Deeming Your Opinion Irrelevant
Washington,
Mar 15 -
Gimmick: “A device employed to cheat, deceive, or trick, especially a mechanism for the secret and dishonest control of gambling apparatus.” Substitute “gambling apparatus” for “Congress,” and you’ll be up to speed on the Democrats’ latest scheme to enact a government takeover of health care.
White House advisor David Axelrod may claim the Democrats “don't want to see procedural gimmicks used to try and prevent an up or down vote,” but that’s precisely what they’re doing.
You see, budget reconciliation was created as a way to change laws already on the books so federal revenues and federal spending could be “reconciled.” But according to Speaker Pelosi’s plan, House Democrats will pass a reconciliation bill to make changes to a Senate bill which has not become law.
And why hasn’t this supposedly wonderful legislation become law? Because a bipartisan majority of the House of Representatives agrees that it shouldn’t be (as do the American people). That’s no obstacle for Speaker Pelosi, of course, who will use a blatant procedural gimmick to automatically “deem passed” the Senate bill if the House passes her un-reconciliation package.
In plain English, House Democrats are set to approve the Senate bill without ever taking an actual vote on it. Clearly, Axelrod’s protestations about procedural gimmicks don’t hold water.
Democrats seem to think this “deeming” trick will give them political cover for supporting an unpopular takeover of health care. All they’re really doing is deeming their constituents’ opinions irrelevant. And there’s no cover for that.
|
