Obama: ‘You have to legislate using common sense’

United States President Barack H. Obama

Never before the traditional presidential speech “State of the Union” –that was addressed  before a full United States Congress-  did generate as many expectations as the one of President Barack Obama last Wednesday , when he reported for his first year as head of the White House. I have not seen the ratings, but I’d bet that even Hillary Clinton herself, from London, did listen to it.

Of course the euphoria of the congressional Democrats contrasted with the apathy and the long faces of the Republicans, who have not left Obama govern the way he want to, and who this year will make a even stronger opposition to the Democratic policies,  as they face their political future in the next November´s midterm elections

So the president speech was direct, precise and very blunt about government priorities and the need to govern for the people, for the middle class, which has been experiencing the hardest hit due to the terrible crisis that we still live in the Great Union.  And his speech was nor made to satisfy  Wall Street and the four lobbyists of always, the owners of big oil multinationals and the big pharmaceutical companies of this  country, always struggling to avoid taxes and achieve better contracts.

 In his  “State of the Unions” speech,  Obama made an appeal to Republicans and Democrats to urge them to legislate and put their political  interests in a secondary position , putting ahead the interests and need  of tens of millions of Americans saturated with their debt and problems.

 The best of his speech came when he inferred to both Republicans and Democrats, using  a jocular tone, to legislate using  ’common sense’.

 It was there when he hit home, by using the words ‘Common sense’.

 Because without using common sense  the only thing that will happen in the U.S. Congress will be  a big headache for all of them and heated discussions that will lead to nothing and then the major reforms of health and immigration will remain a dream for the less privileged in this country. Not to be negative but the two issues are rather complicated to pass.

I wonder why a tourist that has an accident in Spain or Italy or in the most of the European countries  is treated like a citizen, without having to file a social security card or health insurance? And best of all is that medical services are free.
Should not be the same here , in this country, being the one and only super power in the world ? Sure, it should be like in Europe. But lawmakers legislate just for them and their lobbyist friends. It is there where the changes should occur.  

Ivan Gerardo Cruz - Contributor of Bloggers of The Americas

It is difficult to understand, that  in the 21st century more than 10 million children of this great Union are without access to health coverage, and still 12 million immigrants, most  of them with American children  - and who have no criminal records-  must continue living in the dark due to the political struggle  of the same U.S. parliamentarians.

The only “crime” of these immigrants is that they work too hard , also in order to support their families in their home countries, and everyone knows that.  But the political struggle over both sides of Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington DC is now to avoid encouraging twelve  million people who work ten times harder than any American.
Health, even before education, should be a full right for all people in the United States and should even be for free as in many European countries.  If there is enough budget to fund two or three wars in the world, why not fund a free health program for the most needy?

During his speech, Barack Obama asked Congress if anyone had a better idea to make a more comprehensive health reform that will convince all Republicans and Democrats.

It’s amazing that there is no consensus.

I bet  that this health reform could have passed the Colombian Congress by now, in spite of all its bureaucracy, patronage and lobbyists.  Maybe I dare to submit a project to President Obama, or even easier, we could send a fax to the U.S.Congress with all information on the European health model, which apparently works quite well.

Hopefully the Republicans and conservative Democrats will react and become more aware of the needs of the people, and put those needs above their narrow personal interests.

It is about time that Washington DC governs for the three hundred million Americans and not for a bunch of lobbyists and a handful of billionaires. Please, use common sense.

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Posted by admin on 2010 Feb 08 Filed under Health, NORTH AMERICA, POLITICS, US. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry