Mitt Romney praised Israel's healthcare system this morning before leaving for Poland, and as you may or may not be aware, Israel's healthcare system is a socialized system that features an individual mandate and price controls, among other things.
via NY Times
“Do you realize what health care spending is as a percentage of the G.D.P. in Israel? Eight percent,” he said. “You spend eight percent of G.D.P. on health care. You’re a pretty healthy nation. We spend 18 percent of our G.D.P. on health care, 10 percentage points more. That gap, that 10 percent cost, compare that with the size of our military — our military which is 4 percent, 4 percent. Our gap with Israel is 10 points of G.D.P. We have to find ways — not just to provide health care to more people, but to find ways to fund and manage our health care costs.”
Provide healthcare to more people while managing the increased cost.
That sounds a lot like Obamacare to me. Or Romneycare. Call it whatever you want. The point is we've already passed legislation to responsibly manage our healthcare system, and repealing that legislation is the centerpiece of the 2012 Republican campaign. It's the raison d'être.