Cost Cutting For Liberty

by digby

In case you were wondering, Joe Lieberman said this morning on John King’s show that we need to concentrate on cost controls in the health care sector in order to bring down the deficit and forget about universal coverage. We just can’t cover everyone, but we have to figure out a way to cut costs dramatically because health care is bankrupting the country.

Considering that Lieberman doesn’t understand that universal coverage with everyone paying in will mitigate health care inflation, and that he considers cost control the most important thing, one can only assume that he’s the guy who wants to off granny — and you too, if you don’t have insurance. After all, we know that people who aren’t insured get some very expensive, inadequate care if they do get sick because we require that hospitals treat people in an emergency. If cutting the deficit is the point of health care reform, then you’ve got to go where the money is — sick people.

Lieberman and Richard Lugar both agree that Obama shouldn’t have put Health Care on the agenda at all because there is a recession. But, of course, if the recession was over you couldn’t put health care on the agenda because Lieberman and Lugar would say it would hurt the recovery. And if the economy is rolling, everyone who is willing to work should be able to get covered, so there’s no need for health care reform. It’s funny how that works.

Everyone agreed that the Democrats needed to cut back their plans immediately and throw a few crumbs at health care that will only make things worse and then move on to the Republican agenda on national security, trade and financial reform which they all agreed could be passed with no problem. Otherwise, Obama will have a failed presidency.

Can we all see what’s wrong with that picture?

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