When Senator Daschle gives his stump speech in South Dakota, he always mentions high prescription drug prices for seniors and takes a dig at the new prescription drug legislation passed by Republicans, especially the provision which limits the federal government's ability to negotiate directly with pharmaceutical companies. As it turns out, this was the same legislation Daschle was pushing a few years ago! Exceprt:
Democratic leaders once understood the stakes involved in permitting the government to interfere with the market. Indeed, when the Senate overwhelmingly passed its version of the prescription-drug legislation last June with 76 votes, not a peep was raised by these Democrats — all of whom supported the bill — about the non-interference language. Now, sadly, out-of-power partisans in an election year hope to score political gain at the expense of Americans' health.
These articles are becoming more common and, sadly, less surprising. I've been batting around the idea of stringing together some of these examples and starting a discussion about the Arrogance of Power, the old catch-phrase of Senator Fullbright which he transformed into a famous book. But before going there, I ask readers--what else to call it? Isn't it arrogant to assume that nobody will question his current bashing of medicare legislation that a few years ago he was advocating? What about other examples of Daschle being on both sides of an issue? Is there a pattern here? More on this theme in the future.
Comments