Howard Dean Stresses Importance of Grassroots Pressure on Public Option

Howard Dean came to Deerfield, Illinois on Halloween night to speak with the Illinois Tenth Congressional District Democrats or "Tenth Dems." Tenth Dems is a large volunteer organization that was started in 2003 in a Highland Park living room by seven people including former state representative Lauren Beth Gash. The group now claims over 2000 members and works to elect Democrats at all levels of government within the congressional district.

Former Governor Dean started by congratulating the Tenth Dems on their mission and success, stressing the importance of the grassroots in American government because they are "always ahead of Congress."

In particular, Gov. Dean sees the increasing importance of young people as a voting block. He pointed out that the last presidential election was the first in modern times where people younger than thirty-five turned out better than seniors. Dean said that this new youth voting block will change our political dialogue because people under 35 have less patience for the anger now being shown by the Republican Party and are more tolerant of the differences among Americans. Since they know, and are friends and coworkers with, people from different backgrounds and walks of life, it is harder to young people are more accepting of differences.

Dean also talked about the fifty state strategy. It allowed Democrats to introduce themselves into areas where they had not been active for thirty years. Dean knew that moving into all states was the right thing to do when the DNC polled Evangelicals and found that the top three issues for younger Evangelicals were poverty, the environment and Darfur. Dean believes that Democrats must bring their own message to places where their message has lately been brought by Rush Limbaugh and other media figures of the far right.

The governor then turned the discussion to health care. He believes that we already gave too much away in the current legislation. We should have never taken single payer off the table. He said that he thinks the public option should be Medicare, administered by the same agencies and under the same rules as Medicare. He further commented that we cannot give up much more before the bills become worthless. He'd still be comfortable with a state opt-out provision, but an opt-in or trigger will set the public option up for failure. He touted a single payer system, but not an exclusive single payer pointing out that even in England where doctors and other providers are employed and paid by the government, 15 percent of health care dollars are private. However, when he spoke about bringing coverage to his home state of Vermont, he found that states cannot easily implement a single payer system of their own because of the complexities of ERISA law.

After his brief comments, Dean took questions. One audience member asked about the President's desire for bipartisanship and the importance of Olympia Snowe in the negotiations. Dean responded by stating that Harry Reid did well in not allowing Snowe to control the ultimate Senate bill, as it is important not to let one Senator overshadow the many who are already signed on to reform.

Dean was asked about the impact of the Blue Dogs on the health care legislation. He answered that he didn't think they have had as much negative effect as many believe. He feels that they took the place of the republicans by adding the conservative voice when the republicans failed to engage in any meaningful debate. He also pointed out that the Blue Dogs pushed for changes that will help the smallest of small businesses by taking them out of the insurance business completely.

I asked Dr. Dean what the next steps to reform are. Democratic congressional leaders have told those of us who are disappointed with this legislation that it is only the first step, so what comes next? Dean said that the next steps are not congressional, but are for the grassroots. It will be important to push for expansion of the public option. He also said that the insurance companies have to show that they can do better. Their profits show their inefficiencies because those are dollars not spent on health care. If they don't do better, their inefficiencies will cause them problems down the line.

Another audience member asked about the money that affects legislation. Dean closed by reminding us of his campaign where small Internet donations from average Americans challenged traditional money sources for the first time, but reminded us that we are going to have to campaign finance reform an issue in the next election or it will never get done.

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Comments

[margoharris]

We have to stick together. We can't let the perfect be the enemy of the good. The bill has alot of good reform and is moderizing our medical system, something that has to be done to take us into the future.

When social security was established it didn't cover everybody. Like farmers, and railroad workers but it was improved and is an essential part of our society. Same thing for Medicare. We came together as a country, with the right against it, and made sure the elderly have health insurance and get the treatment that they need. It was the bad old times, when old people would suffer and die needlessly.

We need to move forward and not let the bastardos win. Let's put some energy into what we want a march on the Capital might just do it.

Let's get Fired-Up! The opposition is.

[Ellen Gill - Huffpost Blogger]

The perfect as the enemy of the good does not apply when most of the good has been taken out.

[solomon sez]

howard dean is right again. the goal for PROGRESSIVES is MEDICARE E . Right now, we need to continue pressing the SENATE not to get wobbly on inclusion of a public option .Get this into final bill . it can be made stronger down the road. this fight will take years of electing more progressives to CONGRESS to finally get "to the promised land ". Major CHANGE will take TIME. it is never easy on this long and winding road we are all apart of. COURAGE,my friends !!!

[jollyelle]

The other 55, broke their word to the American progressive citizenry.

My only hope for them is when the final bill comes back from conference committee,that they will re-examine their consciences and vote no. They are worse than the conservatives who at least have the courage of their corporate convictions.

Here are the 55:

Lynn Woolsey

Raul Grijalva

Carolyn Kilpatrick

Jerry Nadler

Phil Hare

Lucille Roybal-Allard

Keith Ellison

Earl Blumenauer

Mel Watts

Donna Edwards

John Olver

Laura Richardson

Maxine Waters

John Conyers

Judy Chu

Maurice Hinchey

Hank Johnson

Diane Watson

Jackie Speier

Bill Pascrell

Lloyd Doggett

Marcy Kaptur

Mazie Hirono
Bob Filner

Linda Sanchez

Marcia Fudge

Barbara Lee

Andre Carson

Sheila Jackson Lee

Michael Honda

Jim McDermott

William Lacy Clay

Jim McGovern

Yvette Clarke

Chellie Pingree

Jesse Jackson, Jr.

Elijah Cummings

Bennie Thompson

Gwen Moore

Donald Payne

Fortney "Pete" Stark

Ed Towns

Corrine Brown

Alcee Hastings

Nydia Valezquez

Luis Gutierrez

Grace Napolitano

Albio Sires

John Tierney

Mike Capuano

Chaka Fattah

Jose Serrano

Sam Farr

Bill Delahunt

Eddie Bernice Johnson

They have violated the trust with their caving to corporate power

[schatsie]

I believe that Obama is going to set himself up for failure in 2008 if he does not get at least one Progressive in his cabinet and by one, I mean HOWARD DEAN.....I really don't think he will get another term unless he gets HOWARD in there by June of next year....

The corporatists that Obama has there now are lazy and not looking out for the bottom 80% at all.

[DocTwain]

Gov. Dean is right, of course.

The House bill is garbage.

All existing federal health insurance or healthcare programs (Medicaid, SCHIP, etc.) should be combined into an improved Medicare for all, a single comprehensive universal plan with free choice of provider using full monopsony bargaining power to negotiate fair prices with drug companies and providers. Why should we have multiple government bureaucracies and plans paying different rates? (That is unacceptable in principle, without even getting into the details of grotesque price-fixing schemes like Medicare Part D.) Also, why should government employees be put on private for-profit plans when the same coverage could be provided by a non-profit government program at lower cost? We need to eliminate such institutionalized graft!

We should make improved Medicare a universal single-payer system. Failing that, we should make our "public option" the ability to buy into such a united Medicare, with all employers required to offer it as a choice to all workers. Also, no government subsidies should be used for any private insurance of any kind; that is waste. Only those buying into Medicare should receive subsidies; to give subsidies to those buying more expensive insurance with equal coverage would, once again, be plutocratic graft.

[schatsie]

I totally agree with you. but have reservations about Obama's intentions...The very first thing he could have done was Allow Drug Importation from Canada and when that did not happen, I was concerned.... Since then I have not been impressed... We have EPIDEMICS in this country, Autism, Alzheimers, Gulf War Sickness, ADHD, and PTSD and they are not being progressively managed like Polio was on the 1950s.... So the first thing would be to COVER OUR FUTURE. Cover out Axxxxx, DAM IT ALL, COVER ALL THE CHILDREN.....

[batguano]

HuffPost's Pick

It seems we are being betrayed yet again by timidity and shameless collusion with business as usual and a greed-driven health care system. I ask myself why the Dems, who arguably received a mandate for change, capitulated so easily and didn’t really fight at all for a comprehensive health care reform bill like HR 676. They will no doubt wonder why they will lose coming elections, but the answer is obvious; they do not really stand up for anything! We have watched as one after another real reform option, beginning with Single-Payer, has been eliminated after pressure from one shill or another. Where is the commitment to real change and the will to fight for it? Where are the kept promises? Have the true progressives like Howard Dean and Dennis Kucinich, and millions of others been given ANYTHING in the Health Care Bill negotiations? Have the American people, really? Forced insurance for all without a single-payer option for all is no change at all IMO. Without campaign finance reform we will never end the power of big money campaign contributions to call the tune for a malleable Senator of Congress Member. My disillusionment with this process and the deceit from Dems and psychosis from Repub has reached critical mass, and is red-lining my BSOmeter, as I suspect it has for millions of others who will not accept having the wool pulled over their eyes (yet again) by people they once put their faith and trust in.

[blueshield]

x 10 & fanned.

[iblogleft]

We could change this whole debate, and the entire mood of the country with one march on Washington.

Someone has a team that can get it started, choose the correct dates, get the proper donors, and draft the message. Who that team is, I don't know, but I really think we need it now.

[Mason]

I'm a liberal Democrat and I hate this bill. The Stupak Amendment is a particularly offensive compromise that infuriates me. Throwing women under the bus to pick-up a few votes from old misogynist white guys suffering from ED is yet another new low for the party that argues with itself.

I would have voted against it.

[thhammond]

I really don't know how as a responsible citizen you take a program (Medicare) with tens of trillions of dollars in unfunded liabilities (in a market where it has been endowed with complete control for YEARS) and talk about expanding it. I feel sorry for our kids. Medicare spending is out of control just like traditional insurance premiums yet we blame insurance and laud Medicare..­.craziness­.

I also don't understand the logic of tying the PO to Medicare unless we are asking for single payer (in which case...see above). If the PO is tied to Medicare and Medicare providers are required to take Medicare rates, you create a completely non-competitive marketplace in which everyone (including me...small business owner) will switch the day it comes out. Medicare PO is the most anti-competitive idea out there and the quickest way to single payer (again...please see above for the glory of single payer).

[hippieforlife]

Oh, it is okay to have a grassroots effort if you are a democrat? But if you are a republican you are labled as "astroturf" or even Nazis.

[Ellen Gill - Huffpost Blogger]

There is a huge difference between grassroots and corporately funded efforts masked as grassroots. That being said, I have been outspoken against astroturf on the progressive side and a frequent critic of the way HCAN and OFA have handled health care reform, failing to fully explain the bills to omit the downsides. Too tied to particular politicians, these groups are failing to perform the needed function of the grassroots and have relegated themselves to a mere cheerleading section. That was why I thought Dr. Dean's statements were important. We need a real grassroots that stays well ahead of politicians or we will get as little, or less, than we ask for.

[Knarf]

Anybody think he will run again? A senator advocating finance reform? I love it.

[Chernynkaya]

HuffPost's Pick

Pretty hard for me to get enthused and pressure Congress when this is the best they can do. These bills are a joke, and I'm supposed to support them? I'm dammed if I do and dammed if I don't. When Obama gets behind the expansion of Medicare or single payer, or even a real PO, I'll get energized, not until then.

[ncmom54]

agree with you... I'm there too. ALL the calls, emails made no difference with my Representative.
I'd love to see the PO be Medicare but it cant be beat out of a dead horse.

[Chernynkaya]

Thanks- I needed that support.