Sen. Schumer's retreat

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The young lady was right on the money when she angrily exclaimed to the late Senator Arlen Specter, "You have awakened a sleeping giant." As of November 4 the giant was still awake and creating mayhem in Democratic precincts. Realizing that the giant is not apt to imbibe Sominex anytime soon Senator Chuck Schumer, in a speech at the National Press Club, questioned the timing, if not the shady methodology and the damage done to the taxpayers by Obamacare.

"After passing the stimulus, Democrats should have continued to propose middle-class-oriented programs and built on the partial success of the stimulus, but unfortunately Democrats blew the opportunity the American people gave them," Schumer said. "We took their mandate and put all of our focus on the wrong problem—health care reform."

Right! They were talking when they should have been listening. Of the 60 senators who voted for Obamacare 28 are gone and Mary Landrieu's impending defeat will make 29. Some have interpreted Schumer's admission to a tactical mishap as an invitation to Hillary to distance herself from Obamacare but it is more than that. It is a plenary dispensation for Senate Democrats to vote to save their political lives when Mitch McConnell brings up the repeal of Obamacare over and over again.
It would one thing if the mea culpa had been issued by a rank and file senatorial half-wit such as Barbara Boxer or Chris Coons but Schumer is second in command of senate Democrats. And he is smart. Damned smart! with a Phi Beta Kappa key and a perfect 1600 SAT score. He reasons that too many Democrats have fallen on their swords for the sake of Obamacare. He can hear a code blue for the Democratic Party. Aside from the grief Democratic Senators seeking reelection in 2016 will get for voting to repeal or not to repeal Obamacare consider the needle Hillary must thread to placate the Sandinista wing of her party which is adamant in its defense of Obamacare in the primaries then attract swing voters in the general election with videos of Jonathan Gruber reminding them that Obamacare is good enough for stupid people.
No Republican will win his party's nomination with anything less than the promise of unconditional repeal of Obamacare. A promise to keep the parts that work ( whatever they may be ) and fixing the remainder will not sell. This puts Hillary in the losing position of running on Obamacare to please the party base and alienating moderate voters. Schumer can see some real advantages to repealing Obamacare and the sooner the better.