Health Care and the Elections

Brian Beutler notes the non-symbolic meaning of last night’s election results:

That creates some simple arithmetic. Yesterday, Democrats had 256 voting members in the House. By week’s end, they’ll have 258. Last week, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi could afford to lose no more than 38 Democratic votes on a landmark health care reform bill. Next week, after Owens and Garamendi are sworn in, she can lose up to 40. For legislation this historic and far-reaching, she’ll need every vote she can get–and both seem likely to support reform.

Garamendi is a liberal, and though Owens now represents a GOP-leaning district, here’s what he said about the bill at a debate last week with Doug Hoffman and Dede Scozzafava: “I think moving towards this legislation is very appropriate. I think the type or the form of the public option included in this bill is reasonable. It is not one that allows people to move to the government option if they already have health insurance overage. So it’s not going to control a significant segment of the population.”

The overwhelming lesson of 2009 in Washington DC has been, I think, that the cold hard facts about vote counts matter more—a lot more—than airy considerations about momentum and the like. Barack Obama inspired America with his campaign for change and hope and blah blah blah but what happens is what Ben Nelson and/or Olympia Snowe will vote for. The governor of New Jersey doesn’t have a vote on health care or energy or financial regulation or the budget or anything else. The Representative from the 10th District of California does, and so does the Representative from the 23rd District of New York. One can debate the larger meaning of it all as much as one cares to, but the situation is what it is. Public policy in New Jersey will shift somewhat to the right, in Virginia it will probably shift a lot to the right (less constraint from the state legislature), and on the federal level it will shift slightly to the left.

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The executive branch does not do much in regard to legislation on the state level the only sign bills so I dubt the will be much shift in either state depite all the hupla and halloring by the republicans,

What is more important is the changes in the federal legislature as pointed out.

The pundits like to babble a lot as do the demagogues but talk is cheap.

Julie,

To pick up on your point about Virginia. Yes, the state will shift noticably to the right. And that won't go over well in a lot of areas where people stayed home because of the poor campaign of Creigh Deeds.

McDonnell is a right wing ideologue who disguised himself as a RINO in order to fool Fairfax and Loudoun Counties into voting for him.

The truth will be out in 120 days (by the time the legislature closes, if they can come up with a budget),

The sick thng is that the Fox Noise crowd was busy crowing about a big GOP win Tuesday.

In fact, the GOP coughed up two House seats, and both of the gubanatorial candidates they elected had to distance themselves from the "tea bag" crowd to get elected.,

one of those lives about 20 miles from me..Travis Childers...running scared after yesterday. Means he think more about himself than the people!

"The sick thng is that the Fox Noise crowd was busy crowing about a big GOP win Tuesday."

It is just not the FOX noise crowd, read just about every headline and the media play it up as a loss of confidence in President Barack Hussein Obama and dismal forboding of 2010.

The MSM totally glosses over or omits the the addition of 2 House seats.

Seems the MSM is back to being a lap dog for Rush and Fox, I just don't get it.

BTW McDonnell will likely get tough on VA's budget cutting everything possible. Which will translate to longer lines at the Motor Vehicle Dept., decreased state police funding, decreased secondary education funding and even decreased primary.

Yes, once again the "liberal media" punditocracy acts as stenogorapher and megaphone for Republican talking points.

I made this point yesterday.

The Washington Post (and most of the Inside the Beltway establishment) is more comfortable with Jack Abramoff's Washington than they are with Barack Obama's.

They like being the insiders. Invited to the right cocktail parties, receptions, and having their names on the right contact lists.

And when events like Tuesday happen, the punditocracy shows its true colors and runs the K Street/Wall Street line.

But, he won't raise the gas tax, which is the most obvious and simple solution to Virginia's transportation funding problem.

So, enjoy the Obama stimulus funded paving projects.

Potholes will return shortly.

through....how's that working out for her?

KA

LOL

House is a "piece of cake," but if they had the votes in the Senate, think it would have already passed.

"....how's that working out for her?"

Just the way the founding fathers set it up.

And without the majority Health Care Reform would never have become the burning issue it is.

CONS would have continued staying the course until we had another crisis similar tot he Banking crisis. Then they would have had to throw twice as much money in to Health Care to bail it out and get half the results with no long term game plan.

But you can bet your ass Health Care Reform is going to pass, and by 2010 making CONS look ever more the true obstructionists that they are.

nice of you to be honest (albiet in a backhand way) that Nancy the P is touting a victory that is anything but.

KA

This is classic CON behavior. To deny that their was an answer.

It it the childhood equivlent to "I know you are but what am I?" defense.

This is done to satisfy your simplistic notion that you are right and all others are wrong.

The victory is that America is getting Health Care Reform regardless of how much CONs whine, pount and attack the DEMS....there is no other issue at this point.

But ,But ,thats a loss according to the conservatives here.Losing is winning and gaining two seats is a loss.elcome to the real "1984"way of thinking .Proof right here who orwell was speaking about .

Just because you don't have the intelligence for honest debate, doesn't mean I have to sink to your level.

KA

Kal_Aline:

nice of you to be honest (albiet in a backhand way) that Nancy the P is touting a victory that is anything but.

KA

Here is another example of the con thinking that says"loosing two seats is a win and winning two seats is a loss."How do they think this with out laughing out loud?!?!? YOU LOST TWO SEATS!!!DUMBFUCK!! Thatmeans LESS POWER,LESS VOTES,LESS CONTROLL!!!WINNING TWO SEATS MEANS MORE POWER ,MORE VOTES,MORE CONTROLL!! Do you see how reality works??more = more,less = less.Do you ever think through what you suggesting or how is sounds BEFORE you put it out there for everyone to see and make a judgment on your sanity and ideas?????JESUS FUCKING CHRIST YOU IDIOTS MUST REALLY HATE REALITY!!