HISTORICAL OR HYSTERICAL

Once again we were looking westward to America this week as time came to make an important decision. After months of much discussion, arguments and debate about health care reform it finally came to a vote in their House of Representatives.

When the American Colonies left the British Empire and declared The United States of America they dropped the Parliamentary system. After some changes in party nomenclature and the Continental Congress, they settled on a two Party system and a two House Congress. Today they have the Republican Party, tending to the Right and the Democratic Party, tending to the Left. On occasions an elected Congressperson will change from one Party to the other Party or declare as an Independent. This of course does not endear them to their Party or often the voters at reelection time.

The Upper House of Congress consists of The Senate of a hundred Senators being two from each of the fifty States. The Lower House of Congress is the House of Representatives. It is formed from a complex system State by State based on the ten year census which by population results in Federal Congressional Districts of which there are four-hundred and thirty-five at present and each has one congressperson. It is these latter that voted on the Health Care Reform Bill on Saturday November 7th., 2009. The result of this vote was 220 yea and 215 nay, thus the Health Care Reform Bill passed by five votes. Thirty-nine Democrats voted nay and only one Republican voted yea.

However this is not as simple as it seems and clearly the difference was very slight. The problem is that with this two Party system many Right-Wing Democrats are to the Right of Left-Wing Republicans. The Right-Wing Democrats are known as 'Blue Dog Democrats' from a remark made some years ago in political debate. In addition there are 'Log Cabin Republicans' which we shall allow our readers to research on for themselves. There will now be a vote in the Senate on the Health Care Reform Bill and it will either then proceed through Congress or stagnate mired in Amendments or Committee. From remarks made by Senators one expects rather the latter as The Senate has its own Health Care Reform Bill in draft.

There is considerable confusion, mis-information and concern amongst voters and this has led to hysterical behaviour in the sense of its definition -"any outbreak of wild uncontrolled feeling". In the afterglow of Democratic Party triumph Madame Pelosi from San Fransisco the Speaker of The House of Representatives stated it was a historical day. Well historical or hysterical we shall watch how it proceeds with interest as it is the cornerstone of the Obama Administration governance programme.

THE RIGHT CHOICE

Our focus was on America this week as Tuesday, being the first Tuesday in November, was their Election Day. Enshrined in the United States Constitution - most things seem to be, as the day when citizens, who have registered to vote, express their opinion. For both America and Europe there was a degree of interest in who would be elected due to the fact it is now a year since Mr. Obama was elected as President of the United States of America. At that time in both America and Europe he had acquired the aura of a messiah, which has now faded somewhat. Three States had elections and these were New York's 23rd. Congressional District which stretches from Canada and covers nearly a quarter of upstate New York. The others were Virginia and New Jersey.

It is interesting that in this Union of States not all actually use the term in their official title. One is Virginia which uses Commonwealth of Virginia, others are the Commonwealths of Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, & Kentucky. While Rhode Island, the famous hold out on ratifying State, is more fully and correctly The State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations.

The results from both Virginia and New Jersey have set a tone for future elections and express an opinion of the capability of the Obama Administration to date. The Commonwealth of Virginia elected, by clear majority, a Republican Party Governor, Lieutenant-Governor, and Attorney-General. So indeed did the State of New Jersey elect a Republican Party Governor, this latter being something of a surprise. New York's 23rd. elected a Democratic Party Congressional Representative which was largely expected. The Republican Party candidate had both dropped out and publicly switched her allegiance to the Democratic Party candidate. This was less than honourable behaviour at election time even for a politician.

So one would believe the election results in both Virginia and even more so in New Jersey are a strong critique of the Obama Administration socialist policies all talked about frequently and at too great length, less than stellar leadership, and famous dithering. Clearly the American voter is expressing a move back to its more traditional right of centre position, as has Europe in its most recent elections. Overly socialist policies become a millstone on a government which must generate monies to pay for them, as we have seen in Europe this means increased taxation or an artificial economy of Government employees or some of both.