Ding Dong, The Bill is Dead

Let the joyous news be spread, the wicked health care bill is finally dead.  Well, at least the Wicked Witch has declared she can't get the votes to pass the Senate version in the House unchanged.  This leaves the nuclear option of reconciliation as the only alternative to pass the bill without reaching out to Republicans for votes.  Reconciliation in this political environment would be beyond suicidal and the Democrats know it.

My, my how things have changed with the news Mr. Brown is coming to Washington:

Rank-and-file Democrats vented their frustration at a closed-door meeting Thursday. Emerging from the session, Rep. Michael Arcuri, D-N.Y., said: “The mega bills are dead. If we didn’t see what happened Tuesday night, we have blinkers on.”

 This puts health care on the back burner as Democrats have finally realized people were more concerned about jobs and the economy all along.   Imagine that!

Also fueling the Democratic search for a fresh health care strategy is a conviction by many in the party that it’s time for an election-year focus on jobs and the economy, which polls show are easily the public’s top concerns.

“I don’t think we have to wait for health care to be resolved one way or the other before we move to jobs,” said Sen. Robert Casey, D-Pa. “We need to put a jobs bill on the table very soon, certainly in the next few weeks.”

This is a massive defeat, though lefty pundits will probably try and focus on the "pivot" towards jobs and the economy.  Health care was his signature legislation, the failure to pass it with huge majorities in Congress will undoubtedly get a mention in the history books.  The only option at this point is to go back to the drawing board and try to pass a very different watered down bill that can gain the support of a majority of Democrats and Republicans.  Clearly this was the path they should have pursued all along.

H/T: Hot Air  Much more at Memeorandum

The Senator-Elect Speaks

I think I am still a bit stunned by the momentous results of last nights election. I was still taken back when I saw this video clip at Breitbart TV. It was a pinch-me moment, he actually won. Now the Senator-elect speaks:



Brown emphasizes what he learned as he listened to the people who he hoped would elect him and he promised he wouldn't forget what he heard:

I go to Washington as the representative of no faction or interest, answering only to my conscience and to the people. I've got a lot to learn in the Senate, but I know who I am and I know who I serve.

I'm Scott Brown, I'm from Wrentham, I drive a truck, and I am nobody's senator but yours.

Ed Morrissey wisely offers a word of caution as we celebrate this amazing election.  Brown must honor his commitment to serve the people who sent him to Washington.  We can't assume Massachusetts has suddenly become a bastion of conservatism and Brown is unlikely to vote as if it were.  I for one hope he does honor that commitment even as I know there will likely be times I disagree with his position.

We've witnessed the outrage of the voters who sent Ben Nelson, Blanche Lincoln and a slew of supposed moderates and Blue Dogs in the House and Senate, hoping they would maintain their independence and truly vote according to the will of the people they represent.  The voters will have the opportunity soon enough to let them know how much they appreciate being ignored as their representatives fell in line to  give Obama something to brag about in a State of the Union speech.

Some on the left are chomping at the bit waiting for the "teabaggers" to turn on Brown.   The painful truth is the Tea Party support for Brown ruins their narrative the movement is nothing more than a group of hateful radical wingers who demand ideological purity in hopes of imposing a social agenda on an unwilling nation.  Look in the mirror much?

We knew with certainty there was no hope the supposed moderates on the left would  listen to the people who elected them.  I would prefer Brown not become that type of elected official.  If Brown proves to be a servant of his constituents he will do something few do these days, keep his promises.  His success in this regard will serve us well in November and do much to restore good faith to voters who have learned through experience they can't trust those who prefer to serve Washington instead of the people.