How DC Centrism Makes for Bad Politics and Bad Policy

There's been a lot of talk in Washington, DC lately of a "new, centrist compromise" gaining momentum in terms of how to fund health care reform, and that is taxing health care benefits. The problems? It's not new, it's only centrist in the bizarre inside-the-Beltway world of what qualifies for centrist, it's one sure way to make health care reform incredibly unpopular, and it's a bad policy idea. Remember how popular Ira Magaziner's "health alliances" were in the Clinton health reform battle? This would be worse. So let's go through this point by point:

1. It's not new. The idea of taxing workers' health benefits has been around for a long time, a staple of Republican health policy for at least a generation. It was, as many of you will no doubt remember, part of John McCain's health care reform plan. In fact, it was the part of McCain's health care plan that was polling so poorly that the Obama campaign spent over $100 million worth of TV ads attacking the rich.

2. It's not centrist except in the bizarre world of inside-the-Beltway land. Seriously, it is only in the odd nether-world of special interest-dominated Washington, DC that a policy widely unpopular with the general public in every poll, one where the winning presidential candidate spent over $100 million in campaign advertising attacking, could ever be considered as a credible "centrist" solution to anything. The reason this is possible is that centrism inside-the-Beltway has nothing to do with what real voters think, and everything to do with wealthy special interests and contributors happy. Centrism in DC basically equals corporatism -- doing what's good for big business. Rather than do the simple, more popular (with the voter, as opposed to the big business lobbyist) thing of paying for health care reform with progressive taxes, having wealthier taxpayers and businesses pay their fair share, as President Obama has proposed, the DC version of centrism says "Hey, let's increase taxes on hard-pressed middle-class people who work for a living."

3. It's unpopular. When a presidential campaign picks one policy of their opponent to run more ads on than any other, it is because that policy is a particularly vulnerable area for them with voters. The reason Barack Obama's campaign ran so many ads against McCain's proposal to tax health care benefits is that most people hate the idea. When asked whether health care reform should be funded by taxing health care benefits in a recent poll, only 19% favored the idea, while 77% opposed. Over half, 52%, strongly opposed the idea. On the other hand, paying for health care reform through the progressive tax plan proposed by Obama was favored 62%-35%.

4. It's bad policy. That whole trickle-down, never-tax-the-rich thing is fundamentally failed policy, and the idea of actually increasing the financial burden on hard-pressed working families whose out-of-pocket health care costs have been going through the roof makes no sense. For families with an income of $50,000, they have lost ground in the recent decade, with incomes rising hardly at all while energy, education, grocery, and health care costs have risen dramatically. It makes no sense to dramatically increase their tax burden.

The kind of special interest centrism that comes up with tax-the-health-benefits policy "compromise" is classic DC establishment: in order to avoid offending wealthy contributors and special interests, let's be "centrist" and making middle-class families pay the bill. This is exactly the kind of politics that Barack Obama came to Washington to change.

Comments

[mikekc]

Corporatism controls our politics and our economy. This needs to be reported more often in all areas of the media. I am so tired of hero worship of our leaders when they sell us out time and again. It looked like Obama was different but he has disappointed on EFCA and bankruptcy reform while finding ways to shovel trillions to Wall Street. Mitch McConnell and Max Baucus are just senators who received a majority of votes in one state. Obama won convincingly in all 50 states yet he treats these senators as equals in policy decisions. 1 million people did not turn out in a city park when Max Baucus was elected. Come on Obama, wake up and fight these sell-outs.

[bgoodric]

I attended an "Organizing For America" meetings today, and was greatly disappointed. OFA is censoring Single-Payer in favor of a vague "choice" of plans, possibly including a public option.

But even if this isn't negotiated away, I doubt if it'll last long. It won't be nearly as efficient and streamlined unless it's the only option. Otherwise, in competition with very hostile private insurers, it will be starved of resources, used by expensive (pre-existing conditions) patients, etc..

Between 2000 and 2007, the profits at the big insurance companies in the U.S. increased over 400%. http://pdamerica.org/articles/news/2009-05-31-12-44-25-news.phpp ) Rising "costs" -- extorted from us when we're vulnerable. And health care bills contribute greatly to 60% of personal bankruptcies in the U.S.. http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSTRE5530Y0200906044 ) Incidentally, most of these bankrupt people with huge healthcare bills HAD health insurance; it just wouldn't cover what they needed. (Canada's bankruptcy rate is less than half of ours, even in the current bad international economy, due to their healthcare system. http://www.bankruptcycanada.com/blog/canadian-and-us-bankruptcy-rates/)

We can't solve this problem by appeasing these gangsters with "choices." We have to convince Obama that we have his back, that he can defy them (and their puppets such as Baucus), powerful as they are.

This is a matter of life and death. It's a terribly urgent moral issue. Please help.

[LeonBNJ]

What gets me peeved is how if I was employed as to my health care insurance, my employers costs as well as any share I have deducted from my paycheck is exempt from Federal income taxes yet paying on my personal - individual policy is not. If I was able to deduct the cost of my premiums, it would save me the equivilent of 2 months payments for every 12 of coverage.
We need to have a system of health insurance that is centered on the person, not if they are employed, is a lot cheaper overall, allows doctors to make the decisions, not insurance company drones. There will have to be some checks to limit abuses and waste, but we cannot continue with the current system any more breaking peoples spirits, there bodies and their finances.

[ariveria]

the republican/conservative health care plan is have people die young and broke.

we need something better. what is coming out isnt it.

THERE IS NO RIGHT TO LIVE.

WITHOUT THE RIGHT TO HEALTH CARE

[FearlessFreep]

I fear Obama's making the same mistake with health care that the Clintons made 15 years ago: "splitting the difference" and vainly hoping that the institutional opposition to health care reform will be appeased. What he should do instead is slash the Gordian knot with single-payer.

[William1950]

we need single payer health care now... nothing else will work, single payer health care modeled like the europeans ..

[research]

http://www.bradblog.com/?p=7186

Kucinich is still pushing for single payer, that's why they don't allow him in the media.

[textynn]

Single Payer health care is the only thing that is going to work for the millions of people out there working for an hourly wage in fly by night jobs. Millions and millions of Americans work behind cash registers and other forms of pseudo-employment. These jobs are employment when it benefits the government to count these people as employed, but doesn't provide a living wage or health care. When are our leaders going to quit acting like all American jobs include good pay and great bennies? It is a total fallacy and millions suffer and die while the have-mores shove that fallacy down our throats.

[progressiveconnie]

GOOD MORNING!!! MY FELLOW HOMO SAPIENS WHICH MEANS THE SPECIES WHO IS WISE.
SHORT TAKES:
Did you hear about that Southern Governor who has given permission to let the kiddies go to school armed to the teeth???!!! It seems the loonytoon virus has not only infected Federal employees it has obviously spread to State employees as well. If any parent in South Carolina allows their child to attend a school under such an insane policy you can bet the virus has spread throughout that state.

************************************************

Gates just appointed McCrystal, a former Bush appointee, to run the Afghan war, this is the guy who lied about Tillman's death and who really believes (its called delusional) we can get positive results slaughtering and maiming children, women and men in a country made up of independent tribes and also by destroying their main cash crop in this incrediably poor country without suffering serious consequences. The truth is that our continued presence in Afghanistan is a recipe for chaos and disaster in the most unstable region on earth and will create an environment where terrorists will be seeking revenge for their lost loved ones.

[bucfish]

Yeah meet the new boss looking more and more like the old one.

George Wallace noted their ain't a dimes worth of difference between The Dems and GOP and others noted that they are just two wings of the same bird of prey.

Partisan politics and lumping people into groups never serves the interest of the individual. One must recognize the individual for that which he is a Human Being!

[Northreader]

Thankyou Mike Lux. I would also draw your attention to Washington Post columnist E.J. Dionne's coverage of the progressive America's Future conference in a piece entitled "Rush and Newt Are Winning." Dionne argues that too often the mainstream media close off or ignore political options that should be part of the discussion.I'm just a Canadian who watches U.S. politics and will be checking out this weekend's Sunday morning shows on the American networks via cable. So often I come away thankful that we have more than two parties in Canada. For example, our version of the Democrats (the Liberals) have competition on their left from the New Democrats. But I do find a much wider range of American discussion on the internet on issues such as health reform as opposed to the old Inside The Beltway cocktail party pundit mafia that so often monopolizes the mainstream media.

[RandomMandarin]

As Thom Hartmann noted, other countries with universal health coverage don't let for-profits do basic health coverage, because any for-profit insurer will inevitably start killing some of its customers by denying unprofitable claims. See: http://www.singlepayeraction.org/blog/?p=351
Even more remarkable is that PBS (probably still run by GOPoids installed by the never-elected Bush-Cheney bund) censored this information.

[Hastings1066]

You haven't been paying attention - don't listen to what Obama says - Look at what he does - How many times did he promise tax relief for the middle class - $250,000 or under - that ended up being $75,000 for singles and $150,000 for couples.

And it wasn't at all what he promised it would be - it ended up being $400 the first year for singles spread out in paychecks - amounting to approximately $13 a week - and less for 2010 when it ends.

Not much relief for the middle class.

I have NO DOUBT that President Obama will adopt the "Centrist" tax the benefits proposal - first because he needs the revenue to fund his health care policy - and second because it's a political strategy - a step towards his real agenda which is to sway public opinion towards the "government only insurance option" - which will put private insurance companies out of business - and leave us with government controlled health care.

[lee4713]

Hey, tax cuts are tax cuts. He inherited a bigger s*&t pile than anyone knew, and he's got to start somewhere. And as far as private insurance companies going out of business - if they can't compete without making massive profits, then let them go out of business. Too many lives are being ruined and/or shortened by the current system (and where is the "pro-life" crowd on that?). If this is "capitalism" and the "free market", then give me the European life style any day.

[Gatormouth]

I felt this way in 2007. I still do. I voted for Obama after Edwards dropped out, and supported Obama because he hadn't been cotaminated by Clinton"Centrism". He is now turning out very well, but he seems to be playing a deep game and you can't be sure there is not a Centrist agenda somewhere in there.


Meaning what he says is more important than saying it. Obama could be accused of just talking the talk because it seems to be working. I don't want a special feel-good symbol. I want a hard ass who is going to bust some corporate chops and push to win back our constitution and some turf for the working class and professional and small business owners (see petit-bourgeoisie). We should demand fair trade, not free trade, and for investment capital earned here to be invested here. "Trickle down" only works when it waters the roots of your own tree. God help me, I am a progressive and a Democrat, but I wish Ross Perot had won instead of Clinton! I don't want another anti-labor Republican-light!

[bucfish]

What planet you living on?

Obama has bowed to the Corporate chops, Continued Bush's Destruction of the Constitution, and destroyed the small business man in favor of the corporations. Obama is Bush on Steriods!!!

[Realization]

The only way to make U.S. business competitive is to get employers out of the health insurance loop and lower our costs by instituting a single payer system. Except, of course, for those who profit from ripping off the nation's available wealth - the health insurance types. The "iron rice bowl" of vested interests is why Asia wasn't able to develop, if you will remember. Now the U.S. has the problem.

The health care fight should be accompanied by another move on the chessboard. I suggest that anything less than single payer be accompanied by a marginal income tax rate of 50% at the million dollar salary level (no bonuses, or loopholes - everything would be salary) increasing at 5% per $100,000 thereafter to a max of 95%. And a high estate tax on the rich.

This would have the added benefit of making executives focus on the long-term and the proper management of their companies. No foreign MANAGERS make nearly what Americans do and a lot of them run their firms better.

[Gatormouth]

Centrist, Corporate Fascist, Neo Liberal, Globalist ... these people go by many names and all are bad news for the economy and people of the Unted States.

[PigLipstick]

Max Baucus (D, Montana) said this week that one item on his agenda, other than handing the healthcare insurance industry a pot of gold, was to eliminate the long standing income tax subsidy to business for maintaining a healthcare insurance plan for it's employees. This should put smiles on the faces of the Aetna and Blue Cross execs as businesses throw their employees overboard into the waiting arms of the insurance industry parasites.

Meanwhile Kennedy pushes the failed Massachusettes Healthcare system that would levy fines for people who do not purchase healthcare insurance, $1000 and more in some cases. This is on top of a $2000 pre-pay before the insurance companies even start to pay. This plan came from their former Republican governor and former presidential candidate who, as usual, is no longer around to see the devestation he brought to the people of Massachusettes. Democrats adopting Republican plans, can we really be surprised in this era of a two-party duopoly answerable only to their corporate sponsors !