Now that they passed it, will Dems survive 2010?

By: J.P. Freire
11/08/09 3:29 AM

Based on the House vote on health care, which seats are possible pick-ups for Republicans? One place to look would be seats in districts where Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., received more than 50 percent of the vote in the 2008 presidential election. Thirty-one Democrats came from such districts, feeling enough pressure from constituents to vote against the bill.

Sixteen Democrats, however, come from McCain districts, and still voted for the bill. They are listed below by district and last name as well as the percentage of their voters that went for McCain:

WV-01 Mollohan 57

WV-03 Rahall 56

AR-02 Snyder 54

AZ-01 Kirkpatrick 54

PA-10 Carney 54

ND-AL Pomeroy 53

SC-05 Spratt 53

AZ-05 Mitchell 52

AZ-08 Giffords 52

OH-18 Space 52

IN-08 Ellsworth 51

VA-05 Perriello 51

CO-03 Salazar 50

IN-09 Hill 50

OH-06 Wilson 50

PA-12 Murtha 50

Worth noting is the freshmen (who are both in itals and underlined), as well as those who've already finished a term (who are in itals only).

Those from pro-McCain districts who joined Republicans in voting against the bill are below:

MS-04 Taylor 67

TX-17 Edwards 67

OK-02 Boren 66

TN-04 Davis 64

AL-02 Bright 63

ID-01 Minnick 62

MS-01 Childers 62

TN-06 Gordon 62

AL-05 Griffith 61

LA-03 Melancon 61

MO-04 Skelton 61

AR-01 Berry...

Rep. Cao's last-minute switch to vote for Obamacare

By: J.P. Freire
11/08/09 2:16 AM

Rep. Anh "Joseph" Cao, R-La., voted for the health care bill put forward by Speaker Pelosi and House Democrats, breaking ranks with bipartisan opposition and putting to rout claims that there would be no Republican votes for the bill. Rep. John Boehner, R-Ohio, had previously described Cao as "the future of the GOP." Cao's office put out this statement, highlights of which are below:

“Today, I obtained a commitment from President Obama that he and I will work together to address the critical health care issues of Louisiana including the FMAP crisis and community disaster loan forgiveness, as well as issues related to Charity and Methodist Hospitals. And, I call on my constituents to support me as I work with him on these issues."

Cao said: “I have always said that I would put aside partisan wrangling to do the business of the people. My vote tonight was based on my priority of doing what is best for my constituents.

Cao's district is overwhelmingly Democratic, and despite the odds he became the first Vietnamese-American to hold a congressional seat in the wake of the corruption investigation of incumbent Rep. William Jefferson.

Cao was on the fence regarding the legislation, even going so far as to make a show of his uncertainty by posting a video of him heading home to read the legislation on his website:





He was undecided until this morning, ...

A big win for House Democrats. Now the Senate awaits.

By: Susan Ferrechio
11/08/09 12:05 AM

By a vote of 220-215, the House moved to make sweeping and historic changes to the nation's health care system. Democratic leaders overcame near-universal opposition from Republicans and 39 moderates and vulnerable freshmen within their own party to eek out a victory that may be short-lived, as the Senate is likely to pass a far different health care bill in the coming weeks.

The House bill would cost $1.2 trillion and would create a government-run public health insurance option. It includes new subsidies to help people pay for insurance coverage. It is funded through tax increases, cuts to Medicare and fines for those who do not obtain insurance or provide it for employees. The bill would extend health care coverage to an additional 36 million people.

One Republican, politically vulnerable Rep. Joseph Cao, of Louisiana, voted for the bill.

Democrats were able to pull off a victory in part by allowing pro-life Democrats to offer an amendment that would prevent any federal funding from being used to pay for abortions under the government-run health care exchanges that would be established.

The provision passed 240 to 194 with help of 64 Democrats. While many liberals opposed the amendment, they agreed to vote for final passage, in part because some harbor hopes it will be removed later, in conference.

House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, tried to use this sentiment as a wedge ...

House passes Pelosi health bill

By: Susan Ferrechio
11/07/09 11:15 PM

The House has approved Speaker Nancy Pelosi's health-care bill by a vote of 220 to 215. A total of 39 Democrats opposed the measure. One Republican, Rep. Joseph Cao of Louisiana, voted for the measure

"The bright lights of freedom have been dimming for decades"

By: Chris Stirewalt
11/07/09 9:36 PM

Talk about "Fired up! Ready to Go!"

House Minority Leader John Boehner is tearing into not just the Pelosi health plan but the whole Obama agenda. Must watching for C-SPAN nerds like me.

UPDATE: As he did with the House global warming bill, Boehner is going through some of the additions to the federal regulatory structure -- restaurants with more than 20 locations to post calorie counts in menus, etc.

Democrats down to a seven-vote margin on health vote

By: Susan Ferrechio
11/07/09 9:07 PM

As the House nears a vote on health care reform, Republicans are busy tallying the Democratic "no" votes and there are 34 so far, according to their estimates.

Those on the list are the most moderate and also the most vulnerable in the party, including Rep. Harry Teague, of New Mexico and Travis Childers of Mississippi.

The list also includes members of the conservative House Blue Dog Coalition including Allen Boyd, D-Md., and Rick Boucher, D-Va. Boucher told The Examiner the pubic option would make health care in his district "unsustainable" because the reimbursement rates for doctors and hospitals would be too low.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., praised the $1.2 trillion bill in a floor speech.

"For all Americans, this legislation makes a big difference," Pelosi said. "No discrimination for pre-existing medical conditions, no dropped coverage if you are sick, no co-pays for preventive care. There is a cap on what you pay in but there is no cap on the benefits that you receive. It works for seniors closing the donut hole, offering better primary care, and strengthening Medicare for years to come. It works for women preventing insurance companies from charging women more than men for the same coverage. No longer will being a woman be a pre-existing medical condition."

Her speech followed hours of debate, with Republicans unified in o...

More election results: disaster for Democrats?

By: Michael Barone
11/07/09 8:12 PM

You've all read about the Democratic defeats in the governor races in Virginia and New Jersey. But there were other notable Democratic defeats and in some of the nation's most economically beleaguered states.

In Michigan, the state with the nation’s highest unemployment and the headquarters of bankrupted General Motors and Chrysler, , Republican Mike Nofs has beaten state Representative Mike Griffin in the special election to fill the state Senate seat of Democrat Mark Schauer, who was elected to the House by defeating one-term Republican incumbent Tim Walberg in the 7th congressional district in November 2008. Republican Nofs won by a 61%-39% margin in a district that had voted 61%-39% for Democrat Schauer in November 2006. Turnout this year was just 40% of the turnout in November 2006—a pretty clear indication that Democrats just did not turn out to vote.

This Republican victory has great political significance. It shows that the economic distress so obvious in Michigan has not pushed voters to support the party favoring bigger government; rather the contrary. And as Michigan political commentator (and long-ago moderate Republican state senator) Bill Ballenger points out, this gives Republicans a 22-16 margin in the Michigan Senate, a majority Ballenger, in his district-by-district analysis, says Democrarts are unlikely to overturn in the November 2010 election. Th...

Watching Virginia's delegation on health care

By: Susan Ferrechio
11/07/09 3:43 PM

Rep. Gerry Connolly, D-Va., who represents Northern Virginia, announced he will vote for the health care bill. Connolly had been on the fence, in part because his district is a bit purple. It voted for Republican Bob McDonnell on Tuesday by a healthy margin after being solidly Democratic in recent cycles.

But Connolly, president of the House freshman class, said Saturday that the bill was needed to protect families from bankruptcy caused by catastrophic illness and being denied coverage because of pre-existing conditions.

Virginia's 11-member House delegation is getting lots of attention today as people watch for fallout from Tuesday's landslide win by McDonnell.

All six Republicans are opposed and liberal Democrats Bobby Scott and Jim Moran are enthusiastic yes votes. Add Connolly to that mix and you have six nays and three yeas. The remaining three Democrats are where things get interesting. Southwest Virginia's Rick Boucher, and freshmen Democrats Glenn Nye and Tom Perriello, who both represent districts that switched from red to blue in the Obama surge last year, all represent districts in which McDonnell rolled up big victories.

Nye announced today that he was voting against the bill because of concerns about costs to small businesses and cuts to Medicare.

Perriello, considered one of the most vulnerable Democrats in the nation next year, has been on the fence for weeks but has...

Health care vote set for tonight in House

By: Susan Ferrechio
11/07/09 2:21 PM

It is still uncertain whether Democratic leaders will round up the 218 votes needed for passage. Many of the party's most vulnerable Democrats have already announced they will not vote for the bill, but with 258 votes, even a loss of 40 members ensures passage.

House Majority Whip James Clyburn, D-S.C., told reporters Saturday, "I'm not going to predict" the outcome.

"I know that the most powerful arguments for this bill won't be spoken on this floor, they are being lived right now, in our country, in every one of our districts and towns," House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., said, opening remarks on general debate. "Their stories will be with me and I know with each of us, when we cast our vote."

What 1,000 extra pages of bureaucracy looks like

By: David Freddoso
11/07/09 12:02 PM

As Democrats expand their health insurance reform bill from 1,000 to 2,000 pages, Republicans on the Joint Economic Committee expand their chart outlining how the new health insurance system will look. It ain't pretty.



As you can see on the click-through, the chart describing the old bill is contained within the small yellow rectangle in the middle.

Obama: 'We cannot fully know' motive of Ft. Hood shooter; in address on killings, president celebrates diversity of armed forces

By: Byron York
11/07/09 7:49 AM

But in his weekly address, Obama says, "We cannot fully know what leads a man to do such a thing." And while the killings were "heartbreaking" and "despicable" and "devastating," the president says, it is important to remember not only that Hasan's fellow soldiers responded bravely in coming to the aid of the wounded but also that "Americans of every race, faith and station" have served in the U.S. armed forces. "They are Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus and nonbelievers," Obama says. "They reflect the diversity that makes this America."

Health care bill vote update

By: Susan Ferrechio
11/06/09 11:16 PM

As the House gets ready to take up the $1.2 trillion sweeping health-care proposal, Democratic leaders are struggling to round up the 218 needed for passage, with the party's most vulnerable Democrats most likely to vote against it and two other factions protesting language in the bill that addresses abortion and immigration.

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., said a final vote on the bill may not even happen on Saturday if the GOP, which is unified in opposition to the bill, employs time-consuming parliamentary tactics.

But it may not be Republicans who hold up the bill if the leadership can't round up enough votes.

Democrats began announcing their official opposition on Friday.

Reps. Harry Teague, D-N.M, Collin Peterson, D-Minn., John Tanner, D-Tenn., Bobby Bright, D-Ala., Walter Minnick, D-Idaho, Suzanne Kosmas, D-Fl., Travis Childers, D-Miss., Parker Griffith, D-Ala., and Frank Kratovil, will all vote no.

TARP funds taking on unemployment... in Germany

By: Chris Stirewalt
11/06/09 4:38 PM

General Motors (majority owner, US taxpayers) is trying to rescue its European subsidiary Opel after backing out of a plan to sell the company to a consortium led by auto-equipment maker Magna.

In order to get clear of the sale, GM cut a deal with German Chancellor Angela Merkel's government to pour billions into Opel. Merkel had to sign off on the deal because Germany had provided a bridge loan to Opel in order to carry the company over until the sale could be completed. German labor unions are up in arms over GM's reversal and Merkel was under pressure to get something back.

Merkel was in town this week and after a meeting with President Obama and a phone call with him Wednesday, agreed to "coordinate on the future"

In that coordinated future, GM is planning to inject a minimum of $4.5 billion into German operations and probably much more over time. But since the company is only being kept afloat by taxpayer dollars, that means a pretty hefty investment in German auto plants with public money.

That was too much for Sen. Mike Johanns (R-Neb.):

"The Obama Administration should not be in the car business in the first place and when there's 10.2 percent unemployment in the United States, now is not the time to use U.S. taxpayer dollars to protect jobs in other countries, particularly when its leaders have their own plans to protect those jobs."

If GM were a real co...

Raid on ACORN HQ in New Orleans

By: David Freddoso
11/06/09 4:17 PM

Apparently reacting to reports of workers removing documents from the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) headquarters in New Orleans, Louisiana Attorney General Buddy Caldwell has executed a search warrant on the premises today. According to local news sources, computer hard drives and payroll records are being seized for analysis.

The investigation pertains to a decade-old embezzlement case that came to light only last year. Dale Rathke, brother of the organization's founder, had stolen $1 million from an ACORN affiliate that he ran. (The Attorney General recently asserted in an affidavit that the embezzlement reached $5 million.) When the theft was discovered, a handful of ACORN officials covered it up, hiding the information even from the group's directors out of fear that publication could be embarrassing to the group's left-wing mission.

Rathke agreed to pay back the money he had stolen, and eventually a donor paid off his "debt" to ACORN. But the cover-up ended in 2008 when the scandal was leaked to the press.

Many of those involved in the cover-up continue to work within the ACORN family of organizations, and two directors who demanded a public accounting of the funds were summarily purged from the board.

Even more lies, damned lies and stimulus jobs

By: Mark Hemingway
11/06/09 3:56 PM

Earlier this week, we discussed the White House's was claiming the "stimulus saves nine out of every five jobs." Then we noted how the White house was counting stimulus-funded payraises for government workers as jobs saved, because "If I give you a raise, it is going to save a portion of your job," according to a Department of Health and Human Services spokesman. Then we noted the reports of stimulus jobs being overcounted in Illinois and Wisconsin. Now the Sacramento Bee has taken a look at California's stimulus jobs numbers, and guess what?:

Up to one-fourth of the 110,000 jobs reported as saved by federal stimulus money in California probably never were in danger, a Bee review has found.

California State University officials reported late last week that they saved more jobs with stimulus money than the number of jobs saved in Texas – and in 44 other states.

In a required state report to the federal government, the university system said the $268.5 million it received in stimulus funding through October allowed it to retain 26,156 employees.

That total represents more than half of CSU’s statewide work force. However, university officials confirmed Thursday that half their workers were not going to be laid off without the stimulus dollars.

So we've now seen reports of goosing stimulus job stats in Georgia, Illinois, Wisconsin, California, New Hampshi...

Poll: Huge majority doesn't want Democrats' health care bill

By: Byron York
11/06/09 3:41 PM

With House Democrats racing to pass their 2,000-plus page health care reform bill this weekend, a new CNN/Opinion Research poll shows that an overwhelming majority of those surveyed -- 72 percent -- want Congress either to make major changes, start over from scratch, or simply stop working on health care legislation. Just 26 percent want Congress to pass the current health care proposal as is, or with minor changes.

This was the question asked by the CNN/Opinion Research pollsters:

As you may know, several health care bills have been passed by committees in the U.S. House and Senate and they can be brought before Congress for debate and a final vote at any time. Which of the following do you think Congress should do:

** Continue working on those bills this fall and make relatively minor changes before passing final legislation.

** Continue working on those bills this fall but pass final legislation only if major changes are made.

** Start work on entirely new bills that would not be ready until some time next year.

** Stop working on any bills that would change the country's health care system.

The results: 26 percent want the bills passed with relatively minor changes; 33 percent want the bills passed but only with major changes; 24 percent want Congress to start work on entirely new bills; and 15 percent want Congress to stop work altogether. Just one percent have no opinion.

That me...

Fannie Mae needs another $15 billion in emergency capital

By: Mark Hemingway
11/06/09 2:25 PM

Between yesterday's Ft. Hood shooting and the unemployment news, this story is bound to get lost in the shuffle. But it shouldn't:

Fannie Mae, the mortgage buyer seized by regulators, plans to tap emergency U.S. capital for a fourth time this year, bringing its draws of taxpayer money to $60 billion as the company sees no immediate end to its losses.

Fannie Mae will seek $15 billion in Treasury Department financing after posting an $18.9 billion third-quarter net loss, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing late yesterday. The Washington-based company, which posted $101.6 billion in losses over the previous eight quarters, has already tapped $44.9 billion from the $200 billion emergency lifeline.

“They’re going to need that $200 billion in capital, if not more, when this thing’s all said and done,” said Paul Miller, an analyst at FBR Capital Markets in Arlington, Virginia.

Last year, when Fannie and Freddie recieved a $200 billion bailout it was generally recognized that the two Government Sponsored Entities, which have virtually a monopoly on the U.S. mortgage market, had protected their corrupt fiefdom by lobbying and otherwise manipulating the political system. William Poole -- one of the most respected economists in America, and former president of the St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank -- said that “Congress ought to recognize that t...

More on the election's impact on the health care vote

By: Michael Barone
11/06/09 2:09 PM

As I noted Wednesday, Republican governor candidate Bob McDonnell won 62%, 61% and 55% of the vote in the three Virginia congressional districts in which a Democrats Glenn Nye, Tom Perriello and Gerry Connally, replaced Republicans in 2008, and McDonnell won 67% in the 9th district long represented by senior Democrat Rick Boucher. That’s got to make the health care vote a painful one for Nye, Perriello, Connally and Boucher. Looking at the http://www.nj.com/politics/map/ New Jersey returns by city, borough and township, I see that 3rd district Democrat John Adler, elected to replace a retiring Republican in 2008, faces the same situation, with his district clearly voting for Republican Chris Christie over Democratic incumbent Jon Corzine on Tuesday. In addition, two other more veteran Democrats, Rush Holt of the 12th district and Frank Pallone of the 6th district saw large portions of their constituencies deliver big margins for Christie.

So it doesn’t come entirely as a surprise to me that House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer has said the leadership may have to put off the vote scheduled for Saturday until Sunday or a later date. As Matt Drudge would say, developing . . . .

Unemployment numbers sharpen the debate on health care

By: Susan Ferrechio
11/06/09 1:46 PM

Republicans pounced on the latest unemployment report from the Department of Labor as evidence that Democrats' $787 billion stimulus plan was a waste of money and that the House health care bill set for a vote as early as Tuesday could kill an additional 5.5 million jobs.

The Department of Labor Friday announced the jobless rate has climbed to 10.2 percent, the highest level in more than 25 years. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said the news shows that more work needs to be done, but that Congress has taken steps "to protect the middle class and set the stage for economic growth."

But House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio said the Democratic health care bill will do just the opposite by hurting small businesses and raising taxes. Boehner pointed out that 3 million people have lost their jobs since stimulus spending began in February.

"Americans are asking, 'Where are the jobs?, but all they're getting from Democrats here in Washington is more spending and more debt," Boehner said.

Pelosi used a different set of statistics to make her case on Friday. She said the stimulus has created or saved nearly 1 million jobs and that job loss has slowed since President Obama took office.

"After watching an average of 673,000 jobs disappear in the final three months of the Bush Administration, the 190,000 jobs lost in October are fewer than the jobs lost in S...

Obama likely heading to Fort Hood

By: Julie Mason
11/06/09 1:33 PM

Events cast a long shadow at the White House. (ap)

President Obama said that starting today until Veterans Day, he's ordered flags at the White House and all federal buildings to fly at half-staff in honor of those slain at Fort Hood. White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said Obama is planning to attend a memorial service at Fort Hood, but tick-tock -- Obama leaves Wednesday for a lengthy, 10-day trip to Asia.

"We don't know all the answers yet, and I would caution against jumping to conclusions until we have all the facts," Obama said in the Rose Garden. "What we do know is that there are families, friends and an entire nation grieving right now for the valiant men and women who came under attack yesterday in one of the worst mass shootings ever to take place on an American military base."

The president met this morning with FBI Director Robert Mueller to get a briefing on the incident. This afternoon he heads to Walter Reed to visit wounded troops.

In the next four days before leaving the country, Obama is expected to meet with the House Democratic Caucus (a session originally announced for today was moved to Saturday), announce a new strategy and troop levels for Afghanistan, possibly meet with visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and attend a memorial service at Fort Hood in Texas.

Busy? We don't like his chances for getting in a round...

Los Angeles Times' Ft. Hood report smears Army

By: Mark Hemingway
11/06/09 12:46 PM

When there's breaking news, especially as something as sensitive as yesterday's killing spree at Ft. Hood one can understand why the media would be cautious about confirming the details of the event. The journalistic mantra maybe "get it first but get it right," but deference should always be given to the latter over the former.

But yesterday's Los Angeles Times report on the shooting appears to have let political correctness get in the way of the truth. Even though it was apparent early on that the shooter was a Muslim, nowhere in the Los Angeles Times' report did the words "Muslim" or "Islam" appear. As it turns out, the shooter, Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, had never been deployed to Iraq and appears to have religious motivations consistent with a terrorist attack. However, the Los Angeles Times can't really hide behind the defense that they were being too cautious for the sake of accuracy, because the report contained two paragraphs of wild speculation about the shooter cracking under pressure from the United States Army:

Base personnel have accounted for more suicides than any other Army post since the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003, with 75 tallied through July of this year. Nine of those suicides occurred in 2009, counting two in overseas war zones.

Gen. Peter W. Chiarelli, the Army’s deputy chief of staff, has been leading an effort to reduc...

Support for health care reform plummeting among independents

By: Mark Hemingway
11/06/09 11:28 AM

On the heels of an Ipsos/McClatchy poll showing the public 49/39 against health care reform, Mickey Kaus wonders why health care reform is becoming more unpopular.

According to the poll, support for health reform has dropped 7 percent among Democrats -- but it's also dropped a whopping 15 percent among independents. Given how independents broke strongly for the GOP on Tuesday, it's hard to read these poll trends as anything less than ominous for congressional Democrats.

Boston firm shifts 'green jobs' to China

By: Mark Tapscott
11/06/09 8:35 AM

President Obama and the Democratic majority in Congress are spending billions of tax dollars to subsidize development of "green jobs" - positions for people and companies designing and manufacturing alternative energy sources such as biomass, wind and solar.

One of Obama's buddies, Gov. Deval Patrick of Massachusetts, is also a vocal advocate of such subsidies. Last year, Patrick put Massachusetts taxpayers' money where is mouth is by backing a $58 million package of incentives and subsidies to Evergreen Solar, which manufacturers collector panels used in solar energy units.

Now barely a year later, Evergreen has announced that it is moving its final assembly phase to a factory in China, according to the Boston Globe. The firm's Devens, Massachusetts, plant currently employs 577 full-time and 230 contract workers in designing and manufacturing the silicon wafers and cells that are then assembled into panels.

A company spokesman declined to say how many jobs will be shifted to the new assembly plant in China, according to the Globe.

"In exchange for receiving $58.6 million in grants, loans, land, tax incentives, and other aid to build in Massachusetts, Evergreen pledged that it would add 350 new jobs, a goal that it has, to date, far surpassed. However, the company disclosed in a financial filing yesterday that it would write off $40 million worth of equipment at Dev...

Morning Must Reads -- "... suicide bombers whose intention, by sacrificing their lives, is to help save Muslims by killing enemy soldiers.”

By: Chris Stirewalt
11/06/09 8:18 AM

Houston Chronicle -- Army: Fort Hood suspect shouted religious slogan before firing

Writers Scott Huddleston and Sig Christenson have the best narrative about the shooting spree authorities say was committed by Army psychologist Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, a devout Muslim who had grown agitated about his pending deployment to Iraq and who had been under surveillance for online postings expressing admiration for terrorists.

“Hasan is accused of attacking his fellow soldiers about 1:30 p.m. at the Soldier Readiness Processing Center, where troops waited to see doctors as they prepared to deploy to Iraq and Afghanistan — or return from combat.

Armed with two pistols, he shot more than 40 people before military police and civilian police officers responded, officials said. He was wounded by a civilian policewoman, who was injured in the exchange, police said. Officials had reported earlier that the police officer had been killed.

Hasan's motives were unclear, and early on Thursday, he showed no signs of worry or stress when he stopped at 7-Eleven for his daily breakfast of hash browns, said Jeannie Strickland, the store's manager.

‘He came in (Thursday) morning just like normal,’ she said.”

Washington Post -- Suspect, devout Muslim from Va., wanted Army discharge, aunt said Writers Mary Pat Flaherty, William Wan and Christian Davenport paint a chilling, intim...

Democratic civil war update: MoveOn raises $3.6 million to attack party moderates

By: Byron York
11/06/09 5:43 AM

A few days ago, the left-wing activist group MoveOn.org began sending out emails seeking contributions to fund primary challenges against any Democratic senator who does not fully support "health care reform with a public option." Now there's an update: MoveOn executive director Justin Ruben says the group has raised $3,578,117 for the project and is thinking of new ways to punish errant Democratic lawmakers.

"It's a huge sum, and the clearest signal yet that any Democrat who helps Republicans filibuster health care reform will face an enormous backlash from the grassroots," writes Ruben. And now, working in conjunction with Howard Dean's old organization Democracy for America, MoveOn is starting a drive to take away the committee chairmanships of any Democrat who fails to live up to MoveOn's progressive standards. "Many of these senators hold coveted committee chairmanships that give them significant power within the Senate," Ruben writes. "Our friends at Democracy for America have launched an open letter urging Senate Democrats to strip committee chairmanships from any Democrat who filibusters health care." Ruben says that more than 66,000 MoveOn and Democracy for America members have pledged to contribute.

"Chairing a committee is a privilege, not a right," Ruben continues. "So if a member of the Democratic Congress joi...

Congressional staffer denies pushing visitor UPDATED!

By: J.P. Freire
11/05/09 9:53 PM

A heated exchange during a visit to the office of Rep. Gerry Connolly, D-Va., led to a staffer putting his hands on Teri Christoph, executive director of Smart Girl Politics, in order to get her to put her camera down, reported Jillian Bandes of TownHall.

In a phone interview with The Examiner, the staffer, press secretary George Burke, said that claims that he had "pushed" Christoph were untrue. When asked about the report in TownHall, he replied, "Is that a reporter? Some right-wing blog?" Yes to both questions, but was the claim true?

"She came in and whipped out a camera. Staff people told her, 'we don't want you to use a camera in here.' I put a hand on her shoulder same way I put on my daughter's and of course she said that she was going to the media," he said.

The scuffle started when Christoph joined a number of Connolly's constituents in his office. A younger staffer was distributing pens to enable them to leave a message for their congressman. Christoph, Burke said, had started "badgering" the staffer, preventing him from being able to further help other constituents.

"Voices were raised, so I came out of my office and told her politely to put away the camera," he said. "I didn't even ask her to leave. Just to put away the camera."

I asked what the policy was about having cameras in the office. "Only credenti...

On spending, Congress apparently has no priorities

By: David Freddoso
11/05/09 6:26 PM

Thanks to a 36-to-62 vote in the Senate today, the National Science Foundation will continue funding studies like this one, which concluded that congressmen can boost their approval ratings by holding Internet town halls. Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., proposed an amendment banning the use of NSF funds for such political science studies. Nine Republicans voted to preserve the funding. Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., was among those voting against it.

You can see how your senators voted on Coburn's amendment here.

The vote highlights the total lack of prioritization in federal spending. One would expect National Science Foundation money to go towardy...well, science. If this kind of flimsy study (it examined town halls with only 15 to 25 participants each) on a topic of questionable value isn't worthy of a cut, is there any place in the budget for Congress to begin cutting?

Democratic health care accounting gimmicks exposed

By: Mark Hemingway
11/05/09 5:50 PM

I've written at length about how Democrats are hiding the real health care price tag through some dubious accounting. And now two former high ranking Department of Health and Human Services officials -- Ben Sasse and Jeffrey Anderson -- are speaking out:

First, we need to get past the misleading accounting games. Each bill is routinely “scored” for its 10-year costs from 2010-19. Yet this includes several years when the spending wouldn’t yet have kicked in. According to the Congressional Budget Office, fully 99.9 percent of the Pelosi bill’s costs would hit from 2013 onward. Similarly, 98.3 percent of Reid’s spending would come after 2014.

If you start the tally when the bills’ spending would actually start (in 2013 for the House bill and 2014 for the Senate bill), then the bills’ real 10-year costs become clear — and are remarkably similar.

The CBO reports that, in their true first 10 years, the House bill would cost $1.8 trillion, and the Senate bill would cost $1.7 trillion. Pelosi would raise Americans’ taxes by $1.1 trillion over that period, while Reid would hike them by $1 trillion.

So the financial bottom lines are almost the same.

And if we discount the bills' claims to divert hundreds of billions of dollars from Medicare (which is already on the edge of insolvency), the CBO says the House bill would raise our national d...

On presidents and shouting questions

By: Julie Mason
11/05/09 5:17 PM

The president practices eye-contact avoidance. (ap)

It's a hoary cliche of movies and television shows about the White House: A clamoring press corps, jostling and barking questions at the president. In real life, that doesn't happen much.

Before going into the Oval Office, a Cabinet meeting or other tight presidential event, reporters generally know already whether the president plans to take questions. Getting him to spontaneously answer one he hadn't planned on is trickier, and that involves a shouted question. It's more a lone-gunman thing than the groupish clamor depicted in popular culture, and it demands a certain blustery finesse.

For presidents, answering is matter of personal style. President Bush loathed the shouted question and would more often bestow a sour look than an answer. After a while, White House reporters didn't bother unless the news was so huge that not even trying to ask could be a firing offense. But in eight years, Bush probably bit on shouted questions fewer than a dozen times.

President Obama is sometimes game for shouted questions. Whether he responds seems to depend on a combination of his mood and the topic. On Monday, he ignored efforts by reporters to draw him out on Afghan elections. On Tuesday, he said, "Good try" to a reporter shouting one about the elections. Today, he twice ignored shouted questions about whether he endo...

Health care? There's an app for that

By: J.P. Freire
11/05/09 3:51 PM

A humorous video offered by the National Republican Congressional Committee spoofs the iPhone commercials, noting the bulky approach to "reform" offered by House Democrats.





The video is reminiscent of Daniel Henninger's Wall Street Journal column last week that suggested that Democrats are offering old school solutions to people used to the customized individualism provided by products like the iPhone:

In a world defined by nearly 100,000 iPhone apps, a world of seemingly limitless, self-defined choice, the Democrats are pushing the biggest, fattest, one-size-fits all legislation since 1965. And they brag this will complete the dream Franklin D. Roosevelt had in 1939.

In fact, the fight against socialized medicine has been waged for decades. Here's a now all-too-familiar speech by a young Ronald Reagan about the problems of government health care.









A key line is that a similar scheme was proposed under the Truman administration, and the American people rejected it. In a 2007 article in Slate, David Greenberg lamented that the term "socialized medicine" gave a good policy a scary implication:

To some, the prospect that socialized medicine would still frighten anyone is absurd. Fears that "creeping socialism" might insidiously erode American freedoms are a relic of a distant age, like worries about fluoride in the water. Even so, the socialized medicine m...