The Republicans are making hay out of the misconceived health care reform. This is not their greatest hours. Because of this and other missteps of the past decade, I got off their boat. I'm an independent, but if neither party offers a good candidate, maybe I just won't vote for the first time in my life.

Now as to one of the main underlying scare tactic of the left. "You will have a financial disaster and lose your home, etc, if you don't have insurance, well, you may never be able to afford a home or many of the things Americans have enjoyed in the past, if the government takes over any more of the economy. Expect an anemic economy going forward, expect less inovation, expect less, period if we become any more of a quasi-socialist/communist country.

about "A Republican Plan won't pass...because one does not exist!" Exactly! No doubt the Democratic plan is not perfect...we admit it! But at least we are trying to go forward with something to fix this broken health insurance system (notice I said "insurance" not total "Healthcare") Because that was one mistake made...the whole system is NOT broken, but the insurance system IS. The Republicans have concentrated most on what's wrong with what the health bill is trying to do, but they have no real answers. I am proud to be a supporter of the Health Insurance Bill and finding our way to the best solutions as we go along. We will not achieve it in it's original form because it is a work in progress, but we will do something!
Thanks for your insight Frank.
Your old classmate,
Kimberley

Mr. Webb, as with all Republicans, admits that we have a terrible problem, but since it can't be solved why try? The Republican answer = no answer. The Bennett Plan = absurd. By CBO estimates it will cost twice as much as Obamacare. Mr. Bennett has never had much grip on reality, only proven again by his bringing Karl Rove to town to tell big fearsome lies.

The town meetings have disturbed me. The people who are screaming all seem to be from the Far Right. Since when do we let shrieking people, red-faced with anger, prevent a national debate? Kudos to McCain for ejecting that screaming woman from his town meeting yesterday.

Oh Please- Will you get your facts straight? The CBO estimates Bennett's bill will be budget neutral. I repeat BUDGET NEUTRAL. Quit sitting at home watching TV and commenting on news sites until you get your facts figured out. Do a little research before you make absurd claims!

To jud:
I notice that since there has been a change in the White House from a supposed right wing tilting President to a left leaning one, that whenever the right leaning elements start using the same tactics that the left used against those whose supported shrub during his years in office the left gets upset and starts calling everyone names and implying that they are crazy.
The left can dish it out, but they cannot take it.
Those who go to the townhall meetings looking for answers usually do not start shouting and carrying on until their representative stops answering questions and tells them to shut up or answers their cell phone part way through someones question.
It does not matter if they are a republican or a democrat. Both parties had better start listening to those who put them in office.
There are starting to be more and more voters in the voting districts who just may start voting independent in the next election cycle.

Reading the views of LaVarr Webb and Frank Pignanelli each Sunday in the Deseret News is somewhat of a joke. Lobbyists like Webb and Pignanelli are married to their parties and will always side with the Republican / Democrat party lines regardless of whether it is in the best interest of the American people.

Whoever blames the right-wing media or those “crazy conservatives” yelling at town hall meetings for stalling health-care reform is crazy. The Democrats control the White-House, the Senate, the House of Representatives and, in my opinion, the views of the main-stream media. If they cannot pass President Obama’s reform proposals, it is because the bill stinks. Government officials, on both sides of the isle, know that if they vote for reform as currently proposed, they will most likely loose their jobs because the people of this country do not want it. And that is how it should be.

Lobbyists and our representatives in Washington need to stop blaming the media, talk radio, the “other” political party, and vocal American citizens for the failure of our elected politicians to bring forth good legislation that will actually help this country move forward.

The "Far Right", like the Far Left, don't go to town meetings, they blow things up.

Again an attempt to dub those who oppose your views as extremists. This is mainstream America, not the "Far Right". Get used to it.

When will the DesNews get a conservative columnist or two? This Republicrat nonsense has gotten very, very old and stale.

In an article like this, it would have been consistent with journalistic ethics for Frank Pignanelli's role as Associate Vice President and General Counsel for Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Utah to be disclosed in the column.

As columnist Timothy Carney has noted, the health insurance cartels' role in creating federal protection against competition are part of the problem with the market for health care services and health insurance.