Republicans To Waste More Taxpayer Money on Four More ObamaCare Hearings This Week

Last updated on July 17th, 2023 at 06:04 pm

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Republicans aren’t finished wasting taxpayer money on ObamaCare hearings yet.

Why, just this week Speaker Boehner (R-OH) is investing the few hours the House works into more “oversight” of ObamaCare, or as Boehner likes to put it, “#trainwreck”.

At least four #ObamaCare oversight #hearings in the House this week. Details here: http://t.co/jeWBvSwOq4

— Speaker John Boehner (@SpeakerBoehner) December 2, 2013

Here’s the list of hearings Republicans are having this week:

• On Wednesday, the House Ways & Means Subcommittee on Health will hold a hearing on the implementation of the president’s health care law.
• Also on Wednesday, the House Small Business Committee will hold a hearing to “examine the process of determining whether businesses are considered single or multiple entities under the health care law.”
• The House Energy & Commerce Subcommittee on Health will hold a hearing Wednesday to examine what Medicare Advantage beneficiaries should expect under ObamaCare.
• On Friday, the House Oversight & Government Reform Committee will hold a field hearing in Apache Junction, AZ to get a closer look at the consequences of ObamaCare’s broken promises.

I call these hearings a waste of money because they are not really hearings; they are full on propaganda shows, put on by the GOP in order to get negative ObamaCare press they can use in 2014. The real reason Republicans are holding these hearings is to provide 2014 campaign sound bites for their members.

Just last week a local news outlet busted Darrell Issa’s “ObamaCare hearing” because he only let the folks who furthered his narrative testify. This is Issa’s and the GOP”s stock and trade — they did it with Benghazi, they did it with the IRS, and they’re doing it with ObamaCare. It’s taxpayer funded propaganda for electoral campaign purposes.

It’s obvious that Republicans are going to run against ObamaCare in 2014. For evidence that the GOP has not yet had its come to Jesus moment, see the National Republican Congressional Committee’s gleeful fail gloating over the ObamaCare website. It’s still not perfect, you see.

The NRSC likes to remind everyone that the ObamacCare website isn’t working, so #GOP14 y’all! They tweeted today, “It’s Cyber Monday! And the #ObamaCare website still isn’t working. #GOP14” Root for the failure of millions of Americans getting insurance, Republicans. Yes, that’s a winner…

Republicans still believe they can beat Democrats in 2014 by running against ObamaCare. The media has assisted Republicans in their delusions, once again. Not so sure that’s helpful.

Republicans might want to focus on what people who understand political science have to say, not Joe and Jane Pundit on the tee-vee or Joe and Jane clickbait. Because those people are either lying to Republicans or they are totally clueless. In the real world, only Republican partisans will vote based on how a website designed to provide a needed service performed in its rollout. People are going to like having health insurance. Sorry, but it’s true. Personal survival will always trump politics.

Republicans are desperately trying to make ObamaCare a “#trainwreck”, so they can make it about Obama being untrustworthy and incompetent. But Obama’s approval ratings are consistently better than Congress’, precisely because Obama has a likeable persona.

Worse for the GOP, the people who hate Obama already hate him — the GOP can’t broaden their tent or get Independents by hating him more. They tried this in 2012 and it didn’t work. They knew they were supposed to broaden the tent by halting their hatred of women, minorities, gays, and non-Republican Christians, but instead they curled into their hatred, taking comfort in juvenile meanness and ready, easy marks.

There’s a #trainwreck afloat, and it’s the GOP. The Republicans think Democrats will let America forget how the GOP shutdown the government over ObamaCare? That’s cute. If they want to make the election about Democrats trying to provide health insurance to the 47 million uninsured, I’m sure Democrats will let them.

Sarah Jones

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Sarah has been credentialed to cover President Barack Obama, then VP Joe Biden, 2016 Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, and exclusively interviewed Speaker Nancy Pelosi multiple times and exclusively covered her first home appearance after the first impeachment of then President Donald Trump.

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