41st Republican Vote Against the Democrats' Health Care Reform Bill!
Last week Scott Brown, a Massachusetts Republican (a rare breed of politician), won the US Senate seat left open by the passing of Ted Kennedy after 47 years in office. Brown campaigned on the theme, among others, of promising to be the 41st vote against the pending health care reform bills in order to have the legislation reconsidered. The health care bills had been pushed through the House and Senate at the end of last year with only one Republican vote in the House and without much time for any members of Congress to read through the bills that both exceeded 2,000 pages. Brown also campaigned against excessive federal spending and the lack of bipartisanship and government transparency that, contrary to the promises of Barack Obama when he ran for President in 2008, has characterized Washington politics over the past year.
The next day, President Obama was interviewed on ABC by George Stephanopoulos. When Stephanopoulos asked the President for his reaction to Scott Brown's election, Obama said:
"Here's my assessment of not just the vote in Massachusetts, but the mood around the country: the same thing that swept Scott Brown into office swept me into office, people are angry and they are frustrated. Not just because of what's happened in the last year or two years, but what's happened over the last eight years."
Obama seems to be saying that those who voted for Brown share the same views as those who voted for Obama for President in 2008! Really?? The photo above of protesters in front of the US Capitol was taken in 2009, not 2008!
And who is that man campaigning for Brown's opponent in the photo above? It would logically seem that his supporters would vote for the candidate he urged them to vote for, rather than for Democrat Martha Coakley's opponent.
The only common theme to the voter anger that swept Obama and Brown into office is that the voters are angry at their federal government and their President. Unfortunately for Mr. Obama, the President that voters were angry with in 2008 was George W. Bush. The President that voters in Massachusetts were angry with in 2010 is Barack Obama.
It often seems, as Obama has gone to town hall meetings around the country over the past year making promises that he does not keep, that he thinks he is still campaigning against other people in office. He says things like federal spending is too high, people need jobs and special interests are running Washington, without any hint that he recognizes that he and his party are in charge of Washington now. It's the Democrats that are spending too much money now. No Republicans voted for the Stimulus bill that is costing billions of dollars without much return in terms of new jobs. It's the Democrats, including the President, who are now holding closed door meetings with special interests, such as the unions, AARP and the AMA.
So who does Obama think the voters and protesters over the past year are angry at now? Wake up, Mr. President.
It isn't 2008 anymore!!!!
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