Collins: I'll Lead Fight to Repeal Obamacare

If the RNC wants to successfully mobilize voters and stop the Obama agenda, it should start by organizing a nationwide effort to repeal Obamacare.

What if there was a single issue that unified Republicans while drawing unprecedented support from Independent and even Democratic voters?

What if this issue could be placed on the ballot in key electoral swing states during the 2012 presidential election?

What if the Republican National Committee utilized the issue as a get-out-the-vote opportunity on behalf of our presidential nominee and down ballot candidates?

One, such an issue does exist. Two, the issue would dramatically boost Republican turnout in targeted electoral states. And three, on January 14, the Republican National Committee has the opportunity to elect a leader who understands innovative strategies and how to implement them.

There is little disagreement that significant improvements are needed at the RNC; but, just fixing what is broken at the RNC will not be enough to defeat what may likely be a billion-dollar Obama political machine.  Winning 270 electoral votes for the Republican nominee will require the RNC to adopt innovative approaches to mobilizing voters.

One such innovative approach I am proposing will unleash the energy of the coalition that led the Republican resurgence in 2010. As Chairman of the RNC, I will lead an effort to repeal Obamacare through the initiative and referenda process this is allowed in more than 20 states around the country.

Voters barely need reminding of the threat posed by the massive government takeover of healthcare, but let me indulge in a few reminders:

•   Obamacare will drive massive spending increases in Medicare and privately funded healthcare – even the government’s own economists at HHS have admitted that the plan increases overall healthcare spending, contrary to the bill of goods sold taxpayers by Obama & Pelosi that it would reduce costs

•   Obamacare is already driving up premiums among private insurance companies who are scrambling to deal with the mandate to cover young adults up to age 26 among other things – economists are projecting steep increases in premiums for companies offering employee health plans

•   Employee share of healthcare costs are rising quickly – in 2011, more than 50% of employers will require employees to pay deductibles of $400 or more, up from 25% in 2009

•   The individual mandate in Obamacare is likely not even constitutional, being struck down by a federal judge in the State of Virginia’s lawsuit on Monday – all during a week when public support for Obamacare dipped to a new low according to a new ABC News poll

Polling suggests that the public still won’t swallow the bitter pill of Obamacare. But who needs polling? The results of November 2, 2010 indicate the potency of this issue in motivating the electorate. We know that a broad coalition of Republicans, Independents, and Democrats opposed the Obama plan, and brought the congressional Left to their knees in the historic 2010 midterms. We also know that there are 236 electoral votes at stake in the states where such referenda are possible, and that is what will truly drive the freedom agenda of our coalition to victory.

Some of these states – such as Utah and Massachusetts – are solidly painted red or blue through successive elections, and would not likely impact the presidential electoral vote. In California, while Prop 8 was passed by the majority of voters, the Obama campaign still easily carried the Golden State’s electoral votes. It will take more than a healthcare repeal initiative to put California in the red column. However, a surprising number of states Republicans could target are traditional electoral battlegrounds. Ohio, Michigan, and Florida! Florida! Florida! are all part of the collection of states where a large turnout of voters opposed to Obamacare could significantly tilt the outcome of the presidential contest in that state. We already know this strategy will work in swing states. Missouri has passed a repeal. Oklahoma and a handful of other states have also passed or attempted to pass referenda. In all, there are five states where close elections are commonplace – representing 78 electoral votes. More than enough to sway an election.

One might legitimately ask, with financial challenges facing the RNC, would this proposal break the budget?

In short, no. The cost of mounting a referenda campaign, particularly in battleground states where the voter programs and media are already maximized, would be minimal, amounting to a small fraction – less than 2% – of the money the RNC already must spend to mount an effective campaign in 2012. Re-tasking these resources to such a campaign will provide a rallying point for the center-right coalition Republicans relied upon in 2010. This is money well-spent to ensure that we not only defeat Barack Obama, but defeat his liberal ideas and liberal allies.

Obamacare was imposed on the people against their will. As Chairman, I will work every day to empower Republicans – and all Americans – in a way that will begin striking down the agenda passed by Obama, Pelosi and Reid. We can do that by building a successful referenda campaign, led by a resurgent RNC and a committed base of supporters that are already identified and always looking ahead for the next fight. As Chairman, I will give it to them.

If we learned anything on November 2, it’s that the people know how take matters into their own hands and send a message to Washington. The new RNC should look to the states and to the people – and support them with a roadmap to turn back the Obama agenda, make Obama a one-term president, and stop Obamacare in its tracks.

Gentry Collins is the former National Political Director of the RNC. Originally from Iowa, Collins now makes his home in Washington, D.C. with his wife Kristy and their four children.