Obama faces healthcare insurrection from left flank

[travelingtypist]

Source: Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House worked on Thursday to tamp down an insurrection from some of President Barack Obama's liberal backers who feel he has been too willing to compromise away their priorities on a healthcare overhaul.

The frictions reflect the tortured state of negotiations over Obama's top domestic legislative priority as the White House and Democratic leadership in the U.S. Congress seek to piece together enough supporters to approve a healthcare plan that Republicans oppose.

Leading the grousing from the left has been Howard Dean, a former Democratic National Committee chairman who ran unsuccessfully for his party's presidential nomination in 2004.

Dean, a medical doctor and former governor of Vermont, in recent days has said a Senate healthcare bill that Obama supports and which is lurching toward a possible vote in coming days should be killed.

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE5BG46S20091217?type=politicsNews

---

Insurgents Unite!

[FiveGoodMen]

1. And it's about goddamned time!

[MissDeeds]

27. Coud not have said it better

I'm in!

[wordpix]

51. +1

[Vincardog]

2. 1 Insurgent here

[RamboLiberal]

3. Another insurgent reporting in n/t

[mbperrin]

24. Another insurgent reporting for duty!

Let's do it!

[lovuian]

35. Me too

Kill it and wait after the election :)

[StreetKnowledge]

43. Another insurgent, reporting for duty!

:D

[PassingFair]

73. "Insurgent" is SO last war.....I think we're "militants" now.

Though I prefer "Rebels for Transparency".

:patriot:

[Mojambo]

4. Insurrection from the left bank! Merely moderate, principled resistance from the right bank.

:eyes: :eyes: :eyes: :eyes: :eyes: :eyes: :eyes: :eyes:

[closeupready]

34. I know - I caught that tone, too.

:eyes: "liberal media" my ass.

[mistertrickster]

46. Bingo! You two spotted the same thing I did. When Howard Dean

expresses the opinion that the bill is "health insurance reform instead of health CARE reform," he's grousing.

Really.

Well, I guess we should be thankful that he wasn't whining.

On the other hand, when a CONgressman yells, "LIAR!" at the President on the House floor, that's offering a different opinion or something . . .

*****

On edit: and check what the writer cites as Dean's most worthy qualification to speak on this matter: Howard Dean, a former Democratic National Committee chairman who ran unsuccessfully for his party's presidential nomination in 2004.

Funny, I don't hear Sen. John McCain, who lost the last presidential race by the biggest margin in recent history . . . or President George W. Bush who ended his eight year term as the least popular president since Nixon.

No mention of re-taking the House, the Senate, and the Presidency while Howard Dean chaired the DNC.

[Loki]

5. I sent President Obama and email

and I specifically asked for a reply and I have not received anything. I respectfully voiced my disappointment and frustration at his willingness to sell his base down the river for the support of people and corporations who do not have the best interests of common Americans and their families at heart. I'm angry now, this is not change, this is the SOS and I will back whatever Dr Dean wants. President Obama, you don't have the courage to do the hard work and that involves knocking heads to get this done. So be it. Democrats that don't support a healthy public option and do what you promised in 2008 will not have my support nor my money next election. Someone needs to start paying attention.

[ArcticFox]

22. No reply to mine either

I sent an email about 3 weeks ago. I pleaded with the president to fight for a robust public option, explained that I would be out in an instant starting my very own company, helping the economy, if only I were not dependent on employer-provided health insurance. A public plan that would not deny coverage to those with pre-existing conditions is all I would need to get started.

As I was sending my email, the website asked if I would like a reply and I checked the box that said I would. I have heard nothing since. Not even acknowledgment of my message.

Why you mock me, Obama? Why offer to respond when you have no intention of doing so?

Regardless, Obama's actions speak louder than any words he ever could have written in response.

[Plucketeer]

26. I sent basically the same sentiments

You have to wonder if there's any buzz about this in the White House. We've been snookered and I for one am NOT gonna take that lightly. :grr:

[mistertrickster]

47. What's his e-mail address? nt

[wordpix]

53. I tried to get Lie-man's office on the phone for two days, also emailed him

His phone had an automated response, "Leave a message." And he responded to my outraged sentiments by email with, "Thank you for your message, I will as always consider your point of view." I'm a constituent and he provides lousy service.

:grr:

[DisgustedInMN]

81. The corporate lackies don't respond to us "commoners."

I'm not surprised at your experience trying to get a reply out of the "transparent" Obama Administration. It exactly mirrors mine. The only response I have gotten from literally dozens of letters to him and his staff, has been form letters asking for donations. I carried water for this lying bastard during the campaign in CD Caucuses here. I've defended him, even when I was started to wonder just what the hell he was doing. I was punked.

NO MORE. Now I'm PISSED. Better pack your pockets while you can Obama, you're already a lame duck.

[Purveyor]

6. Damn straight he is facing a "insurrection from left flank" and I haven't even started yet. eom

[truedelphi]

7. Thank you Obama for your throwing Dean under the bus

that really truly should have skid marked Rahm...

I no longer care about you.

Take your phony endless wars, and your glib shuck and jive charisma and go find someone else to believe in you and all your promised "Chains!"

Oh, and my spouse wants his money back from your campaign!

[AndyA]

8. I hope Obama and the White House get the message LOUD and CLEAR:

Don't fuck with us, fellas...we're sick and tired of being lied to, taken advantage of, and abused.

NO SOUP FOR YOU! NEXT!!

[cascadiance]

36. [phone] We AREN'T Punching bags expecting to get pushed around!

There's only so much crap we're going to take!

Obama! You keep figuratively cheating on your spouse for cheap affairs with people that don't care for you and you WILL lose your family and wind up alone and powerless at some point! Look at how far down Tiger Woods has fallen in a week! There's a lesson to be learned there!

[peace frog]

49. Obama stated months ago

that "he's willing to be a one-term president if that's what it takes to get health care and energy reform".
http://politicalwire.com/archives/2009/08/13/obama_willing_to_stake_presidency_on_health_care_reform.html

Self-fulfilling prophecy? We shall see.

[nightrain]

83. perhaps, and I'm wondering who we might put forth as a Dem candidate...

[wordpix]

54. the WH really misread how far the base would go to support the admin. on a shitty bill

I hope they correct this and start standing up for the people instead of the corporations.

I'll say it again, This is change I'm losing faith in.

[tomm2thumbs]

9. they SO misread their supporters on this one, they have NO idea

and I still think that is an understatement

[yurbud]

11. Rahm truly thinks the left wing base is a mirror of the right

stupid and willing to accept whatever hatful of shit we're fed, so long as it's called a chocolate cake.

[Doremus]

13. I wish they DID think about us in the same way as the wingers view their base.

Repukes know how to take care of their base.

Unlike the Blue Dogs in power, who view their base as red-haired step children.

[No Elephants]

31. I always thought the left wing consisted of Socialists and Communists. What are we calling

garden variety Democrats these days? Subversives?

[Dragonfli]

38. Yes, pretty much, "subversive wingnuts" according to the DLC /nt

[yurbud]

10. I wouldn't even say Obama compromised except between DLCers and GOP...

and a gnat couldn't fly between those two without clipping his wings.

[No Elephants]

32. True--and well put. Single payer went under the bus before he even started

running for President. Public option got minimized publicly in August. Reproductive choice, no biggie.

[Demeter]

12. Way Too Little, and Way Too Late

Bye-bye, bill; Bye-bye, Obama.

[Tom Rinaldo]

14. The analysis is that story is way off base even though the title is true

First off this isn't primarilly about Dean. The discontent has been bubbling up from the base for a long time even while Dean was attempting to defend prior versions of this legislation. Second it concludes with someone commenting how battling Dean can help Obama by cementing his standing with the Center. There is no way in hell it helps Obama for him to be pissing off large segments of the Democratic Party activist base right now, he can not trade in centrist support for the type of loyalty he keeps losing the more he attacks those who have been there for him when it really counted.

[SemperEadem]

17. it is not a good idea to piss off the man who created the vehicle by which

Obama and the Dems won last November. Dean comes with a lot of people who loves what he says and what he stands for. Robert Gibbs would do well to stop playing DLC/GOP idiot name-calling games and stick to the task at hand.

[icee]

15. This place is getting exciting

Grayson, Franken 2012

[SemperEadem]

18. got to see Anthony Wiener in there somewhere...

[StreetKnowledge]

44. Don't forget about Bernie, Sherrod, Russ and Dennis.

More of us there than one thinks. :) I agree on the sentiment though, and I think if Obama wants to continue to treat us like garbage, somebody should run a primary challenge against him from our side.

You up for it, Dr. Dean? And are our people in Congress ready to play hardball? Lord knows that the DLC clowns will fight them all the way, but they'll find out where the base is. And the base isn't with the DLC traitors......

[MissDeeds]

28. We're just getting warmed up

Welcome to DU! Love your avatar, btw.

:toast:

[bc3000]

16. Kill anything that Lieberman will sign!

[SemperEadem]

19. strip him of his chairmanships

[Liberalynn]

66. exactly!

[Zorra]

55. That's a really good "litmus test" for the bill. n/t

[Puppyjive]

20. F@#$ Congress

I agree with Dean to kill the bill. Having been through 5 years of litigation over health benefits with United Health care and my previous employer, I know this bill will not help anyone. It may sound great, but it will not control costs. United Health care may not get to pick and choose who they insure, but they will get to decide how much their premiums will be and when everyone is forced to get insurance, it will be costly. I'm not sure where to turn for leadership anymore. I cannot continue to support candidates who answer to corporations and their rich donors. I have to believe that health care reform could be quite simple. Everyone gets it and everyone pays for it. Those that can't pay will be subsidized. The healthy would subsidize the sick. It is quite simple yet we have a legislative body that is no better than the dog shit on my shoes. If any of these congressman worked for me, I would shit can every damn one of them for insubordination. The lowest paid workers in America could do a better job than the clowns we have now. I don't think we need Congress to create a public option, I think the public needs to do it.

[Laelth]

21. Kill the bill. It's worse than doing nothing. n/t

:dem:

-Laelth

[Blasphemer]

23. I am glad words like "insurrection" and "resistance" are being used

This should not be taken lightly. It is a fight for the future.

[MetaTrope]

25. I suspect "Maoist rebels" is next

[Historic NY]

29. Well he staked his job on this & so far the thing is FUBAR.

[Baclava]

30. Pitchforks and torches!

The king on the hill will eventually get the message.

[AlphaCentauri]

33. I want Obama to be one of the greatest presidents

so I have to keep pressuring him to do better

[liberation]

59. We should worry more about making sure that our interests are protected...

... than whatever Obama's legacy is going to be.

If he is willing to tie his legacy with our interests, awesome. If not... he can go pound sand for all I care. Waxing poetic about what a great president we are going to have doesn't help anyone who is in dire need of medical care and can't afford it. Real reform which puts the interest of the American citizen first, however, is.

[PassingFair]

74. +1

And for this, you will be branded an "insurgent".

:rofl:

[New Dawn]

37. FUCK the Fascist "Individual Mandate"!

[FrenchieCat]

39. Actually, Dr. Dean did not say the bill should be killed.

The press lies,
and folks comment on it,
ignoring that fact.

That's so fucking Teagbagger like!

[robcon]

40. Huh? Did you even read his WaPo op-ed?

"...I know health reform when I see it, and there isn't much left in the Senate bill. I reluctantly conclude that, as it stands, this bill would do more harm than good to the future of America. "
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/12/16/AR2009121601906_pf.html

[StreetKnowledge]

45. He also said that it should be killed on Countdown.

And I think he said it on Morning Joe, too.

[Techn0Girl]

57. If you follow Frenchiecat's postings you see that he/she has a pattern lately ....

of always spreading misinformation and flame wars in order to derail any criticism of the DLC or the Democratic Party. Every thread....every post.

[liberation]

60. Lately? LOL

Frenchiecat's separation with reality is so utterly complete, and the willingness to sill so apparent. That frankly, I am starting to see the same unhinged cult-of-personality attitude through thick and thin... by some of Obama's die hards, as I was unfortunate to witness from Bush's 25%ers during the previous 8 years of fun and games.

They are to the point in which they can just utter bald faced lies, even when the actual clip is right there for everyone to see. They can like and their brain simply does not register on that fact, since the end to them justifies any means. It is the whole putting party over country all over again. The question is, are those attitudes a result of a brain wash procedure? And can it be considered "brain wash" if it involves the willing?


Same sh*t, different a**hole. I am not even that old and I am already a jaded cynic. Congrats!

[Techn0Girl]

61. Well... I was trying to be generous :)

It shouldn't surprise you (or anyone) that the same types of people that we see "teabagging" for the Rebubs are going to do the same for "our side".

People are easily misled to work against their own best interest- that appears to be the secret to maintaining oligarchical power. And we both unfortunately know now that Democrats will attempt to exploit that weakness just as Republicans will.

Our only advantage is that Progressives tend to value a liberal (as in arts) education more so then Conservatives and can be harder overall to deceive. Let's not fool ourselves though, people who mindlessly cheerlead, presumably because it gives them a sense of importance they don't otherwise have in their lives, are our biggest obstacles - in BOTH parties.

[Odin2005]

41. The Mandate is FASCISM!

[wordpix]

62. it's actually a BigInsurance mandate - put it in the bill or forget your donation$, senators!

[AllyCat]

42. Compromise away OUR priorities? These are almost EVERYONE'S priorities!

God, I had the M$M

[perdita9]

48. Make him do it

Yes, the majority of Americans put Obama into office but the forces allied against change are great. If we the people want health care, we're going to have to force obama to toe the line. I've already signed on with Michael Moore's boycott of CT. I suggest everyone else do the same.

[aquart]

52. Boycott of Connecticut?

Do they make anything?

[ChiciB1]

50. This WILL Date Me... Nancy Sinatra... "These Boots Were Made For Walking" It's

just what popped into my head after this read! START WALKING! Can't remember what age I was when that was big, but It may have been late teens! Not sure, but no matter... I AM THE LEFT!

I Come To Fight For "we the people!"

[rocktivity]

56. This isn't a left-right thing. It's a WRONG-right thing.

And I'm tired of the MSM demonizing us that way. Wanting affordable non-profit healthcare for all is NOT a leftist view--it's a humane, moral, fiscally responsible view!

:mad:
rocktivity

[jwirr]

58. Does anyone remember what the Democratic Platform he was

elected on said about health care? Our caucuses were talking about single payer. The whole bunch of asses are supposed to run on the platform.

[wordpix]

63. yah, but now the asses are actually elected, they only care about their campaign donations

let's get real here

[Politicub]

64. More people are going to be screwed if the bills dies than if it gets passed

As imperfect as this bill is, it will help a lot of people.

And, it's something that can be tweaked and changed over time.

I'm not part of the kill the bill crowd. It's turned in to some kind of mob mentality.

I despise Joe Lieberman, and hate that he is defining so much of the debate. But this bill is bigger than him. It's an imperfect product of an imperfect system, but it incrementally makes some improvements and widens the door to further insurance industry regulation.

I want single payer one day, but we're not going to get it any time soon. So I will be happy that pre-existing condition clauses are abolished, and there is more oversight of the insurance industry. The medicaid threshold will be widened. There is good in this bill, but not everything is good about it.

Yes, there will be an insurance mandate, but there are worse things that that to worry about in US law and insurance how it exists today.

[Liberalynn]

67. But just how are people who can't afford insurance now

going to be able to afford to pay for the mandated insurance when there is no public option, and none of the private insurers offer an affordable plan that is actually accepted by the medical community?

It doesn't make sense to mandate without a public option plain and simple. At the very least they need to kill the mandate part.

[Politicub]

72. There are large subsidies for people who can't afford it

Do you not understand that people are going bankrupt every day due to not being able to get insurance because they either can't afford it or can't even secure a policy due to a pre-existing condition? Do you care?

My partner's uncle is in the hospital now for emergency hernia surgery and he doesn't have insurance. His choice is either to throw himself at the mercy of the state and hope for assistance, or declare bankruptcy to move on from the more than $100k of bills he has accumulated so far.

This bill will make it possible to get insurance for millions of people. It expands the Medicaid ceiling which is akin to single payer. Yes, I wish everyone would get single payer, and we could get rid of insurance companies. But that is not going to happen in the short term. Maybe down the road, but we need to do something today.

Our system is such that there are hundreds of people who work and vote on bills. We can not escape that reality to a place where all Dems are liberal, and a sense of fairness pervades the chambers of congress. Is there anything created by committee that is perfect in every way?

[PassingFair]

75. "you do not understand that people are going bankrupt everyday"...

So WHO will pay for the "subsidies"????????

The ever shrinking pool of workers?

HOW?

Cost must be driven DOWN by some mechanism,
and government intervention seems to be the
only way.

MANDATING that people pay coverage, and doing
NOTHING to contain costs will only escalate the
rise in prices.

[Politicub]

77. Prove it - post evidence

I would like to see arguments based on fact, particularly analysis or facts from economists who know how to calculate this type of thing, that imploding the whole system will be the net effect of the senate bill.

I am searching for this type of evidence myself, because I want to have an educated opinion. Not just because Dean or something else says I should think a certain way.

[PassingFair]

78. What do you mean, "Prove it"? Who pays for the "subsidies"?

The Tooth Fairy or the Tax Payer?

[Politicub]

79. Tax payer, of course

And this is my opinion, but I'm OK with that. I'm not against my taxes going up if people are helped by it.

[PassingFair]

80. Health care and insurance costs are escalating EVERY DAY.

And this bill will FORCE citizens into paying for it
with NO cost containment.

You won't be ABLE to pay those taxes.

"I'm not against my taxes going up if people are helped by it".

Well, you're a regular Florence Nightingale, aren't you?

Did you notice that Detroit has a near 50 PERCENT
UNEMPLOYMENT RATE?

The dough will be ROLLING IN!!

[Wardoc]

70. Respectfully disagree. If this bill passes...

It sets this as the standard and precedent. Passing this is playing for the short term and sacrificing the long term. It will permanently kill any reform prospects.

[Politicub]

71. I disagree with you, but believe what you want to believe

There are multiple instances of passing legislation and changing it down the road to make it better. Social Security is one such example.

But if you don't believe that, then there's nothing I can say to convince you.

[Hepburn]

65. This is NOT the change I voted for....

....:mad:

[krabigirl]

68. I've always been an insurgent :)

[Wardoc]

69. Pleading to Obama is pointless. We need to call "our" senators and demand they vote NO!

Kill the bill!

[4dsc]

76. Obama is losing my support

If this bill passes as written by the Senate, Obama will not have my support or vote..

[SlavesandBulldozers]

82. listening to CSPAN right now. its fantastic

The Republicans are acting like they still hate this bill. Every concession has been made to them, its a huge gift to their corporate supporters, and they get to walk away from it with their hands clean singing songs about being against taxes, raising the deficit, and being pro-life.

Its as close to a complete political victory as I've ever seen. Its mind-blowing.

I mean right now there is a Republican talking about the lack of concessions being made on this bill from the Democrats. I mean he's actually unironically saying this. He may even fucking believe it.

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

84. Grousing.

:rofl: