w00T!

I will so happily eat my words if members of the CPC stand up to the Senate’s bad joke and refuse to go along with it.

Not expecting Rep. Anthony Weiner to have that kind of courage. He likes to talk about how unhappy he is, just before he goes along. But one never knows…

If House Democrats stand up and fight hard and get us back to something far closer to H R 3962, they’ll restore much of my faith in the Democratic Party. Though it won’t be enough to restore my faith in Obama.

You know gee, we’ve got to have a bill Joe Lieberman likes”…. well they’ve only got two votes to spare in the House. so I think this is going to be a tougher negotiation than they think.

A Dem with a Spine:) Oregon voters would be angry about this bill if they become poor their state already covers them and does a good job of it too. Oregon voters being forced to buy crappy healthcare would be a Nonstarter in that State for Dems, GOPers everybody.

Nice to hear a House member at least talking tough when all recent portents have suggested the fix is in. I hope the resistance of DeFazio and others solidifies.

I also appreciated that last statement, the sort of thing we need to hear a lot more from members of Congress.

DEFAZIO: Well meaningful Democratic majority that does things Democrats should be doing, it would be good.

Why does it seem that outside of a few members of congress there are no democrats worth the name . Peter Defazio … Thanks , once again for restoring my faith in humanity !

IMHO these types of Progressives are the ones we should be supporting, showing them we have their backs:

Peter Defazio’s Actblue Page:
http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/12834

The question that always surfaces when I read stuff like the above is–”does he/she actually mean it?”

I can’t think of a single occasion where the answer has been “yes”. Instead, we get this kind of talk, and then a collapse when Pelosi applies the pressure.

The Oregon Health Plan was conceived and realized by emergency room doctor John Kitzhaber, then a state senator,[1] and Dr. Ralph Crawshaw, a Portland activist.[2]
It was intended to make health care more available to the working poor, while rationing benefits.[1] At the time, Oregon was considered a national leader in health care reform.[3] The law passed in Oregon was not initially compatible with federal law, so a waiver was needed. President Bill Clinton approved the plan on March 20, 1993, though he required a revision to the plan due to a concern about whether disabled people would have equal access.[4] At the time, Medicaid covered 240,000 Oregonians.[4]
In 1994, the plan’s first year of operation, nearly 120,000 new members signed up, and bad debts at Portland hospitals dropped 16%.[1]
The plan’s costs increased from $1.33 billion in 1993-1995 to $2.36 billion in 1999-2001.[1] Significant cuts were made to the Oregon Health Plan’s budget in 2003.[5]
New enrollment in the program were closed from mid-2004[6] until early 2008, when a lottery-based system was introduced. Tens of thousands of Oregonians signed up, competing for 3,000 new spots in the plan.[7][8]
The legal foundation for the OHP is generally spelled out in Chapter 414 of the Oregon Revised Statutes.[9]
[edit]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oregon_Health_Plan

My Bold I wonder if the Obama plan by forcing people to buy insurance during a recession won’t also cause more hospital debt as folks are forced into bankruptcy?
The wages will go up Meme the Administration is floating is DOA.

God, where can I contribute to support this guy!!

If Democrats only realized that THIS is what voters want. They think that they can skate through [like Obama] and that “pretty words” will cover up their complete failure to do ANYTHING to enact real health care reform.

I hope the ads the insurance companies are funding via the Chamber of Commerce in OPPOSITION to the bill are successful. Nice bunch of folksyou decided to throw in with Rahm. Real reliable and true to their words.

How about “going all the way”. The Senate bill stinks and we need not only the public option, but we need to cover 100% of the people in the USA and we don’t need to cut medicare. Let’s throw in ending the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq too.

There is not enough pressure on the center from Progressives. I woke up in the ‘All America City’ with troops on the street corners. Then Nixon, Then Reagan. Then Clinton who turned the D’s into cynics. Ten W turned the world into cynics.
My concern about Progressives is that they think that they are part of a political party that only votes on YouTube.
A Progressive movement has been around for a long time. The last time it rose up was when MLK mobilized for civil rights. The coalition was broad and not captive to one party. That is the job now!
Influence politics until someone cries uncle! Politicians cold care less what voters think, let alone want. Remember that Baucus wouldn’t let the single payer people even sit down on the 1 st day of hearings?
Grow fucking up. There are social justice organizations all over. They are not political and neither should Progressives be.
Cynicism is the new racism, it affects the world and its leadership has broadened, swallowing Congress whole.
We have to choose a leader and stop playing the Liberal ‘I’m smarter than you are game’.

I want a pony too.

Wow. More like this please.

What kind of wine would you serve with pony?

There are so many so-called agencies and foundations that receive subsidies from the taxpayer like the Chamber of Commerce,and then
use their clout to stonewall meaningfull legislation that would
benefit the public as a whole.

Don’t count your chickens until they hatch, folks. We’ve been down this road a thousand times so what makes you think the outcome this time will be any different? One of the house progressive chairs Woolsey is now supporting the Blue Dog Harman over the progressive Winograd. I don’t think the progressives have our back. Don’t send money until their actions match their words!

Nice to hear a House member at least talking tough when all recent portents have suggested the fix is in. I hope the resistance of DeFazio and others solidifies.

The fix was in, but was everyone in on the fix?

My impression is that the sellouts expected to reduce this to a take-it-or-leave-it, and thought that House Democrats – Weiner and Grayson come to mind – would go along on the argument that something is better than nothing.

In other words, the sellouts expected weakness from House Democrats. Well, the sellouts were wrong about something being better than nothing. And maybe, just maybe, they were wrong too about House Democrats just giving in and accepting crap.

As Congressman DeFazio said:

They’ve only got two votes to spare in the House. so I think this is going to be a tougher negotiation than they think.

I’m glad Mike Stark conveyed thanks and appreciation to Congressman DeFazio from us. Hopefully, the resistance of DeFazio and others will solidify.

Polo before our libations?

I hear you. Plus, we know that the pressure and threats will not only be coming from Pelosi. You can just imagine the kind of pressure the guy is going to be under — no dnc help, no dccc money, no leadership pac money, threats of primary challengers from the dem establishment, no decent committee seats — you name it. But it we tell him we understand the situation he’s in and are prepared to try and help with some support financial or otherwise — then maybe he will have the guts to follow through?

How many states have something like the Oregon Healthcare plan? I think we can count Dems from those states not to back the Obama plan.
If we could then announce to the press that Dems from states with some form of state health insurance and we presume voters with experience with government healthcare won’t support the Obama plan the question of why becomes very embarrassing for the White House.

I mean, we can play the same game as the Senate

“Can” is very diffferent from “Will”.

If this healthcare kabuki has taught us anything, its that rhetoric is a worthless indicator of the actions that will follow. Until they actually threaten to vote against the Senate abomination and demand meaningful concessions for their vote, I will assume they will vote for it, as the majority of ACTIONS we have seen have favored the insurance cartels, irregardless of the preceeding rhetorical BS.

Saying it is one thing , doing it is another !

We’ll see which way he goes

no dnc help, no dccc money, no leadership pac money, threats of primary challengers from the dem establishment, no decent committee seats — you name it.

You forgot the threat of disemboweling…

40 years ago at the Harvard Faculty Club they served horsemeat. I never ate it, so did not have the opportunity to consult with the sommelier.

Yeah, but I still think we need his sort in the House. I think he’s a solid progressive at the end of the day, and has survived this long.

…or catching your kid drinking and driving and putting it on prime time news.

There is always the chance that House critics are applying pressure to raise the price of their vote. Not necessarily suggesting that is the case with DeFazio.

The example of Nelson in the Senate was very heavy-handed. That sort of quid pro quo might go mostly undetected when related to bills that fly under the radar, the Senate HCR package is not one of those.

There are subtler ways to buy votes, such as promising future favors which will appear unrelated to the legislation currently pending.

If you have the appetite.

Be great if it was true but I’ll believe a progressive has a spine when I see it.

I’ll be perfectly happy to be wrong here, but the CPC has never given me a reason to trust them before.

DeFazio has said he will vote against any bill that does not have a public option, and signed the July 30 letter to Kathleen Sebelius saying he “simply cannot vote” for a bill that “at minimum” does not have a public plan

the july 30 letter was to pelosi, waxman, miller and rangel. the relevant bit from it on the po is:

Any bill that does not provide, at a minimum, for a public option with reimbursement rates based on Medicare rates – not negotiated rates – is unacceptable.

the follow up letter to sebelius was dated august 17 and said, in part, (my bold):

A robust public option is essential, if we are to ensure that all Americans can receive healthcare that is accessible, guaranteed and of high-quality.

defazio already violated his pledge once when he voted for the house bill, which did not include a “robust” po according to the definition used here (the fdl pledge used a different def of “robust”).

putting aside for the moment that i don’t think either def qualifies as robust, and as much as i have appreciated defazio’s work in other areas, he has no credibility with me on this issue.

Pete doesn’t respond to threats. He is immune. He will have his job as long as he wants it, rumors to the contrary not withstanding. The voters of Eugene/Springfield alone put him over the top in a district that spans a lot of square miles. I have read interesting ideas that he is in danger of reelection. The folks in the district that vote disagree. He does not have to back down. I do not think that he will.

Right on point.

Cenk Uygur has a front page cross-post already in progress: An Invitation to the Tea Parties to Join the Fight

a real hero…thanks

Yes. Hence the skepticism in the final paragraph.

You’re right, it was to Pelosi. I’ll correct.

True, but all of that, plus Rhambo, will be vectored mostly through Pelosi, I’m guessing.

None of these guys will do (i.e. really go to the mat) what the Blue Dogs and GOP do routinely. Until they do, they won’t get taken seriously.

thanks.

call me charlie brown, but for all my skepticism, i keep hoping the progressives in congress will come through this time. (this time being every time).

I just called DeFazio’s office to give him a big “attaboy;” the aide I spoke with was pleasant and congenial. The phone number is (202) 225-6416.

But, it’s NOT a game. And, it should be done with great civility and energy and persistence without a lot of fireworks.

These last few negotiations could make or break the whole effort and bomb-throwers aren’t the best people to handle it.

Let’s also hope it DOES get done for the State of the Union speech. To get past that point without it done would disappoint and annoy a lot of people. We’re supposed to be the party that can prove gov’t works. Let’s do it.

I agree. Obama is Bush Lite. The real question is – will the House Democrats roll over like a bunch of pussies and accept the Senate’s 2010 Insurance Industry Reaffirmation Act? If they do roll over, we have to start looking at replacing Obama with a “true” progressive in 2012. The wars and the continued assault on the middle class must end!

Peter Defazio is very smart on many subjects and it is fascinating to watch him particpate in local discussions.

Two weeks ago I wrote to Sen. Wyden and told him that he was “almost as cool as Peter now.” I still think that is funny because everyone knows Peter is the best. I hope Sen. Wyden got my jest.

Let me rephrase that. Obama is not Bush Lite. He may be worse. He may very well be George Bush with a dark tan!

DeFazio is my Representative. He talks a good game, but he isn’t reliable. In practice, he’s in the pocket of the leadership (granted, this subservience has gotten him a committee chairmanship). So the skepticism in the last paragraph is very much justified.

He’s so unreliable that the Oregon Pacific Green Party has taken to running against him. There’ve been too many votes for the war funding (there’s another coming up), casual dismissal of single-payer, and refusal to support impeachment. He reversed that one after we seriously harassed him at a town hall – I can recommend this approach. We should have the guts the Tea Partiers do. But he hasn’t been back to my town since then, and the management of Dems’ town halls has gotten much tighter.

Why wait for 2012? The Congressional elections this year are a big opportunity. The Democrats are going to lose a lot of ground – did you see the poll that says 43% of Democrats aren’t planning to vote? Dems’ numbers have been falling rapidly, but the Republicans’ aren’t going up, and we may well see a Tea Party splitting the Right.

It’s up to us to determine whether the Dems lose to Republicans or to real progressives in a “3rd” party.

An accurate picture of DeFazio’s electoral situation. The Republicans didn’t bother to run against him last year, only the Greens and the Constitution Party.

What he IS afraid of is the party leadership. He almost always caves to them, which is the reason the Pacific Green Party ran against him and will again. He’s even taken to parroting Wyden’s silly excuse for opposing single-payer (that the transition would be difficult).

The caveat at the end of the article is absolutely justified. No guts at all.

It was my understanding that Sen. Wyden was one of the big sell-outs?

Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR): Helping employers ditch health insurance

“…Mr. Wyden Friday secured a commitment from Mr. Reid to support a $4 billion amendment designed to give workers greater flexibility to purchase health insurance outside the workplace. Mr. Wyden said the proposal represented a “modest step” forward and was “my price” for supporting moving ahead…”

http://stateofthedivision.blogspot.com/2009/11/senators-name-their-price.html

Have you actually read what is in this bill?

I always thought the democratic party was supposed to be the party that can prove it’s willing to back the people and not the corporates” Backing the corporates was supposed to be what the republicans did, not the democrats?

“…What he IS afraid of is the party leadership…”

Aren’t they all?

No, it’s NOT a perfect world. Jane & team reminded me I was ready to throw the towell in too early. The time to react is AFTER a HealthCare Bill is passed. I sent DeFazio some $$ this morning BECAUSE yesterday is over; the time for Dem. Congress Reps to stand up is NOW.

Yes. Absolutely. He’s facing Pacific Green Party challenger precisely on this issue.

No. Kucinich isn’t; McKinney wasn’t before they pushed her out. Of course, she’s now a Green.

And DeFazio doesn’t need to be: as oldtree pointed out, he has a very safe seat – as long as he’s in it.

Kucinich (I like him), but he’s always seemed to me like his own little island in Congress, with the establishment keeping him on as the token liberal, much like the token Ron Paul on the republican side. As you say with McKinney once she got a little too vocal about how the establishment operated they got rid of her pretty quickly.

I kicked Mr. DeFazio $100 bucks on this. If we want progressive behavior, we have to reward it.

It’s like training a dog, really… reward good behavior, punish bad behavior.

Training a national legilature follows the same principles.

Goosh! ya paying attention.

Same with Grayson.As amatter of fact Grayson is using the same play book Obama used:Say progressive things then vote for non progressive things.

I have said before their are very few progressives in the House Progressive Caucus.

Saying you are progressive and supporting a non progressive agenda does not make you a progressive.

Good to see people are finally waking up to the scam.

Agreed. I had written to Sen. Wyden a few months ago and he replied that he had his own bill that had good features, but I think that his bill failed, and I agree with the sentiment that he is not a reliable vote for public option or single payer.

rep. defazio is my representative and i have contacted him to say, “make this bill reflect the wishes of the people, or kill it!” as horton would say, “say what you mean and mean what you say!”

If it was only that simple :(, but I too sent him a 100 bucks this morning — We’ll see if our money was well spent.

Unfortunately, I just saw in another post that he may not be running again, and that he was interested in running for the Governorship in Oregon. Does anyone know if he’s made up his mind?

I like it,”say what you mean and mean what you say!”

I think Kitzhaber, previous Oregon Governor (the one who wrote the health-care bill for Oregon) is going to run for governor again. If he does, I doubt DeFazio will.

Just heard Weiner talk bullshit re HCR on Countdown.

Yeah, tell the House to DO ITS JOB and REJECT the Industry Bill issuing from the House of Lords–before they have to go home to their little tiny local districts to take the pitchforked wrath of their newly serfed subjects.

That’s the way its supposed to work. Forget the D-Party. They’re history.