Strangely, some on the left have reached the crazy conclusion that blue-Massachusetts elected a center-right candidate because Congress has not gone far enough left. If the administration buys 'move-left' drive, they may very well drive voters to vote for the GOP out of sheer reactionary anger. Those reaching this conclusion are calling for health care reform to pass through reconciliation, whereby the bill would be passed only on budgetary issues. Such a process would eliminate many of the current special arrangements in the bill, but arguments are being made to re-insert a public option, under the assumption that it could be massaged to (at least in the short term) be fiscally neutral under CBO assessment.
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Where does the GOP go from here? Elections over the last four years have repeatedly demonstrated that the voters do not want the extremes from either side. The majority of the country has been for some time, and looks likely to remain, center-right. This can play against both parties, where the tendency is to move to the extremes. Brown campaigned (and his voting record as a state senator bears this out) as a center-right candidate. He effectively captured voter anger over the economy, security issues and the health care reform proposals. He has never suggested that health care reform should be abandoned, but rather that Congress and the administration are going about it the wrong way. The GOP needs to do more than just say no to the left, it needs to formulate successful, well-thought out, counter proposals. If considered, detailed proposals are put up for debate by the public, we will have a much better chance of effectively moving policy, and of gaining seats in November.
