Ted Kennedy & Barack Obama

By now, everybody should know the results of the Massachusetts special election, which is being held to replace former Senator Edward “Teddy” Kennedy (at the time of writing polls had not yet closed).  The plot and twists of this saga are worthy of the bard himself, or perhaps some tragic opera.

For my generation, and probably others, nobody embodied the “New Deal” philosophy better than Mr. Kennedy.  For those of us who did not ascribe to this philosophy, this is not a complement.  Nothing against Mr. Kennedy personally, but he was never able to capture the nation’s imagination like his brothers.  Each Kennedy seemed to get progressively more liberal, and Teddy never seemed to have the right stuff.  Perhaps it was because of the unfortunate “Chappaquiddick incident,” or maybe he lacked the Kennedy charisma, or, perhaps, his views were just too extreme for the nation.

 

When you think back on the major actors during 60 years of the Democrats trying to establish “socialized medicine,” you think of Teddy.  It was Teddy’s number one issue, which was probably what made him the Republican’s number one fundraiser.  A post he held throughout the 70’s and 80’s until he finally relinquished it to Hillary, who subsequently handed it over to President Obama.   As such, the President seems determined to hold onto the standard, he has clearly staked his reputation and possibly his Presidency on the issue.

At the same time, Massachusetts, too, has been considered the most liberal state in the union.  As the papers have pointed out, this is a state that has not elected a Republican senator since 1972.  Massachusetts is proud to have universal healthcare and gay marriage, it continues to elect Barney Frank, and is the home of Michael Dukakis.  And now, on the eve of President Obama’s healthcare victory, it is Massachusetts that may pull the football away from “Charley Brown” by electing a fellow named Scott Brown.

What historic irony!

Even if Mr. Brown’s opponent Martha Coakley wins (thereby maintaining a cloture-proof 60 vote majority), the Democrat’s bills have been seriously weakened.  How will Olympia Snowe and the Blue Dog Democrats view this election?  It seems destined to keep them up at night, regardless of who wins.  So hold on, the last act of this play has not yet been writen. 

Democrats just don’t seem to understand that America is not comfortable with government run healthcare.  At the same time, Republicans should take note of this latest brush with the afore-mentioned socialism.  It has been grueling, and it’s not over yet.  With healthcare costs now taking up 17% of GDP the country seems to want some kind of reform.  Looking forward, the aging population makes such reform all the more necessary.