Prescription Drug bill gets critical endorsement

From the WashPost: AARP Endorses Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit

Good News: This imprimatur by the AARP puts the Democrats in an untenable position. If they pass this expansion of Medicare, they'll hand President Bush and the Republicans a hugely popular legislative victory going into 2004. If they oppose it, they risk appearing obstructionist and opposing one of the strongest political organizations in the country.
Bad News: Unless the bill has strong incentives for competition with private insurers, the pill-popping grannies are going to bury Generations X, Y, and Z under a pile of debt. Coupled with the looming crisis of Social Security solvency, the burden of a vastly expanded Medicare it could lead to a real generational war.

Since history has shown that the cost overruns of new benefits are always underestimated, I'm silently hoping this bill goes down to defeat, but that the Democrats will look foolish and counterproductive in the process. With Fat Ted taking the lead, shaking his fist at the anathema of "free market competition" (boo!), that scenario may become reality.