Thoughts on Congress moving forward post health care reform

There is no denying that the historic piece of health care reform legislation passed by the House of Representatives Sunday evening will leave lasting memories in the minds of most Americans. Deep rooted ideological differences, legal maneuvering, political posturing, and the messy nature of the bill passing process were brought to the forefront. At the same time, it’s quite possible that our system worked exactly as it was intended. When faced with a complex paradigm like the health of our citizens, both chambers of Congress exhausted the plentiful arguments of both sides, triggering a tidal wave of opinion across the entire country.

In the third way tradition of FDR and Clinton, President Obama let the arguments of both sides reach a collective boil, taking into account the best ideas of both sides, incorporating over 200 amendments from the minority party, and directing the bill towards the center of the political spectrum. The fringes of each side, tending to be the loudest of the American citizenry, put pressure on Congress and the President to appease both more radical forms of change by the left and putting a halt to the process altogether by the right. The winners in the end would be those with pre-existing conditions, the uninsured, the middle class, and the millions who overpay for insurance that doesn’t always serve its purpose of delivering a quality deal for the sickest Americans.

It was common knowledge that no one bill could appease all sides of such a personal debate, with the costs so high for both parties, there was no question that this would be an ugly process. The protests took a negative turn, but civil minds prevailed, therefore the question now shifts to moving forward to solve the other pressing issues facing us. Largely overlooked throughout the health care debate were bi-partisan bills which passed to get people back to work, such as the HIRE Act. Immigration reform, environmental and energy policies, and a host of other potentially divisive issues will soon take hold of the conversation, but we can rest assured that despite our differences there can still be meaningful policy made by our government.

It may be true that in politics nothing is simple, there are always going to be opposing viewpoints, but when civility, common sense, and healthy debate are allowed to take the stage, the result is often a legislative product that will benefit the whole of our society, not just the loudest, richest, or the most powerful amongst us. The promising result of a century long debate gives us good reason to be optimistic for the future of our country, and a chance to realize and appreciate the power of uniting our ideas beyond simplistic, and often divisive political theatre.