Do Ted Kennedy proud, Sen. Baucus. Make the law work.
Seems that Sen. Max Baucus, running for re-election in Montana in 2014, isn't too anxious to take ownership over the health care law
he essentially created [sub. required].
Top Senate Democrat Max Baucus is warning the Obama administration that he thinks implementation of the key pieces of the federal health-care law could turn into “a huge train-wreck” if federal officials don’t pick up their pace in getting ready for open enrollment this fall. [...]
“I am concerned that not every state, including Montana, will have an insurance marketplace established in time,” he said at the beginning of the hearing, referring to the federal government’s role in setting up exchanges on behalf of the 33 states, including Montana, that have opted not to do them themselves. “The administration’s public information campaign on the benefits of the Affordable Care Act deserves a failing grade.”
Gee, why would people be confused about the
Rube Goldberg-like system that Baucus created—yes, Baucus, and we're not going to let him forget it—in order to make sure the insurance companies stayed happy? Does he really think he can push the complicated structure, and potential hiccups in implementation of it, all off on the White House? Good luck with that.
Instead of running away from the law, Baucus should be doing exactly what the White House should be doing: everything in his power to make sure that this law actually works. An effective Affordable Care Act would be a great legacy-builder for Baucus. It would be an even more important one for President Obama. Making Obamacare work, so "Obamacare" is as popular as "Medicare" for future generations, should be job one for these two. It's far more important than any kind of grand bargain or deficit reduction or whatever else they could be chasing.