Republicans, here is a vote-winning idea for you. Create a huge bonfire. In the mall in Washington, DC. Have everybody bring copies of the massive Obamacare bill. Pile them high. Then torch ‘em.

Meanwhile, do everything you can to repeal the law.

I bet you could draw a million folks to witness the bonfire. Why, you could pack the ashes in tiny bottles and flog ‘em by the thousands as a fundraiser. And by repealing the law you would win the gratitude of millions of folks.

I know, some people like the program. Okay. Has a majority ever favored it? Nope. The president sold it endlessly on TV. Did that win over folks? Nope. Has anything since increased its popularity? No.

Has it helped some people? Yes. As many as promised? No. Is it more complicated than promised? You bet. Do people understand it? No way. Is it more costly than promised? Yes. Are there surprises hidden in it? Yes. Will they anger lots of folks, because they will increase costs, fees, penalties, and uncertainty? Oh, yes. 

Were these surprises delayed in order to deceive the public? Yes.

Did President Obama and other promoters lie to the public about the program? They certainly did. Did the architects of the program intentionally mislead the public? Yes. The prime architect, Jonathan Gruber, admitted so on camera. He admitted that passage relied on the “stupidity” of American voters.

Does this whole mess qualify as a con job? Sure seems so. Could we get health-care coverage for everyone by much simpler and less costly means? Of course. Could we achieve this without adding armies of government bureaucrats? Certainly.

Has Obamacare damaged the Democrats? You have to bury your head pretty deep in the ground to deny it. Of course it has hurt Democrats. Republicans hung this turkey around Democrat necks for the recent mid-term election in which Democrats received a shellacking. Obamacare is tattooed on the Democrats’ foreheads. In glow-in-the-dark, 3-D, electric putrid-yellow.

Will Obamacare begin to look rosy now? This is not too likely. Because of those surprises baked in it. You can bet opponents will trumpet them far and wide.

Will Democrats be damaged further by this? They could be. Imagine this scenario: Congress votes to repeal Obamacare. President Obama vetoes their effort — as he says he will. Congress then votes on whether to override the president’s veto.

Suppose you are a Democrat senator or representative. You face the voters again in less than two years. You know a majority dislike the plan. You know voters kicked your colleagues out of the last Congress for supporting it. How should you vote now? What should you do? You should quick, take a junket to Siberia. And claim the ice and vodka kept you from returning for the vote. You should pray you come down with Dengue Fever. So you can take to your bed and avoid the vote.

Can you remember a time when a president did more damage to his own party? Time and again he has taken the route that is most likely going to anger voters. 

And left it to his fellow Democrats to handle the anger.

He is about to do it again over immigration. He wants to declare millions of illegal immigrants legal. Huge majorities of Americans do not want him to do this on his own. Polls show that more than 40 percent of Hispanics even oppose him on this. Once again, the Democrats in Congress will be exposed to ridicule. 

That is their quandary on Obamacare. Oppose him. Or support him and maybe start to work on their memoirs.

I bet some of them are tempted to sneak notes to justices on the Supreme Court. The court is about to decide whether one of the rewrites the administration has made is legal. If they decide it is not, the damage to Obamacare could be lethal.

“Please, your honor, please do the right thing. I don’t want to see a big bonfire any more than you do.”

From Tom…as in Morgan.

Tom Morgan writes about political, financial, and other subjects from his home near Oneonta, in addition to his radio shows and TV show. For more information about him, visit his website at www.tomasinmorgan.com