The Patriot Post® · The Californication of ObamaCare

“It is of great importance to set a resolution, not to be shaken, never to tell an untruth. There is no vice so mean, so pitiful, so contemptible; and he who permits himself to tell a lie once, finds it much easier to do it a second and a third time, till at length it becomes habitual; he tells lies without attending to it, and truths without the world’s believing him. This falsehood of the tongue leads to that of the heart, and in time depraves all its good disposition.” —Thomas Jefferson in a 1785 letter

Clearly, Barack Obama was not copied on Jefferson’s letter. Though politicians have a (usually well-deserved) reputation for obfuscation and prevarication, few have achieved the ability to lie as skillfully and convincingly as Obama. He has a PhD in BS, a Masters in manure spreading; he is Brigadier General of bovine droppings. He is the Saladin of Subterfuge.

Obama, as he was pushing for passage of the laughably named Affordable Care Act (a.k.a., ObamaCare), told quite a few whoppers. He claimed he would not sign a health care reform bill that added one dime to the debt (technically speaking, Obama was right — Obamacare will not add ONE dime to the national debt, but 62 TRILLION dimes). He said if we like our doctor/health insurance, we can keep our doctor/health insurance. Of course, we now know that was a blatant lie, as ObamaCare architect Jonathan Gruber of MIT openly admitted when he explained in private that they had to lie to the American people about the details of the law because the American people are “too stupid to understand.”

One of the other broken promises uttered by Obama regarding his signature legislation was his claim that the ObamaCare provisions and benefits would not be extended to illegal aliens in the United States.

Speaking to a joint session of Congress in 2009, Obama rebuked his critics, denying claims that illegals would be eligible for ACA benefits saying, “There are also those who claim our reform efforts would insure illegal immigrants. This too is false. The reforms that I’m proposing would not apply to those who are here illegally.” This prompted the famous “You LIE!” retort by Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC), for which he was excoriated for his lack of decorum and his slanderous charge against Obama. Of course, we now know that Wilson was indeed right; Obama lied, and did so knowingly.

Fast forward to today in California, which has passed a bill allowing illegal aliens to apply for ObamaCare coverage. The state legislature last week passed a bill that would do just that, trying an end-run around the law’s prohibition against covering illegals by applying for a “state innovation waiver” under Section 1332 of the ACA, which allows states to “pursue innovative strategies” to expand health care coverage to its residents, so long as the expanded coverage does not add to the federal deficit.

Under the law as written, even if Democrat Governor Jerry Brown signs the bill, illegals in California would be ineligible for federal subsidies for low-income Americans, and would have to cover the unsubsidized costs of a health care policy out-of-pocket. Considering that millions of Americans are finding the so-called Affordable Care Act policies unaffordable, it is hard to imagine how it would come to pass that more than a handful of the 2.6 million illegals estimated to be residing in California, who tend to be low income, would manage to afford the cost of coverage.

But of course, this is just the opening move by Obama’s party. Ira Mehlman of the Federation for American Immigration Reform lays out the next steps: “This follows a pattern in California. [The bill] is kind of being framed innocuously as ‘We’re not going to subsidize illegal immigrants and just give them an opportunity to buy insurance through the exchanges.’ Of course, there are few who are going to be able to buy coverage without subsidies. This is the first step in the process. First, you make it possible for them to buy policies through the exchange, and when nobody can do that because it’s too expensive, you say we have to give them subsidies.” Any objecting to providing subsidies for illegals will then be painted as heartless racists. As it is, 18 states already cover health care for all illegal alien children.

This is similar to what Obama did after Congress, by a bipartisan majority, rejected the DREAM Act, which would have given amnesty to millions of illegals. When Obama was thwarted by Congress, he implemented the DACA and DAPA programs on his own — de facto amnesty through so-called “selective enforcement” of U.S. immigration laws. Obama did this after saying for years, correctly, that it was not within his lawful power to do so.

Obama has just over half a year left in which to continue disgracing the Oval Office. He will go down as the most lawless, anti-constitutional president in history. Amnesty for illegals, unilateral changes to ObamaCare, attempts to force schools to let the transgendered into bathrooms and locker rooms opposite their biological sex … these just touch the surface of what Obama will push in his final days in office.

The Republican Congress, the states, and the American people should oppose this lawlessness at every turn, and demand a restoration of Rule of Law and individual liberty.