Have you heard about the $1,000,000,000 writedown AT&T’s going to take as a first step in its attempt to afford what Obamacare’s going to do to it? How about John Deere at $150,000,000, 3M at $90,000,000, and Caterpillar at $100,000,000? There are others, and we’re just getting started. The consulting firm Towers Watson estimates the total bleeding might be $14,000,000,000 or thereabouts.

Well, that’s a problem for the Obama regime, isn’t it? Such consequences are clearly inconsistent with the desired narrative, which is that Obamacare will bring down costs. So, in response, Henry Waxman and his merry band of House Democrats are hauling these companies in for hearings next month. No, I’m not making that up. These insolent corporations dare to suggest that The One’s “reform” is going to cost them a lot of money, so let’s get them in here and singing the correct tune. More at this excellent Wall Street Journal piece, from which the above numbers also came.

I’ve been despondent this week, for obvious reasons. This really is a shot of hope, though. This bunch of jackass Democrat thugs, still bloated and belching from their feast upon our liberties and futures, has invited a large group of actual businesspeople (who understand how wealth is created, or in this case destroyed) to lecture them under oath on public record on exactly why and specifically how their precious god-king’s signature accomplishment will destroy the economy.

When these poor slobs in Congress see genuine accounting figures from real live executives instead of their tortured numerical fantasies, will their brains aspolde?

Its proponents tried to design the Obamacare power grab in such a way that its large effects wouldn’t be felt for several years, the implied gamble being that momentum would steal any sustained traction from a repeal movement. Their failure to consider that publicly held companies plan ahead, and out loud, is a significant political blunder. Their hasty call for hearings is another one. Keep it up, Democrats.

It’s hard to see how this can be bad for the repeal-then-replace cause, which means it’s hard to see how this can be bad for the American people.

Republicans, play this wisely. Every advantage must be maximized.

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