海角大神

When will the name 鈥淛on Gruber鈥� fade from US headlines? Democrats hope that moment comes soon, preferably yesterday. But that鈥檚 not likely to happen, as Republicans continue to gleefully exploit Mr. Gruber鈥檚 unintentionally incendiary comments about the design and 2010 passage of the big health care law.

At this point, the GOP probably wants to change the nickname of the Affordable Care Act from 鈥淥bamacare鈥� to 鈥淕rubercare.鈥� Republican strategists are clear that they鈥檒l try and make the MIT economist a symbol of pretty much everything they dislike about the ACA.

鈥淸The White House] is probably going to try and make this just about Gruber, but we are not [going] to let it be just about Gruber,鈥� said GOP strategist Karl Rove during a Monday Fox News appearance.

鈥淓very single major promise used to sell the Affordable Care Act has turned out to be wrong and more importantly ... health economists and other experts knew it was wrong at the time,鈥� said Mr. Rove.

If you haven鈥檛 followed this dispute that closely, here鈥檚 the background: Gruber is an MIT economist who was paid hundreds of thousands of dollars as a consultant and plan designer during the ACA鈥檚 planning period. Last week a year-old video surfaced of him saying Obamacare passed due to the 鈥渟tupidity of the American voter鈥� and 鈥渓ack of transparency鈥� about its funding provisions.

Since then there鈥檚 been a steady stream of more videos of Gruber making impolitic remarks. First there was one, then two, then six. As right-leaning commentator Ed Morrissey noted today at Hot Air, 鈥淲e may already have gotten to the point where numbers have run past their usefulness in identifying Jonathan Gruber鈥檚 serial revelations.鈥�

For instance, there鈥檚 the video where Gruber, who was also an architect of the Massachusetts state health plan signed by then-Gov. Mitt Romney, says that Romneycare was a way to 鈥渞ip off鈥� the federal government to the tune of $400 million a year. There鈥檚 the one where he describes meeting President Obama, who was very interested in how to make the bill more politically palatable. And there鈥檚 the appearance where he talked about 鈥渕islabeling鈥� the bill鈥檚 tax on expensive Cadillac health plans, to disguise the number of people it would eventually affect.

Eventually these revelations will stop. Then the political Twitterverse will move to another topic.

鈥淢ost of the time, what 鈥榚verybody鈥� is talking about disappears into nothingness incredibly quickly,鈥� wrote Bloomberg View political expert Jonathan Bernstein last week in arguing that the Gruber-gate changes pretty much nothing.

We agree with Mr. Bernstein that gaffes, even famous ones such as candidate Romney鈥檚 鈥�47 percent鈥� video, almost always disappear with little trace, like leaves in the wind.

But Gruber鈥檚 gaffes might stick around and have more resonance than most.

For one thing, the roll-out seems planned. A GOP insurance executive watched a huge amount of video to compile Gruber鈥檚 slips. Now they鈥檙e being carefully doled out in a manner that keeps the story going. Coincidence? We think not.

For another, the GOP seems intent on making Gruber a symbol of something larger. Liberals are disdainful of the non-Ivy League attending little people, and Gruber shows it, say many right-leaning commentators. That will make him a useful rallying cry at Republican conventions to come.

鈥淭hank you, Jonathan Gruber. We now know how the Obama left sees the American people. We are like children who don鈥檛 understand what is best for us,鈥� writes former George W. Bush speechwriter Marc Thiessen today in The Washington Post.

And that鈥檚 an argument that could cement in place a major recent change in the Republican Party鈥檚 institutional image. For the first time since 2011, the GOP鈥檚 approval rating is now higher than that of its Democratic counterpart, according to Gallup. It鈥檚 42 percent positive for Republicans, 36 percent positive for Democrats.

Mentioning 鈥淕ruber鈥� as often as possible may be one way for the Republican National Committee to try and maintain that relative position.

鈥淎fter the 2012 election, many political analysts focused on the GOP鈥檚 鈥榠mage problem.鈥� Now, it is the Democrats who appear to have the more battered image,鈥� writes Gallup鈥檚 Andrew Dugan.