Little noticed at the end of an unproductive state legislative session was a symbolic drawing of a line in the sand on health care by Assembly Republicans. It deserves more attention, if for no other reason to point out the absurd, cynical and closed-minded nature of the proposal.
On Wednesday, the last day of any meaningful "work" put in during a session in which lawmakers looked more like Keystone Cops than public servants, the Republican-controlled Assembly voted on a proposed constitutional amendment. That amendment would prohibit any law requiring people to participate in a state-sponsored health plan. It passed by a 52-45 partisan vote.
Assembly Republicans cannot possibly believe any such amendment will become part of the state's constitution. It twice would have to pass both the Assembly and the Senate - which is controlled by Democrats - before going to a vote of the people. And at least a couple of polls taken last year showed a slim majority of Wisconsin residents favored universal health care as a means to increase insurance coverage and decrease costs.
No, Republicans likely approved the constitutional amendment proposal because they know it will never be submitted to the electorate for consideration. They did so because it sends a strong, symbolic message of opposition to the Healthy Wisconsin plan resubmitted last week by Sen. Jon Erpenbach, D-Waunakee, and other Democrats.
Forget about the fact that constitutional amendments should be reserved for protecting people's individual rights and freedoms, not for making political policy statements. Assembly Republicans with their vote essentially said they're not interested in listening to facts and opinions about universal health care, or about participating in a public debate about its merits and drawbacks. That is significant and should not go unnoticed.
Everyone agrees that health care reform is necessary in Wisconsin, as it is nationwide. Health care costs are rising at a much greater rate than incomes for individuals, and at a much faster pace than revenues for public institutions. Insurance costs are negatively impacting everything from people's individual budgets to school districts to businesses. Lawmakers know that. They vow to fix the problem every time they run for office.
And then, when they have an opportunity to debate, discuss and make real progress, lawmakers from both parties run to their partisan positions and stay there, unwilling to even entertain differing thoughts. Democrats do it, too, whenever Republicans begin talking about health savings accounts and tax breaks to address the problem.
With their constitutional amendment proposal this week, Assembly Republicans were just a little more blatant about their unwillingness to serve all constituents by participating in honest debate about all potential health care solutions.
Hopefully, the people will pay attention.
On Wednesday, the last day of any meaningful "work" put in during a session in which lawmakers looked more like Keystone Cops than public servants, the Republican-controlled Assembly voted on a proposed constitutional amendment. That amendment would prohibit any law requiring people to participate in a state-sponsored health plan. It passed by a 52-45 partisan vote.
Assembly Republicans cannot possibly believe any such amendment will become part of the state's constitution. It twice would have to pass both the Assembly and the Senate - which is controlled by Democrats - before going to a vote of the people. And at least a couple of polls taken last year showed a slim majority of Wisconsin residents favored universal health care as a means to increase insurance coverage and decrease costs.
No, Republicans likely approved the constitutional amendment proposal because they know it will never be submitted to the electorate for consideration. They did so because it sends a strong, symbolic message of opposition to the Healthy Wisconsin plan resubmitted last week by Sen. Jon Erpenbach, D-Waunakee, and other Democrats.
Forget about the fact that constitutional amendments should be reserved for protecting people's individual rights and freedoms, not for making political policy statements. Assembly Republicans with their vote essentially said they're not interested in listening to facts and opinions about universal health care, or about participating in a public debate about its merits and drawbacks. That is significant and should not go unnoticed.
Everyone agrees that health care reform is necessary in Wisconsin, as it is nationwide. Health care costs are rising at a much greater rate than incomes for individuals, and at a much faster pace than revenues for public institutions. Insurance costs are negatively impacting everything from people's individual budgets to school districts to businesses. Lawmakers know that. They vow to fix the problem every time they run for office.
And then, when they have an opportunity to debate, discuss and make real progress, lawmakers from both parties run to their partisan positions and stay there, unwilling to even entertain differing thoughts. Democrats do it, too, whenever Republicans begin talking about health savings accounts and tax breaks to address the problem.
With their constitutional amendment proposal this week, Assembly Republicans were just a little more blatant about their unwillingness to serve all constituents by participating in honest debate about all potential health care solutions.
Hopefully, the people will pay attention.
