The Underground Conservative

The House of Representatives passed the ObamaCare federal takeover of the health care system by a narrow 220-215 margin. 219 Democrats and one RINO, the liberal Republican who took over the disgraced William Jefferson’s seat in New Orleans, Joseph Cao.

Dan Riehl makes a good argument that Cao is representing his district here.

I think the exchange to get rid of Jefferson is worth it if he tries to bring some political decency to his district back home. I can’t charge Cao with re-educating his constituency on the value of limited government and lower taxes all by himself. Those issues in his likely constituency go much further than any one Congressional district in the US.

Michelle Malkin disagrees.

Yes, he’s the one who took over corruptocrat Democrat William Jefferson’s seat. I had reservations about him on election night because of his soft-on-immigration views. But I gave him the benefit of the doubt. If he could stand strong on limited government and fiscal conservatism, it would be worth it.

Well, since he was elected, Cao has backed the S-CHIP expansion, the $108 billion IMF bailout, and the omni-waste spending bill. And he voted to rebuke GOP Rep. Joe Wilson for calling out President Obama on his health care lies.

That is a steep price to pay for Rep. William Jefferson’s removal.

Can’t the GOP do better?

They can, and should, but that is a small matter. This is not a bipartisan bill by any means. One RINO does not make a bipartisan bill. It’s a Democrat crap sandwich all the way around. 39 Democrats voted against the bill, some of which I believe were also representing their constituents, but I’m cynical enough to believe others were allowed to vote “Nay” by Bela Pelosi to allow them cover in their re-election bids next year once the Democrats got the required 218 votes to pass.

We are one step closer to the end of America as we know it and learned it to be.

The House bill, which now moves over to the Senate, is chock full of new bureaucracies, controls, taxes, and stiff penalties, including stints in federal prison for non-compliance. Yes, rationing and death panels, too.

This is not about providing health care for people. It’s about control. Over all of our lives right down to the most minute detail.

The Other McCain has more here.

In the light of this, John Hindraker still maintains that the conservatives need to unite behind the Republican Party as its best option:

This is the stark difference between our political parties: the Democrats are hell-bent on dismantling free enterprise and advancing government power over every aspect of our lives; the Republicans are not. Conservatives cannot afford to be neutral or indifferent as between the parties, nor can they afford the narcissism of third-party vanity campaigns. Conservatives must work every day to strengthen the Republican Party–it’s the only hope we have. And, yes, strengthening the party will sometimes mean drawing the line at a Dede Scozzafava. But purity is not our object here; victory is.

We are vehemently opposed to and will not support Quixotic third party campaigns here. They have zero chance of winnings and do nothing but to ensure the election of Democrats. The Republican Party must be taken back precinct by precinct if necessary by the Reagan coalition: social conservatives, fiscal conservatives, religious conservatives, libertarians. In short, those interested in advancing smaller, limited government, lower taxes, freedom and a return to constitutional government.

And yes, it means purging the progressives and their enablers sending them to their natural home in the Democrat Party.