Special subsidies for Hill workers trample on the Founders' code of equal application of the law.
By
WILLIAM BENNETT And
CHRISTOPHER BEACH
As close observers of history and human nature, James
Madison and the other Founders of the U.S. Constitution knew that the equal and
unbiased application of the law to all people, especially elected officials, is
essential to freedom and justice and one of the primary safeguards from
authoritarianism and oppression by a ruling class.
And so, referring to the members of Congress, James
Madison wrote in Federalist No. 57: "[T]hey can make no law which will not have
its full operation on themselves and their friends, as well as on the great mass
of the society."
Today, elected officials need to be reminded of these
truths. Under pressure from Congress, the White House has carved out a special
exemption for Congress and its staffers from ObamaCare—the law it recently
deemed necessary for the entire country. No Republicans voted for ObamaCare. Yet
it appears that some of them support the exemption President Obama approved on
his own—so they would not have to go on record with a vote for or against it.
This is the height of hypocrisy, and worse, a trampling
of the Founders' code of equal application of the law. Having forced a health
law on the American people, the White House and Democrats now seek to insulate
themselves from the noxious portions of the law, and from the implementation
struggles, indecision and uncertainty that many other Americans face today.
In other words, Congress's health-care premiums will not
rise, but yours may. Members of Congress will be able to afford to keep their
health-insurance plan, but you may be kicked off yours. They will be able to
afford to keep their doctors, but you may have to find a new one.
Rep. Ron DeSantis, a Republican from Florida, recently
put forward legislation—aptly named the James Madison Congressional
Accountability Act—which would end the special exemption. In the Senate,
Republicans David Vitter of Louisiana and Mike Enzi of Wyoming have also
introduced legislation to end the exemption.
In response, several Democratic senators have reacted by
drafting legislation that would punish anyone who votes for Sen. Vitter's plan
by permanently blocking an exemption from them and their staff, even if Mr.
Vitter's law doesn't pass. It doesn't get more vindictive and petty than
that.
All this began when Congress passed the Affordable Care
Act in 2010. It compelled Congress and its staff to participate in ObamaCare and
its insurance exchanges like other Americans who don't have employer-provided
plans. But in their haste and confusion over legislation so long that few even
read it all, some members of Congress voted for the law without realizing that
the final bill had no mention of the very generous premium contributions the
government makes to federal employees as part of the Federal Employees Health
Benefits Program.
Imagine the horror when these elected officials, who
make $174,000 a year, realized that not only must they and their staffers be
subject to inferior-quality health exchanges like the millions of ordinary
Americans, but they might also have to shell out thousands of dollars for
increased premiums if they exceed the subsidy income cutoff.
The White House, under heat from Congress, directed the
Office of Personnel Management to carve out special rules so that the Federal
Employees Health Benefits Program can continue to contribute to the health plans
used by Congress and congressional staff.
Congress complains that without its special subsidies
the Hill will suffer a "brain drain" as staffers leave their jobs because of
increasing out-of-pocket insurance costs. Heaven forbid Congress suffer the same
fate as private companies like UPS, which recently had to cut health-care
benefits entirely for employees' spouses; or labor unions, like the 40,000
International Longshore and Warehouse Union workers who recently left the
AFL-CIO citing as one factor ObamaCare's tax on their "Cadillac" health-care
plans.
You'd think that the authors of ObamaCare would have
been prepared to cope with its effects. Sen. Ron
Johnson, a Republican from Wisconsin, has already put money aside in his
budget to help supplement his staff's health-care costs in anticipation of the
new law. Other congressmen should have done the same.
Regardless of whether or not they support ObamaCare,
members of Congress should refuse the special exemption. The law they enacted
should apply to them.
Mr. Bennett, a former secretary of education, is a
fellow of the Claremont Institute, and host of the nationally syndicated radio
show, "Morning in America." Mr. Beach is the show's executive producer.
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