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Posts by Steve Benen
GOPer Says Health-Care Scheme Won't Be Repealed
Posted by Steve Benen, Washington Monthly on December 24, 2009 at 11:41 AM.
Sen. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) conceded that if/when health care reform becomes law, it's not going anywhere.
"Technically it could be peeled back if the circumstances were right," Crapo said during an appearance on a conservative news radio syndicate. "But we would have to have a president who would sign such a bill, and we would have to have 60 votes in the Senate -- not just 50."
"So it would be a very tall order, and frankly, the likelihood's that that's not going to develop in the near future," he added.
That's true, but it's incomplete. Crapo's right that the legislative circumstances are almost certainly not going to materialize to facilitate a repeal, but there's also the political problem Republicans are reluctant to acknowledge.
Read the rest of the post on the flip side »
We Have a Winner! Sarah Palin's "Death Panel" Fallacy Named "Lie of the Year"
Posted by Steve Benen, Washington Monthly on December 22, 2009 at 3:30 PM.
THE POOR WOMAN CAN'T HELP HERSELF.... Just yesterday, Politifact's independent fact-checking feature announced its "Lie of the Year." It was a fairly obvious choice, but nevertheless well deserved -- the ignoble award went to former half-term Gov. Sarah Palin (R).
"The America I know and love is not one in which my parents or my baby with Down Syndrome will have to stand in front of Obama's 'death panel' so his bureaucrats can decide, based on a subjective judgment of their 'level of productivity in society,' whether they are worthy of health care," Palin wrote over the summer, in her award-winning missive.
It was one of the stupidest things ever written by anyone on any subject. It also cemented Palin's reputation as a crazy person with an acute allergy to the truth.
Just one day after her deranged "death panel" nonsense was named the "Lie of the Year," Palin decided to raise the specter of her insane accusation all over again.
"NOW w/the Prez "threatening" &Congress "rushing" is when we MUST pay more attention than ever 2what this HealthCare Takeover is all about," Palin wrote in one tweet. "[M]erged bill may b unrecognizable from what assumed was a done deal:R death panels back in?"
To translate this into English, the former half-term governor believes President Obama is "threatening" someone -- she wasn't clear on who -- while lawmakers are "rushing." Given that the health care reform debate lasted nearly as long as Palin's entire tenure as governor, it's hard to believe the process really has been "rushed."
Nevertheless, she believes it's important that "we" carefully scrutinize what the "takeover is all about." Who, exactly, is taking over what is, alas, still unclear.
Read the rest of the post on the flip side »
Al Franken's Anti-Rape Amendment Passes, Infuriating Several (Male) Republicans
Posted by Steve Benen, Washington Monthly on December 22, 2009 at 8:00 AM.
FRANKEN AMENDMENT BECOMES LAW.... In October, Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) proposed a key amendment to the 2010 Defense Appropriations bill. Yesterday, it was signed into law.
Motivated by the harrowing violence Jamie Leigh Jones suffered in 2005 while working for Halliburton/KBR in Iraq, Franken pushed a measure to withhold defense contracts from companies that "restrict their employees from taking workplace sexual assault, battery and discrimination cases to court." Franken's measure passed, 68 to 30. The 30 opponents -- representing 75% of the entire GOP Senate caucus -- were Republican men.
There were some implantation questions from the Pentagon, but after some additional efforts, and overcoming a Republican filibuster, Franken's measure became law after President Obama signed the Department of Defense Appropriations Act over the weekend.
Digby had a good take on this.
The reason I think it's good news isn't just on the substance (which it certainly is) but on the politics. Franken's amendment is driving the Republicans crazy because they basically voted to protect rapists and are now paying a political price for that. And now they are whining that Franken was somehow "uncollegial" because the amendment put them in an embarrassing position (which makes me wonder how many other things issues are swept under the rug because it would make members of the opposition uncomfortable.)
That's the kind of thing the Democrats should do more of. Expose the Republicans' hypocrisy and cruelty by forcing these issues on to the agenda.
Read the rest of the post on the flip side »
John McCain Trashes Obama for Failing to Foster "Bipartisanship"
Posted by Steve Benen, Washington Monthly on December 21, 2009 at 6:00 AM.
THE UNOBSERVANT SENATOR.... Just think, if John McCain wasn't on one of the Sunday morning talk shows every other week, we wouldn't be able to hear insightful whining like this.
Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) ripped into the president on Sunday for abandoning his pledge to foster bipartisanship in Washington, accusing Obama of creating a more toxic political environment than that which existed during the Clinton administration.
"In some ways, of course, yeah," McCain told Fox News Sunday when asked if the Obama White House was more partisan than Bill Clinton's. "At least under Hillarycare they tried to seriously negotiate with Republicans. There has been no effort that I know of -- of serious across the table negotiations -- such as I have engaged in with other administrations. And that was the commitment that the president made."
That McCain actually seems to believe this demonstrates just far gone the poor guy really is.
Read the rest of the post on the flip side »
Bill Kristol: Snow's Coming and Health-Care Reform Is Really Inconvenient for Lawmakers
Posted by Steve Benen, Washington Monthly on December 18, 2009 at 5:16 PM.
BILL KRISTOL, PUBLIC SAFETY ADVOCATE.... Bill Kristol makes no secret of the fact that he hopes to see Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) kill health care reform. But today, the Weekly Standard editor came up with a new reason for Nelson, not just to kill the bill, but to do so today.
There's a really big snowstorm coming to D.C.tonight. It would be unsafe to ask all the staffers and Hill employees who'd be needed at the Capitol if Congress stays open all hours this weekend, as Harry Reid intends, to drive to and from work--especially since many will have to do so at night, and they won't be well-rested. So from the point of view of public safety and personal well-being, Ben Nelson can do everyone a favor, announce today he won't vote for cloture, and let everyone stay home this weekend.
Yes, Bill Kristol wants support for a Republican filibuster because it's likely to snow.
Read the rest of the post on the flip side »
Clinton Urges Passage of Health Care Bill... Maybe He Should Have a Talk With Ben Nelson
Posted by Steve Benen, Washington Monthly on December 17, 2009 at 5:00 PM.
'TAKE IT FROM SOMEONE WHO KNOWS'.... Former President Bill Clinton releases a statement this afternoon:
"America stands at a historic crossroads. At last, we are close to making real health insurance reform a reality. We face one critical, final choice, between action and inaction. We know where the path of inaction leads to: more uninsured Americans, more families struggling to keep up with skyrocketing premiums, higher federal budget deficits, and health costs so much higher than any other country's they will cripple us economically.
"Our only responsible choice is the path of action. Does this bill read exactly how I would write it? No. Does it contain everything everyone wants? Of course not. But America can't afford to let the perfect be the enemy of the good.
"And this is a good bill: it increases the security of those who already have insurance and gives every American access to affordable coverage; and contains comprehensive efforts to control costs and improve quality, with more information on best practices, and comparative costs and results. The bill will shift the power away from the insurance companies and into the hands of consumers.
"Take it from someone who knows: these chances don't come around every day. Allowing this effort to fall short now would be a colossal blunder -- both politically for our party and, far more important, for the physical, fiscal, and economic health of our country."
Read the rest of the post on the flip side »
Rightwing Fringe Welcome at Conservative Confab, Gay Republicans Not So Much
Posted by Steve Benen, Washington Monthly on December 17, 2009 at 8:23 AM.
In February, the Conservative Political Action Conference will get underway in D.C., and because CPAC has become the right-wing event of the year, the conservative movement's heavy hitters are anxious to be a part of it.
But let's note who, exactly, has become part of the conservative movement. For example, the 2010 CPAC gathering will be co-sponsored by the hyper-conservative John Birch Society. While JBS was, not too long ago, considered far too ridiculous for the American mainstream -- even Republicans considered Birchers a political pariah -- the bizarre group has slowly been welcomed into the fold as conservatives have become more extreme.
When Glenn Beck embraced the Birchers two years ago, Alex Koppelman reminded us, "The JBS is, after all, the group that believed fluoridated drinking water was a Communist mind-control plot. Oh, and its founder, Robert Welch, once accused Dwight Eisenhower -- and no, we are not kidding -- of being 'a dedicated conscious agent of the communist conspiracy.'"
And now the John Birch Society is co-sponsoring CPAC. When I talk about radicalism being mainstreamed by the right, this is what I'm talking about.
Read the rest of the post on the flip side »
Obama Team One Step Closer to Closing Gitmo
Posted by Steve Benen, Washington Monthly on December 15, 2009 at 7:34 AM.
FROM GITMO TO THOMSON.... This is a welcome, important step towards closing the detention facility at Gitmo once and for all.
Dozens of terrorism suspects being held at the U.S. naval base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, will be moved to a little-used Illinois state prison that will be acquired and upgraded by the federal government, an Obama administration official said.
The critical step toward fulfilling President Obama's pledge to shut the Guantanamo detention center will be announced Tuesday, said the official, who reported that Obama has ordered the acquisition of the eight-year-old Thomson Correctional Center, about 150 miles northwest of Chicago.
As part of the plan, over the next six months, federal officials will upgrade the facility, to the point that it will have a security level described as "beyond supermax."
This afternoon, Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn and Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin, both of whom support the transfer, will be briefed on the policy at the White House.
Read the rest of the post on the flip side »
This Week in God
Posted by Steve Benen, Washington Monthly on December 13, 2009 at 6:47 PM.
First up from the God Machine this week is word from the Supreme Court on the upcoming term's big church-state case.
The Supreme Court agreed Monday to decide whether a Christian student group's right to religious liberty and the freedom of association can trump a university's ban on discrimination against gays and lesbians.
The case could set new rules for campus groups that receive funding through fees paid by the students.
The justices agreed to hear an appeal from a San Francisco chapter of the Christian Legal Society, which lost its recognition as a student group at the UC Hastings College of Law because it refused to abide by the school's anti-discrimination policy.
The law school said that officially recognized student groups must be open to all.
It's pretty straightforward. The state school only funds and recognizes student groups that don't discriminate on the basis of "race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, disability, age, sex or sexual orientation." The chapter of the Christian Legal Society refuses to allow LGBT students to join, so Hastings lost its status as an official student group.
Read the rest of the post on the flip side »
Lieberman "Irritated" By Toothless Trigger
Posted by Steve Benen, Washington Monthly on December 10, 2009 at 4:02 PM.
LIEBERMAN ON 'IRRITANTS'.... Based on the general outline of the Team of Ten's compromise plan, there's a public-option trigger, but it's awfully tough to pull.
The idea is to rely on the OPM plan -- we'd have a national, non-profit health plan along the lines of the Federal Employee Health Benefits Plan, administered by the Office of Personnel Management, which oversees the plan for federal employees and has experience negotiating with private plans. The OPM would select non-profit plans that met government standards to participate, and they'd be available for state exchanges for consumers to select.
But what happens if insurers don't step up and the national non-profit plans don't materialize? That probably wouldn't happen, but if it does, then a public option would kick in.
So, the public option aspect of this has all been negotiated away, in exchange for other progressive goals. Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.), whose opposition has been based on an evolving, almost-fanatical hatred of public-private competition, has to be thrilled, right?
"I've told them that I can't support a trigger -- no, actually, to be more explicit: If they say that it's unlikely to be [pulled] then it's unnecessary," Lieberman said. "It's an irritant. And I keep saying to my colleagues: the underlying bill, that I would say 60 of us in the caucus support, that is, the parts that we support in the underlying bill, are so full of progress -- let's get that done, and stop trying to squeeze in things that some of us, respectfully, just won't accept."
The trigger being considered would be pulled, according to a Senate aide briefed on the compromise, if private health insurers, managed by the federal government, do not offer nation-wide non-profit plans starting in 2014. If pulled, it would create a national public option. The measure was added to the agreement at the last moment at the insistence of Sen. Russ Feingold (D-WI). But it may still prove an obstacle to passage of the health care bill.
Read the rest of the post on the flip side »
Sen. Jim DeMint Outraged at GOP's Shift to the Left?
Posted by Steve Benen, Washington Monthly on December 10, 2009 at 9:00 AM.
THE ALTERNATE REALITY.... By most measures, congressional Republicans have spent 2009 executing a scorched-earth strategy. The GOP has moved sharply to the right, has abandoned even the pretense of bipartisan cooperation, has embraced and elevated some of the more radical elements of the party's coalition, and recommended policy proposals that even some conservatives described as "insane."
And yet, there are still some Republican officials who are outraged by their party's moderation.
Read the rest of the post on the flip side »
Howard Dean's Pleased with Health Compromise ... For Now
Posted by Steve Benen, Washington Monthly on December 9, 2009 at 11:15 AM.
About a week ago, Howard Dean argued that a health care bill without a public option "is worthless and should be defeated."
Now that Senate Democrats have endorsed a compromise measure that scales back the public option to a trigger -- in exchange for Medicare buy-in and the OPM plan -- is Dean still on board with the reform effort? Actually, yes.
In a boost for the Senate health care deal reached yesterday, Howard Dean said in an interview with me moments ago that the current compromise contains "real reform," and said that as it stands now, progressives could support it.
Dean also confirmed various details about the deal that he'd learned in direct conversations with Senators involved in the discussions -- detail that news orgs had mostly attributed to anonymous sources. Dean's general support for the bill could give it a boost among progressives who say it falls short of real reform.
Dean seems to feel pretty strongly about this, making the rounds this morning to tout his (conditional) support for the new deal.
Read the rest of the post on the flip side »
Will Someone Please Explain the Meaning of "War Bond" to Ben Nelson?
Posted by Steve Benen, Washington Monthly on December 9, 2009 at 6:34 AM.
BEN'S BONDS.... I assume someone will get around to explaining the policy to him eventually.
The United States would begin financing its military engagements in Iraq and Afghanistan with war bonds under new legislation introduced Tuesday.
Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) unveiled the "United States War Bonds Act of 2009" early this afternoon, which would authorize the Treasury Department to begin selling bonds to fund the wars.
The bonds, Nelson said, would be purposed with helping to pay for the military efforts, in particular the surge of 30,000 troops in Afghanistan, without having to resort to the "war surtax" that has been discussed by some liberals in the House and Senate.
John Cole asked, "He really does not understand that all of our debt is structured through bond sales and the like, does he?"
No, I don't think he does.
Alex Koppelman's explanation was nice and simple: "The problem with this logic is that bonds -- even war bonds -- aren't free money. At some point, those who invested expect to be paid back, and with interest. In order to accomplish that, the government has to use money it gets from ... well, from tax dollars."
Eric Cantor on How to Create More Jobs: Umm...Create More Jobs!
Posted by Steve Benen, Washington Monthly on December 8, 2009 at 7:25 AM.
ERIC CANTOR, POST TURTLE.... House Minority Whip Rep. Eric Cantor (R-Va.) visited the conservative Heritage Foundation last week to unveil what he called "a no-cost jobs plan." Andrew Leonard summarized the pitch: "Cut regulations. Freeze spending. Cut taxes. No new taxes. That's the plan."
It was, of course, the Bush/Cheney agenda -- which helped get us in this mess in the first place -- warmed over.
A week later, Cantor appeared at the Economist's World in 2010 conference. The frequently-confused GOP leader said his party has plenty of important "big ideas" and policy proposals. The Economist's Daniel Franklin asked Cantor to identify the Republicans' big idea on jobs. Pat Garofalo reports that Cantor couldn't think of anything specific.
FRANKLIN: What is the big idea? "Jobs" is not an idea.
CANTOR: The big idea is to get, to get, to produce an environment where we can have job creation again.
I almost feel bad for the guy. Cantor was elected to Congress before he was able to learn anything about public policy, and was put in the GOP leadership before he could speak intelligently about any issue.
Eric Cantor as a congressional leader is a classic example of a post turtle -- you know he didn't get up there by himself; he obviously doesn't belong up there; he can't get anything done while he's there; and you just want to help the poor, dumb thing down.
Read the rest of the post on the flip side »
Get Off John McCain's Lawn!
Posted by Steve Benen, Washington Monthly on December 7, 2009 at 4:27 AM.
Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), his near-constant media attention notwithstanding, doesn't seem to be having any fun.
Yesterday, the senator was all worked up about Medicare cost-savings, claiming not to know what "the deal is." Sen. Max Baucus (D-Mont.) rose to explain it to him, and McCain didn't take it especially well.
Note in the video that McCain is incensed by all the lobbyists in the halls of Congress. I guess he liked lobbyists better when he hired dozens of them to run his campaign operation last year.
The confrontation came a day after Senator Hothead told Don Imus, "I'm madder than I've ever been." The comment came in response to a question about the economic recovery package, which McCain called an "outrageous use of taxpayers' dollars."
McCain, whose temperament has always been disturbing, is angrier now than he's ever been because of a recovery package that rescued the economy from collapse? That seems odd.
I'm reminded of something Sen. Thad Cochran (R) of Mississippi said about his long-time colleague last year: "[McCain] is erratic. He is hotheaded. He loses his temper and he worries me."
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