http://weiner.house.gov/news_display.asp...

Weiner just lived up to his name by withdrawing his amendment, which would have substituted single-payer for the House bill favored by Democratic leaders. That coward sickens me right now even more than Obama, Pelosi, Emanuel, Hoyer, and Reid put together.

As the Democrats busily work on plans to make us all captive consumers of the private health insurers, the rich are cutting loose from the system. While we'll be stuck in costly Exchanges, the rich will be moving on toward their own privately reformed health system. Welcome to the world of concierge medicine.

I pray the progressives wake up soon and come out of their collective slumber before we help the Democrats pass a health insurance bail out. The reforms championed two years ago, that rested largely on providing Americans with a Medicare-like plan, open to all takers, has morphed into Romney Care. While the centerpiece progressives envisioned on health care reform rested largely on federal intervention via program, the Democrats have cleary gone the less contentious route of a federal roll via regulation. The idea seems to be create a federal role, and hopefully tighten regulations later down the road, which is laughable.

In Obama's recent speech, he equated the movement to extend Medicare to all Americans with the Canadian single-payer.

There are those on the left who believe that the only way to fix the system is through a single-payer system like Canada’s where we would severely restrict the private insurance market and have the government provide coverage for everyone.” ...such a plan “would represent a radical shift that would disrupt the health care most people currently have.

He also reminded his "progressive friends" what apparently the real driving force behind health reform has been about all these years:

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unless you were compromising with yourself. I'm sick of hearing the "public option was the compromise". No, it wasn't. You can't compromise on something when it's the only policy for which you have advocated. The public option, not single payer, is the demand. A compromised public option is likely to be the compromise. Improved and Enhanced Medicare for All, or single payer, was never on the table. It was never part of the negotiations, thus it was never a policy up for compromise.

President Obama appears to have completely "sold out." His approval rating plummeted, not because of Republicans, but because of how he is "negotiating" health care reform. Single-payer should have been used as a bargaining chip.

To compromise both single-payer and a public opton is to trade out health, financial stability and our nation's solvency in exchange for Blue Dog and Republican votes. This is a direct affront, and duplicitous act, against the very people who put him in office and gave him a majority in Congress to work with.

BarbMD declares "This is what is sounds like when someone representing the Democratic wing of the Party speaks" in reference to AFL-CIO president Trumka laying down markers for what health reform must have, including the so-called public option (It is unclear if Trumka is referring to Hacker's 2007 Medicare Plus, or the sliver public option being debated in Congress). Trumka's line in the sand is the public option, but where do member unions stand?

Pitting Profits against Patients is economically unsound, unethical and a conflict of interest. When you think about this, it is outright ghastly. We are paying billions for the Insurance Industry's advertising, exorbitant salaries and billions more for them to lobby against us to increase their profits and remove competition. Without a non-profit government run public option, prices will not be lowered; it would accelerate the increase in % of GDP spent on health care. This will force tax increases to an unsustainable level, heavily subsidize profits for the Insurance Industry, bankrupt our country and the Democrats will be blamed.

What frustrates single payer advocates the most is how they have been sidelined from the national health finance reform debate. People who support single payer, or enhanced and improved Medicare for All, have long waited for the chance to present their case to the American people for real health care reform via a single payer method. With the ever increasing cost of care, and the growing number of uninsured and under insured Americans, single payer advocates view inclusion of proposals that support a one payer system for financing health care an essential part of the debate.

h/t BDA in VA

Before the primary it had been so long since Democrats held power I never noticed how much Democratic philosophy and policy advocacy had changed.  But during the primary I started to note what I would call a split in the Party between those who sought economic justice for the middle class, and those who sought social benevolence for the poor.  I'm always on the side of helping the poor, but in policy terms, I've always thought what helps the poor most is to empower the middle class.  Policies that target only the poor through subsidies and welfare programs, and sort of ignore the plight of the middle class over the last several decades, don't leave those on the bottom with anywhere to move up to.  Further, often the needs of the poor can only be met throu

As of now it looks like the final bill will contain taxes on employer paid health benefits to pay for subsidies to low income Americans to buy private insurance and a mandate that everyone have insurance. In other words a bail out for health insurance companies.

There is no popular support for taxes on employer paid health benefits. It is one of many reasons that John McCain went down to a landslide defeat.

No Republican will vote for this. Democrats will take all the blame for a tax increase to pay for a bail out of insurance companies.

It will NOT expand access to health care. It will be very unpopular. If Obama or any other Democrat thinks that AHIP will have their backs they are out of their mind.

Liberals need to block this and save the party from the leadersheep.

Obama buries the public option, worries about brand image.

Via Marc Ambinder:

The Obama administration is stunned by the angry reaction of liberal Democrats after Kathy Sebelius seemed to be walking away from demands of a public option. Apparently, the administration never intended the "public option" to be a major focus of their reform efforts.

Via the Washington Post:

[At] a time when the president had hoped to be selling middle-class voters on how insurance reforms would benefit them, the White House instead finds itself mired in a Democratic Party feud over an issue it never intended to spotlight.

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Is the era of new politics over? 

Via the New York Times:

WASHINGTON — Given hardening Republican opposition to Congressional health care proposals, Democrats now say they see little chance of the minority’s cooperation in approving any overhaul, and are increasingly focused on drawing support for a final plan from within their own ranks.

snip

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Good.

Via the AP:

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration filed court papers Monday claiming a federal marriage law discriminates against gays, even as government lawyers continue to defend the law.

Justice Department lawyers are seeking to dismiss a suit brought by a gay California couple challenging the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act. The administration's response to the case has angered gay activists who see it as backtracking on campaign promises made by Barack Obama.

In the court papers, the administration urges the repeal of the law but says in the meantime, government lawyers will continue to defend it as a law on the books.

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A new poll finds Canadians overwhelmingly love their health care and oppose the Canadian Medical Association's proposal to privatize their health care system:

New poll shows Canadians overwhelmingly support public health care  

Group says advocates of private system are out of touch with most Canadians

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Aug. 12, 2009

Contact:
Michael McBane, national coordinator, Canadian Health Coalition, (613) 277-6295, www.medicare.ca

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Last Tuesday night I emailed Barney Frank(my rep.) after becoming incensed with his recent comments claiming advocating for Medicare for All, which he’s “always supported” was “suicide”. I told Mr.

Sometimes your words come back to haunt you. I know I had an exchange with someone here about what a jackass Bill Maher is. And, whomever it was said yeah, but sometimes he's right...and I said, no he's a sexist tool who has nothing worthwhile to offer. You only like him when you agree with him, yada, yada, yada. Well, tonight he most definitely has something to offer. If you have HBO, watch. Tell your friends to watch. Tell your neighbors to watch. Tell your Congressperson to watch.

Via PNHP.org

Obama’s doctor on Bill Maher’s show Aug. 7

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The Health Insurers Have Already Won! Thanks Obama! Thanks Congress! Thanks Progressives!

Victory party at Stephen Hemsley's pad!

Via Business Week:

The same way you get any politician to fall in line. Primary their asses.

Of course, that assumes "you" want the Blue Dogs to fall in line...

A couple of days ago, Anne posted a comment that included this:

Obama’s infected people with the belief that they cannot act with strength, cannot use the power of the majority, must signal compromise and must concede at the first sign of conflict. I cannot tell you how annoyed I am to see people who used to be considered serious champions of liberal (a much better word, thank you) causes allowing Obama’s inability to lead, and his aversion to conflict, to soften and muddle and weaken their positions and their resolve; actually, it’s way more than annoying – it’s galling.

The indispensable Avedon Carol

So I included "impeachment" in the tags because I've got a dollar right here that says, before his first term is over, one or another Congresscritter is going to ride the wave of the guaranteed to happen future Obama-hating by introducing a bill of impeachment against him, esp as the Bailout fallout speeds the rate at which the economy tanks and nothing gets better for Little People, and brighter Republicans take advantage of the natural opportunity Obama and his bailout buddies have provided them. But I had the thought, even as I realize this blog is already sort of a running one, that we should create "The List" of Obama's various betrayals and failures to live up to his label of "Democrat" and otherwise chooses to shit upon the progressive and liberal element to his party. I'm betting it's going to be a long list, over the next four years. And Oborg members: please don't whine at me that "he's not yet in office." If you think he's not already directing the actions and statements of the Dem party as its leader, you don't know much about how the Village works. I said I'd wait until after the election and I lived up to that. Now, I want my promised results. Or does "compromise" and "unity" only mean such between center-rightists and far-right theocrats and neocons? Sorry, but lefties like me aren't going away, and we're not going to shut up.

I'll go first.

1. Ordering Senate Dems to "make nice" with Lieberman, and allow him to keep his chair and other Senate privs, in the name of "working together." Hint from the Wise, Mr. President-Elect: you can't do business with traitors who stab you in the back (and front). They'll fuck you over every time.

Your turn, Gentle Readers.