Conservative Truth - Onan Coca: Republicans Are Making a Big Mistake Trying to “Fix” Obamacare - Eagle Rising

The Supreme Court may very well rule against Obamacare this summer, ending government subsidies for millions of Americans and forcing them to pay full cost for their healthcare needs. This would be a massive blow to the Obama administration and to the Democrat Party, but don’t worry, the GOP is trying to step in and save the day. For the Democrats that is.

A group of Republicans Senators are planning to use the possible victory as leverage against the Obama administration in an effort to push the President to end the employer mandate and the individual mandate.

Here’s what Senator John Barrasso (R-WY) had to say about the effort –

“Is the president going to say, ‘Tough, I’m going to veto that?’ There will be, as part of that [deal], things we want to have happen… Since we don’t have a willing partner in the White House, the best idea for actually fixing healthcare is not things that the president isn't going to sign. He’s not going to work with us on this. So we have to have a Republican president in 2016.

At first blush, this seems like a great idea…. Except all this does is salvage Obamacare for another day. The GOP doesn’t think they can end Obamacare while Obama is still President, but a ruling that negates subsidies will end it for them. If the Supreme Court rules against Obamacare this summer, it will destroy any positive impact the Obama administration hoped it might have. The Democrats will scramble to come up with quick fixes to patch the holes, but to get those “fixes” passed into law, they’ll need Republican votes.

Barrasso’s idea to try a GOP fix will only legitimize Democrat efforts to fix it themselves. When Democrats come forward with a simple plan as opposed to the intricate Republican one, the media and the average low information voter will make it seem as though the GOP is playing hardball with poor people’s insurance. Barrasso’s plan will be tossed out and the GOP will be FORCED to capitulate (again) to the Democrats bad plan.

Louisiana Governor and Presidential candidate Bobby Jindal (R-LA) explains what I mean.

“The president can say, ‘Here’s our one-page bill,’ ” Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal (R), who opposes the current congressional strategy, told a D.C. audience on Thursday.

Unlike previous cases challenging the president’s authority to pass ObamaCare, King v. Burwellrests on a close reading of only a few words of the law’s text.
That puts Republicans at risk of taking the blame for losing billions of dollars in healthcare subsidies if they can’t reach consensus on an alternative plan.

“The president’s going to stand up and say, ‘Meet so-and-so who’s got cancer. Meet so-and-so who’s got diabetes,” Jindal, a longtime foe of the healthcare law, said. “And he’ll say, ‘These mean, stingy Republicans simply won’t make a one-page change in the law.”

Which is why the GOP needs to stop trying to “fix” Obamacare.

The answer is not in fixing socialized healthcare but in scrapping the system altogether… and the Supreme Court ruling against the subsidies will give us the cover to do so.

Instead of Barrasso’s fix, the GOP should use the Supreme Court victory to push forward their own new plan. They can argue that Obamacare has been the law of the land for 6 years now and it still doesn’t work properly. They can show how Obamacare is destroying Medicare and how healthcare costs are still rising dramatically. The GOP can push forward one of their many plans (perhaps this one from Rep. Tom Price (R-GA)* and offer all of those who will lose their healthcare because they’ve lost their subsidies another opportunity to get healthcare.

If (and when) Obamacare fails, we should immediately offer a bold and optimistic free market based plan that offers real hope to Americans who are struggling to meet their healthcare needs. Let people buy insurance across state lines. Let single people shop á la carte and not purchase insurance for things they don’t need. Make it easier for Urgent Care clinics to operate and deliver top-notch care. C’mon, Republicans! We can change things for the better NOW! We don’t have to wait for President Obama to leave office.

Because when he refuses to sign your bills… over and over again… and the American people begin to suffer because he’s playing hardball with their healthcare, it will hurt the Democrat Party. They will force his hand, we will get enough Democrat votes (eventually) to push a veto-proof bill through. We Can Do It. We just need the GOP to stop playing it safe and to think BIG.

This is one of the major issues with the GOP establishment; they have no ability to think outside their own little bubble.

There may be an opportunity to make BIG advancements for the cause of conservatism, and instead they are thinking small. They think they are playing it safe, but what they fail to realize is that they are actually just playing into the Democrats’ hands and keeping Obamacare on life support for another day.

*http://tomprice.house.gov/press-release/price-introduces-patient-centered-health-care-solutions

This article was originally published at eaglerising.com

About the author, Onan Coca:
Onan is a graduate of Liberty University (2003) and earned his M.Ed. at Western Governors University in 2012. He lives in Atlanta with his wife and their three children.

Onan Coca: Republicans Are Making a Big Mistake Trying to “Fix” Obamacare

May 4, 2015