High School Students Support the NY DREAM Act
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By: HCHS Young Democrats
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Democrats must do a better job of selling Obamacare and turning out voters in Novembers non-presidential election if they want to control Congress next year, the partys third-ranking House leader James Clyburn said.
If we dont do it, we get wiped out, Clyburn, South Carolinas only Democrat in Congress, said during a meeting today with Bloomberg News reporters and editors in New York. ``If we do it, we get back in charge.''
Polls show Democrats on their heels heading into the November election, which will determine control of Congress for President Barack Obamas final two years in office. Democrats can lose no more than five seats in the November election and keep control of the 100-member Senate.
Few pollsters expect the presidents party to take control of the U.S House of Representatives, which Democrats lost in 2010 just months after Obama signed the health-care law. The Republicans now control the House with 233 seats to the Democrats 199, with three open seats.
Democrats troubles heading into November are a result of Obamcares flawed rollout starting late last year, said Clyburn, 73.
We came off the government shutdown soaring, we were like eagles, he said. That rollout melted all that away. We are where we are because the rollout was all screwed up.
To contact the reporter on this story: Michael C. Bender in Washington at mbender10@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Jodi Schneider at jschneider50@bloomberg.net Laurie Asseo
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The first enrollment period for the Affordable Care Act ends at midnight Monday, closing one chapter on President Obamas landmark health-care law and paving the way for a new round of confrontations that could ultimately determine the laws long-term prospects.
Supporters face an array of political, financial and legal challenges in the coming months. Democrats and insurance industry officials are already seeking ways to blunt what may be the next big controversy: an expected increase in monthly insurance premiums next year for the health plans sold through the federal and state marketplaces.
Republicans, meanwhile, continue to use the law to attack vulnerable Democratic incumbents in the midterm elections, which will decide whether the GOP wins control of the Senate.
Combatants on both sides debated the administrations report last week that 6 million people had signed up for private plans. The laws working, White House senior adviser David Plouffe said on ABCs This Week. He added: And this was a seminal achievement.
But Republican Sen. John Barrasso (Wyo.) expressed skepticism about the figure. They are cooking the books on this, he told Fox News Sunday.
In the months and years ahead, other questions will loom: How will Americans react when they get fined next year for not having insurance? Will more states expand Medicaid under the law? And will the federal courts make future changes to the law, including barring the use of government subsidies to help pay for coverage in the federal marketplace?
The unresolved issues mean it is far too soon to know how President Obamas signature domestic achievement and one of the most polarizing pieces of U.S. social policy will turn out. So far, the action has been a warm-up act for what lies ahead, said Larry Levitt, senior vice president of the nonprofit Kaiser Family Foundation.
Heres a road map of what comes next:
Premiums trend
Monthly insurance premiums almost always go up, because costs typically rise. So the big questions are: How much will premiums increase for next year, how widespread will the increases be, and how will consumers be affected?
Read more:
Democrats, Republicans prepare for new round of battles over health-care law
Irony alert: The Democrats biggest challenge this fall is to get their voters excited about a law that they asked for.
Obamacare will be a huge voting issue for Republicans thats already clear. Theyll turn out in droves because they hate the law. Whats less clear is how Democrats will get their supporters to the polls to say, hey, thanks for health reform.
And yet, the Affordable Care Act only exists because Democrats and their supporters had pushed for health reform for decades. Republicans didnt ask for it. Independents didnt demand it. It was liberals who wanted coverage for the uninsured, and a better system for sick people, to plug what they saw as the last remaining hole in the social safety net.
(Also on POLITICO: The Obamacare report card)
Now its here, and as clumsy as the rollout was, its the law they wanted. So the task for Democrats is to figure out how to close the enthusiasm gap and convince their voters that Obamacare should be a voting issue for them, too.
The reality is, its probably going to be a negative message rather than a positive one. Most Democrats believe they can motivate voters by shifting the conversation to the GOP repeal efforts warning voters about all the things theyd lose if the law went away.
In their view, the best campaigns will be laser-focused on how bad the old health care system was for many patients, and hammer away at Republicans as defenders of the old status quo.
Democrats will turn out to prevent Republicans from giving insurance companies the power to raise health care costs, raising the costs of prescription drugs for seniors, and leaving kids with pre-existing conditions out in the cold, said Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chairman Steve Israel. We win by reminding voters of the catastrophic costs of repeal.
The rapid surge of last-minute signups will help it will make it easier for Democrats to prove theres real interest in the law. At some point, though, theyll have to deal with the awkward part thats on everyones minds: How much do you actually talk about the botched website and the canceled policies?
(CARTOONS: Matt Wuerker on Obamacare)
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Bernard Schwartz Discusses Defense, Democrats and the Lockheed Deal
A strong military is a vital way of preserving peace and neither political party has a monopoly on a strong defense, says Bernard Schwartz, former CEO of Lor...
By: TheStreet
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Bernard Schwartz Discusses Defense, Democrats and the Lockheed Deal - Video