the triumph of politics

My posting has been sparse as my work has been busier than usual--which isn't to say "busy" just "busier".

That being said, a quick reaction to something I'm reading right now that illustrates a point I often make--that politics always trumps policy. One can look at McCain or others over the years, and how their "position" shifts so that immigration reform, while not changing in terms of policy, changes in terms of the politics. So, one year the same policy is "good policy" the next it's "bad" and then it's "toxic" or even, god forbid, "liberal".

See this article about Romneycare where Ezra Klein talks about how Mitt Romney's Health Care law in Massachusetts will drive the Republican debate. His conclusion is written here:

The only solution-like proposal left on the table is to devolve responsibility to the states, and Romney is smart to get there first. The question, I think, is whether the GOP unites around some version of this idea or whether Romney has become so radioactive on health care that by proposing a federalist solution, he actually takes it off the table for the Republicans running against him.

Did you see what happened there? If Republicans coalesce around an idea that is policy-wise right up what they've always preached, it would be politically unpopular, and thus, should be avoided.