You can probably thank Scott Brown, the new senator-elect from Massachusetts for this. Suddenly, the Obama administration is doing what it promised, but failed to do, when it had a filibuster-proof majority in the Senate.
President Obama has invited Republicans to a bipartisan summit on health care - a summit that will not only include members of the GOP - but one that will be televised nationally so that the rest of us can watch the process.
What a refreshing, albeit late, change.
At least the president is smart enough to know why there was so much opposition to health reform. Remember, the polls indicated that the time was ripe to push something through. But the opposition grew - and not just because so many people from the other side wanted Obama to fail.
There was that, of course. But the main reason for the stumbling was that the Democrats largely ignored the Republicans. And then failed to make good on the president's promise that the process would be televised for the nation to see.
After Republican Brown was elected, the president got the picture. He told both House and Senate Democratic leaders to take a breath. Stop the process for now. Restart it - this time - doing it right - by including the loyal opposition.
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White House photo: Samantha Appleton
Hopefully the February 25 summit will be the first step toward making that - finally - happen.
Obama had lost control of the legislators of his party. With their veto-proof 60 votes they knew he needed them and could blackmail---sorry---could bargain for hundreds of millions in perks. Had the President played ball with the Republicans early, true he would have had to give some concessions, but he could have gained 3 or 4 RINO votes. he then could have turned to his own people and said, "I don't really care if you vote for this or not, I'm not giving away the candy-store to get your vote," and they would have had to fall in line. Now, with Brown's victory, Mr. Obama will be forced to be more bi-partisan, and he will thus gain the ability to run his legislators instead of the other way around. If he's able enough, this could actually pave the way for a more successful Obama Presidency.
Sol Lachman, LCSW