Over at Open left they’re using your count as proof that the bill is going to pass as is.

We need to start getting really vocal right now.

Jane I know you disagree, but I have to say I think you’re wrong. HCR is the megaphone, not student lending, and it’s a megaphone we should be screaming thru.

Citizen Inquisitr:

Yes indeed, you are right on…we need to make this so bloody that Obama won’t be able to triangulate with the thorns in a rose garden. The corporatists and the pseudo progressives in the House of Representatives have gotta pay a big price so that when the dust settles after this November, Obama has no base anywhere. And if he thinks he can intimidate Kucinich he’s gunna be spendin a lotta time in retirement with Rahm after 2012.

It should be noted that the reason that Dennis Kucinich, and maybe others, vote “no” is because the bill does not go far enough. Kuchinich might vore “yes” if the bill had a public option or had some possibity of single payer on a State or national basis.

Assuming your leaners are correct, based on the PVI…looks like “No” wins the battle.

FWIW Costello is NOT undecided….on your best day he’s a lean no
“I don’t like the process at all – I think the White House and the leadership has bungled this from the start,” he said. “It’s so complicated that the American people are fearful of what’s in the bill – this is a very complex issue that affects every man, woman and child, and it’s so complex that it scares people.”

KO’s father died on Saturday.

I think this is as close as it will get. The bill is DOA.

At the event, Obama began by thanking local dignitaries. When got to Kucinich, someone in the crowd yelled, “Vote yes!” The president stopped and said, “Did you hear that, Dennis?” And the person in the crowd yelled again, “Vote yes!”

If that were me, and not Dennis, I’d have called him out on the spot on the Public Option. Asked for a show of hands. Who’s for the bill? Who’s for the bill with the public option? Who’s for single payer?

Can’t (a vote on) the Stupak amendment be part of the “patch”? It concerns the budget in a direct way, and it was how they were appeased the first round.

Unfortunately it’s the President’s event, and his OFA/DNC folks probably invited the crowd. Any local politician that tried to put the President on the spot would be shouted down.

As it is, Obama seriously broke with normal decorum for one of these campaign events: you don’t invite a politician to a rally and call him out publicly. Obama was just plain rude, and naturally he was disrespectful to a liberal and not a Blue Dog Dem. What else is new?

Down, dirty and dealing with you hoss, here’s the Merlot, now gimme another verbal ammo clip in case I run out from spraying the field . . . it seems we have WAY more targets than I was counting on!!!!!!

“PASS THE MERLOT AND MAKE SURE YOUR FOXHOLE MATES ARE ON YOUR SIDE!!!”

*G*

Ain’t no one in THIS foxhole arguin against that . . . .

If the bill AS IS, is DOA, I’m a happy proggy.

If only. On a vote this close and momentous, never underestimate a President’s power to arm twist or favor grant. It is vast, both on a political & personal level.

I love Dennis at this point. But one Prog after another has been caving beneath this corporate juggernaut. I would be sickened, but not totally surprised if Dennis comes out as a yes vote after some minor and inconsequential concession from Obama. All our heroes seem to have feet of clay.

Also, thanks a lot David D for all the time and effort you have been putting in to monitoring this push. Some time i’d be interested to hear how you mine all this info. Is it Washington connections? A million websites? Inquisitive phonecalls? All of the above?

OBAMA’S FAUSTIAN BARGAIN WITH BIG HEALTH INSURANCE AND BIG PHARMA

Every unnecessary death due to lack of affordable health-care should bring all of us to anguish and anger, and provoke an immediate response to push for passage of the strongest possible health-care bill.

It’s too bad that it’s only at this late date that we have such a coordinated and powerful push to get such a weak health-care bill passed. It’s amazing to watch the frantic, mad scramble on the part of Obama, Reed, Pelosi and the rest of the Democratic leadership.

If only this “leadership” had made its presence felt months ago – particularly on the President’s part.

If Obama, Pelosi, and Reed had wanted to apply maximum pressure last Summer and Fall, I don’t think there’s much doubt that we could’ve had a much stronger bill, with a strong public option and far fewer giveaways to the health-care and pharmaceutical industries.

But the tactics of deal-making, delay and obfuscation, coupled with unnecessary deference to an intransigent and obstructionist Republican party, ended up serving the interests of big Pharma and big health insurance, and their corporate Democratic allies; deal-making, delay and obfuscation to the point where for many Democrats any health-care bill now is better than none.

For those of you pushing for this neutered health-care bill, thinking that it can be amended and strengthened later, perhaps you might be right.

But it may turn out to be much more difficult than you could’ve ever imagined. Because if you think that the health-care and pharmaceutical industries are powerful now, wait until these industries become even more profitable.

The windfall that big health insurance and big Pharma is going to reap from this bill is just going to make these industries even more powerful – politically as well as economically.

Sen. Durban’s observation during the bailout of Wall Street — “And the banks – hard to believe in a time when we’re facing a bank crisis that many of the banks created – are still the most powerful lobby on Capitol Hill. And they frankly own this place” – is an observation that applies equally well to big Pharma and big health insurance.

And now to top it off, these giant financial and corporate entities have co-opted the Supreme Court into allowing these corporate “persons” the unlimited ability to spend as much money as they want in their support for the increasingly bought-off candidates, parties and policies of their choice.

Funny thing about Faustian bargains, whatever might be achieved short-term is insignificant in terms of what is lost long-term.

I’m totally confused, after the last couple of weeks.
Which side are we supposed to be supporting now?

The Senate bill allows states to set up their own single-payer system, but not until 2017 and the states could be sued by insurance companies, but I still think that is a great provision. Sanders fought to get that in there.

If that were me, and not Dennis, I’d have called him out on the spot on the Public Option. Asked for a show of hands. Who’s for the bill? Who’s for the bill with the public option? Who’s for single payer?

What a great idea!! MSM probably wouldn’t have shown it on the teevee, though.

Then explain to us simple minds how Congress should have passed health reform. I would love to be blessed by your vast knowledge and insight.

Obama is good at Deception, very good!

Obama tells all these heart breaking stories about how Insurance Companies raises people rates. The audience thinks that Obama Insurance Welfare Plan wink wink “Health Care Reform” bill will reduce their Insurance Rates.

Obama never says his plans will keep Insurance Companies from raising your rates. (the blind and dumb americans are suppose to assume that Obama HCR scam will lower their Insurance Rates, Obama HCR will not lower Insurance Rates)

Again this is INSANE, Obama acts like people are not going to ask him and other Dems “WHY are my Health Care Cost still going up?” Obama what are they going to say? “We lied to the american people, so that insurance companies could make more money.”

The funny thing about the Rally, was someone yelling Dennis K. to vote yes, can you say PLANT? why no one yelled out we want the PUBLIC OPTION?

uuuuuMMMMM? No one in OHIO wants the Public Option?

Obama and Robert Gibss are trying to pull a BUSH, the question one needs to ask, is how do you get into these Obama health rallys?

dday – you’re working too hard for this thing – who cares what happens?

IF there is no public option / medicare for all all,

FIRE all of them.

Don’t call, don’t count, don’t pay attention, don’t write, don’t send money –

millions have broken their asses for these politically pathetic / sell out motherfuckers to lose / sell us out –

tally up EVERY moment they might suck out, every dime they want …

and let’s primary as many as effectively as we can – and if there is ONLY 1 fighter, then there is only 1.

fuck ‘em – let all those swayed-by-the-latest-idiotic-rove-atewater-ailes “moderate” fucking morons voters do what they’re gonna do, cuz, with pathetics and with sell outs “leaders”, we ain’t gonna stop the “leaders” or the morans.

rmm.

Allow the Senate, e.g, to vote on including a public option in the Reconciliation Bill

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/35882870#35882870

Also, allow individual states the right to set up a single -payer system; eliminate the health insurance industries’ anti-trust exemption in the Reconciliation Bill.

The problem is that you are using passing a bill as an end itself rather than if a bill is good or bad. I think there’s a bunch of corporatists in both the WH and Congress that sell out the public, so the way you get GOOD legislation is by voting them out of office and blocking the BAD legislation they want to impose on us.

Much like TARP, I will not vote for any politician that supports this healthcare bill. It’s a barbaric bill, a privatized poll tax.

I hope that Dennis sticks to his guns on demanding a public option.

I am now predicting a Dennis cave-in. I hope I’m wrong.

What the fuck is wrong with the god damn House? I thought we had the votes there? Get your god damn shit together House and fucking pass the damn bill.

Rahm? Calm down buddy. Call up your pals down at PhRMA and get ‘em to send you some meds. Just have em charge it out to the rest of the lobbying expenses.