Another Bush Flip-Flop

...and this one's a doozy! Here are the details, from the Washington Post:

"On Oct. 17, 2000, in a presidential debate against Democratic candidate Al Gore, then-Gov. George W. Bush of Texas promised a patients' bill of rights like the one in his state, including a right to sue managed-care companies for wrongfully refusing to cover needed treatment.

" 'If I'm the president ... people will be able to take their HMO insurance company to court,' Bush said. 'That's what I've done in Texas and that's the kind of leadership style I'll bring to Washington.'

" [BUT] Today, legislation for a federal patients' bill of rights is moribund in Congress. And the Bush administration's Justice Department is asking the Supreme Court to block lawsuits under the very Texas law Bush touted in 2000....

"Bush ... was actually never as strongly in favor of the Texas statute as he said at the debate. As governor, he vetoed it in 1995, then let it become law without his signature in 1997, saying, 'This legislation has the potential to drive up health care costs and increase the number of lawsuits. I hope my concerns are proven wrong.' "