http://www.fivethirtyeight.com/2010/01/health-care-polls-opinion-gap-or.html
This partisan article and analysis by Nate Silver of a non-partisan Kaiser Family Foundation article makes it clear that while the "Health Care Reform Bill" isn't popular, just about every aspect of health care reform included in the bill is very popular. However, by and large the components of the bill are poorly understood. This implies the problem with health care reform isn't the popularity of all of the concepts: It's the sale!
I guess anyone who has bought a car knows that some people can sell cancer while others can't sell immortality. There's a substantial difference between sales and product, and once the sale is finished there's nothing but results to effect the opinion. While the Democrats have completely lost control of the issue from a sales point of view, they still control a set of reforms that are incredibly popular. It's essential that they get through these reforms, after which point people aren't going to be affected by the lies perpetrated by the opposition, and lies by and large are what they have. Instead the Democrats will own a solution that means no one in America will ever need to worry that they or their family will ever be denied insurance again.
A good plan, violently executed now, is better than a perfect plan next week -- George Patton
Monday, January 25, 2010
Friday, January 22, 2010
Charlie Brown, Lucy and the football
It's a broken record really. Every time the Democrats think they have control of anything, the Republicans pick up the proverbial football and the Dems are left rolling around on their backs! Honestly, does Harry Reid think that when the rolls are reversed... and they will be... the Republicans are going to support the Democrats' right to filibuster? If he does believe that, he's a fool! First, the Democrats won't be so disrespectful to procedure filibuster every vote. And when they do decide to filibuster, the Republicans will kill the filibuster with threats or by bringing it to the floor under reconciliation rules. Remember the gang of 14 and the nuclear option? When Bill Frist showed some leadership? No? Well apparently Harry Reid doesn't either. 
Let's be clear: the message sent in Massachusetts was:
"We won't support weakness, show some chutzpah! We sent Obama and a 60 seat Democratic majority in the Senate to Washington to do the people's business, and YOU have shown you can't get it done!"
I live in MA. I voted for Coakley, but I held my nose to do it. She was as out of touch with the citizens of the state as is possible. Let's be clear that the MA Democratic establishment failed miserably by supporting her as the candidate. However, The message also makes it clear that there is no such thing as a safe seat in the US! Throughout the last year, polls have made it evident that Americans wanted health care reform, but the waning polls show they don't want constant bickering. They want LEADERSHIP and completion. This means doing things in spite of the the Republicans, who have decided that they will not let anything pass. This means FIGHTING instead of letting the Republicans define President Obama's Waterloo. This means showing the American people that Democrats CAN DO the people's business. And this means getting to work IMMEDIATELY. There are 10 months to show Americans what leadership is. The Republicans have invented a new weapon, the universal filibuster. Since 2006, when the Republicans lost control of the Senate, they have increased the use of the filibuster many fold. They don't keep it in the holster until times of need, they use it constantly. Every vote requires cloture. This is a new technique in the Senate. Nothing novel here, we all know this.
What I don't get is why Harry Reid lets this happen? Is he just afraid to confront his caucus? Well, he doesn't need to protect just the blue dogs anymore, he needs to protect EVERY Senator, because WE won't send back ANYONE who can't work for our citizens.
The Democrats in the Senate have an 18 seat majority today. 18 seat majority out of 100 seats!!! This isn't small! If they want to keep their jobs, they need to kill the universal filibuster. Harry Reid needs to bring legislation to the floor, let them filibuster it and let them talk until Republicans start dropping dead from talking. HE NEEDS TO MAKE THEM FILIBUSTER!!! Harry Reid is from Nevada, according to his autobiography The Good Fight he's from a town of gamblers and prostitutes... Well if this is the case, shouldn't he know when to call a gambler's bluff???
Today the Democratic caucus has a choice. The choice is either:
A) Listen to Fox News, the Wall St. Journal, Rush Limbaugh, Glen Beck, and the establishment right when they say "See, Americans don't want reform, slow down!"
or
B) Remember that Barack Obama and the 111th Congress rode a wave of anger at the failed policies of George W. Bush and voted for change. Give them that change, and show some decisiveness in the process!
Americans like it when our leaders show balls!!! No offense meant by using this term, but it's the best description in the English language. If Harry Reid wants healthcare done, than he needs to make it THE PRIORITY, and stop the business of the senate until the filibuster ends, and he needs to do it with a serious bill that will maybe only get 50 votes. The filibuster doesn't exist to stop the work of the senate, so Harry Reid needs make it clear that if Senate business is stalled, it's being stalled by those filibustering, not by him. Every bill brought to the floor deserves an up or down vote, and the filibuster exists to delay the vote, not kill it. He needs to remind Republicans what they actually are supposed to do to filibuster, and make them talk without sleep until they start to drop.
If you agree with me, I'd like to implore you to contact your Representative and Senators, and tell them to do the work of the people, and stop messing around. I don't care if you live in a blue state, I live in the bluest of blue states... tell them they can't take your vote for granted. As Scott Brown shows, no seat is safe. This is empowering. This is our weapon. THEY MUST DO OUR WORK!
Tell every congressman you can that they can stop the Republicans, they can do the work. Instead of letting Lucy and the Republicans pull the ball out from in front of our feet, it's time to show them who controls the ball(s).
Let's be clear: the message sent in Massachusetts was:
"We won't support weakness, show some chutzpah! We sent Obama and a 60 seat Democratic majority in the Senate to Washington to do the people's business, and YOU have shown you can't get it done!"
I live in MA. I voted for Coakley, but I held my nose to do it. She was as out of touch with the citizens of the state as is possible. Let's be clear that the MA Democratic establishment failed miserably by supporting her as the candidate. However, The message also makes it clear that there is no such thing as a safe seat in the US! Throughout the last year, polls have made it evident that Americans wanted health care reform, but the waning polls show they don't want constant bickering. They want LEADERSHIP and completion. This means doing things in spite of the the Republicans, who have decided that they will not let anything pass. This means FIGHTING instead of letting the Republicans define President Obama's Waterloo. This means showing the American people that Democrats CAN DO the people's business. And this means getting to work IMMEDIATELY. There are 10 months to show Americans what leadership is. The Republicans have invented a new weapon, the universal filibuster. Since 2006, when the Republicans lost control of the Senate, they have increased the use of the filibuster many fold. They don't keep it in the holster until times of need, they use it constantly. Every vote requires cloture. This is a new technique in the Senate. Nothing novel here, we all know this.
What I don't get is why Harry Reid lets this happen? Is he just afraid to confront his caucus? Well, he doesn't need to protect just the blue dogs anymore, he needs to protect EVERY Senator, because WE won't send back ANYONE who can't work for our citizens.
The Democrats in the Senate have an 18 seat majority today. 18 seat majority out of 100 seats!!! This isn't small! If they want to keep their jobs, they need to kill the universal filibuster. Harry Reid needs to bring legislation to the floor, let them filibuster it and let them talk until Republicans start dropping dead from talking. HE NEEDS TO MAKE THEM FILIBUSTER!!! Harry Reid is from Nevada, according to his autobiography The Good Fight he's from a town of gamblers and prostitutes... Well if this is the case, shouldn't he know when to call a gambler's bluff???
Today the Democratic caucus has a choice. The choice is either:
A) Listen to Fox News, the Wall St. Journal, Rush Limbaugh, Glen Beck, and the establishment right when they say "See, Americans don't want reform, slow down!"
or
B) Remember that Barack Obama and the 111th Congress rode a wave of anger at the failed policies of George W. Bush and voted for change. Give them that change, and show some decisiveness in the process!
Americans like it when our leaders show balls!!! No offense meant by using this term, but it's the best description in the English language. If Harry Reid wants healthcare done, than he needs to make it THE PRIORITY, and stop the business of the senate until the filibuster ends, and he needs to do it with a serious bill that will maybe only get 50 votes. The filibuster doesn't exist to stop the work of the senate, so Harry Reid needs make it clear that if Senate business is stalled, it's being stalled by those filibustering, not by him. Every bill brought to the floor deserves an up or down vote, and the filibuster exists to delay the vote, not kill it. He needs to remind Republicans what they actually are supposed to do to filibuster, and make them talk without sleep until they start to drop.
If you agree with me, I'd like to implore you to contact your Representative and Senators, and tell them to do the work of the people, and stop messing around. I don't care if you live in a blue state, I live in the bluest of blue states... tell them they can't take your vote for granted. As Scott Brown shows, no seat is safe. This is empowering. This is our weapon. THEY MUST DO OUR WORK!
Tell every congressman you can that they can stop the Republicans, they can do the work. Instead of letting Lucy and the Republicans pull the ball out from in front of our feet, it's time to show them who controls the ball(s).
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