Belittling the voters— now that’s stupid
An obscure, self-promoting economist at an elite East Coast university is having his 15 minutes in the spotlight— and finding that, outside the oh-sosmart and sophisticated left-wing precincts, mocking American voters as stupid is, well, just plain stupid.
You might not have heard of Jonathan Gruber of MIT, but you’re going to. Several videos have surfaced with him saying the concept behind Obamacare was so unpopular that “a lack of transparency” in writing the law was a “huge political advantage” in getting it passed. As was, he said, “the stupidity of the American voter.”
Gruber is an acknowledged expert on health-care law and played a role in the creation of the Affordable Care Act. Not that you would know it from the way Democrats are scrambling to put as much distance as possible between themselves and Gruber.
Nancy Pelosi, who as House Speaker in 2009-10 guided Obamacare through Congress, said that she didn’t “know who he is.” Oops, a video then surfaced with her touting his analysis of the legislation, as did a posting on her web site.
And Majority Leader Harry Reid, who ushered Obamacare through the Senate, is on record as calling Gruber “one of the most respected economists in the world.”
In 2012, a New York Times article about Gruber’s influence on Obamacare said, “It is his research that convinced the Obama administration that health care reform could not work without requiring everyone to buy insurance.” In a follow-up posting on a Times’ blog titled “Further reading on Mr. Mandate,” the author of the article said Gruber “helped design the Affordable Care Act.”
Then there’s the matter of the $400,000 Gruber was paid to advise the government on Obamacare.
So he is a big deal, albeit a behind-the-scenes one. Which provides a fig leaf to maybe explain why the mainstream media haven’t, as of this writing, reported much about Gruber. Some might say liberal bias and fealty to
Gruber pulled back the curtain veiling liberalism’s real arrogance.
Obama also play a role.
But theWeb is ablaze with postings about him. Republicans aren’t going to let his role disappear. With the GOP controlling the Senate next year, the professor may find himself testifying before committees.
Unfortunately for him, other Gruber videos exist that may end up in arguments before the U.S. Supreme Court in a challenge to Obamacare. He is on record saying that certain subsidies the government now provides for insurance coverage were deliberately kept out of the law to encourage states to set up insurance exchanges. Most states didn’t create exchanges, meaning millions of Americans stand to lose their subsidies if the challenge succeeds.
Gruber’s remarks are incendi- ary not just for tearing away the rhetorical and parliamentary camouflage Democrats used as they passed a law that has consistently been found to be unpopular with Americans.
His the-voters-are-stupid view reveals the basic attitude of liberalism. The left wing believes Americans are a bunch of yahoos who don’t know what’s best for them. It’s a stance that explains the liberal view of the Constitution as a “living document.” Never mind what the Founders wrote, the Constitution means what leftwing elites say it means. Gruber’s attitude reflects the impatience of liberals with our institutions and the separation of powers, as in President Barack Obama’s claim that he can’t wait for Congress to act, so he will change the country’s immigration laws through “executive action.”
Gruber pulled back the curtain veiling liberalism’s regal arrogance.