MOMocrats™

A Word On Bi-Partisanship

Man, who ever thought it would be so hard being in charge?  Seriously.  It's become quite apparent that the Democrats have a serious case of minority-party PTSD as, with the exception of a hand full of brave souls, they seem capable of doing little more than cowering in the corner while Boehner and McConnell continue to steal their lunch money.

And all the while the drumbeat of criticism levied at President Obama about his push toward "bi-partisan" solutions has grown louder as even reasonable minded Democrats seem about ready to abandon this presidency and resign themselves to handing the keys back over to the GOP.  I'll admit, I'm on that ledge.  But let's consider this.  What if bi-partisanship is not about Republican support, but about trying to wrestle in the remaining Reagan Democrats in Congress?

Look at who is consistently blocking Democratic initiatives, for example.  Ben Nelson (D-NE) is a perfect case study.  Now, as a Nebraskan I can speak a bit to Nelson and he is a classic Nebraska Democrat.  If the Republicans were not so blatant in their racism he'd (and most his voters) would be Republicans.  Same with Evan Bayh.  Unless the Democrats were to get real comfortable with the idea of passing every piece of legislation via reconciliation (which would be far too brass-knuckled for the delicate constitutions of Democrats), President Obama needed to find a way to maintain 60 votes, and keep up appearances of Democratic unity.  That's a political quagmire if one ever existed.

But so what?  What do we do now that the Republicans control the House and have pledged to block every piece of legislation the Democrats introduce (save, of course, tax cuts, OBVIOUSLY).  Do we let them, as some on the left have suggested and let the American people see them for the obstructionists that they are?  Sounds tempting, but I'm starting to think that's too sophisticated for our current political media and most voters.  Sigh.

Or, do we take the tactic of our President and work to get SOMETHING passed, knowing that something is better than nothing and it is easier to build on legislation than to pass it?  That's what we did with health care reform and financial services reform.  It's also what we did with civil rights legislation.  Our first Civil Rights Act was pretty meager.  Over time it got better.  I suspect the same will be true with the Affordable Care Act, presuming the Democrats (and a few sane Republicans) find the will to beat back the impulse to cave to the quick and conservative-media driven narrative that the bill is garbage.

So, I guess what I'm saying is let's not give up, no matter how dark and how cold our political climate may be right now.  And lets resist the urge to punish one man for the failings of Congress and keep in mind that legislative change happens incrementally, and often is a process of two steps forward, one step back.  We'll get there, and President Obama can still bring us there, but not if we expect miracles and victories at every turn and in every year.

Democrats, Independents, and Moderate Republicans: The Hard Right Wants You to Run for the Hills. Run to the Polling Booths Instead.

November 2010 is a referendum on Republican obstruction extremism.

Keep repeating this phrase when dangerous nonsense happens, like...

This weekend, when rodeo-clown Glenn Beck and his Neo-Westboro Baptist Church, sure to be given wall-to-wall coverage by the cable tv Nonstop Carnival of Evil/Stupid, arrive in Washington, DC. Last August, it was nonsensical "death panels" pushed by a cheeto-stained Facebooker that managed to get everyone into a stir. It's amazing the damage one mean person in her pajamas can do from the basement of her home in the outer reaches of Wasilla.

Let's face it, while August may be the "silly season," ever since about March, 2009, the hard right has done nothing but drag the GOP in a more conservative direction. Like bad cosmetic surgery that pulls too tight, any further right and the GOP's ears will meet behind its head like a clasp on a cheap purse--any further right, and Pol Pot will be wondering why he didn't think to burn some Qu'rans first.

The Other Health Care Reform Protests

This past Sunday, I was watching Meet the Press, and the host of this ostensibly non-partisan political show on the supposedly left-leaning network of NBC, David Gregory, said something that actually made me yell out loud at my television screen.

Gregory was speaking with the Director of the White House Office of Health Reform, Nancy Ann DeParle, about the health care reform legislation currently on the cusp of completion in Congress, and he said, "I'm asking where, where's the evidence that Americans don't want to wait, that they really want to move forward?  The only protests you've seen publicly are on the right in opposition to the bill."

The only protests you've seen publicly are on the right in opposition to the bill, David Gregory said.

And I may, at that point, have channeled Congressman Joe Wilson. 

The only health care reform protests we have seen have been in on the right opposition to the bill? Really, David Gregory? Really?

Because I was at a protest in support of health care reform legislation, right here in St. Louis, Missouri just a few months ago in September. It was a candlelight vigil, actually, to remember the tens of thousands of Americans who die each year because they cannot afford health insurance. 

Go Watch This: "Last Friday Night My Father Asked Me to Kill Him"

I lost my grandmother on Tuesday. On the way out of one meeting and already thinking ahead to the next, my cell phone rang. It was my aunt, calling from the grandmother's house to tell me she had died.

She'd just turned 83 earlier this month. Besides a little hypertension (controlled via medication), she had no serious health conditions. We're still waiting for final word on what happened -- it appears to be a stroke or heart attack -- but her death was sudden and unexpected.

Last evening I took to the sofa, exhausted from a long day of work and feeling I need a mulligan on 2010 (besides my grandmother, there have been other serious family illnesses, epic snow and cold, and frantic work schedules). I flipped channels rather aimlessly and eventually settled on MSNBC, where I could half-listen to the news.

And half-listen I did, until Keith Olbermann read his special comment and blew me away.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

This Isn't About Ads Any More (Video Responses to Focus on the Family's CBS Super Bowl Ad)

As with many things that irritate, Focus on the Family's "pro-life" ad has gotten under the skin of a lot of people--people who prefer their sports politics-free, people who are pro-choice, and people who like their gay selves, siblings, friends, neighbors, co-workers, and parents just fine the way they are.

Can't go without mentioning the Planned Parenthood ad:

There's the spicier Raging Grannies ad (women after our own hearts who TOTALLY GET IT):

And now there's an ad making fun of the Focus on the Family's particular brand of right-wing Christian homophobia:

While these are all alternately touching, hilarious, and snarky, it's not about the ads any more. It's about a right-wing religious organization that's funded to the tune of $112,000,000 and chronically UNDERFUNDED pro-choice organizations. That's why MOMocrats launched this Tailgate for Choice campaign.

If we say we support choice and enjoy reproductive rights, then let's walk the walk with even a small donation to the organizations that protect those rights for us and provide needed services to women.

Cynematic needs more hours in the day. Period. She also ignores her personal blog, P i l l o w b o o k.

Dodd, Dorgan retiring -- so let them go (without whimpering)

Senators Chris Dodd (D-CT) and Byron Dorgan (D-ND) announced that they will both retire. News media is already frothing at the mouth because this offers them the opportunity to rampantly speculate and, also, play what Mean Girl expert Rosalind Wiseman calls The Banker, a role that enables them to gossip and drop divisive and corrosive information seemingly innocently (we're just informing, we're just talking) all while stirring up frenzy and fights.

Consider this bit of fear and hysteria mongering from MSNBC's First Read's Domenico Montanaro, Chuck Todd, Mark Murray and Ali Weinberg:

"The biggest story with these retirements? The effect on President Obama. He’s the head of the party, and to see so many Democrats in one day decide they don't want to run while he's the leader can create the perception of political weakness -- at the very time when he's trying to strong-arm Dems to give him health care and other major domestic achievements[.]"

and

"** Reading the tea leaves: Collectively, these retirements are a sign that many Democrats are reading the tea leaves and determining that this year is going to be difficult for their party. It's what happened to Democrats in the year preceding the GOP’s sweep in 1994."

Ooohhhh color me trembling in my boots. 1994. 

Look I remember 1994 well and what happened then. I bet you there's not a major Democrat who doesn't.

Don't fall for it. Don't fall for the fear, the hysteria, or the mud-slinging and impugning of President Obama's strength.

The alternative interpretation, Domenico, Chuck, Mark and Ali, (et al) and (in my humble opinion) the better interpretation, is that, like Associate Justice of the Supreme Court Souter, these Democrats now feel safe in the current political environment to take the action to retire. Like Souter, they trust in the strength of the party and feel confident that they can be replaced by strong, progressive Democrats.

So Dodd and Dorgan are retiring, so what. Let them. In fact, let them go without one whimper and see it for the opportunity it is.

No, not for Republicans to take the seat (although, of course they'll try, as we should expect them to and must respect that they will) but rather as an opportunity to let two middle-aged white men step aside and open up an opportunity for diversity in the Senate.

This gives strong female and other minority contenders in North Dakota and Connecticut the opportunity to step up on the national stage, and if the Democrats have any wits about them, this is what they'll support.

Connecticut offers a good opportunity. Clearly voters there are happy to elect women to top positions. Consider Governor Jodi Rell. She is a Republican, and has announced she will not seek re-election in 2010, so...she may be a potential opponent.

North Dakota's Republican Governer Hoeven has been murmuring about considering running for Senate. However, supporters have already begun a call for former Democratic attorney general Heidi Heitkamp, including starting a Facebook page promoting her for the race. 

In Connecticut, attorney general Richard Blumenthal has announced intent to enter the race for U.S. Senate as the Democrat candidate, meanwhile First Selectman Mary Glassman has announced interest in running as the Democrat for Governor.

It means change, it means transition, but it also means opportunity. Let's hear from some Democrats in these states -- the party now has a huge chance to support a candidate that represents the modern US in this new century and decade. Let's see some women step up -- with full party backing!

Who can YOU recommend?

Go Watch It: Rachel Maddow Takes on Americans for Prosperity

In August, I wrote about how astroturfing groups funded by big business and staffed by GOP political operatives and corporate lobbyists — like the Koch Industries-funded group Americans for Prosperity — are influencing the national debate on health care by helping to organize and promote Tea Party gatherings and town hall protests at the local level.

Last night on MSNBC, Rachel Maddow took on Americans for Prosperity President Tim Phillips in a scathingly direct interview. If you're concerned about the involvement of corporate lobbyists in the health care debate, don't miss this interview! Watch parts one and two below (part two is after the jump).

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Calling Out Tea Party Racism: Sometimes an Ally Can Challenge It Most Directly

Over the weekend, President Obama had this to say about whether resistance to White House policies were tinged with racist sentiment:

Previously, he'd spoken to the issue of race in America in a stirring speech during the Democratic primary.

I believe he's right in both his prior and most recent comments. Rudeness made Kanye West the talk of the Video Music Awards and rudeness made Congressman Joe Wilson the talk of a recent presidential address to a joint session of Congress. And, at the same time, I also believe that the president's task is to take the long view, a meta-quotidian and transcendent one. He guides the nation as we are and as we will be in years to come for the overall betterment of the country. So a disagreement over what constitutes racism moves no policy forward and certainly doesn't befit the office, and what racism exists ought not be dignified with a reply.

Hear My Story: Breast Cancer Twice, and My Only Choice Was Health Care in France

HOW BLUE CROSS/BLUE SHIELD OF NEW YORK TRIED TO KILL ME

by Suzanne White  

America is no place to be old or sick.

I am an American health insurance exile. While living in New York in 1978, I got breast cancer and had a mastectomy. Blue Cross/Blue Shield summarily refused me coverage for my care and indeed cancelled my excellent paid-up policy without explanation.

I fought them. And I lost. Hospital bills, surgeons, anesthesiologists, endless tests and chemo absorbed all my savings. I had to sell my house and all my belongings. Then, bald, broke and severely weakened by a year of heavy chemotherapy, I gathered up my kids and took them to live in France where there is a national health insurance plan. I was lucky. My books were selling well in French so my publisher has been paying his share of my policy all along. I paid up my share; so I and my two daughters once again had full coverage health insurance.

Strategies to Pass a National Public Option/State Single Payer Health Care Plans: Will They Work?

Lately there's been a lot of angst from liberals and moderates who favor health insurance reform regarding the fate of a public option* in Congress. What's missing is a sense of how national policy debates intersect with state efforts to reform the provision of health care.

Listen up if you live in the states of California, Illinois, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, or Ohio (pdf).

Listen up if you're belong to or agree with over 572 union organizations nationwide who support single-payer health care at a national level, also known as H.R. 676.

Listen up if you've gotten increasingly concerned over the mainstream media reporting on reputed White House wavering on the public option.*

MOMocrat CityMama gave an excellent overview of the situation which I encourage you to revisit and plunder for talking points WHEN YOU CALL OR FAX your representative. You are making those calls, right?

I wanted to give a little space here to review what's happening on the state level, and encourage you to mobilize there as well.