By: Jermel W. Shim - April 2, 2014
In 2010, President Obama signed the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) into law and accomplished what many presidents before failed to do. Subsequent to concerns raised by the GOP about the constitutionality of Obamacare, the Supreme Court reviewed the case in 2012 and voted 4 to 3 to uphold the law. Despite this, the Republican Party launched a relentless effort to repeal this law.
After the president won his second term in 2012, one would expect the Republicans to give up their effort to repeal Obamacare. Instead, they became more motivated in their effort to repeal this law. When the rollout of the Obamacare website did not get off to a good start, the GOP reacted as if they had found the Achilles heel to Obamacare. However, the GOP was dealt a serious blow when the website glitches were corrected and the enrollment began to pick up.
The bad news for the GOP is that the enrollment of 7.1 million after the March 31st deadline makes it a little harder for them to try to repeal the law. Don't expect them to throw in the towel though because they are going to continue uttering their favorite mantra, "We will repeal Obamacare." This is because repealing Obamacare is just the launching pad for their real mission - destroying the legacy of the president.
Remember when Senator Mitch McConnell said that his priority was to make sure that this president is a one-term president? That was part of the blueprint to destroy the legacy of President Obama. Repealing Obamacare, the president's signature accomplishment is a way to make sure his presidency is just a footnote in presidential history.
The GOP's diabolical plan to destroy the legacy of President Obama is a three-phase plan, Plan A is to retain control of the House and win the Senate in the 2014 midterm election in November, Plan B involves impeaching the president, and Plan C installing a Republican president in 2016.
Plan A includes three elements:
• Introducing an alternate plan to Obamacare
• Retaining control of the House of Representatives
• Winning the Senate
With respect to Plan A, look for the GOP to release their alternate health care plan to Obamacare. They will do this in advance of the mid-term elections in November so that they can campaign on it. Expect them to make statements or claims that their plan is better than Obamacare. Don't expect this plan to be different because it will have the same features as Obamacare. It will be Mitt Romney's health care plan that he implemented when he was governor of Massachusetts.
The GOP knows very well that even if they accomplish Plan A, they still will not be able to repeal Obamacare. Under Plan A, the GOP Congress will vote to approve repealing Obamacare. However, once it gets to the president's desk, he will veto it. The GOP expects this, but they know it will set the stage to implement Plan B.
Plan B is contingent on the GOP successfully achieving the goals of Plan A. Members of the Tea Party has already leaked out the plan to impeach the president as they have repeatedly use the 'I' word in their speeches. They are not doing this as a joke but rather as an undisciplined group who cannot hide their true intentions. The Impeachment Articles that the GOP brings against the president will be that he has violated the constitution and abused his executive authority by acting against the will of Congress.
Yes, the GOP's call for the impeachment of President Obama is bizarre, irrational, and lacks political wisdom. However, in the bizarre world of GOP politics, impeachment proceedings would not be ludicrous or irrational. Articles of Impeachment fall into three general categories:
• Exceeding the constitutional bounds of the powers of the office
• Behavior grossly incompatible with the proper function and purpose of the office
• Employing the power of the office for an improper purpose or for personal gain
A Republican House Judicial Committee would have no problem deciding whether to proceed with impeachment using any of above three items against President Obama if he vetoes Obamacare as described in the Plan A scenario. A Republican controlled Senate will have no problem voting for a conviction and voting to remove President Obama from office.
If the GOP achieves Plan A and Plan B, then it will energize them to work towards implementing Plan C. The 2016 presidential will make the hanging chads in Florida, the Swift Boating of John Kerry, and voter suppression look like a joke. With a Republican president, they would now be able to repeal Obamacare. This would be the final act of destroying the legacy of President Obama.
For the GOP to pull off their Machiavellian type diabolical plans to destroy the legacy of President Obama, they will require the continued support of campaign money from their wealthy donors, from the right wing media, and from the many detractors who simply don't like the president.
Jermel W. Shim is the author of Whom God Has Blessed, Let No Man Curse, Infinity Publishing (http://www.jermelshim.com)