Going Through the Motions

Soon the Republican-controlled Congress will begin a vote to repeal the healthcare legislation passed by their Democratic predecessors. While the House is all but certain to pass it, the bill has virtually zero chance of passing in the Senate. Furthermore, President Obama would obviously veto any similar legislation if put before him. Regardless, Republican leadership in the House is pressing forward. So the question is: why is Congress even bothering with this vote instead of job-creating measures with a real chance of success?
“Politics as Wellness Tips For The Workplace usual.”
It’s an unfortunate tradition that legislators elected in a wave like the Democrats in 2006 and Republicans in 2010 make their first order of business symbolic and meaningless votes. Yes, we know that Republicans do not support the healthcare Oxford Healthcare Careers law. We don’t need a vote to tell us that: we just had the election a few months ago and that’s almost all that was talked about. If you want to make a historic mark, try doing something meaningful and worthwhile for the American people.
The early votes in Congress are simply a political statement, and I thought we elected Republicans to give us results. A bill that will go down in flames in the Senate is not the results you were elected for. Even if the American public was behind healthcare repeal, political realism need not be dead. Showmanship and other political gimmicks are not leading and legislating; they are pandering for votes and playing games with serious business.
It’s a common occurrence even outside the first 100 days, hours, or seconds (your choice, depending on the election cycle). Putting in poison-pill amendments (like providing erectile dysfunction treatments for sex offenders) all but guarantees failure of legislation that should instead face a vote on its principles. By putting politics over principles, these political games are a stealth attack on public opinion, waged for reelection and self-interested gains.
Instead of going through the motions, how about we make a lasting and fruitful difference with the policy agenda? Pragmatism and practicality are not long-term political suicide, and with a minimum of two years before the next election, are goals that should be sought to put the people above politics. It’s possible to be realistic, Congress, and that’s what the American people are hungry for. Stop playing “politics as usual” with our future, and give us some substance.