Democrats Voted for ObamaCare – Now Face Constituents
Democracy and Power 112: Fidelity to Leadership
To be elected, a politician must please their constituents. However, to be a powerful legislative force, a politician must be an obedient member of a party – Democrat or Republican. Since most constituents are busy making a living, raising families and focused on immediate community concerns, loyalty to the party most often prevails.
A professional politician is a professionally dishonorable man. In order to get anywhere near high office has to make so many compromises and submit to so many humiliations that he becomes indistinguishable from a streetwalker. —H.L. Mencken
Democrats Voted for ObamaCare – Now Face Constituents
Is a politician loyal to their constituents or to their political party? This is the dilemma of many Democrats. In 2010, in order to please the Democratic Party, loyal members of Congress voted for ObamaCare. Six months later, many of the Democrats who voted for Obamacare lost their re-election. President Obama called the election a “shellacking.” {Read: Pelosi and Power]
Today, Democratic Senators who obediently voted, as directed by Obama, Reid and Pelosi, fear the wrath of their constituents. Senator Max Baucus, a major player in creating ObamaCare, has decided not to allow his Montana constituents to judge his true-blue support of ObamaCare by not seeking re-election in 2014. Baucus jumped from what he called a “huge train wreck.”
In a recent meeting, Democratic Senators voiced their concerns to Obama’s Chief of Staff. Senator Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, for example, complained, “We are hearing from a lot of small businesses in New Hampshire that do not know how to comply with the law.” Harmfully, workers will receive less hours of work and less pay because of ObamaCare’s mandates.
Again, Senator Shaheen mentioned “restaurants that employ people for about 30 hours a week are trying to figure out whether it would be in their interest to reduce the hours.”
A politician’s dilemma – constituents or political party: To be a powerful legislator, a politician must be a loyal member of a political party, which involves cooperation, compromise, and submission to the party leaders. Thus, when Obama, Reid, and Pelosi demanded Democrats vote for ObamaCare, many members of Congress followed the dictates of their party leaders and ignored the interests of their constituents. ObamaCare became law because the powerful elites of the Democratic Party demanded loyalty and fidelity of their fellow politicians.
Harmfully, politicians – Democrats and Republicans – invariably are loyal to the demands of their party leaders over the interests of their constituents. Most often, constituents are unaware of a politician’s vote. ObamaCare, however, is different. ObamaCare will impact every American and many Democrats, who voted in favor of ObamaCare, now fear their constituents.
Many years ago, long before Obama, Reid and Pelosi became political elites, H.L. Mencken recognized the underlying corruption of politicians by political parties:
A professional politician is a professionally dishonorable man. In order to get anywhere near high office has to make so many compromises and submit to so many humiliations that he becomes indistinguishable from a streetwalker.
Relevant video: Baucus and the abuse power by the political parties. Of course, he accused Republicans of being controlled by their power elites. (Be warned, Baucus’ speech is rather incoherent and very revealing.)
Read more on majority controls: Democracy and Power 109: The Legislature – Majority Controls
