Kos is threatening Dennis Kucinich, of all people, with a primary if he doesn't vote for health care "reform."
Let me get this straight, Kos wants to primary one of the most reliable and principled progressives in Congress (perhaps the most principled one) because Kucinich doesn't want to vote for a bill which will force Americans to buy crappy health insurance from private companies?
First they came for Massa, and now, not being able to find any dirt on Kucinich, they're putting the pressure on, and Kos is going along with it?
Because, lord knows, what progressives should spend their time and money on this year is primarying someone like Kucinich. What they should do is start a left wing fucking civil war so that Obama, Hoyer and Rahm Emanuel can sit back and laugh as the left wing tears itself apart over a bill which, whether you want it passed or not, no one who is on the left wing should think is better than mediocre.
Be very clear, if "progressives" like Kos want to primary Kucinich, many other progressives will defend him and fight for him. So, instead of picking up new seats, we'll be wasting time and money fighting over a seat already held by a progressive.
Those who want to go after Kucinich are acting as Obama and Rahm's heavies. Acting as enforcers for a President who believes in indefinite detention without trial, who has expanded the war in Afghanistan, gutted civil rights and who wants to force every American to buy health insurance from private companies.
It's time for Kos's 15 minutes to end. The man's stupidity, hubris and willingness to be used by a president who is objectively a conservative means he is now doing more damage to the left than good.
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Thank you Ian!
And by the way, God love you, Ian Welsh, for not drinking the kool aid.
His constituents deserve someone who votes with their best interest in mind. Defeating health care reform so he can stand on principle is not in his constituents best interest.
Does the "Left" really stand for getting a Health "Reform" Bill through that is little more than a Trojan Horse giveaway to the Health Insurance Industry and Pharma in order to protect the presidency of an individual who declared himself a "New Democrat" last year and purged Progressives from his Administration at the drop of a hat?
That's insane.
The flaw in that logic is that Obama secretly made an agreement with the pharmaceutical companies to protect the worst aspects of the Republican Medicare drug bill from a few years ago - lack of foreign generic competition and prevention of government bargaining, instead accepting whatever the companies choose to charge. Why would anyone think Obama would try to fix problems in some future law?
Similarly, protections for the health insurance industry are in place. Single payer was never considered. The "public option," in whatever form, was not included in Obama's list of items he wanted in a health "care" bill. That was an obvious Kabuki merely flashed in the face of rubes and then discarded. Monopoly protection has been maintained.
The bill forces people to pay parasitic companies for health insurance where those companies have for years demonstrated that the term parasitic isn't a metaphor. And Obama's first move was to protect these multi-billion dollar companies!
You're right. He's done this without progressives. Don't for an instant think this is some sort of benefit for millions or that it will mature in the future under Obama. It's a tithe to companies that could not survive much longer on their current path since few people could afford the crappy health coverage. Eventually the situation would become so dire that real progressive politicians would be chosen to bring about real reform.
When I saw o'donnell give markos the slow pitch to throw Kucinich under the bus last night, my head exploded
. He conveniently neglected to talk about the stupak 13.
Also, three days ago,
“As I weigh it, I think -- for me -- a 'no' vote is something that I continue to lean toward," Rep. Raúl Grijalva, D-Ariz told Salon.com today, "Especially the last additions -- that was kind of a slap in the face for all of us who fought for the public option."
So what about that markos?
I haven't been a Kos fan for years, seeing him as much like Obama, big on progressive talk but when it comes crunch time he pretty much backs the conservative view and disdains true progressives. Nothing much new in that regard.
http://news.firedoglake.com/2010/03/10/the-one-flaw-in-the-brilliant-plan/