Good Reads

My favorite columnist, TMQ's Gregg Easterbrook, writes about health care reform in this week's column. Check it out! Here's a sample:

I don't really understand what's in the congressional health care plan at the moment -- and since it changes daily, I bet most members of the House and Senate don't really understand either. Health care is only the single largest segment of the U.S. economy, so surely there is no risk in passing a 1,000-page health care bill no one understands!

Meanwhile, William Galston identifies the central paradox of the moment:

On the one hand, survey after survey testifies to the rock-bottom standing of the Republican Party. Fewer Americans identify with the party than in the past, and fewer trust it to deal with the country's problems. On the other hand, there are hard-to-ignore signs of a conservative resurgence. A 15,000 person Gallup survey out today shows that 40 percent of Americans now identify themselves as conservative (up from 37 percent at the time of Obama's election), while only 20 percent regard themselves as liberal (down from 22 percent). Far more independents (35 percent) consider themselves conservative than was the case a year ago (only 29 percent).

Galston notes that this shift toward conservatism is also apparent when you look at specific issues such as the right to life, gun rights, and global warming.

"The Clinton administration (in which I served) was derailed by the results of its first midterm election," Galston concludes, "and it took Democrats a decade to recover. While there are reasons to believe that Republicans won't do as well this time, Democratic leaders should take seriously the possibility of a significant electoral reverse and act strategically to make it less likely." Something tells me that's not likely to happen.