RomneyCare, ObamaCare: Two Millstones for Two 2012 Presidential Hopefuls

[ABOVE: RomneyCare? Never heard of it!]

BEFORE THE ABOMINATION OF OBAMACARE,
THERE WAS THE BEAST OF ROMNEYCARE

Mitt Romney may have minions stashed at various squishy so-called conservative sites around the blogosphere singing the ex-Massachusetts governor’s praises, but they swallow hard and start sweating whenever Mitt’s legacy program is discussed.

Individual mandates, employer fines, compulsive insurance, costs exploding, state on the verge of bankruptcy: what’s not to like about RomneyCare–if you’re a flaming progressive.

Yesterday, the Wall Street Journal compared RomneyCare with ObamaCare and found almost no differences. From
The Failure of RomneyCare:

Both have an individual mandate requiring most residents to have health insurance or pay a penalty. Most businesses are required to participate or pay a fine. Both rely on government-designed purchasing exchanges that also provide a platform to control private health insurance. Many of the uninsured are covered through Medicaid expansion and others receive subsidies for highly-prescriptive policies. And the apparatus requires a plethora of new government boards and agencies.

While it’s true that the liberal Massachusetts legislature did turn Mr. Romney’s plan to the left, his claims that his plan is “entirely different” will not stand up to the intense scrutiny of a presidential campaign, especially a primary challenge. Mr. Romney needs to be more honest about his Massachusetts experiment and its failings.

Good luck getting Romney or his supporters to own up to much in the Senator’s shaky resume: a paper trail that makes a RINO break out in applause is one that makes conservatives break out the pitchforks.

Whenever the subject of Romney white Massachusetts elephant comes up, he and his supporter attempt to change history. Failing that, they change the subject.

Of course, that could change: as Romney’s position on abortion–a deeply personal subject–changed whenever he had to appeal to a larger group than merely the voters of Massachusetts. As Romney prepares his 2012 presidential campaign, one suspects that other issues will be “redefined” as well.

Before the first primary battle in 2012, expect Mitt Romney to deny his creation more times than Peter did Christ.

Mitt Romney’s big advantage over Barack Obama at this point?

Certainly not his choice of forcing an expensive, bloated health care bureaucracy on unwilling voters. That’s a wash.

However, Romney’s supporters are on solid ground to point out that Mitt had more success with the Olympics than Obama had.

UPDATE:
You knew it was coming. Politico’s Tim Murphy is out and about making the case that RomneyCare sucks less than advertised. Expect to see this defense by Romney himself in the future: Hey, RomneyCare’s thirty-six varieties of awesome, it’s just the victim of politics, doncha know?
The truth about Massachusetts health care reform

UPDATE #2: Jennifer Rubin at Commentary has the right prescription for ObamaCare–and by extension, RomneyCare: Don’t Be Morose! Get Even!.

Should this pass, I have infinite faith that the American people will deliver a mortal electoral blow to those politicians who thought they could shred anything to get their way. And then bit by bit — or in one fell swoop — the elected replacements for the shredders will rip out ObamaCare. So there’s no reason to be morose. Elections are great corrective exercises, and one is just around the corner.

And if Massachusetts has to pay their own bills for the health care fantasies contained in RomneyCare, they might start doing some ripping out of their own.

Obama fooled 52.7% of the American people; Romney shouldn’t be able to fool that many Republicans.

Regardless of how many faux-conservative sites dance to his tune.

UPDATE #3: I saw this yesterday and forgot to add it to the original post: The Masscare Massacre.

Actually, says Massachusetts Treasurer Tim Cahill, the two health care bills are very much alike — and that’s exactly the problem.

Both health care plans rely on the individual mandate, subsidies, and exchanges intended to match buyers with health insurance plans. “If President Obama and the Democrats repeat the mistake of the health insurance reform adopted here in Massachusetts on a national level, they will threaten to wipe out the American economy within four years,” Cahill said, launching an all-out offensive against Romneycare in Massachusetts and its cousin Obamacare nationwide.

RomneyCare and ObamaCare: two peas in the same pod. Two different politicians talking out both sides of their mouth in an attempt to explain it why it will be good medicine for those forced to take it.

By Mondo Frazier