Gingrich: Republicans have 'zero' health care ideas

Posted by
CNN Political Reporter Peter Hamby
Boston (CNN) – Former House Speaker and presidential candidate Newt Gingrich reprimanded his fellow Republicans in unusually harsh terms Wednesday, blaming GOP members of Congress for developing "zero" alternatives to President Obama's health care reform law.

Gingrich, who was speaking at the opening session of the Republican National Committee's summer meeting, fielded a question about "Obamacare" and recalled that Republicans were able to block Bill Clinton's health care reform effort in 1994 because they had "a positive alternative approach" to health care.

But Republicans today have nothing comparable to offer, Gingrich told nearly the 200 state party chairs, operatives and activists gathered in Boston for the conference.

"I will bet you, for most of you, you go home in the next two weeks when your members of Congress are home, and you look them in the eye and you say, 'What is your positive replacement for Obamacare?' They will have zero answer," Gingrich said.

Gingrich blamed the problem on Republican culture that rewards obstruction and negativity instead of innovation and "being positive."

"We are caught up right now in a culture, and you see it every single day, where as long as we are negative and as long as we are vicious and as long as we can tear down our opponent, we don't have to learn anything," Gingrich said, acknowledging the "totally candid" nature of his remarks. "We have to do the homework."

"This is a very deep problem," said Gingrich, who was recently named one of the hosts of CNN's political talk show "Crossfire."

Gingrich's remarks were pegged to his forthcoming book "Breakout," which calls on Republicans to embrace new technologies and policies in an effort to become a party of the future.

President Obama also accused Republicans of having no health care plan during a White House press conference last week, a claim that was met with disdain by House Republican leaders who circulated a series of health care ideas to reporters after the president's remarks.

A number of prominent conservatives in the House and Senate are pushing to shut down the federal government in a bid to de-fund the president's health care law when Congress takes up a government spending measure in late September.

Asked if he agreed with Gingrich's arguments, RNC Chairman Reince Priebus said "not completely." He pointed to a number of piecemeal health care proposals available on the web sites of House Republican leaders.

Priebus said he supports repealing or de-funding Obamacare, but pressed on whether he would support a government shutdown to accomplish those goals, Priebus said he did not want to debate tactics.

The Newt is basically correct. The Republican plan for health care is put it back the way it was.

The Democrat plan was to produce a train wreck that would need constant tinkering until it was abundantly clear that we need a single payer system that keeps healthcare costs down through rationing of care.

Palin was right!

She can see Putins dreamy eyes from her front porch?

You have to appreciate the irony of the Medicare dependent senior citizens who voted for Obama being among the first to be thrown under the bus when healthcare rationing kicks in.

Reminds me of a story about a bunch of lemmings and a cliff.

As much as I think Palin is a ding bat, show me where she ever said that she could see Russia from her front porch. That was a Tina Fey line on Saturday Night, yet there are tons of "enlightened" morons that actually believe Palin said it.

Newt is basically correct. and I believe Palin said from her back yard.

I didn't know Newt ever left. Crazy that is.

Dave (A.K.A. Homebrew)

Sorry, Frank, but the actual quote was "You can actually see Russia from land here in Alaska", which is absolutely true.

Oh, and for Victor, I Snoped it.

http://www.snopes.com/politics/palin/seealaska.asp 

OK, I'll buy that. But do you recall what she was struggling to demonstrate? It wasn't her mastery of geography.

Ah, ya know what? Who even cares anymore? She's gone.

details...details....

Thank you DP...
that one actually got me too. I always attributed it to her.

And people say snopes is a liberal agenda.

They're usually busy with bigfoot and maggot infested vijayjay stories.....but these bastions of truth so hit some nice lefty points now and then.

I hears WND is gonna do a story on forehead spider bites for liberal street cred.

She was "struggling" to demonstrate her ability to interact with foreign leaders.

Which she does have to interact with foreign leaders as the waters right off the coast of Alaska is shared with Russia and Canada, as well as commerce in her state overland has to come through Canada.

And Russia, at it closest point, is only a few miles away in the northern part of the state.

And by the way, the Federal government often times does not negotiate those types agreements. It is usually relegated to the state government.

She was also struggling to try and support Mr. Maverick's two-faced agenda, which was probably all around tougher as it requires sucking-up to a base that McCain had already taken a sizable dump on in several Republican primaries. But we'll ignore that fact for now.

New has two problems.

The first is that he is correct - the Republicans have no alternative to Idi Amin Jr.'s Health Care services. And thank God for that.

The second is that he is a permanent fixture in a wholly corrupt political strata who poorly pretends to a) be an intellectual, and b) to show concern for average individuals, c) maintain a conservative political face.

The fact is he is a career political which puts him on par with Harry Reid, Ted Bundy, rattlesnakes, and other cold-blooded types.