Children and Adults

Donald Trump is threatening to cut the subsidies that are a cornerstone of Obamacare. He shouldn't do it.

The Obamacare legislation is among the most poorly conceived and ineffectively implemented major government programs in the history of our country. The Democrats own this debacle, but insist that it's strong and effective legislation. Okay ... let's wait and see.

The reality, despite media spin and the Dem's fantasy assessment, is that Obamacare far more costly than projected, provides "insurance" costs that are escalating rapidly (because policy holders are forced in coverage they may not want or need); has ridiculously high deductibles, and is increasingly hard to get in many parts of the country. Insurance companies are losing money and dropping out. "Exchanges" are failing. The program is collapsing under its own weight. Trump should not throw the Democrats a lifeline by allowing them to use his subsidy cuts as an excuse for the program's failure.

Let's be very clear. The euphemism "subsidies" means taxpayer money that might otherwise be used for infrastructure development, educational reform, tax reform, economic development, etc. Or ... possibly, money that might remain in the taxpayer's pocket. Specifically, taxpayer money is being use to subsidize insurance payments for those who cannot pay the full cost of insurance. On a humanitarian level, we have done this for decades, using taxpayer money to pay for Medicaid. The Dems have simply expanded the Medicaid entitlement to cover many, many more people. That would be okay, except for one key fact—Medicare/Medicaid are rapidly moving toward bankruptcy.

In their anger and disappointment over their election loss, the Dems refuse to work with the GOP to reform the healthcare program they, and they alone, created. It's as if the children stayed home and started a fire that wrecked their house. The adults return home and decide the only way forward is to tear the house down and rebuild. The children scream that a little paint and a some wallpaper will fix the damage, while at the same time denying that there's any damage at all. The adults note that the walls are collapsing, the floor is buckled, and the roof has holes in it. Looking at the burnt out shell of the house, who are you going to believe?