Originally Posted by
Montmorency
I don't really understand what function you think these leaders' - or their generation's - competence has in producing something that "gets it [universal coverage?] done."
The first priority in any unified Democratic government should, and probably would, be something like HR1 in 2019: campaign finance reform, voting/electoral expansion, ethics in federal journalism office. Let's say after that is accomplished quickly most agree healthcare is the next priority. Assume at least 230 Democrats in the House and 52 in the Senate, no filibuster, and the Biden campaign's public option plan as a starting point.
House Democrats would go about delegating the tasks of researching the issues and legal precedent. Some representatives, meaning their staffs, activist and lobbying groups, and relevant Congressional support services, would begin writing different drafts or components. Multiple committees would be involved, but the synthetic bill would probably originate in the Ways and Means Committee. This would then be transmitted to the Senate, and the bill would reach the president after Congress reconciles competing versions of the law.
[...}
What I'm getting at here is, it would be tedious to describe all the differences between the political and economic landscape of post-war Britain, where modern healthcare had yet barely been invented, and that of the contemporary United States, in addition to the minutiae of the plausible range of limiting factors on the 2021 legislative agenda.
The identity of Democratic party leaders next year makes a difference only on the margins.
