The Parties have their priorities....
When they gain power, they do their best to pass their "priorities" into law.
The Republicans, behind George W Bush and Dick Cheney, just like Reagan before them, could have passed healthcare for the people. But that wasn't their priority. Their priority was to cut taxes for the wealthy. They cut taxes both under Reagan and Bush.
George W Bush could not get enough votes to make his cuts permanent so they had a 10-year sunset on them. Even then, he had to promise taxcuts for the middle-class in order to get enough Democrats to go along with him. They fought like hell for those taxcuts.
Democrats gained power in 2008, and unlike the Republicans, they had enough votes to pass their priorities without any support from the Republicans. For a brief short time, they were able to garner 60 votes in the Senate and they passed the Affordable Care Act.
So, when the Republicans talk about Democrats shoving "Obamacare" down the throats of the American people, that is exactly what they did with the huge taxcuts that destroyed the Clinton surplus of 2000 and, for ten years, drove us so deeply into debt that we may never get out. Instead of paying off our entire national debt in 10 years as planned, they doubled it. When they talk about debt and deficits, that is their middle name.
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