I Hate To Say I Told You So

Show of hands, how many folks still think it was some kind of a stroke of brilliance to let Joe LIEberman extort his gavel from the Democratic caucus leaders?

Somebody? Anybody?

Buehler?

President Nelson Isn't Happy

Centrist Dem Senator Ben Nelson, who’s drawing fire from the left over his refusal to clearly state a position on the public option, now seems to have settled on one: Keeping the public option will destroy health care reform.

Nelson made the surprising comments in an interview with Nebraska’s Lincoln Journal-Star.
“I see two endings,” Nelson said when asked by the paper what’s next for reform. “One is we find areas we can agree upon and we begin to do things incrementally, taking more of an insurance approach, not a government approach. Or it implodes.”

The context leaves no doubt that by “government approach” he means the public option, and this statement would seem to be pretty definitive. How can Nelson support the public plan if it will destroy reform?

What’s curious about this is Nelson’s suggestion that he has little control over whether keeping the public option will in fact cause reform to “implode.” He seems to suggest it will just happen of its own accord.

This just sounds all so familiar, anybody remember the stimulus bill fight?

I'm going to put this as gently as possible.

FUCK BEN NELSON!

This guy is one vote out of 59 right now and he feels like everybody should bow to his ever whim. Well if he wants to hold that kind of power then I say he should run for President so the country can collectively laugh his dumb ass out of polite company. But until such time as he grows those kind of balls he should just shut the fuck up when grown folks are talking.

I am sick and tired of small men with huge egos from bumfuck states trying to dictate their minority opinions to the overwhelming majority. Its time to push health care reform through with reconciliaiton and make this muthafucka just as irrelevant as his stature and policy positions should make him. If he wants to be a Republican let him run as one next time. He isn't doing a damn thing to help Democrats at this point anyway. Hell I don't need any Democrat to be a DFH but you do at least need to be a damn Democrat.

Its time for some leadership, anybody know where we can find some?

(via Greg Sargent)

The Mistake That Keeps On Giving

I can still vividly remember earlier this year when for about five seconds Joe LIEberman was on the hot seat. The members of the Democratic Caucus wanted to strip him of all of his chairmanships for his advocacy for John McCain in the Presidential race and because of the wildly inappropriate comments he made about then candidate Barack Obama at the Republican National Convention and beyond. But Joe LIEberman wasn't going to take this lying down. He threateded to bolt the caucus should he not retain his gavel. His demands were mostly met with a "good riddance" by the caucus and rank and file Democrats, especially liberals and progressives, because what he had done was so egregious that if losing him to the Republicans, who would never fully embrace him anyway, was a consequence of actually making an example out of him then it was really worth it.

But then like a knight in shining armor President Obama sent word down from on high that Harry Reid was to do "whatever it takes" to keep Joe LIEberman in the fold. I can still remember exactly the disgust I felt when I heard about that siutation. Once again Democrats had proven that they have no spines and no sense of party discipline. But some people were SO enamored of President Obama that they just felt like he must be pulling a Jedi mind trick. Despite all of he evidence to the contrary they tried to paint allowing LIEberman to give him his ass to kiss as being some type of great strategic victory.

Well over half a year after that debacle and LIEberman has proven time and again just how much of an asshole he still is and that he doesn't have even an inkling of respect for or deference to the man who allowed him to keep his gavels. From continuing to question President Obama's credentials on national security matters, to greatly watering down the stimulus bill, Joe LIEberman has been about as consistent a critic of the Obama administration and their agenda as many Republicans in the Senate. So it really should come to no surprise that he went on CNN this morning and tried to throw cold water all over health care reform.



I just want everyone out there who continues to try to make it seem as if President Obama can do no wrong or that he doesn't make any strategic mistakes to remember this clip every time you are about to express that opinion. I can guarantee that you will hear Joe Lieberman's words over and over again in the coming week while President Obama is out of town and on vacation which of course makes he timing by LIEberman even more appalling. But hey maybe its some great triple double reverse psychology by President Obama that makes it certain that health care reform will get passed this year. Right?

Claire McCaskill's Weaksauce

I am generally a fan of Claire McCaskill. She did a great job advocating for then candidate Barack Obama last year and her voting record, while conservative, had been pretty decent on the major issues. But now she is really starting to tick me off.

Its not just that she seems to be losing her spine, something Democrats are historically known for, its also that she seems to think liberals and progressives, ie traditional Democrats, are fools. Not only are her votes starting become an issue, so is some of her pandering rhetoric. Pandering not to the Democratic base, but to right wing conservatives.

Two recent issues stick out like a sore thumb. The first being the issue of these townhall disruptions. It has been well established at this point that these protestors are straight up teabagging astroturf thugs egged on by the GOP and special interests. And finally we have the Democratic Party standing up and calling them out for what they are, but here is Claire McCaskill totally undercutting the message in two different tweets.

Yesterday she said:

I disagree that the people showing concern over some healthcare proposals are "manufactured" Real folks, strong opinions.

Talk about stepping on the message. She basically legitimizes the teabaggers and their outbursts shutting down debate.

But she wasn't finished.

She went further today and basically sounded like was tweeting from an RNC press release.

Real grassroots on both sides of the healthcare issue, both sides organizing. Yay to both, yay for democracy,hope both are civil and polite.

I read that and had to wonder what fucking planet is this woman on? Is she smoking something? Nothing about these teabag disruptions has been either civil nor polite. And its not like she doesn't know this, hell they shouted her down just last week. And yet here she is legitimizing these assholes like they are working in good faith.

Sounds to me like somebody needs to see how much money health insurance companies are shoving her way.

But wait, im not done.

Yesterday Senator McCaskill was one of only 4 Democrats in the Senate to vote against Cash 4 Clunkers.

Here is how she explained it on tumblr

Of course the cash for clunkers program is popular, we’re giving away money. My concerns are first, that we are just moving demand around, and that the sales in this program are robbing sales from 2, 3, or 12 months from now when we are going to still need sustained growth in our economy. Remember, around 60,000 to 70,000 people are trading their cars in for new ones every month without this program. Second, I haven’t yet gotten clear answers on how many deals are currently in the pipeline and how they will wind this program down in a way that will give certainty to buyers and dealers. Third, I’m worried that an extension right now will penalize the two companies that we just made huge taxpayer invesments in. I’m trying to verify, but I believe, based on my conversations with dealers and other research, that Chrylser and GM both have inventory issues with the cars that qualify for this program. Seems weird we would invest billions of taxpayer dollars in two American companies in an effort to save them, and then extend a program that could penalize them. I realize all car sales, both foreign and domestic, are good for the economy, but I hate the idea that there may not be a level playing field for the next few weeks because of inventory issues.

This is a tough call, but at least wanted to let eveyone know that I’m studying all of it and trying to make a decision that is not rushed, but thoughtful.

Nothing in that whole diatribe makes any fucking sense. GM and Chrysler are one of the two major beneficiaries of Cash 4 Clunkers. Notice that even the Republicans from car industry heavy places like Michigan voted to extend the program. Hell union busting asshat Bob Corker even voted for it. And when you have lost Bob Corker...

Here is what is particularly stressing. Missouri has already turned blue. They already have 50% of the voting population that self identifies as Democrats. So its not like Senator McCaskill is voting her constituency, so what, exactly, is her motivation?

I can tell you this much, if she keeps this kind of shit up we need to be looking for a progressive option in Missouri to primary her ass when she goes up for reelection. At this point in history there should be no such thing as a centrist Democrat running unopposed in a primary. Its time we made these people earn their seat and truly represent their constituency by showing them the consequences if the don't.

It is what it is.

"Who Needs Republicans When You Have Democrats Like This?"

Rachel Maddow PWNS Evan Bayh and the rest of his "Conservadems". Now we have to worry about obstruction in our own party. I guess some Democrats want to join the Republicans in the wilderness. Its time to marginalize these folks and make sure that nobody EVER takes them seriously again. This isn't about purity tests, this is about supporting that party that you represent's platform. Hell if they don't like the Democratic platform then let them run as Independents or Republicans and see how that works out for them. Nobody made them sign on as Democrats, that was a choice THEY made. So I think maybe they need to do some soul searching to see if they really want to oppose a popular President from their own party at this time of crisis in our country.