This is a unique opportunity to publicly bitch-slap the five conservative Supreme Court Justices, as they sit before you, for their scathingly undemocratic decision opening the floodgates to the corporate takeover of our nation. Take names, Mr. President. You’re a Constitutional scholar. Knock down their arguments. Make Roberts squirm.
When the Judicial branch of the federal government so overreaches its authority as to threaten the very foundations of the state and its political institutions, it’s your solemn responsibility to push back, and push back hard. There is no better stage than the State of the Union, where you will have the Justices, the Congress, and the nation as a captive audience.
It would be a master stroke and strike a blow for democracy. Sadly, Mr. President, I rate the chances of it happening no better than 50-50. Such is the current state of disenchantment within your progressive base.
Healthcare options for Democrats now that the fictitious supermajority is no longer an excuse for reactionary hacks from small states to hijack and exploit the debate:
The general consensus is there are three options left to Democrats:
1. Do nothing.But there is also a fourth option. Here it is, it’s very simple and all things devolve from it:
2. Work cooperatively with Brown-Palin-McCain-Lieberman-Vitter-De Mint-Bachmann-Grassley-Snowe-Enzi-Hatch-Coburn-Baehner-McConnell Republicans to craft a bipartisan “scaled back” bill on one solitary page that Rham “the Appeaser” (a.k.a “Little Neville” in White House circles) Emanuel can frantically wave in his hand, declaring “we have healthcare in our time!”
3. Tell House Democrats to hold their noses, pass the seriously flawed Senate bill (with some good things), and we can fix it later in reconcilation.
4. GROW A SPINE, DEMOCRATS!Massachusetts Senator-elect Scott Brown, said on arriving in Washington:
“I'm a history buff. I love the Museum of Natural History.”
Not a misstatement. Come to think of it, to Republicans, natural history -– Cro-Magnons, the missing link, survival of the fittest, the whole “social” Darwinism thing –- is their kind of history.
2 comments:
I 100% support option 3. I want 4 to happen, but they're not getting a bill through the Senate without changing the rules. I can't argue that they should change the rules just because it hurts my side, when I argued for them back in 2004.
Well, it's a game of chicken, too, Doc. In 2004, all the Repugnants had to do was threaten the so-called "nuclear option" for Democrats to capitulate and basically give them all they wanted.
Will it work for the Dems? Don't know, since you've got to believe the proponents are crazy sociopaths, racists, and fearmongers to be convinced. Unfortunately, the Dems are, with very few exceptions, generally normal people. But it's worth a shot.
Another point is that circumstances have changed. Never in the history of this republic has the filibuster been used and abused so often by obstructionist anti-Obama, anti-government Republicans. I think the count is 116, off the charts. When these guys walk around wearing buttons proudly proclaiming "party of NO" it's time for the Dems to get tough, start worrying less about their seats and more about what's good for the country.
Post a Comment