GOP Sabotage of Obamacare Pushes Democrats Left

Jonathan Chait: “Lots of things have happened since Obamacare was passed. Most importantly, the conservative movement launched a hysterical political and legal sabotage campaign, using every tool from concocting frivolous lawsuits to driving insurance firms out of the markets by eliminating the outreach budget and withholding promised reimbursements. That sabotage campaign is still ongoing.”

“It would be extremely reasonable for a liberal who favors Obama-Romney-style subsidized private insurance to conclude that market-based insurance is simply too vulnerable to right-wing sabotage, and the only safe path for covering people who can’t afford their own insurance is through public programs. One of the things conservatives have been completely oblivious to is the degree to which their manic uncompromising stance has strengthened the case for more left-wing health-care reforms within the Democratic Party while undermining the basis for more moderate ones.”