The President will address a joint session of Congress next Wednesday to discuss the ongoing health care reform bills. In a way, I'm glad to hear that someone's going to talk to Congress about health care, because, well, these people need to be sat down and given the what-for. As I'd bet half of them don't even listen to their mothers anymore about what constitutes appropriate behavior, it falls to the leader of the free world to lecture them -- and many of us at home -- about the real necessity of getting over ourselves long enough to have a fact-based discussion about our health care system. If he could manage to throw in a line or two about how punching someone for having a different opinion gets you nowhere except sent to the corner to think about your behavior, I'd appreciate that, too.In fact, there's nothing about Professor President Obama showing up on Wednesday night that I don't like. This debate needs an injection of reason. Well-informed health care centric blogs don't cut it, because they can't preempt the new "Jay Leno Show." What we need is a national class on how terribly messed up things are and how nicely they could be fixed. Small words, big ideas. The White House says he's going to add context to the debate, which I support, but if he only manages to add facts, well, that'd be a 100 percent increase of good from where things stand right now. Bring the projector, Professor O. Bring graphs, bring eloquence, sure, but also bring your attendance book. Anyone who doesn't watch or listen gets an F in citizenship, or at least an automatic fail the next time they try to talk about health care in public. (I WILL BE KEEPING TRACK).
But this speech could go very wrong, very easily. Instead of Professor Obama, we could get Compromiser Obama. We could get "Why Can't We All Get Along, I Love You Chuck Grassley" Obama. The facts are on our side. Public opinion, when formed without scare-tactics, is on our side. This joint session should end in a lot of "how could we have been so wrong" head-scratching from the Republican side of the room, not a dance number over the grave of the public option. If Obama stands before a joint session of Congress and in any way signals that there's room to negotiate over whether a public option is included in the final version, he might as well end his speech with, "God Bless America, because you 44 million uninsured suckers need all the help you can get."
I'm hopeful. I think the forceful educator of the campaign -- the man who created a teachable moment at the low point of his campaign -- might be with us on Wednesday night. I'll certainly tune in to find out.
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Catherine Forsythe
Writer to the Stars
Emily Holleman
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Leslie Harpole
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Comments
He needs to explain how there will be a public option without trillions of dollars in debt on top of the stolen and wasted money from the bush administration. That is what we want.
I also wish that he would look into recovering some of the stolen Iraq money and using it to finance a public option.
Here's hoping, Silkstone. KISS indeed.
It's cheered me quite a bit, too, Steve.
Rick, I really hope, for once, that an address over the heads of Congress to the public will work some magic against the lies. But I have a feeling you're right to be skeptical.
At this point, the debate is being driven by short-term political motives, rather then a desire to make good public policy. It's pretty clear that the Dems are not as interested in real reform as they are in holding the House in 2010, and that means creating a health care plan that pisses the least amount of their base off. When all is said and done, they're going to produce a watered-down bill that maybe expands Medicare and Medicaid to a few needy souls, costs a gajillion dollars over the next decade, and does nothing to change the way business is done by insurers.
It would have been so much better if Obama had taken a measured approach to reform -- a concerted public-education campaign, with public hearings and comparative studies of other industrialized nations, and much longer timeline. "Get something on my desk by August" was a laughable set of marching orders on his part, and he's kind of reaping what he sowed.
It's painfully clear that we've collectively developed something like Stockholm Syndrome when it comes to health insurance. There's so much anxiety surrounding the issue that we need to be talked down from the ledge, if you will. That can only be done by people who know what they're talking about and can explain it clearly and believably. For whatever reason, Obama hasn't been very successful in doing that so far, and there is no reason to think that is going to change next week.
John, I'm with you, a lot of blame will lie there, too.
We're gonna get it. Obama said it. Hillary pushed it. I believe it.
It's a done deal. Watch.
I spent the afternoon trying to explain to a local that the new senate bill written to combat cybercrime and beef up national security for the internet is not an attempt to bypass -- wait for it -- the Fairness Doctrine...
Yes, you are correct, it makes no sense, so I had to explain the intent of the bill as well as the fact that the Fairness Doctrine has been repealed for a long time.
I can only imagine that Glenn Beck has been mouthing something about the corporations being unfair to him in spite of the Fairness Doctrine's status. But in her poor under-used mind, she thinks Pres. Obama (who she loathes and fears) wants to take over the internet so that there is no more freedom (of speech, I guess) for red-blooded Americans. Unfortunately, she believes things like Terry Schiavo was able to feed herself therefore was murdered. Well, IF she could feed herself, OK, but who ever said she could?!!
On what planet did she pick up that tidbit?
So, I use this anecdote as one of many I could share to ask:
Is this the type person we want shaping the dialogue surrounding the future of health care? This poor woman is so typical of the right wing media warped under-educated American, yet somehow I still feel compelled to explain things in effort to lessen her fear.
I will be so disappointed in President Obama if he waffles on the public option. It won't be the masses that force that to happen, however, it will be big pharm and the insurance giants, aided and abetted by the media...
Like you, I hope to hear him give the essential message "We tried bipartisanship, and it sucked. Listen up, Congress. we're going to pass this thing because we're the majority party and it's time we started acting like one. Any Republican ready to cooperate with us on providing Health Care to Americans who desperately need it, will be graciously thanked. But we're going to pass the Health Care Bill. Got it?
Oh, and Chuck Grassley, please pull your head out of your A**. the view is better and the air is fresher out here."
Rated.
He's already got the charismatic aspects down. America needs to see a resolute leader unafraid to reveal temerity and backbone.
I, too, am hoping for the wise, consistent, hair-raising orator to show up next Wednesday. His leadership is overdue. Let's hope the post-game show is synchronized with the speech and stays that way.
I just dont get why I haven't seen billboards that say "Do we want this to be the Democratic Party's Waterloo? Or even a worse but perhaps more apt war analogy, will this be the 1mm man Persian army held off by 300 Spartans?
There is no longer a need to quote statistics. This is a time for laying out a warplan to defeat the plague of bankruptcies, broken lives and early deaths, massive greed and the purchase of the US Congress. We dont need a Professor in Chief. We need a Commander. Are you up to the task Mr President?
On this side with those in the MAJORITY who elected US to honestly guide them and serve them in their BEST INTEREST.
Or on that side where sponsorship, by" ORGANISED MONEY" are paying to hurt Americans HEALTH CARE potential and our economy.
( I picked up the "organised money" phrase from FDR speech in 1936, when he was attempting to improve the social lives of Americans and came against BIG BUSINESS.)
He should also tell the elected officials that he has advised the nations head of national security, that they should pay attention to all ELECTED OFFICIALS" who are encouraging the expression of violence , by their deliberate, mischievous and selfish spreading of calculated misinformation..normally called "blatant lies" among their constituents. National Security is NOT only about..militant islamic groups willing to hurt Americans ..but also about "Right Wing terrorists" willing to hurt Americans as they have done in the past.
Finally he must say...Let freedom ring!...and call them together to make America a better place for you and me.... He should get them clapping and singing...WE ARE THE WORLD....!!!
Or even still he could get the Stiff Ass Republicans, to "pull out your flag and wave it"....while they all sing...."If you love... America ...wave your flag"!!! To the tune...'come by here my lord...'
But I share, if only out of my last shreds of regard for humanity, the hopefulness people express...
One of the things O could do is what Heather suggests - if people could understand that most other industrialized countries have universal health care, many of them via government, and their results are better and their costs less, then how can they argue against that? (Oh, I know - it's not the American way, socialism, U.S. leads the way in innovation which other countries don't have to invest in...tho I read recently that Canadian pioneers in transplant procedures were annoyed to have their work attributed entirely to the U.S.)
But ultimately it's what Punterjoe said - it's your goddamned ridiculous Congress (and the totally unprincipled and unaccountable voices of the right wing media...) that will decide this...
While criticizing the right wing for it's delusional behavior and distance from reality, thus alienating some who could be allies, we act the same way, just about different aspects of the debate. We know the details of the policy discussions. The leadership of the right knows how to get politics done.
People express hope that Obama will/might come around; they propose what he should or might say; they ignore the history of his presidential campaign and presidency.
Obama exerted political pressure at the Progressive Caucus, which felt the Wrath of Rahm: "you don't support the War Supplemental and we don't give you party money for re-election."
And the so-called "moderate" Dems (Baucus, Conrad, Lincoln, the Blue (Lap) Dogs)? They give away to the health-industrial complex that which Obama hasn't— and pay no cost—while Obama cuts deals with the drug industry and the Republicans.
And the right wing is delusional?