The stakes are big for Tuesday’s special election. It’s more than just a Senate seat; even more than just whether the Democrats will retain their 60 seat super majority. This vote may determine the future of our health care system, and that really means it will determine the future of our country.
In today’s Wall Street Journal, Kim Strassel details the uphill battle that health care reform—seen by many as inevitable—faces in the House. Speaker Pelosi was barely able to get a majority in November, and since then the polls and Democratic prospects have become more grim. As Strassel writes:
House Dems hadn’t been presented with the mind-blowing sight of a Republican Senate contender running openly against health-care reform—in a state that went 26 points for Mr. Obama—and getting somewhere. “There are a lot of [Democrats] asking the question: There’s a need for health-care reform, but our constituents just don’t want this, and who are we to say they are wrong?” said one Democratic staffer for a member from a more conservative House district.
Indeed, a victory in Massachusetts would send a warning to many Democrats who are weighing whether to tow the party line or to listen to their constituents. There will be a price to pay if they ignore the will of the voters. Let’s hope that after Tuesday, it’s a message that they can’t ignore.