In a letter released this afternoon, Representative Raul Grijalva (D-AZ) expressed "alarm" and "dismay" at the remarks by Rahm Emanuel, published in the Wall Street Journal, that signaled an openness to a "trigger" that would indefinitely delay implementation of a public option in any health care overhaul.
I want to be clear that any such trigger for a strong public option is a non-starter with a majority of the members of the progressive caucus. . . . Members cannot support final passage of ay health care reform bill that does not include a robust public option, akin to Medicare, operating alongside private plans.




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Obama needs to take Rahm’s gun away. He’s shooting his own peeps.
Tiny Dancer Rahm…MADE/STOLE a fortune on Wall Street
HE ALWAYS BETS WITH THE HOUSE
If Rahm made that comment without Obama’s blessing, he ought to be fired.If he made it WITH his blessing, then Obama should be fired.
Yay! Co-chair of the Progressive Caucus is actually talking about the potential power of the caucus. More of this, please, Progressive Caucus!
HEY ES
i fear Rahm has a Napoleon complex
Fire Rahm, he is a corporate SHILL! He will always look out for the fat Cats interest!!
Why cause he joined their club while working on Wall Street!!!
Sounds quite likely, doesn’t it?
Could the dems be developing a backbone or discovering what Obama said on the campaign trail – It is idiocy to continue doing the same thing and expecting different results
http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo…..hp?ref=fpa
We haven’t seen any suppport from the Republican side on any bill of significance since Obama was sworn in. Reid is correct, the public will judge the Democratic majority on Keeping its word, Enacting legislation that will help the economy recover, Improving the safety net (health and benifits). The opposition continually lambasts librals for not standing up for anything. Here we have a chance to stand up for our principals. Lets do what was promised, and avoid water measures that wont satisfy anyone. Mr Emmanual needs to hear the strength of legislators who stand on their principals.
When has anything Rahm has said or done helped Obama? Why did Clinton like Rahm I see no good qualities?
Never thought I see those words but I guess unemployment moving to 10% has scared Harry.
No. And even if they are, this is not at all the time to treat them as if it were true.
Maybe Harry read the blog FiveThirtyEight and realized that thanks to his complete lack of a Spine Roland Burris of Illinois and Blago fame has a better chance of getting reelected than the Dem Senate Majority leader.
http://www.fivethirtyeight.com/
Also if Harry loses next election we the Left will have a much bigger say in picking the new DEM Senate Majority Leader.
The excerpt of the Grijalva letter highlighted above leaves out an important clue as to what has been going on behind the scenes. The complete sentence: “As the CPC has repeatedly stated, its Members cannot support final passage of any health care reform bill that does not include a robust public plan option, akin to Medicare, operating alongside the private plans.” (Emphasis added.) Apparently, the CPC has been privately negotiating with the Administration. I have been met by silence when I ask my Rep. to declare her position by taking the pledge to vote no for any bill not including a public plan. By the CPC going public, we may be seeing an end to the silence. Keep on putting pressure on your representatives.
I would like to believe that such private negotiations are taking place, but the CPC remains an undisciplined group, and Grijalva — one of my heroes in the House — is engaging in a touch of bravado in hinting that the caucus will unite in opposition to anything short of its published robustness criteria.
I hope I’m wrong, but from some communication I had with Darcy Burner, and from a recent comment of Jane’s, I now recognize that I’ve overestimated the caucus’s “message discipline.”
Grijalva has taken Jane’s whip pledge, and if the CPC were as united and internally whipped as he implies, the number of signatories would be an order of magnitude greater than it is to date. (And Jane’s whip criteria are far more modest than the CPC’s robustness principles.)
Never refer to him by his name. He should only be known as Tiny Dancer. His credibility is in the crapper.
Congresswoman Woolsey tells Rahm What’s Up
can’t wait to see if we get more Yes’s on the Pledge tomorrow -
Grijalva is a good man. Luckily he is in a very safe district here in Tucson, but the Anglos in town hate him with a passion. (Well, not all of the Anglos, I am one among many who love the guy).
A mandate to purchase insurance from greedy, for profit companies without a viable public option is unacceptable. Obama is a disappointment.