Why Blame the CEOs? Save Your Outrage for Obama and the Democrats
By Hans Wilder for Digital Media USA
Here’s a thought for everyone fuming about healthcare CEOs taking home Scrooge McDuck levels of cash while you’re scraping together pennies to cover your next doctor visit: you’re mad at the wrong people. Yes, these executives are swimming in obscene profits, but the real culprits are sitting on the Democratic Party’s bench, dusting off their “legacy” trophies.
Remember the Affordable Care Act (ACA)? Oh, excuse me—the Affordable Care Act. Back in 2010, when Obama and the Democrats had control of all three branches of government, they had the power, the mandate, and the momentum to give us real, meaningful healthcare reform. What did they do instead? They sold us out faster than a box of Girl Scout cookies at a Weight Watchers meeting.
They could have fought for universal healthcare. They could have kicked private insurance companies to the curb and prioritized a single-payer system—you know, like every other developed nation that doesn’t force its citizens to choose between paying rent or getting chemotherapy. But nope. Instead, they cut backroom deals with the same insurance companies that were already bleeding us dry. Why? Because, in the end, corporate money talks louder than the cries of the uninsured.
Obama, that beacon of “hope and change,” handed the keys to the healthcare system over to the very people we needed protection from. The ACA wasn’t healthcare reform; it was a corporate giveaway dressed up as progress. Hillary Clinton, the presumptive queen of “pragmatic” politics, backed this charade too. But hey, she was busy cashing speaking fees from Wall Street, so maybe we shouldn’t be surprised.
Meanwhile, the Democrats patted themselves on the back for “doing something,” while millions of Americans continued to drown in medical debt. They passed the ACA and told us to clap like trained seals because they banned pre-existing condition discrimination and expanded Medicaid. Sure, those are good things, but they’re like putting a Band-Aid on a bullet wound and calling it life-saving surgery.
And now? People are outraged that the CEOs of healthcare companies are making record profits while jacking up premiums, deductibles, and drug prices. But let’s be real: these CEOs are just playing the game the Democrats rigged in their favor. The ACA didn’t stop corporate greed; it legitimized it. It forced millions of Americans to buy private insurance and funneled billions into the coffers of healthcare companies. Of course, the executives are going to cash in—they’re doing exactly what the system rewards them for doing.
Here’s the kicker: many of the same people furious at these CEOs were staunch advocates of the ACA back in the day. They cheered for Obama, defended Hillary, and insisted that anything less than Obamacare was heartless. Now, they want to burn down the system they helped build. That’s called hypocrisy, folks.
So, before you go blaming the CEOs for playing the game they were handed on a silver platter, ask yourself this: where was your outrage when Obama and the Democrats sold you out? Where was your fury when they turned healthcare reform into a corporate feeding frenzy? If you’re mad now, you should have been livid then.
Here’s the bitter truth: the Democrats didn’t fail us because they lacked power. They failed us because they lacked courage. They had the chance to do what was right, but they chose what was easy—and profitable. And now we’re all paying the price. So, if you want to direct your anger somewhere, aim it where it belongs: at the people who had the power to fix the system and chose not to.
And next time someone comes along promising “hope and change,” maybe don’t settle for crumbs.
