The Loser Budget

The election took place four months ago, and the Democrats retained control of the Executive Branch. I only bring up this “Oh, duh!” piece of news because some people in Washington are behaving like the election never happened at all. I’m not talking about Karl “We can’t declare Obama the winner yet” Rove; it’s too obvious that he is still in a state of delusional denial. No, I am talking about some members of Congress, namely Paul Ryan.

Now you would think since he was half of the losing ticket that the GOP offered in 2012 Ryan would have figured it out by now. Weren’t the warning signs obvious? Didn’t he see Ann Romney sobbing – not from joy — as the final poll results were reported on election night? Hasn’t he noticed that Joe Biden has not moved out of his residence yet, now nearly a full two months after Inauguration Day? And, speaking of which, hasn’t Ryan figured out why he has no memory of himself taking the oath of office?

This week, Ryan presented the House version of the federal budget, and guess what? It seemed identical to the budgets he has presented the last three years. During that time, as the GOP gleefully repeated notes, the Democratic-controlled Senate has not passed a budget. Maybe someone should put two and two together and realize, “Hey the Senate hasn’t passed a budget in three years because they keep getting presented with a House budget that has LOSER written all over it!”

Ryan’s proposals promise to balance the budget in ten years. He’ll do it by cutting and slashing, changing Medicare to a voucher plan, and…oh, yes, his proposed savings are dependent on repealing Obamacare. How odd! The same party that encourages people to own tools (guns) which are made with the intention of causing injury and death (normally thought to be a bad thing) would be against ensuring that everyone can afford the means to maintain a long and healthy life (normally thought to be a good thing).

On second thought, this twisted logic does make perfect sense…for them and anyone else who believes in a common sense that runs counter to survival of the human race.

The budget is heavy on gutting programs that protect the poor and downtrodden, and very light — many would say non-existent — on raising revenues from taxes. I really don’t understand the GOP’s Ebenezer Scrooge-like attitude towards the poor. It’s not like they can gather all these people up (a la Adolph Hitler) and send them away somewhere else where they can be someone else’s responsibility or burden. It’s not like the corporations who support the GOP are not dependent on these same poor people to buy their cheap hamburgers and cheap toilet paper which they have to use once their bodies have fully digested the cheap hamburgers. (Yes, I went there!) The GOP and their supporters need the poverty-stricken people of the United States whether they know or not, and whether they like it or not.

So why are they so dead set (pun intended) on adopting policies that will make life more difficult for the lower and, for that matter, middle classes?   Damned if I know!

Why don’t the American people in these lower reaches of the economy have the right to affordable health care? Ryan’s budget makes no secret of the fact that they want to kill Obamacare and replace it with a “patient oriented” system. I have my doubts about their system. Since I have not heard any details of this plan over the last 20 years, I doubt that the conservatives in Congress have a plan at all. In all that time, I’ve been listening for details of their plan, but all I’ve heard is silence.

One proposal by Joseph McCarthy heir apparent Congressman Ted Cruz defunds Obamacare temporarily until the economy is proven to be growing again. I could see postponing aspects of the Affordable Care Act, if I were certain that it was only a postponement. Who’s to say that once the economy does show improvement that the GOP won’t find another excuse to postpone it again? I don’t trust them.

Americans with little or no access to affordable health care need to stand up and demand that their legislators stand behind Obamacare. The law’s repeal will mean a return of insurance claim denials for pre-existing conditions, among other health insurance peculiarities. Another job layoff with a concurrent gap in health care coverage could be disastrous for me and millions of others if the pre-existing clause was allowed to return.

 

We should probably take a cue from the gun lobby and advocate for Obamacare’s survival with the same extremist zeal that they use. Perhaps we could co-op one of their more famous slogans. Maybe we should rise up and cry out, “You’ll only take away my health care when you pry my Medicare card from my cold, dead fingers.”

Hmmm...that might be too extremist. This may need some more work….

(Thank you for reading! Give us preventative colonoscopies or give us death!  Nahhh….)