The best example of the core proposition that "elections Matter" is the matter of the potential appeal to the Supreme Court by the Indiana state pension funds of the federal government's Chrysler bankruptcy plans. As I have written in earlier Blogs that I considered that the allocation of equity to the unions was an unconscionable "unlawful taking" from the secured creditors. The core legal foundation of our system is the protection of property rights, and this plan, in addition to that of the GM case, is the epitome of a violation of those rights. The brutal, and I think unlawful, bullying by the federal government of the secured creditors needs to be stopped.
It is ironic that a state pension fund, and Treasurer, have pursued this case, not the "private sector" creditors who have taken the "easy way out." Further, it is very clear that there is probably a low probability that this case will be heard by the Supreme Court, since the judge taking the referral from the appeals court is Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. I am afraid Ii do not see much chance that she will intervene, given her more than modest "labor" view of the world. Elections matter, this judge represents the model view that we can expect to be followed by our current President. This justice probably makes Judge Sotomayor look conservative.
Stomping on the Ants
46 Million Uninsured out of 307 Million. That is 15% of the population. When you narrow down the data by eliminating those who could have insurance if chose to take what they are eligible for, the number is more like 11 million. Now we are down to about 4%. I do not know when we can say that wed are focusing on a small problem, but 4 & seems close to my threshold. Between being eligible for existing Federal programs or deciding not to take insurance because you are young and healthy, the majority of the uninsured already have options. Hence, I contend that we need to stop trying to stomp on the ants, and we need to focus on the total cost of an expanded universal health insurance that looks like Medicaid and Medicare. These plans are bankrupt, and that is what will happen to universal health care. The President needs to worry about the financial well being of existing programs before we expand to cover 4 % of the population.