The GOP has been very open about their plans to obstruct health care reform. They’ve actually laid out plans on how they intend to accomplish that feat. The only problem for them is that their obstructive efforts are as poorly thought out as most of their policy proposals.
The latest effort was an amendment cosponsored by Senator David Vitter (R-LA) and Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK).that would force legislators onto the public option if it becomes law. They thought they could make the Democrats in the Senate look hypocritical. The only problem for them is that Sen. Vitter is a proven hypocrite and Sen. Coburn is dumb as a fence post.
The whole thing began to go awry when Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) asked to become a cosponsor on the bill. He apparently put in his request to their offices four times without getting a response. This is no surprise, since Sen. Coburn and Sen. Vitter had no intention for their amendment to be anything more than a political stunt.
Now the worm has turned. Not only has Sen. Brown become a cosponsor, so have other Democratic senators according to the Washington Monthly.
Then, Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.) said she, too, wanted to join. Soon after, Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) endorsed the Coburn/Vitter amendment and also asked to be a co-sponsor. “If we have a public option in this plan, as I hope that we will, I think there’s nothing wrong in insisting that members of Congress be included in that public option proposal,” Dodd said, calling the idea “wonderful.”
These guys are taking away all of Coburn’s and Vitter’s fun.
Since this came out, Senator Al Franken (D-MN) has also signed on. This thing could snowball. Think what that will do to people’s perception of the public option and Democratic efforts to pass HCR.
Consider this an open thread.
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