It appears that the “bounce” Democrats claimed would come their way if they shoved a popularly rejected and monstrously bureaucratic law down the throats of the American people, has had the reverse effect. As I have pointed out here, the polls for the new law—and POTUS—are still going south. And now the great betrayer has announced that he will not run for reelection. From the story:
Rep. Bart Stupak (D-Mich.), who had a central role in the health reform fight as the leader of anti-abortion Democrats, plans to announce Friday that he will not run for reelection, a Democratic official said. Without Stupak on the ballot, the seat becomes an immediate pickup opportunity for Republicans. “Now with health care done, he’s retiring,” a friend said. “He has thought about retiring for the last three cycles, but was always talked into staying: to elect John Kerry to help end the war, to elect a Democratic majority to get health care done.” President Barack Obama called Stupak on Wednesday and asked him not to retire. Stupak, 58, also resisted entreaties from Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Rep. John Dingell (D-Mich.), the dean of the Wolverine State delegation.
Right. Funny, how he never mentioned that this was his last great public service earlier. This is the more likely scenario:
Friends said Stupak was not leaving because of the health fight but because of the exertion that would be required to hold his sprawling Upper Peninsula District. He made the final decision during a conversation with his family while in Indianapolis to root for Michigan State in its Final Four basketball game.
Yes. That makes much more sense. And it shouldn’t be a walk in the park after breaking his repeated and earnest promises to the entire pro life community—and then abandoning them to the point that he opposed his own original language in the final bill. The issue here isn’t abortion, but betrayal and abdication of the principles upon which he ran for election and earned his constituents’ trust.
This bodes well for undoing the worst of Obamacare in the next Congress, if not by law—remember the presidential veto—by defunding. Repeal. Reform. Replace. Defund.
