Campaigning in Virginia yesterday, Mitt Romney got a little cocky when talking about the pending Supreme Court decision on health care reform. “My guess is they’re not sleeping real well at the White House tonight,” he said.
For Romney, that’s apparently what today is all about: politics. What matters is who gets to brag, who’s in a better position to spin the outcome, who gains or loses an electoral advantage.
But you know who else probably wasn’t sleeping well last night? The mother with a child who has leukemia. The recent college grad who’s unemployed and thinking about making a doctor’s appointment. The grandfather who isn’t sure if he’ll be able to afford the prescription medication he needs. The middle-class family who isn’t sure if they’ll be able to keep their home if their medical bills broach the lifetime cap “Obamacare” eliminated. What would Romney and his bravado do for each of them? Nothing.
Of course, he used to know better.
American Bridge 21st Century uncovered this video, showing Romney at a press conference touting the individual health care mandate he now pretends to oppose.
For those who can’t watch clips online, here’s what the then-governor said in 2006: “With regards to the mandate, the individual responsibility program which I proposed, I was very pleased to see that the compromise from the two houses includes the personal responsibility principle. That is essential for bringing health care costs down for everyone and getting everybody the health insurance they deserve and need.” A year later, in 2007, Romney added that he hoped for “a nation that’s taken a mandate approach.” Five years later, I still can’t say exactly why Romney hates the Affordable Care Act so much. It appears to have something to do with the polls that tell him what to say, think, and believe.
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