Weigel : Ron Wyden’s Cunning Plan
Prediction: Corn Flake™ to follow.
The people who think Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) is bailing on “Obamacare” are revealing something important: They didn’t pay enough attention to the health care debate. In asking for a waiver so that Oregon doesn’t have to participate in the federal mandate for health insurance, Wyden is just springing the trap on the provision he himself added to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, which allows states to opt out of the mandate and develop their own comprehensive plans. It’s based on this provision from his own legislation — which, you’ll recall, some Republicans briefly floated as a compromise as Obamacare founding.