Your Daily Dose of Health Care Reform Stupidity

Let's check out the state of the opposition, shall we?

John McCain responded to a right-wing conspiracy nut's blithering about Obama's plans for "draconian rationing" because seniors "are expendable" by saying, "I’ve never heard it more eloquently put than you just stated the situation." He wasn't kidding.

2/3 of the Gang of Six's Con contingent are busily doing everything they can to destroy all chance at health care reform, although Grassley thinks we could get miniature health care reform for Christmas. You know what, Chuck? I'd rather have a stocking full of coal.

And Enzi says of health care reform, “That is going to take awhile and I’m pretty sure it’s going to fail.” This left Americans for Prosperity president Tim Phillips screaming with joy: “Standing next to him as he spoke, it was pretty clear that he’s not going to support the Gang of Six effort,” Phillips said. “I was certainly encouraged.”

When extreme right-wing astroturfer extraordinaires like Phillips are happy, this is a bad thing. This is one of the many reasons I am less than inclined to believe Enzi when he turns around and says, "Despite some reports, I am still working with Sen. Baucus and other members of the so-called Gang of Six." Working on what, exactly, Mike? Negotiating who gets to hold health care reform down and who gets to apply the pillow to its face?

Meanwhile, the one somewhat sane Republican in the Gang of Six finds herself wanted for treason by the Teabaggers. They are upset that a legislator is attempting to legislate, it seems.

Oh, and if anti-reform advocates quote statistics at you, ask where those statistics came from. The answer may amuse you:

Last week, during a Washington Post online chat, this exchange took place:

Anonymous: You said that medical innovation will be wiped out if we have a type of national health care, because European drug companies get 80% of their revenue from Americans. Where did you get this statistic?

Megan McArdle: It wasn't a statistic--it was a hypothetical.

The mind reels...

And yet they wonder why we don't take them seriously. Such a mystery.

Take your amusement where you can get it, because the ostensible allies of health care reform will amuse you not at all. Here we have Joe Lieberman once again applying the knife to the Democratic caucu's back. Shocker, I know.

And Rep. Xavier Becerra says "if you don’t have the public option, you’ll have a broken health insurance industry on steroids, because all we’re going to do is pump in a ton of money to try and make it work better.” But an insurance industry on steroids is fine with him if that's what Barack Obama wants! I assume he'll be handling the injections himself.

So, is there any light at the end of the tunnel? It appears that for some insurance companies that have been enthusiastically mobilizing employees against reform, there very well could be. It is the headlight of the California Attorney General's train.

Heh heh heh whoops.