What would LBJ do to pass health care reform?

[ehrnst]

14. No, actually how zombie LBJ would pass health reform in 2009.

Which actually did get passed, if you recall. And the ACA wasn't like what "Medicare for All" is now, in terms of scope, timeline or costs.

Cost is not an excuse - it IS a factor, not just "may be."

A low CBO score can destroy the chances for a piece of new legislation.

It is also much harder to bring costs down for a current entity - like the Pentagon, than it is to kill spending for something new. The Pentagon is an established part of the budget, and as such has many, many contracts in place. I'm not saying that's good - I'm saying that's why you can't really compare the willingness to continue funding established entities with willingness to fund something new - especially if it involves upending 14% of the GDP in the space of only four years.

Just like the economic reality that it's much harder to bring down health care costs than it is to keep them down from a low starting place, like they were in Europe in the 1940's.