What the progressive fight for the public option is about

This is just plain sad and disgusting. (0.00 / 0)

As important as this issue is, the only effort we can muster is figuring out how many ways we can cite the Nate Silver discredited Survey USA poll without actually linking to it.

We failed to sell it, so we'll just bounce a sermon around the Echo Chamber of the Self-Deluding Choir and call 50-50 a majority and continue to lose.

Accept the loss, do the post-mortem, and get to work on selling the idea of a public option to people outside of the progressive blogosphere - they're the ones who need persuading, not us.

The public option is a great idea and it sells itself, but doing the same wrong thing over and over again is self-defeating and embarrassing. So take your fingers out of your ears and stop yelling 'LA-LA-LA-I'm-Not-Listening-LA-LA-LA-Survey-USA-LA-LA-LA....' and start planning rallies and ad campaigns and fund-raisers for the next cycle.  

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by: Bobzim @ Tue Sep 22, 2009 at 04:20:44 AM UTC

bobzim - why so angry? (4.00 / 1)

Did you click on any of the links I posted? You're the only one talking about SUSA any more.

The first link in the post (not counting the via) is to a Google search: Google search on "polls public option health care". There's a lot of different polls there. Check them out. (I just did a quick scan... in the first 7 unique stories, only 1 is about the Survey USA poll you have issues with.) We are holding those rallies, petition drives, and ad campaigns right now and we're winning the messaging war on health care reform.

The last link (&%^#@, it was messed up... just fixed it)... concludes with this (emphasis mine):

If grassroots and House progressives can't even get a watered down public option in this environment, then it is very difficult to conclude that we are actually part of the governing coalition in this country. And really, that is what this campaign is about who runs the country at least as much as it is about health policy.

If I combine that with what you're saying, I interpret (please clarify if this is wrong) that you think grassroots and House progressives should give up on being part of the governing coalition this cycle. We should just accept the new boss in town, work our butts off for yet another cycle while we're fed crumbs, and maybe then we can ride a magic victory pony into Washington.

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by: Clem Guttata @ Tue Sep 22, 2009 at 09:29:22 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

The first 7? OK. (0.00 / 0)

The 1st is a CBS story about a poll in June. We are light years from June on this issue, and support has steadily dropped since then.

The 2nd is the Survey USA poll that Nate Silver discredited; ain't just me.

The third is a story about a Kos poll in Kentucky, Nebraska, and Nevada only, and none of them are exactly ecstatic about the public option.

4th is from June.

5th is Survey USA poll.

6th is from June.

And 7th is a story about doctors' support. That's great, but maybe too late.

Why am I angry? Because we have weak, ineffective, almost universally despised leadership in Congress which means that as far as elected Democratic leadership is concerned, Obama has to carry the ball alone.

Yet there's all this bitching and moaning about being disrespected and difficulty "conclud[ing] that we are actually part of the governing coalition in this country".

Of course progressives have difficulty in being part of the governing coalition - two-thirds of our leadership are shitheads who would actually harm the effort for a public option if they tried to get out and lead on it.

Too many progressive bloggers are misinterpreting what happened last November, and to undue what Rahm did, what gave us the majority in the first place, is fatal to meaningful health care/insurance reform.

So, as Sterling told Rodger Cooper Sunday night, "It's overlooking certain things to get what you want".
 

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by: Bobzim @ Tue Sep 22, 2009 at 14:53:36 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Bobzim, President Obama strongly disagrees with you. (4.00 / 2)

When specifically asked about the public option, he said,

   "I absolutely do not believe that it's dead," Obama told Univision. "I think that it's something that we can still include as part of a comprehensive reform effort. source"

And when asked if Repub votes are essential to passing a bill, Obama replied:

"You know, I'd love to get Republican votes, but I don't count on them. ... I think, that the opposition has made a decision. They are just not going to support anything, for political reasons."

That whole attitude of corporate suck-ups relying on progressives to knock on doors and win elections only to then let Joe Lieberman and Lindsay Graham-types legislate is sad and disgusting.

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by: One Citizen @ Tue Sep 22, 2009 at 12:29:09 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

sometimes (0.00 / 0)

you gotta say no to the majority...ask the aclu

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by: stevewvu @ Tue Sep 22, 2009 at 19:23:20 PM UTC