Frankly, nothing written by Upton deserves respect; this is no different.
...Certainly Upton and House Republican Leaders do not think it is a
trap, but it is one the Democrats have flipped skillfully on the GOP.
First, understand that Upton is messaging legislation. It allows
everyone in Congress to say they support people being able to keep their
healthcare plans, but it lacks measures to force insurance companies to
let people keep their plans. It is a paper tiger.
But Republicans are starting to pick up worried Democrat votes for
the Upton legislation who feel they must stand for something with 2014
on the horizon.
So Upton will pass. It will be “bipartisan.”...
Nice, but there's this problem:
...The House would send the Senate the Upton measure. The Senate
Democrats will respond, “But Upton has not teeth. Landrieu has teeth.”
The Senate will substitute Landrieu’s legislation for Upton’s, send it
back to the House, and watch the GOP try to explain why they say their
for letting people keep their health insurance plans, but will not
actually force insurance companies to let people keep those plans.
Yet again, the GOP will be cast as the tool of insurance companies
and Mary Landrieu as the savior of plans people already have.
Republicans will cave....
Well, yes. But even more important is the likelihood that we'll have "bi-partisan" agreement on bailing out insurers.
Guess who pays for that?
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