For the most part the media has fallen down on the job of trying to explain Obamacare to the American people. But as a government shutdown looms, more of them are starting to remember what their jobs are and realize that the Republicans are batsh*t crazy.
Bob Schieffer of CBS' Face The Nation made Rand Paul look pretty foolish trying to defend GOP efforts to defund Obamacare by taking the federal government hostage. Republicans have been using zombie talking points to defend their position led by wacko Ted Cruz, which isn't a position at all. There are no reality points for these tea party loons which in the end is very scary for the American people. The ACA was passed by Congress, upheld by the Supreme Court and then re-litigated during the 2012 general election in which President Obama won handily. So it's the LAW, but these wackos are arguing as if nothing ever happened and Obamacare is a new concept.
SCHIEFFER: Well, Senator, I kind of take your point and I think a lot of people agree there are things to be done about this law that could make it better, but how can you hold the entire federal government hostage just because you want to postpone his signature achievement? He is not going to do that. The Senate is not going to do that. You know that and you know even if they did that the president would veto it, I mean, isn't this just an exercise to accomplish nothing?
PAUL: Well, I guess, Bob, what I don't know, he already by executive fiat has delayed the employer mandate, which is a key component of that, we think that is going outside the Constitution and the president is not allowed to write legislation. So all we are asking is, if he thinks it's so messed up that he's going to delay a big part of Obamacare on his own, and it looks like maybe he is going to do some special favors for the unions, why don't we actually bring it to Congress and try to figure out how to meet somewhere in the middle? But see, he is saying 100 percent of ObamaCare or the highway. The president is the one saying I will shut down government if you don't give me everything I want on ObamaCare. That to me is the president being intransigent and being unwilling to compromise.
This is all smoke and mirrors. His argument makes no sense. The law is the law and it has already been passed. There is nothing more to debate. There are no compromises to be made. By the way, don't you love how suddenly the unions represent real working class Americans for conservatives? They hate unions and everyone who work for one, but suddenly they are the pulse of the nation. Schieffer then comes back with this argument.
SCHIEFFER: But the law has already been passed, Senator, let me just ask you this question. I am old enough to remember when Barry Goldwater ran for president in 1964, and he said I would rather be right than president. And you know, he got his wish. He lost in a landslide. Aren't you and the other tea party leaders leading the Republican Party to the same fate?
PAUL: Well, see, the thing is is that once things are passed doesn't mean they are set in stone and no future Congress will look at them.
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PAUL: I think there is a way. And I have been saying all along that we should negotiate. See, historically, Bob, the way it worked is if the House was Republican and passed something and the Senate was Democrat and passed something, you had a conference committee, equal number of Republicans and Democrats, and you hashed out your differences. Why don't we have a conference committee on this? You could appoint one today; they could meet tomorrow and hash out the differences. That is the way it is supposed to work. Republicans and Democrats are supposed to find a middle ground, but right now, it is the president saying my way or the highway, if I don't get everything I want, if I don't get ObamaCare the Democrats passed without any Republican support, the Democrats are saying they are willing to shut down the government.
Once again for the tea party: There is nothing to negotiate on Obamacare. The House and the Senate already did go through a conference committee and the ACA was the final result. The country went through this for years already. And even when the Republican presidential challenger said it would be the first thing on his agenda to repeal Obamacare, they actually voted for Obama again. The tea party position failed to sway the country. Get a clue, guys.
SCHIEFFER: But, you know, Senator, with all due respect, it is a little more complicated than that, because you have got not just Republicans versus Democrats, you have got Republicans versus Republicans. You have got Senate Republicans versus House Republicans. You have got Republican Senator Ted Cruz who is advising House Republicans to go against their own leadership in the House, so it is going to take more than a conference committee. I mean you would have to set up 15 or 20 committees to try to resolve all of the controversies that are going on right now. Do you disagree with that?
PAUL: Well, I didn't say it was going to be easy, but I would say that that is the way you are supposed to hash it out. The president shouldn't get -- I mean, 53 percent of the public voted for the president, 47 percent or so voted for Romney. In the House the majority of the House members are elected by Republicans. Why would it not be that we defend what we support? The president defends what he supports and that we have to find a compromise? The president is saying no compromise. I will not touch ObamaCare. But the interesting thing is, he has amended ObamaCare probably 15 times already, but he does it without any legislative approval, which we think is unconstitutional, but it is also showing that he is just going to fix the law on his own without any approval of Congress. We think he should come to Congress. We should negotiate how to fix or make ObamaCare less bad. We are the party that is willing to compromise. They are the party that says no way. We are not touching ObamaCare.
So many lies and not enough time to go through them all. If what Rand Paul is saying is true about their defund Obamacare plan, then why is half the GOP freaking out about Ted Cruz and the tea party's position on this? And if the president touches entitlements or Obamacare to appease these psychos then he'll have nothing to stand on for the next three years in office when they go through this again and again since the continuing resolutions only go as far as a couple of months. Does he really want to do that?
