The battle lines were drawn well before any policy was even discussed: Republicans in D.C. were committed to dumping the abhorrent components of the Affordable Care Act and trying to return healthcare to the private sector, and Democrats in D.C. were committed to using all means necessary to continue the vivisection of private sector economics.

A pox on both their houses. As the war of words wages between partisan talking heads, one thing is sure: it’s best to rely on opinions from neither side, trust no analysis they offer – evaluate the Senate GOP working draft for healthcare reform for yourself.

Republicans can’t seem to get on the same page when it comes to whether “repealing” or “replacing” Obamacare is the objective – much less get together on what should replace it. It was embarrassing that after the election of President Donald Trump, there wasn’t a plan already worked out. There is every reason to be dubious of a hurried effort to entirely change something as integral as healthcare. Furthermore that’s what Obama era Democrats did in passing the ACA without having a clue what it consisted of.

Meanwhile, national Democrats were virtually equating the healthcare fix to genocide well before they knew anything about it. In the wake of what the ACA did to healthcare in the country, Democrats have no credibility on the topic.

With our sizable senior population and with healthcare being one of the only, or the only, sector of the state’s economy to have grown in recent years as energy and agriculture suffered ongoing malaise, North Dakotans should be wary of a massive disruption.

Not that our own delegation is making an eloquent argument one way or another. The initial comment released from Sen. John Hoeven’s office was brief and milquetoast. Sen. Heidi Heitkamp’s initial statement read like Democrat Talking Points 101.

Don’t look to leadership to help form your opinions of the draft plan.

If the delivery system and cost of healthcare are important issues to you, there really is no other rational choice. Love the working draft or hate the working draft, to have an informed opinion, you are going to have to rely on yourself to make the determination. Partisan agendas make honest, reasoned discussion of the topic impossible.

North Dakotans should do their own homework when it comes to healthcare.