Kevin Madden Republican strategist :
Anytime Gov. Romney is talking about health care policy, he and a Republican party looking to forge a coalition with independent voters are put at an advantage.
Having traveled with Gov. Romney across dozens of states, having witnessed him speak before thousands of voters and after sitting through too many meetings to count with local, state and national officials I can say with a certain degree of authority that when Gov. Romney talks health care, people listen. They listen because it becomes instantly clear his experience of having worked to craft a landmark universal health care bill has given him a unique perspective when it comes to understanding how to build bipartisan consensus around an issue that is as much driven by our common values on providing care as it is by the costs associated with it.
Gov. Romney's main critique of President Obama and the Democrats approach is quite simple: Why would we take a partisan bill crafted in Washington that is designed to radically alter 1/6 of our economy, apply it to all 50 states and then say 'well let's see if this works!'"
Gov. Romney's approach of crafting a reform bill in Massachusetts for its unique health care population represents the most important contrast between Republicans and Democrats when it comes to health care reform. While Democrats want to design a one-size-fits-all approach out of Washington with yet another federal standard of unfunded mandates for states, Republicans believe that states - with their unique populations and tailored approaches - are the laboratories of democracy where worthwhile reforms can truly be achieved.
The goal of achieving universal care in Massachusetts was reached by building a bipartisan consensus with a keen understanding of the unique population and market factors at work there, important items that President Obama and the Democrats have ignored with their poorly executed approach on a national level.