring forth the dreaded socialization of our hospitals and care providers. Medicare will be cut, the elderly uncared for. Premiums will skyrocket. But as far as Democrats are concerned, that’s OK. Why? Because now that health care has passed, Democrats have a chance to expose the lies. Before, it was straw man against straw man, Republican claims against Democrats’. Now, it’s straw man against lived reality. Democrats finally have a chance to prove half truths and misleading claims wrong, not just argue that they are and point to a giant stack of paper as evidence.

Just a few hours after the House passed historic health-care-reform legislation, Sen. John McCain vowed, on Good Morning America, that he’d fight to repeal the bill. Others are plotting legal challenges over the constitutionality of the individual mandate, a battle the White House is reportedly well armed for. Conservatives have been hinting at a campaign to repeal the newly passed bill for weeks. But actually having to run one is their worst nightmare. They never wanted to get to this point. They know that repealing the legislation will be far more difficult than passing it was, and by now, Americans fully realize how arduous the journey to last night was. At this point, repeal is fantasy.

For starters, Republicans simply don’t have the numbers in either chamber. It’s doubtful that even Democrats who voted with them last night, would support a repeal of their president’s signature achievement. Pelosi may have allowed a few members in difficult districts to sit this one out, but she certainly wouldn’t allow them to actively undermine her. Moreover, Republicans are far short of the requisite 60 votes in the Senate. And besides, its become abundantly clear over the past year that having the votes in the Senate is a very different proposition than having the party unity to exercise them.

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