President Obama Takes On Congress…At Last

President Obama has had quite a week. On Friday, he vetoed a bill aimed at repealing Obamacare. In December, 2015, the U S Senate passed the Restoring Americans' Healthcare Freedom Reconciliation Act. The weird and wonderful Congressional rules prevented a filibuster by Senate Democrats against this Bill. The Senate Republicans used a budget reconciliation procedure to force through the legislation, knowing the process barred a filibuster.

After the Bill was passed by both Houses, it would have neutered Obamacare. The President took out his veto stamp and killed it off. When exercising the veto, the President explained his actions in a letter to members of Congress:

"This legislation would not only repeal parts of the Affordable Care Act, but would reverse the significant progress we have made in improving health care in America. Republicans in the Congress have attempted to repeal or undermine the Affordable Care Act over 50 times. Members of Congress should be working together to grow the economy, strengthen middle-class families, and create new jobs.”

The President castigated Republican legislators for seeking to pass an Act which hammered the American middle and working classes whilst protecting the rich. He impliedly accused the Republicans in Congress of playing politics with people’s health. America is a divided nation politically, so no surprise there.

Earlier in the week, the President flexed his Executive Order muscles to wrestle on gun control, another area where America is divided, although not on class grounds. The legislative package includes a requirement for gun sellers, especially those who do business on the Internet and at gun shows, to be licensed, forcing them to conduct background checks on potential buyers. In an emotional message, Mr Obama was clear: “The gun lobby may be holding Congress hostage, but they can’t hold America hostage. We can’t accept this carnage in our communities.”

Significantly, the President is not trying to curb the sale of automatic and semi-automatic weapons, the deadliest of guns available to law-abiding Americans. Instead, Mr Obama’s remarks seem to serve a different purpose. He wants to make sure the fight to curb gun violence continues beyond 2016 when he is no longer in the White House. Remarks this week by Mrs Clinton make it clear she responded to his signal.

I am curious about why the President chose this moment to go on the offensive against a politically hostile Congress, as well as a Supreme Court that has been helpful to the administration on healthcare issues but hopeless on gun control. Next week, Mr Obama will give his final State of the Union message. This televised, set piece occasion, viewed by millions of voters, gives a President not only an opportunity to set out a legislative initiative but also to take on his political opponents publicly. All America’s great and good are present at the State of the Union, seated in the Chamber of the House of Representatives. All federal legislators, the Supreme Court justices, the forces Chiefs of Staff and all the cabinet secretaries (bar one) are present. The exclusion of one cabinet member ensures continuity of government, should the Capitol explode with total loss of life.

I do not know what the President will say in next week’s Address but I have some hopes. I expect the armed forces will be praised to the heights but the Supremes should be made to feel uncomfortable for their decisions favouring business and virtual unrestricted campaign funding. I have little doubt that healthcare and gun control will feature. The Republican legislators are a big, fat target. They would deny affordable healthcare insurance to many of their fellow Americans when members of Congress enjoy the very best of healthcare plans, courtesy of the federal government. A number of the same legislators take the position that armed citizens will reduce gun crime. How does that square with the shooting last week of a Philadelphia policeman attacked in his police car by an armed jihadist, firing his gun at short range?

I suspect the President’s address will encourage the next chief executive to continue the fight on both issues, not only to improve the life choices and opportunities of ordinary, “hard-working” Americans but also to limit the power of the few. Interest groups like the American Medical Association and the National Rifleman’s Association, are currently protected by Supreme Court rulings, allowing them to fund politicians to vote in favour of their interests and, arguably, against the wishes of the majority. May I be permitted to remind them of the dying words of Star Treck’s Mr. Spok: “The needs of the many are outweighed by the needs of the few.”