Category Archives: Healthcare


Handling economic instability…Immigration?

Joe Klein posits that the GOP may end up running on immigration in 2008:
It’s long been my belief that the GOP hole card in 2008 is going to be a rancid furriner-bashing anti-illegal-immigrant smear campaign. …  A few months ago, I asked Mitt Romney if he thought illegal immigration was a net economic plus or […]

House RSC blogger call

Reps. Jeb Hensarling and Marsha Blackburn had a very brief conference call with bloggers.
They noted that S-CHIP was vetoed by the President. They pointed out all the details about this being more than a children’s healthcare program. 17 states are adding  adults with this. Dropping the citizenship requirement. Clearly this call (and further calls) are […]

Romney’s Clinton problem

Drudge is pushing a story about Hillary Clinton’s health care plan. While Drudge focused on the dollar amount, I saw this:
The centerpiece of Clinton’s plan is the so-called "individual mandate," requiring everyone to have health insurance — just as most states require drivers to purchase auto insurance. Rival John Edwards has also offered a plan […]

Huckabee on health care

Governor Huckabee answered some questions about health care after the debate. This came out of a discussion in which he expressed some frustration that health care, education, trade, and jobs were not being discussed:

Tags: Debate, Healthcare, Huckabee

Thoughts on the Huckabee conference call

Excuse the disorder of my notes. This should have somewhat more organized thoughts. In some real sense this was my first exposure to Huckabee as a candidate. I had interacted with him previously through the Young Republicans, and I knew that he was doing what he was doing to move his candidacy. But I was […]

Romney’s healthcare plan: The politics

So, I have already reviewed the policy aspect of Mitt Romney’s health care plan. Basically, I think it is reasonable, but he is playing "hide the ball" with the money. It has to come from somewhere and he is leaving the "where" up to the states. Fine.

Now the next question is the politics. […]

Romney’s healthcare plan: The policies

UPDATE: Sally Pipes is kind enough to remind us that it just didn’t work in MA. And, of course, Romney’s proposal is tax breaks for people who can afford health insurance but don’t buy it. In other words, another subsidy…
First, let me say that I am reasonably sympathetic to Mitt Romney’s healthcare proposal. At least […]

Quote of the Day: Mitt to Hillary

On Hannity last night, Mitt Romney was talking about his health care plan:
So it’s one of the things I’m most proud of. And I hope I get a chance to debate Hillary Clinton on the very topic because when I’m asked what the biggest difference is between my plan and her plan, I’ll say that […]

Romney, 1994 flier, and consistency

A number of Mitt Romney’s supporters have pulled out a 1994 campaign flier and argued that it shows that he has always been a conservative. First of all, one might wonder why a conservative in 1994 would have opposed the Contract with America and called it "partisan".. That wasn’t my reading of it.
I was struck […]

Healthcare lobbies campaign in early primary states

I thought this was interesting. It appears that two different healthcare lobby groups are using a strategy of grassroots and media campaigns in early primary states. I have copied the ad for the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease. The Hill runs a story about AARP and a bunch of patients groups running media and grassroots […]