Hoffmania!

Texas. Red State. Secessionist. And They LOVES Them That Socialism

Socialized health care is a hit in the Lone Star State. Big surprise.

Three Quarters of Which Americans Say the GOP Has No Plan?

“Do you think the Republicans in Congress have clearly explained their plans for changing the health care system, or haven’t they clearly explained their plans?”

Have explained 17
Haven’t explained 73
Don’t know 10

That's among Republicans.

The Big Public Disconnect on #HealthCare

Greg Sargent crunches the numbers:

Americans are overwhelmingly convinced that Republicans are not pursuing a bipartisan health care compromise in good faith, but the public wants Obama to keep trying to find common ground with them anyway.

The new CBS/New York Times poll drives this point home as starkly as you could want — and suggests that Dems have failed at one of their core political missions.

The poll finds that an overwhelming majority of 64% think Republicans are opposing Obama’s health care plans mostly for political reasons. But it also finds that an equally large number, 65%, say Democrats shouldn’t pass a bill without Republicans — even if they think it’s right for the country — and should instead compromise to win over some GOPers.

This shows, I think, that Democrats have convinced the public that the GOP wants Obama and Dems to fail at all costs. But they’ve failed to make the case to the public that GOP obstructionism may leave them no choice but to go it alone in order to realize reform.

Meet Reality: Repub Reps Get an Earful on Their #Healthcare Lies

The blowback begins. People are now attending town halls informed, and the (R)'s don't like it one bit.

I gotta admit, I'm surprised, but happily so.

Also a surprise: Nancy Pelosi is giving up on trying to deal with the Blue Dogs. Sometimes it just doesn't pay to negotiate with more dining room tables.

Max Baucus, Chump

NOW will you get it through your thick skull? You're not going to get ANY GOP support on ANY health care bill you waft in front of them because THEY. DON'T. WANT. OBAMA. TO. SUCCEED.

Jesus Christ on a cracker, what part of the oncoming garbage truck didn't you see? Bipartisanship is dead. Get the hell out of Fantasyland. Get a rewrite from someone who DIDN'T get $3 million from the insurance companies, and put the goddamned public option back in.

Please tell me what brand of 2x4 I have to use on what passes for these idiots' heads.

#HealthCare - A Poll That Matters

Doctors. Not teabaggers. Not Blue Dogs. Not pundits. Not Max Baucus. Not any cable news channel. DOCTORS. Y'know. The people who everyone is so afraid will be taken away by the public option.

Poll Finds Most Doctors Support Public Option

Among all the players in the health care debate, doctors may be the least understood about where they stand on some of the key issues around changing the health care system. Now, a new survey finds some surprising results: A large majority of doctors say there should be a public option.

When polled, "nearly three-quarters of physicians supported some form of a public option, either alone or in combination with private insurance options," says Dr. Salomeh Keyhani. She and Dr. Alex Federman, both internists and researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York, conducted a random survey, by mail and by phone, of 2,130 doctors. They surveyed them from June right up to early September.

Most doctors — 63 percent — say they favor giving patients a choice that would include both public and private insurance. That's the position of President Obama and of many congressional Democrats. In addition, another 10 percent of doctors say they favor a public option only; they'd like to see a single-payer health care system. Together, the two groups add up to 73 percent.

Obama: "I Own It"

Meanwhile, the grownup in the room is on a mission to help everyone (including the aforementioned teabaggers) afford to stay healthy...and he knows it's central to his credibility.

And that, my friends, is why redneck America has its panties in a knot.

President Barack Obama says he'll be held responsible for any problems once a health care overhaul becomes law, so he has every reason to get it right.

"I have no interest in having a bill get passed that fails. That doesn't work," he told CBS' "60 Minutes" in an interview to air Sunday night.

Heading to a rally Saturday in Minneapolis, the president used his weekly radio and Internet address to focus on government figures showing that nearly half of all Americans live without health insurance in a 10-year period. He said the situation will worsen without the changes he wants and that losing coverage can happen to anyone.

"I intend to be president for a while and once this bill passes, I own it. And if people look and say, You know what? This hasn't reduced my costs. My premiums are still going up 25 percent, insurance companies are still jerking me around.' I'm the one who's going to be held responsible. So I have every incentive to get this right," he said in an excerpt of the CBS interview released Saturday.

Watch CBS Videos Online

AARP Poll: The Speech Made an Impact

People, when given the chance, can actually listen and think on their own.

• Seventy percent of those 45 or older said they had at least some questions or concerns about what was being proposed by either party with regard to health care reform. This includes 77% of Independents.
• Of those who had questions and concerns prior to the address, nearly three quarters said that their questions and concerns were talked about or addressed during the speech. This includes 72% of Independents.
• Nearly 7 in 10 of those who reported hearing their questions and concerns talked about or addressed said that they were more supportive of the proposals being talked about related to health care. This includes 63% of Independents.
• For each political affiliation, a majority of 45+ respondents said that reform of the health care system should be a priority for political leaders to address this year. This includes 70% of Independents.

Lyin' Lying Liars Who Lie About Lying

Tim Pawlenty pushes the big lie.

Tim Pawlenty gave an extraordinary interview on Morning Joe today in which he repeatedly refused to say the “death panel” tale is false, and even said those who fear the death panels are not “irrational” to do so. And then, after getting pressed very hard, he finally conceded that there are no death panels in the health care proposals and acknowledged the elderly wouldn’t get pressed to relinquish their lives. But he still went on to say fears were not unfounded!

First, this shows that in the wake of Obama’s speech last night, in which he directly confronted the death panel claim, Republicans have no intention to let up on this particular brand of fearmongering. And second, the dance done here by Pawlenty perfectly illustrates the challenging balancing act GOP officials need to do when they want to remain viable with the GOP base — as Pawlenty does for 2012 — while still positioning themselves as vaguely mainstream and rational.

The Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act

Read it and weep, Joe Wilson:

• 42 U.S.C. 1395 dd
• Section 1867 of the Social Security Act

Applies to:

• All hospitals participating in the Medicare Program (virtually all hospitals)
• All patients, whether or not they are eligible for Medicare benefits

THE RULE:
Any individual who comes to a hospital requesting an examination or treatment for a medical condition must receive an appropriate medical screening examination within the capability of the hospital's Emergency Department.

"Any Individual . . ."

Means anyone

• Regardless of Medicare status
• Regardless of insurance coverage (including managed care)
• Regardless of ability to pay

". . . who comes to the hospital . . ."

The EMTALA Act was passed in 1986. And the President of the United States in 1986 was...

 

YOU LIE!

We're talking to you, Rep. Joe Wilson. Factcheck.org:

False: Illegal Immigrants Will Be Covered

One Republican congressman issued a press release claiming that "5,600,000 Illegal Aliens May Be Covered Under Obamacare," and we’ve been peppered with queries about similar claims. They’re not true. In fact, the House bill (the only bill to be formally introduced in its entirety) specifically says that no federal money would be spent on giving illegal immigrants health coverage:

H.R. 3200: Sec 246 — NO FEDERAL PAYMENT FOR UNDOCUMENTED ALIENS

Nothing in this subtitle shall allow Federal payments for affordability credits on behalf of individuals who are not lawfully present in the United States.

Also, under current law, those in the country illegally don’t qualify for federal health programs. Of interest: About half of illegal immigrants have health insurance now, according to the nonpartisan Pew Hispanic Center, which says those who lack insurance do so principally because their employers don’t offer it.

President Obama Addresses Congress and the Nation on Healthcare

OPEN THREAD: How'd President Obama Do?

No triggers. No co-ops. No screwing around. He spent an hour stemwinding and ended on an incredible high note.

Rachel Maddow called it "a defense of liberalism."

Also, KO took exactly two seconds to kick "Dr." Charles Bustany squarely in the nuts following his rebuttal. It. Was. BRILLIANT. (Video on the way.)

And thanks as always to the nice crowd in the chat room tonight. Always an honor when people come here during big stories.

How about you? Leave us your thoughts.

Bankrupt, Schmankrupt - Ya Got Medical Care, Didn't Ya?

That's the thinking of Rep. Jack Kingston, esteemed Republican of Georgia, health reform (Obama) opponent, douchebag.

#HealthCare - An American in Norway

Tom Joad's one of our regulars here, and he sends this:

I know we need a public policy, I think we need single-payer, I live in Norway and it works (I'm American though!) and it occured to me, the public-option...WATCH OUT. The US doesn't just need A public option, they need the right one. Because I could easily imagine the wrong one turning into private insurers "dumping" any customers that suddenly GET sick over to the public option when they do. As in, they take all profits, dump all risk over to the taxpayers. I don't see any need to keep private insurers (unless as add-on) but I know that will not happen.

Unfortunately, we have to make everyone happy...not just the sick and broken Americans.

#HealthCare - We Really Need To Clear This Up, #TeaParty People...

When a president comes to the opposing party to ask for their ideas and input for an important piece of legislation that affects the health of American children, adults and seniors...

...and their ideas and input consist solely of:

"You're a socialist."
"You're a fascist."
"You're a nazi."
"You're Goebbels."
"You're trying to kill Grandma."
"You're turning terrorists loose on our streets."

...but not a scintilla of help other than leaving everything to the corrupt and greedy GOP-enabled status quo...

That's not a dictatorship. That's a president trying to be the grownup in the room because he's trying to negotiate with infants and bullies.

They'll continue stamping their feet in the corner until they can come to the grownup table. Until then, they cried and bullied their way out of the discussion, and they'll just have to live with that.

They had no problem letting the previous vice president throw their entire collective tax dollars away on a war that made billions for his company, Haliburton/KBR and killed thousands of our soldiers (and hundreds of thousands of the people we were supposed to be saving from Saddam Hussein). But they're up in arms to spend a lot less on the health of fellow Americans? That's not a tea party. That's not patriotism. That's just abject insanity.

Any questions? I don't want to hear them. I've heard enough.

Blue Dog Rep. Baron Hill Nailed on Video / Franken Shows How It's Done

This festering sore of a DINO shows his attitude toward democracy: Pure right wing dictatorship. 'Way to give both Democrats and conservatives two big fat black eyes with one idiotic comment, Baron.

Frankly, we really don't want to claim ownership of your little town hall circle jerks, you tool...but we are paying for them. So STFU.

THIS is how you have an honest discussion with people who disagree with you. No "Hitlers." No "socialism." No "this is MY meeting." Just Sen. Al Franken being Al Franken - engaging people in a real and remarkable conversation. WARNING: You will see grownups acting like grownups in this video.

Playing Politics with Georgia's Well Being

Here's the situation:

As of March 2009, 2,929,000 Georgians under the age of 65 were uninsured — nearly 34 percent of the state’s total population. More than three-quarters of these Georgians went without health care for six months or longer between 2007 and 2008.

One group of Georgians does have guaranteed, high-quality health coverage: Medicare recipients. As of 2008, 1,145,727 Georgians benefited from Medicare...

So with those staggering numbers, what do state Republican officials want to do?

A group of Republican state senators on Thursday said they want to amend the state’s Constitution in an attempt to stop Democrats in Washington from enforcing health care reform here.

Sens. Judson Hill (R-Marietta) and Chip Rogers (R-Marietta) were joined by about half a dozen colleagues to unveil their plans. The resolution would be introduced when lawmakers return in January.

The proposed amendment would, Hill and Rogers said, would allow Georgia to invoke the 10th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. That amendment says that any power not explicitly granted the federal government in the Constitution is preserved for the states.

What a great idea. Let your people continue to have no access to health insurance. Way to teach us Democrats a lesson, guys.

Um...You Mean They're Capitulating to the Deathers?

This is confusing...and a little discouraging.

White House officials are combing the versions of health care legislation approved by four of the five Congressional committees with jurisdiction on the issue, both to find common ground and to jettison provisions — some relatively minor — that have drawn fire from critics on the political right.

To avoid some of the most heated criticism voiced in recent weeks, White House officials said they would have no objection if Congress scrapped proposals to have Medicare pay for counseling on end-of-life care.

Critics said such counseling could lead to pressure on patients to forgo expensive treatments for terminal illnesses. Mr. Obama has said it is ludicrous to suggest that “we want to set up death panels to pull the plug on Grandma.”

Joe-bstruction

Here's a freakin' surprise. Lieberman says he won't vote for anything with the public choice, joining his fellow Republicans. I mean independents.

The Democratic-turned-independent senator said he knows his opposition to the government-run option will probably foil the Democrats' efforts to pass the bill.

"There will be no shot at 60 votes, because I'm not the only one," he said.

No, Joe. There's no shot at 60 votes not because of YOU, but because Ted Kennedy is dead. Dial down the ego, you gremlin.

"Public Choice," Not "Public Option"

Thom Hartmann has been telling the White House to make this slight marketing tweak to the health care debate, since the GOP has lyingly decided the public option takes away choice of coverage and/or doctors. Now that they're aggressively going after the GOP lies, this would be a good word choice. Not word option, but word choice.

Drama Queen of the Century

Torture, waging wars, groping Germany's leader, trashing the treasury, emptying a surplus, driving people out of their houses, destroying the middle class...all these things BushCheney did were okay.

However, in Michele Bachmann's sick little world, providing health care to all Americans will be the thing that will "destroy this country."

I cannot make any of the following up. This is one batshit crazy woman. You HAVE to read this.

“This cannot pass,” the Minnesota Republican told a crowd at a Denver gathering sponsored by the Independence Institute. “What we have to do today is make a covenant, to slit our wrists, be blood brothers on this thing. This will not pass. We will do whatever it takes to make sure this doesn’t pass.”

“Something is way crazy out there,” Bachmann said in her remarks, billed as a “personal legislative briefing” by the Golden-based Independence Institute, which bills itself as a “free market think tank.”

“This is slavery,” Bachmann said after claiming many Americans pay half their income to taxes. “It’s nothing more than slavery.”

In a speech filled with urgent and violent rhetoric, Bachmann — who proudly acknowledges she is the country’s “second-most hated Republican woman,” behind only former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin – drew a clear line on health care reform.

“You’re either for us or against us on this issue,” she said after deriding U.S. Rep. Betsy Markey, a Fort Collins Democrat, for “[sitting] on the fence” about health care proposals at recent town halls.

Bachmann recently joined former U.S. Rep. Marilyn Musgrave, the Republican Markey defeated last year, in a telephone town hall where she told abortion opponents the health care “battle will be won – on our knees in prayer and fasting.”

At times, Bachmann’s legislative briefing sounded more like the plot of a slasher movie.

“Right now, we are looking at reaching down the throat and ripping the guts out of freedom,” she said. “And we may never be able to restore it if we don’t man up and take this one on.”

While Bachmann didn’t ask this audience to “rise up” against President Barack Obama’s tyrannical rule, they stood anyway and applauded when she announced she was No. 1 on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s list of “top targets.”

Despite health care reform proponents recently facing “the summer of discontent for Democrats,” Bachmann predicted Pelosi has the muscle to keep the legislation on a fast track.

“[Pelosi] will slam this through in the month of September,” Bachmann said, even if she has to “break the arms of the Blue Dogs.” Then it comes down to the Senate, where Bachmann said “the lobbyists and special interests only have to hover around 15 senators,” with a bill expected by the end of the year.

Bachmann urged those opposed to Democratic plans for health care reform to keep applying pressure.

“This has to be defeated,” she said. “Cap and Trade has to be defeated. Those two alone have the strength to destroy this country forever, so we have to defeat them.”

Let's Make This a Definition

You've heard the adage a million times: A conservative is a liberal who's been mugged (or a liberal who has kids).

Let's start a new one: A socialist is a conservative who suddenly needs help.

Dedicated to a very good firebrand right wing friend of mine who was stricken with cancer. He now lives in Vancouver, BC. Get well up there, bud.

#HealthCare - Two Important Thoughts from the NYT

Their entire editorial this morning is the argument for majority rule on health care reform. And why not? The GOP happily did it for destruction when it came to their wars and spending. The Democrats must show the same backbone for something completely constructive.

They point out one very awful truth:

With the death of Senator Edward Kennedy, the Democrats do not have the votes just among their 57 members (and the two independents) to break a filibuster, and not all of these can be counted on to vote in lock step. If the Democrats want to enact health care reform this year, they appear to have little choice but to adopt a high-risk, go-it-alone, majority-rules strategy.

And that they must. The other mindset we must face:

Clearly the reconciliation approach is a risky and less desirable way to enact comprehensive health care reforms. The only worse approach would be to retreat to modest gestures in an effort to win Republican acquiescence.

So be it. They have to realize that in all this rage and wrath we've all been witnessing this month, most of what we saw was manufactured outrage - manufactured by the insurance lobby. Most of the country wants this to happen. Most of the country needs to be heard too.

Harry Reid Will Not Be Kennedy's Successor

Give 'em hell, Harry. Unless it makes Republicans angry. Then just pee in your pants as you famously do.