Obamacare was openly debated for a long time, trying to get Republicans on board. Olympia Snowe even voted for it to get out of committee before voting no on the final bill. But when it became clear that no Republicans were on board after exhausting all efforts, last minute deals were made to get 60 votes. Contrast that with the current situation. This bill’s entire process has been a secret. No effort has been made to reach across the aisle. The public hasn’t been told of the details. How is anyone supposed to understand this complex bill when they aren’t given an appropriate amount of time to vet it? It’s crazy to think it’s a good idea to hold a vote on this next week. So, it’s fair to remember just how different the backroom dealings are here (all of them) versus the backroom deals of Obamacare (the final touches after a very public and open debate). It really isn’t a fair comparison to say these processes are similar, because they are nowhere near similar.

I get drafting a bill without input to get a debate started. But to do this for the purpose of not having a debate is horribly wrong, especially for something this significant to the economy.