Kucinich: If You Listen to the President You'd Think He's for the Public Option but He's Not

democraticunderground.com



Yes, Dennis Kucinich is an idealist and maybe a dreamer, but IMO he's right about the public option. The health care bill, in its present form, will be a huge giveaway for the insurance companies.

Maybe some health care reform is better than none? Or should progressives hold out for a single-payer plan or a robust public option, like Kucinich? And if we do, is there a chance it will EVER pass in this country in our lifetime?

Should Kucinich vote with the Democrats now or continue to hold out, which might be disastrous for the bill's passage?



[edit on 9-3-2010 by Sestias]

This is a really good question and I don't know the answer. I like to think that if people (we) "held out" that soon, some really decent health care reform would happen. But something tells me that's wishful thinking. I'm fairly certain that if we don't get a health care reform bill passed now, then we never will. But is having ANY bill passed better than nothing?

Here's what I think:

I don't know all the details about this bill, but I know there are some pretty good provisions that I agree with. So, I hate that it's not what it should be in an ideal state, but if it passes and Obama gets a second term, then he will have the opportunity to revise it or move on to more extensive health care reform with a single-payer plan or good public option, which is what I would like to see.

If it doesn't pass, I don't think he'll get a second term. So then we can say goodbye to health care reform forever. So, for that reason, I think Kucinish should be willing to compromise and vote for this, even though it's not what we want to see exactly. That's my reasoning.

The only thing that may save Denis from the HealthCare hit squad marching through legislators is that he is a big time gun grabber and advocated impeaching the last administration. If he is smeared then something is definitely afoot.

I absolutely agree with Mr Kucinich. America's health care system is almost entirely dependent on the insurance sector and this bill is only going to reinforce that.
I found it funny that when this bill was starting off that the UK's healthcare system was demonized by the U.S media but the reality is that our health care system works and no one is excluded, regardless of your circumstances.
We still have private health care and a lot of the time we get private health care coverage included as part of our salary.
I've had private health care coverage but I've only ever had to use it once and I only ever used it because the waiting list for what I needed (Plastic Surgery) was over 6 months for treatment.
I have used the NHS all my life and it has never been a problem for me.

America needs a system like this but this current health care bill is only going to provide the insurance industry with easy money.

I have a lot of respect for Kucinich, him and Ron Paul should run together as they both agree on many different subjects regardless of their party affiliation.