Independent America

Vasu Reddy from Chicago
vasureddy@aol.com

Friday, March 24, 2017 was not a day for political surprises.  It was a day full of arm twisting and threats and offers to compromise, but still a day that demonstrated the political independence.  The republican controlled congress could not find enough votes in their own party to pass legislation to repeal and replace affordable care act, what they spitefully refer to as “Obama Care”.  All thru his campaign Trump made Obama Care as the focal point of the previous administration’s failed health care policy.  It has been going on for 7 years that the republicans have been trying with their might to repeal and replace the medical act, and now they have the senate, congress and president all in the republican party, and they don’t have the support of their own party legislators.  Trump kept repeating that he will repeal and replace “Obama Care” on day one, if elected as president.

Ryan had to pull the bill from even going to a floor vote, as he did not have the votes to pass it.  His republican legislators were not all behind what was being touted as the replacement to Obama Care.  After pulling the bill from the floor, he states to the media that there was not enough support within his own party to pass the bill.  He is leading the party that has been touting to repeal and replace for 7 years, and when the time comes there is no support from within.  Some leadership that is clearly lacking the so-called leadership.

As with many immigrant citizens I also lean to the democrats.  No question of deviation on philosophy, but I do support the basic principles of decency and equality.  For some reason the leadership in power seem to have a difficult time in saying something and keeping their policies behind the saying.

Since withdrawing the repeal and replace the medical bill, the republican party lead by Trump, Pence and Ryan have been giving the American public a variety of reasons including a threat to the public that they will let Obama Care blow up and wait for people to come to them to ask to fix it.

As usual Trump keeps his twitter active, and hurls threats and abuses and unsubstantiated allegations.  Ryan and Pence keep justifying Trump, and will find words to place the blame on their own colleagues and democrats.  These three guys have seemed to forgotten that their party won the election and control the congress and the presidency now.  They did not need the opposition, now their own party did not support them.

While Trump is a political novice, Ryan and Pence are career and veteran republican politicians.  Both only endorsed Trump only after he became their party’s chosen candidate for the presidency.  They are not by choice, but by their own choosing Trump’s most ardent supporters.  They keep a brave front when they deal with the policies (and promote) of Trump.  It is sad to see these guys support and keep backing something which is basically against their ideals.  For their entire life, thy supported a party and platform that is quite new to them, and now they continue to force themselves to support what they were fundamentally against all their life, and the greater difficulty is that they were vehemently against Trump and his positions until just a few weeks ago, now they are in the opposite.

There is no political intrigue with what Trump says and what people around him say.  In 5 weeks in office Trump and his team (and his supporters) have said and done what the mainstream calls “alternative facts.”  Calling every action “Unprecedented” and “Un-Presidential” has become a common phrase for the electronic media.

Conventional or unconventional, Trump is an uncommon politician.  Now people surrounding him are all in the hot seat because of what he says, he does, and probably what he has not shown to the world.  It must be in an alternate universe for them surrounding Trump.

The decision by the republicans not supporting the repeal and replace of Obama Care, demonstrates that not just the opposition, but Republicans also are (at least some of them) are independent and have a responsibility to the people who voted for them.  I am no expert of health care and political decision making, but I am sure politicians do realize that people who sent them to Washington will continue to have the power to weather they go back to Washington in two years.

Democracy and America will always be independent in its thinking and in its policies, and the representatives must listen to the people every two years.