EVEN SOME "PROGRESSIVES" CHOKE ON COST OF HEALTH CARE BILL

Are some liberals and progressives beginning to figure out that 1 + 1 doesn't equal 3, and that the national debt is exploding to the degree that even they feel a bit quesy? You know the health care reform bill is in trouble when even self-proclaimed "Progressives" (aka: liberals) are worried about the mammoth bill's cost and its effect on the already out-of-control budget deficit.

I can't remember the last time the "money grows on trees" crowd has been concerned about the cost of any government entitlement program, so seeing this crack in the big government believers is highly refreshing and encouraging.

Fred Hiatt, the editorial page editor of the very liberal Washington Post, has some major concerns regarding the 1,990 health care monstrosity that narrowly passed the House, under the cover of darkness, late Saturday night. In an article in today's Washington Post today entitled, The High Price of Health Care, Mr. Hiatt does more than express concern about the massive cost of the bill. He's of the opinion that the bill could move the country towards bankruptcy, a condition that would hurt the very people the bill is promoted as helping. Sounding more like a staunch fiscal conservative or deficit hawk, Hiatt warns:

Here is the dilemma: The bill also could take America a step closer to bankruptcy. And for progressives in particular -- for those who believe that government has a mission to help the poor and protect the vulnerable -- that prospect should be alarming. If federal debt continues rising on its present path, hastened by a $1 trillion health-care bill, it is the poor and vulnerable who will be most harmed.

While it's extremely disappointing that Pelosi's bill narrowly passed the House, it is encouraging that some Democrat legislators have also expressed fiscal sanity, with deep concerns about the health care reform bill's effect on the budget deficit and the national debt:

REP. TIM HOLDEN (D-PA): “It’s A Trillion-Dollar Program At A Time When We’re At The Highest Deficit And Debt That Our Nation Has Ever Accumulated, And The Bill They’re Proposing, Is, In My Opinion, Bad Public Policy.” (“Holden: House Health Care Bill Is ‘Bad Public Policy,’” [Pottsville, PA] Republican & Herald, 11/7/09)

REP. FRANK KRATOVIL, JR. (D-MD): “Our Nation Is Facing An $11.9 Trillion National Debt, And We Simply Cannot Afford A Bill That Does Not Lower Healthcare Spending.” (Rep. Kratovil, Press Release, 11/7/09)

REP. SCOTT MURPHY (D-NY): “During These Difficult Economic Times, An Unacceptably High Price Tag Will Stress Our Already Overstretched Federal Budget And Place Even More Burdens On Our Hard Working Individuals, Families And Small Businesses.” (Rep. Murphy, Press Release, 11/7/09)

REP. COLLIN PETERSON (D-MN): “We Are Adding More Entitlements When We Can’t Pay For The Ones We Have Now.” ("Collin Peterson A Firm No On Health Care Bill," [Glencoe, MN] The McLeod County Chronicle, 10/30/09)

REP. CHARLIE MELANCON (D-LA): “In These Tough Economic Times, We’ve Got To Be Smarter About Getting Government Spending And The Deficit Under Control, And The House's Health Care Bill Simply Costs Too Much.” (Rep. Melancon, Press Release, 11/7/09)

REP. HEATH SHULER (D-NC): “This Bill Will Not Reduce The Federal Government's Spending On Health Care Over The Long Term. Any Reform That Does Not Control Long-Term Costs Will Be Shortsighted And Unwise.” (“Shuler Votes Against Health Care Reform,” Asheville Citizen-Times, 11/08/09)

REP. HARRY TEAGUE (D-NM): “American Taxpayers Will End Up Footing A Nearly $900 Billion Tab For A Bill That Doesn’t Do Enough To ‘Bend The Cost Curve’ In A Way That Permanently Reduces Both Costs And The National Debt.” Rep. Teague, Press Release, 11/09)

It gives me some hope that at least some Democrats understand the financial insanity track the government is on. Current entitlements, Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid presently represent approximately 50% of the federal budget, and are all technically bankrupt. Yet, the only liberal solution, to health care, or any other perceived problem in society, is another government entitlement, with money that we don't have.

Please pick one of the fiscally sane Democrats that voted against Pelosi's health care reform bill. Thank them for standing up the the heavy-handed pressure of Obama and Pelosi and for being financially responsible in voting "no" on Pelosi's House bill. There are 39 of them, and you can access the list here:

THE 39 DEMOCRATS THAT VOTED AGAINST PELOSI'S HEALTH CARE BILL