Obama: It’s Up to Activists to Enact Real Health Care ReformRandy Shawbyline‚ Aug. 03‚ 2009It’s been over 60 years since President Harry Truman urged Congress to enact a national health care system. Now, even longtime activists seem surprised that Barack Obama could not simply snap his fingers and win universal health care during his first seven months in office. That’s not how major social change is won. It’s not that easy, and movements, not politicians, typically drive success. That’s why the armchair critics who see President Obama, rather than activists, as holding the key to passage are so off base. Barack Obama has created the best opportunity to enact universal health care with a public option since Truman’s presidency. He has made a strong case for the public option, and used his personal popularity to drive the issue. But it is now up to constituency pressure to get the job done. It will take activists’ grassroots pressure campaigns targeting key legislators from the August recess through the day Congress votes to transform this opening for health care reform into a landmark victory. |