I much disagree with this. I think if we don't hold them accountable there will be no reform. Methinks a few of the ones getting ads run in their districts by progressive groups are running to the boss and asking the ads be stopped. From the WP today: President Obama, strategizing yesterday with congressional leaders about health-care reform, complained that liberal advocacy groups ought to drop their attacks on Democratic lawmakers and devote their energy to promoting passage of comprehen...

From The Plum Line: “We have 60 votes on paper,” Senator Harry Reid, the majority leader, said Wednesday in an interview. “But we cannot bulldoze anybody; it doesn’t work that way. My caucus doesn’t allow it. And we have a very diverse group of senators philosophically. I am not this morning suddenly flexing my muscles.”… “One or two could peel off on any issue,” said Mr. Reid, who has seen the ranks of his party swell by 15 in the past two elections. More about it: That said, Reid’s comme...

I read part of the following article with surprise, guess I was thinking it would just be expanding Medicare and making some changes...or at least along those lines. Maybe I am reading it wrong, maybe it doesn't matter...but just surprised. I think there has to be competition, or no progress will be lasting. Many people on Medicare now would be uninsurable because of their age and illnesses. I guess, though, if they have another "public option" set up....it would have the policy of allowing ...

 
More details at Think Progress: In recent months, Howard Dean — the former physician, Governor of Vermont, and DNC Chairman — has been passionately advocating for health care reform that contains a public health insurance option. Now, he’s written a book fleshing out his detailed ideas for comprehensive progressive health care reform. And I, along with Wonk Room health care blogger Igor Volsky, are honored to be his co-authors. The book — which is being released in paperback today — is title...

 
"Pete Seeger interviewed by Amy Goodman on Democracy Now! Monday, September 4, 2006" He tells Amy Goodman that he wrote President Kennedy that a favorite poem of his was written by Seeger's uncle during WWI. The uncle's name was Alan Seeger, and the poem Pete quotes on the video is called Rendezvous or "I Have a Rendezvous With Death." Pete Seeger has quite a family heritage of having a way with words. I have a rendezvous with Death At some disputed barricade, When Spring comes back wi...

 
"MSNBC's Rachel Maddow: "Fierce Advocate" Obama Has A Gay Cocktail Party - Lots Of Promises, No Action - 06/29/09" I felt very sad when I watched this tonight. I posted about it, but I deleted the post because praise for Obama on this issue seems to be the way things go here. Fehrenbach has about 5 months, and he said change would not come fast enough for him. Lt. Dan Choi gets his trial tomorrow. I did not see this video as a positive, it did not give me warm feelings. I am not gay, but ...

 
Think Progress covers this thoroughly. In an emailed statement to Bloomberg News, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said she’s open to the idea of dropping a public health insurance option in favor of a medical-insurance cooperative. “You could theoretically design a co-op plan that had the same attributes as a public plan,” Sebelius said. The leading co-op proposal in the Senate, offered by Sen. Kent Conrad (D-ND), does not share the attributes of a public plan. Instead,...

 
"As the health care debate heats up over the summer one of the central arguing points will be the possibility of creating a "public" or government-run insurance option as part of the reform bill. We take a look at how the early argument is shaping up and how important a public option seems to be to President Obama in today's Sunday Show Roundup. Added Jun 29, 2009 8:51am" More about It's not just for health care. It could carry over to other issues such as women's rights, gay rights. MR....

 
I posted about this event The church raffled off firearms as well as having a couple of hundred in attendance with their firearms said to be unloaded. (Image) Ed Reinke | The Associated Press Liz Boyer sells a raffle ticket for a new firearm to Tom Schultz before a service in the New Bethel Church where people were invited to bring their own firearms to the sanctuary in Louisville, Ky. Ken Pagano asked his flock to bring their unloaded handguns - in holsters - to New Bethel Church in Louis...

I don't watch Sunday morning TV much anymore. It is too pat, too annoying. I like for people to stand up and say what they mean, and not tip toe around issues. There is usually too much of that for me on any political TV anymore. I ran across this transcript at RCP of the interview today with David Gregory and David Axelrod. I found myself squirming at the non-answers given. I don't like the way Gregory interviews at all, but he came out on top on this one. They discuss several issues...

Now those were not his exact words, but that is in effect what he said recently in an interview with the Washington Post. He said they tried to take away things that made people not want to vote Democratic. In effect what that means to me is that they wanted to take away the heart and soul of the party...and keep us from standing for Democratic values. One of the important things we had to do in 1992 was remove the obstacles that kept people from voting Democratic in the first place," he said...

Finally by digging around on the internet I found some more stuff about yesterday's health care rally which was attended by about 10,000 people from around the country. It could not be covered by media because of Mark Sanford and Michael Jackson. There just was not enough time to fit such an event into the media's day. (Image) Here is a write-up from The Hill: The rally comes amid growing doubts over whether a public plan will be included in legislation. Though House Democrats included a...

And immigration was one of the topics that he pushed hard with the DCCC's chosen candidates. He left no doubt that they were not to discuss Iraq on the campaign trail, and they were to "go right" on immigration in order to win. He told them they would risk defeat if they fought the Republicans too hard on this issue. He's probably right, it IS one of the most effective issues the GOP has used. Of course, we could have turned the issue back on them...but that is not what was done. Here are...

(Link)/ "As of Wednesday, Ivey said, the governor's office had not received any formal applications for the elections job, which will be up for election again in November 2010. However, five people have publicly expressed interest: Janet Dougherty, a Republican, former board member of the Southwest Florida Water Management District and environmental consultant. Rosemary Goudreau, an independent and former editorial page editor of The Tampa Tribune. Craig Latimer, Democrat, Busanky's chief of...

who was a Democrat. was found dead of natural causes in her hotel room at a conference of elections supervisors recently. (Image) RIP 1936 - 2009...Hat tip to Ybor City Stogie for the picture Now we will see what Charlie Crist will do. Apparently it is traditional for him to choose someone from his own party to take her place. I don't think it is set in stone, so I hope he picks someone who will do a good job. Since the age of President Andrew Jackson, patronage has been a prized priv...

 
Things are happening fast now about the new bill that would allow State Farm and a few other elite type companies to set their own rates while other companies' rates are regulated. Charlie Crist vetoed the bill today, but odds are good the legislature will override his veto. We have been with State Farm for 40 plus years, but tomorrow I call my credit union which has offered to help us do a search for a new agent. We have stuck around and waited, but the attitude now is getting to me. The ...

The proposal, led by Democratic Sens. Byron Dorgan of North Dakota and Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico, would allow drilling 45 miles from most of the Gulf Coast, and as close as 10 miles in the Florida Panhandle. The surprise amendment passed the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee by a 13-10 vote June 22. Though a 2006 law passed by Congress prohibits drilling within 225 miles of Tampa Bay, the new proposal would supersede that legislation. Supporters of the new bill plan to pair it ...

An old high school friend loved to babysit for her daughter, but then the daughter had to go to work. Her hubby had problems...some kind of disability. My friend told me she would not babysit because God wanted women in the home. I emailed her back and asked how they would get along with no one working...her answer was "God will provide." I stopped communicating with her then. It was not worth the stress.

There is a convention this week in Louisville. They are continuing their philosophy of requiring the submissiveness of women, that they are not to be ministers, that they should work in the home. While the largest crowds gathered for a lineup of speakers at the Pastors' Conference on Sunday and Monday, an annual pre-convention lineup of preaching and music, many wives of pastors and other women took the opportunity to meet for their own morning-long series of speakers, worship sessions and ...

(Link) "I believed that, by running for President, I could raise the issues of health care for every American and the need to focus on early childhood development. I wanted to bring those issues to the forefront of the national debate. And I wanted to balance the budget to bring financial stability and jobs back to America. Most importantly, I have wanted my party to stand up for what we believe in again. But something changed along the way as I listened to Americans around this country. On m...

 
He mostly calls out the Senate Democrats, points out that it has become more about inside Senate stuff and not about what is best for the country. He said once you are in the Senate you become consumed with the internals of it. He does not mince words. Says it will look to the people like the Democrats supported the insurance companies instead of the people Dean says they don't have the spine, the GOP appears tougher. Very very outspoken.

I doubt Will will mind if I quote a few paragraphs. It was a candid interview done 6 years ago. Will was not Howard Dean's biggest fan, but he did a far more fair interview than most corporate media did. I have watched several here demand single payer only. I remembered how Dean talked about his views on that issue in the Pitt interview. I watched Dean tonight on Countdown. He reamed the Democratic leadership just as he did back in 2003. Here is the Here is the interview from June 2003:...

Says being bipartisan with an obstructionist Republican minority makes no sense. Video (Link)

This is interesting to see this turn about going on. It boggles my mind. They are wanting to drill within 50 miles of Florida. It will end up being much closer, I think. For years, anti-drilling forces turned to Congressional Democrats to beat back GOP-led efforts to drill off Florida's coast. But now it is a pair of Democrats behind what environmentalists consider one of the most threatening pieces of legislation in years. The proposal, led by Democratic Sens. Byron Dorgan of North Dakota...

 
He is delightful in this song. "My get up and go just got up and went." Glad to see he did get to sing on the show. I know the so-called liberal media banned some of his appearances there. "Pete sings his tribute to geriatrics on the Smothers Brothers show. Nice to know that 40 years later, Pete still has a little more get up and go in him."

Methinks Obama and Orszag have been listening to We could do it without cutting those programs. But the agenda for years has been to get rid of Medicare. Sadly. If they cut Medicare payments again, our party will lose in 2010 and 2012. Seniors will not tolerate it.

I was contacted this week by one of the Democratic committees. We stopped our donations for a while except to the ACLU and occasionally to the efforts by Howard Dean about health care. I told the lady we were concerned about some things and would resume donations when we felt more comfortable. She was nice and took the time to ask me about our concerns. I mentioned the way Dean was shuffled out of the national leadership without a mention or thank you. I mentioned the choice of someone for W...

There was nothing accidental about it, you are right. One of the ones I mentioned in the OP was one of the instigators. Mohler does not believe in birth control or planned parenthood. He espouses the Quiverfull movement's philosphy. The sad part is that most in the church did not see it coming, and Iraq was a wake up moment.

Those who quote verbatim like to ignore many parts of the good book. He would be weeping today at some of the sermons of hate and ugliness being preached from SBC pulpits.

Somehow I missed the fact that this guy was one of the top leaders in the Southern Baptist Church. I saw this at Huffington Post today. Even by the nut case standard of the assorted pack of neo-Nazi unreconstructed Klan members, Aryan Nation haters, and the legion of loose screw religious cranks and loonies, the Reverend Wiley S. Drake's public prayer for the death of President Obama stretched far past the outer limit of credulity. The unrepentant Drake did not back away from the prayer when...