NYT: Majority Back Health Care for All!

The results of the latest New York Times/CBS News Poll are in:

While the war in Iraq remains the overarching issue in the early stages of the 2008 campaign, access to affordable health care is at the top of the public's domestic agenda, ranked as far more important than immigration, cutting taxes or promoting traditional values.

The poll asks about making "health insurance available to all Americans".

The problem is that the Democratic Party has a problem understanding that "Americans" word, and think it includes all of Mexico and most of the rest of the world. If the Dems had their way, any healthcare plan would be open to everyone, including illegal aliens who'd just snuck across the border five minutes earlier.

Several Democratic elected officials are directly or indirectly linked to current or former Mexican government or Mexican political party officials, and just a few weeks ago several Democrats joined with Mexican legislators to promote an amnesty in Washington DC.

If the Dems want to sell anything like universal healthcare, they should first take a look at which country they're supposed to be working for.

UPDATE: I don't think the Dems would extend healthcare to "all of Mexico and most of the rest of the world". That is what's refered to as "hyperbole", and everyone should be able to recognize that as such. However, the statement that if "the Dems had their way, any healthcare plan would be open to everyone" isn't hyperbole, and I invite everyone to find examples of specific plans from Democrats excluding illegal aliens.

And, I don't expect everyone to know who Elvira Arellano is or to follow immigration matters as closely as I do. However, when you've got (supposedly U.S.) representatives joining with Mexican representatives to support immigration "reform" - aka a massive amnesty for illegal aliens - and standing together demanding a moratorium on deportations and they've got Saul Arellano with them and one of the Mexican representatives says the U.S., Mexico, and everyone else should become "one America on one continent", well c'mon. You'd have to be in deep, deep denial not to realize that they're on the same page and neither group have much use for our immigration laws.

And, I note also that even Arnold Schwarzenegger supports healthcare for illegal aliens, and there was another bill that would also give those same benefits to foreign citizens from state Sen. Sheila Kuehl, a Democrat. New Jersey is even establishing clinics for illegal aliens as part of their proposal. I don't think you'll find a left-wing or racial power non-profit that doesn't support healthcare for illegal aliens, and in the extremely unlikely event that the Dems came up with a plan that excluded them those groups and others would put a tremendous amount of pressure to include it. In fact, some elected Democrats might join with Mexican legislators to demand it just as they did with a call for a moratorium on deportations.

UPDATE 2: Regarding the David Terrenoire comment, it isn't exactly clear what the "strawman" is, but claiming that the Democratic Party fully supports illegal immigration is certainly not a strawman. Now, certainly, if you asked them flat out whether they support that they would say no. However, their every action and statement concerning immigration serves to support and even encourage the illegal variety. It's not just a preponderance of circumstantial evidence; it's almost every single piece of relevant evidence. Here's Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi, and Howard Dean [1], [2]. And, here are some links between Democratic Party elected officials and those linked to the Mexican government or Mexican political parties.

Comments

"Do you have any idea how many Americans come to Canada to get the free healthcare we offer? Ever heard of medical tourism? Any idea what that's costing us?"

Do you have any idea how many Canadians have to come down to the United States for emergency care due to their lousy socialist healthcare system? Yes, I've heard of medical tourism, except the chosen destinations are Mexico, India, or the Philippines, not Canada.

The Democrats have fully supported illegal immigration in word and deed, and should Democratic leaders present a detailed proposal, I have little doubt that it would include illegal aliens. I'm afraid I'm going to have to leave it there, but once again, if anyone has links to detailed plans (rather than just speeches mentioning vague ideas) I'll take a look at them and report back.

Sorry for the double post.

That's called a screw-up, by the way, followed by an apology.

In response to your update:

I'll try to explain again. You chose the topic of health care for all. So far so good. Then you extended that to say Democrats want to extend health care to illegal immigrants without citing any Democrat who has taken that position. That, sir, is a strawman. See, you extended the argument out beyond what the Democrats claim, then you attack that untenable position. Classic strawman. You can hear it every day on talk radio and see it every night on Fox.

Here's a hint: Any time you hear someone claim they know what the other side believes, even if they don't have any evidence other than quoting some fringe whacko, left or right, that's almost always a strawman argument.

I know that with your prescience you can read the minds of your fellow men, but the rest of us don't have that gift. We have to actually listen to what people say and watch how they act.

Now, if you want to change the subject to Democrats supporting illegal immigration, that's called a bait and switch.

And in that, you'll find that what the Democrats are saying sounds oddly similar to what the head of the GOP, Mr. Bush, wants.

If you need me to clarify any other rhetorical devices for you, I'll be happy to oblige.

Dems would extend healthcare to "all of Mexico and most of the rest of the world"

Yes, this is hyperbole, but at the heart of this argument is a straw man. You are exaggerating a position that no one has claimed. That's what makes it dishonest.

Now, if I said Republicans always lie, then that is hyperbole, because while it's true that some Republicans lie, they don't always lie.

But if I said, Republicans want the poor to eat puppies, then that's a straw man, because I don't know of any Republican who actually believes that.

With the exception of Dick Cheney.

I hope that clears things up.

"Americans are our Mexicans."

Beautiful put.
spoojerm, you can go to the head of the class.

"You must be really desperate."

Devil's Advocate, I'm not at all sure why you think such a position reflects any particular desparation on the part of the right. Instead, it simply demonstrates that rank propaganda is the default means of communication for the followers of Republicanism. Want a perfect illustration? Just check out the stench of the rhetoric wafting out of the cesspool that is the Conservative Politcal Action Conference. Of course Democrats want to provide health coverage to all of Mexico. Just as they want the terrorists to win, to persuade children to adopt the "homosexual lifestyle," to turn violent criminals loose on the streets, and to convince women to have as many abortions as possible. There's not even a pretense that anyone believes this doggerel to be true; it's become nothing more than a virtually autonomic reflex action for Republicans.

Do you have any idea how many Americans come to Canada to get the free healthcare we offer? Ever heard of medical tourism? Any idea what that's costing us?

Americans are our Mexicans.

If you want anyone to believe that Democrats want to extend universal healthcare to illegal aliens, you should post some kind of example of proposed legislation or even just quotes from Democrats that supports your position. You have nothing, there is nothing. Except in your mind where Democrats are traitors and terrorists. Grow up.

have you even heard of logic? I am not asking you to be an expert in rhetoric, but this post is utterly inane. you appear to have no understanding of relevance or cause/effect relationships.

You are lying as usual. Some Democrats have been meeting with Mexican legislators to discuss migration. The original article that you hide so well does not even mention what will be discussed as part of "migration".

You see a poll showing that Americans favor a national health insurance and figure out a tortuous way to link this to some unfounded assumption that Democrats want to extend health insurance to Mexicans... You must be really desperate.