Writing in the New York Times, David Leonhardt calls health care reform “the federal government’s biggest attack on economic inequality since inequality began rising more than three decades ago.” That and the day’s other political news in the TPMDC Morning Roundup.
Rachel Maddow’s special guest last night: Rachel Maddow, who dismissed Sen. Scott Brown’s claim that she’s running for Senate. Watch.
Having given up the fight to save America from medical socialism, Senate Republicans have opted instead to the final round into a new full-employment act for political ad makers. To finalize the reconciliation bill, Dems have to pass it through the process with zero amendments. With no real chance to stop anything Senate Republicans have decided to come up with the most preposterous amendments possible and then pocket the Dems’ no votes for the 30 second political ads this fall. Our favorite so far? Sen. Coburn’s amendment to ban health care exchanges from providing Viagra to sex offenders. Brian Beutler has the story.
Newt Gingrich proposes GOP strategy for defeating Health Care Reform: another government shut down once they retake the Congress in January 2011.
Rep. Pete King says Republicans need to “avoid demonizing” the Health Care Reform bill. “Republicans tried that with Bill Clinton in 1998 during the whole Monica Lewinsky affair, and we ended up losing seats.”
To refresh your memory and to give him due credit, King was one of only a handful of Republicans (4, I believe) who voted against all articles of impeachment in 1998. For what it’s worth, I’ve always had a soft spot for King who, improbably, routinely manages to be both one of the craziest and one of the sanest Republicans in the House.
Another thing we’re watching is the rapidly growing cleavage among Republicans over repeal. Marco Rubio sent out a press release this morning challenging Charlie Crist to sign a “repeal” petition. And we’re seeing this ramping up all around the country. I suspect that like the constitutional challenges this is quickly going to become a litmus test among GOPers going into the 2010 election. But it’s a treacherous call for anyone trying to run in a statewide race.
Late Update: Didn’t take long. Crist’s on board for repeal.
It’s pretty remarkable that in this town Republican parliamentary tactics more appropriate for junior high school student council barely get passing notice or criticism. The truth is, in their heart of hearts, most reporters kind of admire the GOP for it.
So here’s where we are today. With real unemployment in the range of 20 percent, Senate Republicans are making Democrats vote over and over on “controversial” amendments to the reconciliation bill — not because they have any real chance of stopping the reconciliation bill, or of seeing their amendments passed, but because it allows them to produce TV attack ads for the fall.
Here’s our Top 10 Most Ridiculous GOP-Proposed Health Care Amendments, led by the esteemed Dr. Tom Coburn’s amendment to ban federal funding of Viagra for sex offenders.
Next time a Republican senator goes on TV and says that instead of reforming our health care system, President Obama should have been focusing on jobs, jobs, jobs, maybe someone can ask him or her what Senate Republicans spent most of this week doing. Just for grins.
We have our first Republican taking credit for the health care reform bill!
Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA), who voted against the bill, has denounced it repeatedly, and who was a critical factor in gumming up negotiations in the Senate last summer, issued a press release today touting his authorship of an obscure provision in the bill:
In 2009, he drafted legislative reforms and succeeded in persuading the Democratic majority to include several of the reforms in the new health care law.
… that he then voted against!
I’m not sure it’s hyperbole any more to say that we’ve now got a small scale domestic terror campaign going on against members of Congress who voted for Health Care Reform.
We already noted the handful of incidents over the weekend in the offices of Democratic members of Congress had their offices vandalized in response to their votes in favor of Reform. While that was happening, a Tea Partier in Virginia suggested people “drop by” the home of Rep. Tom Perriello. But they mistakenly provided the address of Periello’s brother.
Now the FBI is investigating an incident in which someone apparently cut the gas line into Perriello’s brother’s home, thinking it was the congressman’s residence.
How popular or unpopular is Health Care Reform?
As you can see in the graph below, Reform’s unpopularity was at its highest in December and January and has become a bit more popular and a bit less unpopular since then.
(To see the full size graph and the full data table, click here or just click the “read more” link below.)
Another example of Senate Republicans chaining themselves to the levers of power: They are now using Senate rules to limit when during the day committee hearings can be held, which has had the effect of scuttling some hearings. Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO) was just on the floor decrying this latest stalling tactic after she wasn’t able to hold a scheduled hearing on police contracting in Afghanistan.