Senate Sextet

Shawn Healy, 11.23.2009

Managing Director and Resident Scholar at the McCormick Freedom Museum

By my calculation, Senator Reid can count on 56 votes for the health care legislation as it now stands. Any attrition from this group would require Reid to reach across the aisle to recruit one or more moderate Republicans.

It's too Early to Celebrate the Senate Health Care Vote

Mitchell Bard, 11.23.2009

Writer and Filmmaker

I'm not saying I don't support this weak health care bill (it's better than nothing), but if it gets any weaker and cuts into the Constitutional right of women to choose, really, does the good still outweigh the bad?

Friday Talking Points [102] -- Harry Reid's Glacial Progress Grinds On

Chris Weigant, 11.21.2009

Author, Political Commentator, and Blogger (ChrisWeigant.com)

Harry Reid thinks he's got enough votes, but then this is the reason why the vote keeps getting pushed back -- because he's obviously still scrambling for the final few votes before he moves ahead.

Lieberman Exploring New Ways to Be a Dick

Andy Borowitz, 11.20.2009

BorowitzReport.com

As the health care reform bill makes its way through the U.S. Senate, Sen. Joseph Lieberman said today that he was "actively exploring" new ways to be as big a dick as humanly possible.

Health Care Reform: Will Real Statesmen and Women Stand Up?

Denise Dennis, 11.19.2009

Health Care Reform: Will Real Statesmen and Stateswomen Please Stand Up? What would Senators Joe Lieberman, Ben Nelson, Blanche Lincoln, and Mary Lan...

Lieberman's "Leaderless Jihad" Fetish: Bogus Theories Feed Islamophobia

Chip Berlet, 11.19.2009

Researcher and author covering civil rights and civil liberties

The Senate committee hearing on Islamic terrorism staged today by Sen. Joseph Lieberman is an example of flawed, biased, or discredited scholarship be...

New Republican Tactic: Scare Women Over Breast Cancer

Julie Menin, 11.19.2009

Host of "Give and Take," seen on NBC In New York and juliemenin.com

Republicans have found a new scapegoat in the debate over health care reform. First it was the death panels. Now it is the fear mongering over "ratio...

Obama Gets 11-Dimensional Chess Win; Epic Fail for Media, GOP

Matt Osborne, 11.20.2009

Blogs at osborneink.com.

The Republican strategy of delay escalated their misfortune; their "tea party" movement is a great, big Teabagger Fail, and the media's credibility is shot right along with them.

Bring Back the Cots! The Filibuster and Health Care Reform

Jerome Karabel, 11.19.2009

Professor of Sociology at the University of California at Berkeley

Paradoxically, the filibuster -- a classic device of obstruction -- may turn out to be the unexpected pathway to health care reform.

The Inevitable Fluke That Is Sarah Palin

William Bradley, 11.19.2009

California-based Political Analyst NewWestNotes.com

Five minutes into yesterday's Oprah extravaganza with Sarah Palin, I messaged Steve Schmidt, John McCain's presidential campaign manager: "So how did you know Bristol was pregnant before it was announced?"

Candlelight Vigil for Health Care Reform at Senator Lieberman's Front Door

Mary Ann West, 11.16.2009

People continue to die because of senators like Lieberman, who have determined that their convictions are more important than their constituents' lives. Go figure.

Friday Talking Points [101] -- Count Me With The Misfits

Chris Weigant, 11.16.2009

Author, Political Commentator, and Blogger (ChrisWeigant.com)

Whether or not Harry Reid ever gets his act together, the achievement of Nancy Pelosi getting healthcare reform legislation should stand on its own as an admirable political achievement.

The Other Essential Reform Joe Lieberman Is Blocking

Kelly Caldwell, 11.13.2009

Writer

Not only has Sen. Joe Lieberman been working overtime to smother health reform, he's parked himself squarely in the path of another badly-needed, long-awaited change: FEMA.

Joe Lieberman Filibusters Health Care While Americans Suffer

Bob Cesca, 11.13.2009

Political Writer, Blogger, and New Media Producer

With every month that goes by without health care reform, another 3,600 Americans die due to a lack of insurance. And Joe Lieberman, like Elaine in that classic Seinfeld episode, is stopping off for Jujyfruits.

How to Live on $0 a Day: Assuaging Rage, One Prick at a Time

Lesley Stern, 11.12.2009

Writer, counselor to the nouveau poor

If you're quivering with rage just thinking about Wall Street, it's time to take action. I've discovered a way to achieve a semblance of inner peace without therapists, tranquilizers or weapons.

Badfellas : How Rahm And My President Killed Health Reform

Lee Stranahan, 11.11.2009

Filmmaker, Writer, Photographer

Do you remember how Joe Pesci got killed in Martin Scorcese's film Goodfellas? Pesci was told he was finally going to get what he'd always wanted and ...

A Short Vocabulary Lesson for Sen. Lieberman (With Some History Thrown In At No Extra Charge)

RJ Eskow, 11.11.2009

Consultant, Writer, Health Analyst

People who label Nidal Malik Hasan a "terrorist," like Joe Lieberman has done, literally don't understand the meaning of the word. How can they protect us from it if they don't even know what it is?

Can We Afford to Let Blanche Lincoln Stop Health Care Reform Dead in Its Tracks?

Howie Klein, 11.10.2009

Down With Tyranny

Blue America has run TV spots against Lincoln all summer and fall and she's watched her re-elect numbers dwindle. This week Blue America has a brand new ad for Arkansas voters to look at.

The Second Amendment: Love the Fighter, Hate the Lover

Michael B. Laskoff, 11.09.2009

"...content against obedience..." ––W.S.

The massacre at Fort Hood has me wondering what kind of nation we really are. My inescapable conclusion is that as a nation, we're a fighter, not a lo...

The Audacity of Hindsight Could Help FEMA

Michael D. Brown, 11.09.2009

Former Under Secretary, Homeland Security

Ironic that a few days after a terrorist attack occurs on U.S. soil, a House committee takes action which would enhance the Nation's ability to respond to and recover from a disaster.

Absolute Corruption Is the Rule in America

David A. Love, 11.09.2009

Writer and human rights advocate based in Philadelphia

Often, people will look at a high-profile example of corruption, and conclude that the egregious act is an exception to the rule. In reality, it might be the tip of the iceberg.