We've had a hard time figuring out where presumptive gubernatorial nominee Alex Sink lies on the Democratic Party's spectrum.
Is she a dyed-in-the-wool, bleeding-heart liberal? Eh, probably not.
Is she a staunch Blue Dog? Doesn't quite seem like it.
Is she, like so many Florida politicians, a cautious moderate whose vaguely expressed public views seem to flow with the political wind? That's the best we can muster.
Maybe because the RPOF has been trying to paint her as a Democratic Washington insider who's "not one of" them (which is funny, because their candidate, Bill McCollum, has a history of D.C. insider-ship), but her reaction to last night's historic health-care bill was a bit baffling.
Like so many Floridians, I was frustrated and appalled that Republicans and Democrats in Congress took something as important and personal as health care and turned it into a partisan circus. The delays, the misinformation and the lack of bi-partisanship in Congress are a disservice to the people of Florida. Throughout this debate, I've always said that our state and our country need health care reform. Insurance companies must be held accountable so they no longer deny coverage to Floridians with pre-existing conditions. Health insurance must be more accessible and affordable for small businesses and their employees. We must close the Medicare prescription-drug 'doughnut hole.' Any expansion of Florida's Medicaid program must not overburden our state. And private health insurance must remain the foundation of our health care system. Though it is certainly not perfect, these long-overdue reforms are better than Washington continuing to do nothing to improve America's health care system.Frustrated and appalled by Republicans and Democrats? Listen, we all know there was a bit of lefty chicanery going on, but at least that party, Sink's party, pretended to be interested in being bipartisan and getting things done. Even a guy like former Bush speech writer David Frum is placing most of the blame for the "partisan circus" on his fellow Republicans.
She then goes on to list a bunch of problems the bill will solve: coverage for pre-existing conditions, closing of the "doughnut hole," a system that won't place too much burden on the state, and a plan that still relies on private insurance.
Sounds like the bill has most of what she wants, yet it's "certainly not perfect," which, OK, pretty much everyone agrees on. We'd just appreciate it if her tone was a bit more upbeat about her party's stunning and historic victory in Washington, and perhaps explain a little more about what she'd do to make it better.
