THE OBAMA DEFENSE: I FORGOT!

Remember that great Steve Martin comedy routine where he uses the "I forgot" defense to get out of all kinds of trouble, including failing to file taxes? Now, Obama appears to be using it on Obamacare.

There has been lots of rumbling over the health care bill passed by the House of Representatives which, many feel, is pure socialism. The President has consistently told people they could keep their doctor and their insurance. It has been a major selling point. The problem is, it is a half truth.

What the President says is “If you have health insurance, and you like it, and you have a doctor that you like, then you can keep it. Period.” Any American who hears that thinks, that means it is forever and in all circumstances. But, under the House bill, it only means right now.

At issue is Section 102 of the massive bill. It provides that insurance companies cannot enroll new people. If you lose your insurance or change employers, you have to enroll in the government plan. I guess we could call it the Orwell Insurance Company. If you have no insurance now, you must enroll in the government program to have insurance.

This means you have no freedom to contract with the insurer of your choice. It means insurance companies have no freedom of contract. It also means insurance companies will slowly go out of business. More accurately, it means the Unites States government is putting insurance companies out of business.

When asked pointedly if this is true, how did the President respond? He said “You know, I have to say that I am not familiar with the provision you are talking about.”

Are you kidding me, Mr. President? You are pushing the legislation. You are going on television to sell it to the American public. But, you are not aware that a major provision and a major change in government, business and freedom is in the bill? This is either a lie or an incredible and negligent omission of monumental proportions. I suspect a lie. He must have been brief on it. And, even if he did not know about it in advance, which I cannot believe, his advisors would have been aware of it when Investors Business Daily published their analysis, and he would have distanced himself from it.

This president's credibility is on the line here. Either he lied or he is making this all up as he goes along and does not know what he is doing. Either way, too much is at stake for this type of shoddy behavior.

Your health care world is about to be changed dramatically. It would be nice if those doing the changing knew what they were doing and told the truth about it. Was there not supposed to be "transparency" in this administration?

Welcome to the Gulag.