HillaryCare 2.0 Previews in California....and It's Failing

A recent Wall Street Journal article provides some important insights into the developing fate of HillaryCare 2.0, the newly-unveiled universal healthcare proposals from Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.

The first surprise, for me, at least, is that California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's healthcare plan was primarily designed by the same architect who designed HillaryCare 2.0- Laurie Rubiner. Ms. Rubiner has solid liberal-left wing credentials going back some years, including "directing health-care issues at the liberal New America Foundation," according to the Journal article.

Among the features shared by "ArnoldCare" and "HillaryCare 2.0," are: universal coverage mandates; ban on premium differentials based on actual health status; expansion of Medicaid, and; a requirement that insurers offer policies to all applicants.

The experiences of ArnoldCare suggest HillaryCare 2.0 could be in for a lot of trouble. The Democratically-controlled California legislature won't even pass the plan. According to the Journal's piece,

"It was too tax-heavy for Republicans and not nearly interventionist enough for Democrats."

Lots of people seem to believe that the next President just has to be a Democrat, because George Bush's poll numbers are so low. Then, they'll tell you that that Democrat has to be Hillary, because- well, here the reasons multiply, but essentially- it's "her" time, time for a woman to win the Oval Office, she's punched her ticket in the Senate, yada yada.

I think these people conveniently forget that, in some cases, what the candidate stands for, by her/himself, will actually matter. It seems to me that the same people who criticize Fred Thompson for only having character or values, and no detailed plans, overlook Hillary's total absence of declared values, and her implied, totally-political and calculating character.

This time, however, Hillary may have made a big mistake. She's once again revealed her core socialist stripes, by floating a national universal healthcare program devoid of market elements, aping an ailing approach that the largest state in the Union can't manage to implement.

Now, we discover the plans really are so alike because they share a common architect- Laurie Rubiner.

I wouldn't bet on Hillary just yet. She seems to have a whole year left in which to make some career-limiting mistakes, on the campaign trail to the White House in 2009.