I have been hesitant to engage in much political commentary on this blog, not because I don’t think a lot about politics but because I am not confident in my competence as a political commentator. So this post comes with a hint of throwing caution to the wind.
Last night, after the House of Representatives passed the Senate’s version of the health care overhaul bill, the President evoked a major theme from his campaign when he made the statement, “This is what change looks like.”
The passage of the health care bill came with back room deals full of political bribery, strong arming, and sleight of hand which resulted in a vote in which the only bipartisanship came with the opposition. The majority party consistently used the language of force despite public opinion that was at least skeptical of and at most opposed to the legislation. The bill also falls in line with the governmental habit of a commitment to excessive federal spending funded through increased taxation.
In his campaign, the President promised the change of bipartisan compromise in a new Washington. In the opening year of his presidency, he has demonstrated that he is committed to a form of bully politics that ignores the people by and for whom the government was constituted. This so-called change certainly looks a whole lot like what we’ve previously had in Washington, only more so, and is characterized by power players looking to make their mark and leave a self-triumphant legacy no matter the cost to the nation. That, my friends, is supposed to be change you can believe in.