Democrats balk fearing backlash in polls.
By Deepak Chitnis
WASHINGTON, DC: Vivek Murthy, the physician who has been nominated by President Barack Obama to be the next Surgeon General of the US, might see his potentially historic rise through Washington come to a screeching halt.
Murthy’s defiant opposition of the powerful National Rifle Association (NRA) and his linking of gun control to healthcare has caused several GOP lawmakers to oppose his confirmation as Surgeon General. Additionally, with the defeat of other recent Obama nominees for key positions in his administration, Democrats are wondering if they should continue proceeding with Murthy, albeit cautiously, or give up on him altogether.
A staunch defender of Obamacare, Murthy, just 36, is behind Doctors for America, an organization that was instrumental in drumming up early support for the Affordable Care Act. Now, the implementation of that law has Democrats reeling, with many of them distancing themselves from the controversial legislation out of fear that any affiliation with it could cost them re-election.
But perhaps more damning to Murthy’s chances of confirmation is the intense opposition he faces from the NRA. The organization sent an email out to supporters last week, urging them to oppose Obama’s “radical” nominee, and has also said that any Senator friendly with the NRA who votes for Murthy will see their ranking in the eyes of the organization take a hit.
Notoriously pro-gun, that aspect of Murthy’s political ideology may have cost him any hope he had at support from the GOP. Republican lawmakers like Kentucky’s Rand Paul are calling on fellow Senators to vote against Murthy. Paul said that Murthy would simply be another mouthpiece for Obama, pushing legislation forward that would undermine the GOP and put the country as a whole at risk for more harmful healthcare legislation.
However, reports indicate that Democrats are not yet throwing in the towel on Murthy, but are simply re-adjusting their strategy in terms of campaigning for him. Murthy needs confirmation from the Senate in order to ascend to the Surgeon General position, the highest medical office in the country. If he is confirmed, he will be both the youngest Surgeon General in US history and the first Indian American, too.
Currently, Murthy is an Attending Physician and Instructor in Medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital at Harvard Medical School. He earned his bachelor’s degree from Harvard University, then went on to receive his M.D. from the Yale School of Medicine and his M.B.A. from the Yale School of Management.
In 1995, he co-founded VISIONS Worldwide, a non-profit organization focused on HIV/AIDS education in India and the US, at which he served as President until 2000 and Chairman of the Board from then until 2003. In 2007, he co-founded TrialNetworks (previously known as Epernicus), a “clinical trial optimization system” company, where he co-founder and Chairman of the Board.
In 2009, he became the co-founder and president of Doctors for America, and two years later was appointed to serve as a member of the Advisory Group on Prevention, Health Promotion, and Integrative and Public Health.
To contact the author, email to deepakchitnis@americanbazaaronline.com