Voting with Republicans to reject the so-called Public Option health insurance plan yesterday, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Montana) revealed a fundamental flaw of leadership when he was quoted as saying, "I want a bill that can become law."
This puts pragmatism ahead of necessity, rather than balancing the two, which leaders must do. Yet the stakes are SO high -- given our 40 million uninsured, health policy reform based on what’s immediately “doable” versus what’s needed for the greatest good is a failure of courage, and a failure of leadership.
Whether deliberately or not, it's lost on the bought-and-paid-for Senate Finance Committee members (Democrats and Republicans alike). Sorry for the “bought and paid for" comment, but the numbers tell a tale; Senator Baucus has collected $3.96 million in contributions from Health and Insurance companies during his career (almost double the average of $2.2 million in career contributions per member of that committee), according to raw data from Paul Blumenthal of the Sunlight Foundation.
Are political payoffs and expedience-based decision-making going to add up to significant reform?
We can’t un-ring the bell of past contributions, nor could we find many lawmakers that HAVEN’T accepted campaign funds from the health and insurance sectors.
What we CAN do, since we’re a community (definition: I will watch out for you), is face the life and death needs of those 40 million people with leadership.
Whether it's a public option, single payer, or some new / cool idea, I challenge our leaders to ask NOT what’s probable or doable, and instead make health care policy that answers the question of what's needed.
That’s leadership.
David Peck
Executive Coach and President
Leadership Unleashed