The Other McCain

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Failure Is Not a Public-Relations Problem: The Brutal Economics of ObamaCare

Posted on | February 4, 2014 | 11 Comments

“Obama: Anatomy of a World Leader,” by Alex Gray (detail)

The Congressional Budget Office report about the economic impact of ObamaCare is out, and it paints an ugly picture. The Hill:

The new healthcare law will slow economic growth over the next decade, costing the nation about 2.5 million jobs and contributing to a $1 trillion increase in projected deficits, the Congressional Budget Office said in a report released Tuesday.

The Washington Post:

The Affordable Care Act will reduce the number of full-time workers by more than 2 million in coming years, congressional budget analysts said Tuesday in the most detailed analysis of the law’s impact on jobs.

ObamaCare is a disaster in pretty much exactly the same ways that Republican opponents of the bill predicted four years ago, although it’s also been a disaster in ways that even its harshest opponents did not predict. The problem for Obama, Democrats and their media allies is that they have treated the failure of ObamaCare as a matter of public-relations, as if the reality of failure could be concealed by a P.R. blitz claiming that it was actually a success. But the laws of economics can’t be changed by wishful thinking or political spin, and the failure of ObamaCare is a matter of basic economics.

 

 


Category: Barack Obama, Economics, Health Care

Comments

11 Responses to “Failure Is Not a Public-Relations Problem: The Brutal Economics of ObamaCare”

  1. M. Thompson
    February 4th, 2014 @ 2:53 pm

    And soon it will be a death spiral.

  2. Socialism: Organized Evil
    February 4th, 2014 @ 3:03 pm

    In case anyone hasn’t noticed – Hussein Obama is a communist. A communist intent upon waging economic jihad against the middle class through higher healthcare and higher electricity prices.

    Know your adversary. Predict their moves.

  3. Anon Y. Mous
    February 4th, 2014 @ 3:14 pm

    The problem for Obama, Democrats and their media allies is that they have treated the failure of ObamaCare as a matter of public-relations, as if the reality of failure could be concealed by a P.R. blitz claiming that it was actually a success.

    What are their other options? Repeal? No, they don’t want that. Revision? They can’t without compromising with Republicans, who at best (and rightly so), would insist on gutting most of Obamacare.

    If they still had the numbers in Congress that they had when they passed it (including Kennedy), then they might go with PR plus a constantly changing set of bandaids designed to obfuscate the current and future state of the failure. Without the numbers, they are left with PR as the only option to try to keep their fascist plan alive.

  4. RS
    February 4th, 2014 @ 3:14 pm

    Not to quibble, but your post seems to assume that they care whether it succeeds or fails. I would suggest they do not. Indeed, I believe it’s performing precisely as intended from the beginning.

  5. Evi L. Bloggerlady
    February 4th, 2014 @ 3:20 pm

    Now we just have to convince the GOP elites to do the right thing: take advantage of this Democrats fiasco and go on the offensive.

  6. Physics Geek
    February 4th, 2014 @ 3:34 pm

    Since you didn’t mention it, I’m assuming that you haven’t noticed the WH and its hacks saying that the loss of 2.5 million jobs is a net positive.

  7. scarymatt
    February 4th, 2014 @ 3:51 pm

    Yeah! On the offensive…with AMNESTY!

    MISSION ACCOMPLISHED.

  8. Adjoran
    February 4th, 2014 @ 5:44 pm

    The Democrats can’t understand why they can’t just fix it with PR. Heck, that’s how they built it in the first place! Obama’s “keep your plan, keep your doctor” lie was absolutely key to keeping public opposition to a minimum. Had the people known the truth, even the Democratic Congress would have refused to buy the bill.

    The Democratic Party has no connection at all to the private economy and how things get done except for the tech companies on the West Coast and northeastern bankers, two sectors that operate in alternate economic universes from the rest of the country.

  9. Bob Belvedere
    February 4th, 2014 @ 9:04 pm

    Exactly. Obamacare is merely a stage in the process. IT’S SUPPOSED TO FAIL.

  10. DavidD
    February 4th, 2014 @ 9:23 pm

    Oh, c’mon. The guy’s whole campaign (7 years and counting) has been nothing but a P.R. blitz–and yet, the LOFOs fell for it and are still falling for it; it’s like they’ve fallen into a bottomless pit, but that’s another story. His whole presidency is a matter of public-relations–and, so far, it’s working; I frankly see no end to it.

  11. Evi L. Bloggerlady
    February 4th, 2014 @ 9:25 pm

    Agreed. Absolute insanity. http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2014/02/04/republicans_to_the_rescue_121454.html Thomas Sowell has an article on it too (as do most conservative pundits). I am hoping the bleating from McConnell and Ryan about it not happening anytime soon is in response to overwhelming GOP switchboard meltdown.