First Edition: September 16, 2010

Today's headlines track recent political positioning related to the health reform bill.

KHN Column: GOP 'Repeal And Replace' Strategy Lacks Merit
In his latest Kaiser Health News column, done in collaboration with The New Republic, Jonathan Cohn writes: "It will force a lot of people to pay higher premiums. It will lavish subsidies on the private insurance industry. It will put life-and-death decisions in the hands of bureaucrats. And it will add hundreds of billions of dollars to the federal debt" (Kaiser Health News).

Voters Divided; Leaders Needed
A recent Allstate/National Journal poll gave people three options, and got similar results. The choices: Government should cut taxes, as well as reduce spending and regulation, even if that means a bigger budget deficit (39%). Government should increase spending on infrastructure, education, research and the like even if that means a bigger deficit (33%). Government should reduce the deficit even if that means higher taxes and cutting spending on programs like Medicare and education (20%). No wonder certainty, the rallying cry of American business executives these days, is so elusive (The Wall Street Journal).

Rep. Taylor Becomes First Dem To Back Repealing Health Reform
A Democratic lawmaker signed onto a Republican petition to repeal healthcare reform.Rep. Gene Taylor (D-Miss.) signed onto a discharge petition drafted by Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa), Taylor's office confirmed. His office would not offer any additional comment (The Hill's Blog Briefing Room). 

Mississippi Rep. Gene Taylor Signs Health Care Repeal Petition
Mississippi Rep. Gene Taylor became the first Democrat to sign a petition to repeal his party's health care overhaul legislation. The Blue Dog Democrat, who frequently bucks his party's leadership, signed the petition Wednesday, his office said (Politico). 

Democrats Spend On Anti-Health Reform Advertisements
Democratic candidates are spending three times more advertising against the health reform law than they are in support of it (Politico).

Fear Of GOP Takeover Forces Unions To Back Dems Critical Of Health
Fears that John Boehner will become the next Speaker of the House have prompted unions to rethink their opposition to Democrats who voted against the healthcare reform bill earlier this year (The Hill's Ballot Box Blog).

Limbaugh Taken In: The Judge Was Not Loaded For Bear
Anyone listening to Rush Limbaugh's radio show Tuesday could be forgiven for thinking that Judge Roger Vinson has the federal government dead in his sights. Mr. Limbaugh spent some time profiling Judge Vinson, a senior judge on the Federal District Court in Pensacola, who had just announced he would allow a legal challenge to the new health care law to advance to a full hearing. … But, in fact, Judge Vinson has never shot anything other than a water moccasin (last Saturday, at his weekend cabin), is not a taxidermist and, as president of the American Camellia Society, is far more familiar with Camellia reticulata than with Ursus arctos (The New York Times).