Paul Revere by Cyrus Dallin, North End, Boston

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Wednesday, October 22, 2014

GOP governor: Obamacare has made ‘real improvements in people’s lives’



ZOMG!  This guy better have someone watching his back!



Once in a great while, a politician will slip and accidentally tell the truth. Take Ohio Gov. John Kasich (R), for example, who inadvertently praised the Affordable Care Act. “Repeal and replace” has been a Republican mantra for nearly as long as Obamacare has been in existence. Yet one of the GOP’s rumored 2016 front-runners isn’t playing along. 

 Ohio Gov. John Kasich, who is expected to cruise to reelection this year and then seek the Republican nomination in 2016, recently told the Associated Press that repealing the Affordable Care is “not gonna happen.” “The opposition to it was really either political or ideological,” he said. “I don’t think that holds water against real flesh and blood, and real improvements in people’s lives.” You could almost hear Kasich’s national ambitions evaporating as the AP article made the rounds.


Remember the right wing hysterics from their bloggers from a year ago?


Right wing blogger:



"Think about what this ineptitude means in the bigger debate about Obamacare. The administration spent 3½ years and $698 million of taxpayers' money to develop this software. 

They've known since earlier this year that the system wasn't ready to support the rollout of the exchanges. Yet they proceeded anyway, apparently unconcerned about their faulty software costing Americans millions of hours of frustration and lost productivity. 

 These same bureaucrats continue to assume more and more control of our medical care. What does their incompetence say about how they will handle making life-or-death medical care decisions? Like a parasite taking over its host, Obamacare will commandeer almost 20% of our economy, crowding out private options. 

With 2014 fast approaching, what should we expect in its next phase?"


Ineptitude?  Yeah, right.  Here's what we got in the next phase:

SUCCESS!  

And even Republican governors agree!

Funniest comment that was totally wrong:

"Always wonder about a program that is so wonderful the people who passed it don't want it, big business gets an extension because they don't want it, unions don't want it, healthy young people don't need it and they spend tens of millions trying to convince people how great it is and still few are signing up, so few they won't tell you how many." 


More on the A.C.A. (Obamacare)'s success:


"If you're a decent person, or someone who hasn't contracted a political bug, the most satisfying thing about the Affordable Care Act's enrollment total is the knowledge that it's improved many people's lives, and contributed to a sizable reduction in the uninsured population. But if you have a lot invested in the law's success, you're also relieved to have an answer to everyone trying to create the impression that Obamacare is a slow-rolling fiasco."

OBAMACARE FAILS TO FAIL


Obamacare Death Spiral Looks Unlikely, Study Finds


Ted Cruz's Worst Nightmare is Coming True:  Obamacare is Working!

3 Measures of Obamacare's Success



Obamacare a success? 10.3 million gained health coverage since last October 



Obamacare causes steep drop in uninsured — in deep red states


 "Gallup finds that three of the largest drops in the rate of the uninsured just happened to take place in states with the most hard-fought Senate races: Arkansas and Kentucky lead all other states in the sharpest reductions in their uninsured rate among adult residents since the healthcare law’s requirement to have insurance took effect at the beginning of the year. 
 Delaware, Washington, and Colorado round out the top five. All 10 states that report the largest declines in uninsured rates expanded Medicaid and established a state-based marketplace exchange or state-federal partnership. 

In Arkansas, the rate of uninsured dropped from 22.5 percent in 2013 to 12.4 percent now — a change of over 10 percentage points. In Kentucky, it dropped from 20.4 percent to 11.9 percent — a change of over eight percentage points. In Colorado, it dropped from 17 percent to 11 percent — a change of six percentage points."




The mid-terms?  As far as they concern Obamacare, they don't matter.  Obamacare succeeded against all hopes by the GOP that it wouldn't.  If the Republicans gain in seats in the US. Senate, so be it.  But the most important piece of legislation in Mr. Obama's presidency will not be affected by any gains in the Senate.  If anyone thinks the GOP will repeal a successful insurance program, they're dreaming.  It's not going to happen.  The GOP doesn't have the nads to repeal it.  

Everything the GOP predicted about the A.C.A. HAS NOT HAPPENED.  Everything the right wing pundits and bloggers wrote about it IS WRONG.

The A.C.A. will be the jewel in the crown of Mr. Obama's presidency, whether the U.S. Senate goes to the GOP or not in November.  It doesn't matter.  Mr. Obama's most important domestic program is here to stay, and it has succeeded in lowering the number of people in the United States who had no health insurance.








Meanwhile, here's a look back in recent history on how another president dealt with the outbreak of a deadly disease in the U.S. and a reminder of how many Americans actually died from it:




15 comments:

Doctor Tomato said...

The Reagan worshippers won't like this one bit because the truth is very painful to them.

Anonymous said...

Most Republicans wouldn't mind keeping all of the elements of Obamacare - as long as the credit for its benefits didn't go to the man in the White House.

Repeal the bill, but not its substance.

Les Carpenter said...

All the B.S. isn't worth the waste of time paying attention to any longer. The ACA, or ObamaCare is the reality of today and it is here to stay. Is it perfect? No. Do I like all in the bill? Hell, don't know everything that's in it. Most don't.

The real point is we will have to wait to see whether or not the provisions of the ACA as written yield a net positive or not. It hasn't been fully implemented yet.

In the meantime, as the economics of it's implementation start to become evident and it's effects are fully know, everyone (lawmakers democrat and republican alike) should be thinking about how to improve it and nake it more affordable for the working family.

Infidel753 said...

Republican politicians have perceptibly back off Obamacare in the last year or two. Honesty like Kasich's is still rare, but aside from the real crazies, they don't talk much about repealing it any more -- or they twist themselves into pretzels like McConnell, claiming that somehow his own state can keep Obamacare even if it's abolished.

For the elections, the problem is that the connection between cause and effect is not very obvious to many people. Some of those newly insured may not connect their newfound security with "Obamacare", while others blame anything that goes wrong with their own insurance on the new law, even if there's no connection.

Besides doing good, Democrats need to get better at explaining the good they're doing.

okjimm said...

whoa...a moment of clarity? A tinge of sensibility?

Holy Honesty, Batman!
Can the Joker be far behind?
Is the Riddler at Work?
Cat Woman being catty?

Stay tuned!!!

Ducky's here said...

The right is going to need a good fake scandal to run on. The Affordable Care Act ain't doing it for them.

Ebola is being resolved and their hysterics would have made them look like fools if the press did its job.

Which brings us to Ben Bradlee whose death was met with glee on on right wing blog.
I don't remember him as conservative or liberal but as someone who was dedicated to good reportage. Most, I remember when he blew the lid of COINTELPRO but not many cared and look where we are now in the surveillance state.
Could have used a few more Ben Bradlee's.
Look at the state of our press now.

Shaw Kenawe said...

R.O.F., the people who worship Reagan will never admit that he failed to do his job in stemming the spread of AIDS. That was a disgrace.

Howard B., the A.C.A. isn't perfect, but the GOP did nothing toward working to improve it. All they wanted to do is repeal it.

RN, any piece of legislation as encompassing as the A.C.A. will surely need improvements. It's too bad our legislators are more interested in demonizing the president than in making this insurance plan work for Americans.

Infidel753, the Democrats suck at getting their positive message out. The Tea Partiers have an entire cable news station to do it for them, FAUX NOOZ.

okjimm, most thinking GOPers understand that the A.C.A. is not going to destroy America as we know it. Only the scrambled brains sell that sort of hysteria. And boy do they know how to spread hysteria. Just look at how they've behaved during this one death from ebola in the U.S.

Ducky, I thought the same about Bradlee. I actually have no idea of where he stood politically. He was a good newspaper man in the best sense of that dying profession.

Are the baggers still howling about ebola spreading across America? Or have they come to see how stupidly foolish their reactions have been.

They always give into their primitive emotions and never let rationality get in their way.

Wackos.

Shaw Kenawe said...

Republican governors would rather eat razor blades and vinegar than give President Obama his due.

"Philip Klein with a conservative take on John Kasich and

Medicaid/Obamacare:

Ohio Gov. John Kasich, the Republican governor and possible 2016 contender, had a dust-up this week when the Associated Press reported pro-Obamacare comments he made. In reality, he subsequently said, he was only praising the Medicaid expansion — which he’s trying to argue is totally separate.

I’ve already written about why this is a dishonest distinction, but his office has decided to dig in further. In a statement released on Twitter on Tuesday, his press department attempted to trick conservatives by using several cynical strategies often employed by Republicans trying to explain their big government policies.'


People wonder why this country is so divided? Read the above.

(O)CT(O)PUS said...

Here’s a rare, one time only glimpse at junk that accumulates in my email box:

Male Enhancer: New growth and girth guaranteed.”

Reasonable Drugstore: Amazing! Via Gra as low as $0.99

Democratic Majority Makers: Donate now!

Take the narrative back from the Tea Party.

Now trust me! Cephalopods have no need for a larger Chia Putz, but this spate of spam seems to share one theme in common: Limp and Flaccid.

Yes, I blame the Democrats. I blame them for letting Breitbart’s Fright Mart of stalking points dominate the debate. I blame their candidates for cowardice and going AWOL on AHCA. I blame them for elector dysfunction and failing to rise to the occasion. Premature withdrawal is the curse of banking and intercourse.

Les Carpenter said...

Government expansion is a legitimate concern. Whether it be expansion of shall we say the domestic agenda, or the expansion of shall we say the foreign agenda it is legitimate to be concerned about whether we can afford it and sustain it.

Removing politics from the consideration might be a good idea.

Shaw Kenawe said...

(O)CT(O),

The Democrats need to get pumped for the coming election, but I don't think they'll be able to perform well unless something positive comes up.

Shaw Kenawe said...

RN,

Actually, the federal government is shrinking.

"According to the latest data from the Office of Personnel Management, about 158,000 employees — excluding military and Postal Service personnel — have joined the federal workforce during Obama’s time in the White House, representing a 9.4 percent increase.

By comparison, the overall economy added 4.5 million jobs over the same period, representing a 3.3 percent increase, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

As you can see, federal agencies added jobs at a faster rate than the overall economy during the early part of Obama’s tenure. But the opposite is true now, with the government losing workers while the overall economy adds jobs.

The government shed 26,000 employees between 2011 and 2013, representing a 1.4 percent decrease. Meanwhile, the number of U.S. jobs increased by 6.7 million, or 5 percent, over the same period."

Les Carpenter said...

This is good. I did say government expansion is a legitimate concern right? Not that it hasn't shrunken There is the sequester right? And, GAB, via homeland security expanded the government did he not?

And so much more but no time.

(O)CT(O)PUS said...

Shaw,
As much as it pains me to say it, invertebrates have more spine than Democrats.

dmarks said...

I'm generally in agreement with RN's comment. There are some positive things that should be kept (which has me disagreeing with those who want Obamacare totally erased), and definitely things that should be improved a lot.