Comments on: Petition Drive: 28,000 People Want Congress to Stay

By: DanRockridge

DanRockridge — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 18:34:21 +0000

MoveOn is running their own petition–can’t hurt to sign both, I guess.

By: phred

phred — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 02:02:17 +0000

By all means, advocate until the cows come home. I do it all the time and it has gotten me zip. I have a hypothetically “progressive” rep who is a kabuki expert. He does whatever the leadership tells him to do. What I want is single payer, but I’m not going to get it any more than I got the Dems to
-implement a real cap and trade system much less a carbon tax
-or put timelines in the supplemental,
-or send TARP money to regional and community banks instead of the crooks at Goldman Sachs etc
-or defeat the FISA Amendments Act
-or impeach Bush and Cheney
-or …

FWIW, I love the idea of the Kucinich Amendment I hope it passes, but given how hard it is just to get everyone who “strongly supports” the public option to actually commit to defeating legislation without it, I’m not holding my breath.

And with all due respect, abolition is a poor analogy to the current legislation, given that it did not come about via a peaceful legislative process.

By: masslib

masslib — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 01:21:22 +0000

Hmmm, and what kind of idiot do you have to be to see that a public option that’s already been negotiated down to a CBO predicted enrollment of, at best, no more than 4% of Americans under 65, isn’t exactly “robust”?

The Dem’s have really pushed themselves in to a corner. They gave up single payer because they thought it would be easier to pass a “public option”, so what’s the debate about? Single payer. Except because of the Democrats decision not to advance single payer, they can not debate single payer on the merits and instead are busy trying their utmost to prove the “public option” is not single payer.

By the way, how politically feasible is your “robust” public option? I mean, since according to every plan outlined so far, the Dem’s have already given away the store. How many pledges you got? What, like, 15?

By: lambertstrether

lambertstrether — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 01:00:47 +0000

Why not compromise, then, and whip to make sure that single payer experiments could take place in the states?

NOTE Oh, and as far as this “actual chance of passing” talking point, I have this quaint concept that citizens get to advocate for the best policy. Abolition, for example, didn’t “have a chance of passing.” At the beginning.

By: lambertstrether

lambertstrether — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 01:00:05 +0000

I’m all for actual reform*, though I’m not understanding the deadline. Obama doesn’t seem to think there is one.

NOTE * Whipping to make sure that single payer experiments could take place in the states (the Kucinich amendment) would be a very good start on that project.

By: RobZuber

RobZuber — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 00:41:05 +0000

Dems thinking of staying?

Dems mull skipping panel, bringing healthcare to floor
http://thehill.com/leading-the.....07-23.html

By: phred

phred — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 00:37:55 +0000

You are correct. Jane brought up HR 676 (which has zero chance of passing) only in response to the incessant bitching of some who think she should be whipping a hopeless cause as opposed to one that has a chance of passing.

By: Adie

Adie — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 00:37:49 +0000

Just signed. Thanks Jane.

By: phred

phred — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 00:24:28 +0000

I don’t doubt it, but it would be fun to declare in response, “Oh! So you prefer socialism then, given its fiscally conservative nature” ; )

By: lambertstrether

lambertstrether — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 00:15:30 +0000

Here’s a plan:

How about hoping that progressive A-listers with the big megaphones wise up and advocate for the policy they know in their hearts and minds is right?

Here’s one way to start and it’s incremental: Whip to make sure that states get to experiment with single payer plans (because as I understand it, ERISA could prevent that). That’s what Kucinich did in the Senate, but this need to get in the bill, go through conference, etc. Kucinich, by the way, got that passed with a strategy that combined the votes of conservatives — to whom he appealed on a “state’s rights” basis — and genuine progressives, a “strange bedfellows” strategy that I commend to everyone’s attention…