Health summit a war of attrition

There was no progress at the bipartisan health care summit today, although no one was really expecting any. I predicted a political slug-fest in this post two weeks ago, and it would seem I was correct. Both Republicans and Democrats have used the televised summit to beat each other over the heads with their own talking points. Democrats have attempted to label the GOP as obstructionist, and Republicans have accused Democrats of acting against the will of the nation. Some speculate that, because of the lack of cooperation, Democrats will attempt to push the bill through the Senate by a process known as reconciliation, which only requires bills have 51 votes to pass. Commentators, who…

Health care summit a battle of wills

President Obama announced days ago he was planning a televised summit on health care. The summit would seek bipartisan solutions to the health care problem, but its creation seems a strictly partisan move in and of itself. Obama has publicized the move intensely in the past few days, going so far as to appear in an interview before the Super Bowl concerning the summit. This is a carefully crafted move against the Republicans–Obama wants the American public to see the GOP as obstructionist. He will succeed if the Republicans refuse his invitation, because the public (106 million watched the Super Bowl and, by extension, Obama’s promotion of the summit) would know about it. Republicans have held out on the summit thus far, calling…