Bad at Math

On August 11, 2011 the Republican candidates for President, eight at the time, met in Iowa for one of the early debates.  Notable in that debate was a question given to all eight to be answered by the simple raising of hands. 

The question was: with Democrats insisting on tax increases to go along with any spending cuts, would you (candidates) “walk away from a 10 to 1 deal”, ten dollars in spending cuts for every one dollar of tax increases.  They all raised their hands without question or qualification.  A Politburo couldn’t want for a better response.

Jon Huntsman, arguably the most moderate candidate in race that year, would much later lament that the choice to raise his hand was the major mistake of his brief campaign.  But why should he regret his choice? It was Republican solidarity, right? Moreover, why should he consider it a mistake?

Huntsman insists his response was a knee-jerk salute to the Republican mantra of “no taxes”, consistent with Republican mania in the era of Tea-Party politics.  He felt it was not a reflection of him, what he would do, and therefore something less than honest.

The fact that the group response was ridiculous on its face didn’t seem to be part of his regret.  It should have.  He, along with any other candidate, had been given a unique opportunity.  He had the chance to separate himself from the crowd on a point which would have made the rest of the field look like lemmings. 

I say that because it would have taken just one candidate to provide contrast and make the question stand out as absurd.  He could have simply pointed to the rest of them and said ‘these people are nuts…I’m running to govern’ and he would have been off to the races…literally.

Now the Republicans are doing it again, at least by their individual responses.  I suspect we may have a similar moment in their first debate as well.

This week the Supreme Court threw out the last challenge to the Affordable Health Care Act (AHCA) on the grounds that a single uncorrected line couldn’t change the obvious intent of the law. There is nothing left to prevent the AHCA from continuing,  barring a Republican President, a super Republican majority in the Senate, a Republican majority in the House, and probably a Scalia led decision in the Supreme Court.

Before those stars line up, the AHCA will be part of the American fabric, unable to be removed without causing an ugly tear in our social structure.  The same was true for those dreaded Democrat boogie-plans of Social Security and Medicare. So how is the Republican leadership reacting to this latest reality check?

Aside from imitating the act of puking, they have all (all that were reported) essentially called for a redoubling of efforts to have the AHCA repealed.  After “repealed”, they often include the words “and replaced”, but in a much, much smaller font size.

How can they not see that the reality of the situation? How can they not do the math?  Isn’t there a smart one in the bunch?  One of them who might break away and say ‘…it’s law; I’m going to work with what’s there and make it better’. 

Sure, he/she would probably lose the semi-lunatic fringe, but those tea-cozies would have to be divided up by the rest. However, he/she would be out of the chorus line and under the spotlight.  A spotlight viewed favorably by an expanding majority of Americans.

In an early debate this year I can almost expect the question: ‘If you as President could repeal Obamacare would you do it? Just raise your hands’. It is more likely than not that they would all go up.  They won’t be able to perceive that it is a 10 for 1 question.  They will again be so blindly stupid not to see that the need for healthcare is no less required than the need for taxes in a functioning society. 

Maybe Chris Christie, who is both savvy and desperate, will dance to apron of the stage.  However, will we see an actual contender take that brass ring on the carousel?  Not likely.  They’re simply no good at math… just good at going ‘round and ‘round.