Harry Reid proudly struts as he declares that he bought off numerous senators with Federal money -- which, we must remember, does not really exist -- for their pet project.  Max Baucus worked in money for people who got sick from working in a Vermiculite mine.  Arlen Specter worked in $100 million for a small hospital in Pennsylvania.  Joe Lieberman was bought off with non-spending, namely, the removal of expansions of Medicare and the "public option."  Other payoffs litter this horrible enactment.

The Senate violated its own rules to keep the bill from being read out in the whole.  This does not even address the numerous Constitutional infirmities in the bill.  For example, the government attempts to regulate the executive salaries, pricing and profits of insurance companies, even if those companies do not receive any federal money.  This seems to be a flagrant Constitutional violation -- a bill of attainder.  Oddly enough, the lefties established a precedent that the Congress cannot regulate private actors when ACORN won a restraining order to force the government to keep doing business with it, after Congress voted to kill funding to the group amid numerous reported incidents of alleged criminal conduct and voter fraud.  The Congress’ attempts to impoverish insurance executives are fore egregious than the ACORN actions, which the government is fighting in court to effectuate the will of the Congress.

This back-room deal will likely be voted upon before Christmas, in the most horrible "present" the country could ever give its fine citizens.  The Congress is acting in the spirit of Benedict Arnold.   After the Senate ratifies its version, the normal process is "conference", where House and Senate leaders meet to hack out the differences between bills.  Both Mr. Lieberman and Mr. Nelson promise to vote against a bill that has any change to the Senate bill; two different factions in the House pledge to either (i) Reinstate Medicare expansion and the "public option"; or (ii) add in the "Stupak" abortion language.  The first will alienate at least six "moderate" Democrats in the Senate; the second will alienate at least three leftists in the Senate.  The Heritage Foundation sees the House simply relenting and voting for the unaltered Senate plan; but can Bart Stupak drag along five or six votes to bring about defeat in the House?  We can only pray.

Nobody wants this nonsense "reform" bill.  We can’t afford it.  It’s morally wrong, because it is only more government control, and all government control or regulation beyond the minimum necessary to retain civil society is evil.  It will destroy the economy. NOBODY WANTS THIS BILL!