Friday Talking Points [105] -- One Bad Week

Chris Weigant, 12.18.2009

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

What a difference a week makes, eh? But before we get to all that, a quick program note needs to be addressed here up front. Every so often in these ...

Poor Women in California Can Expect a Lump of Coal From the Government This Holiday Season

Pedro Nava, 12.18.2009

California State Assembly Member

Schwarzenegger and the California Department of Public Health have embraced the holiday season with a new set of proposed rules that will abandon low-income women.

Health Care Reform: The Musical!

Matt Osborne, 12.18.2009

Blogs at osborneink.com.

The process of health care reform has provided us with a valuable look at the inefficient habits of American government. This conservative bent was im...

Dr. Politics Answers Letters from Connecticut Joe, Mischievous Mitch, and Harried Harry

Rick Horowitz, 12.18.2009

Satirist and syndicated columnist

Dear Dr. Politics: I'm hoping you can help me with a problem. I'm a member of a small but important government organization located on Capitol Hill. (Hint: It has 100 members, two from each state.)

President Obama Loses His Base: He Just Ran Out of Slack

Tom Sullivan, 12.18.2009

Blogger for Campaign for America's Future

The media was quick to declare the Obama honeymoon over this summer. Yet supporters exhilarated by Obama's win in November 2008 were still willing to cut him slack. That slack just ran out.

Senator Lieberman: The Joe I Know

Jim Kennedy, 12.18.2009

As someone who worked for Joe Lieberman for more than 17 years, I'm often asked, "What's wrong with your old boss?" Some fellow former "Lieberstaffers" have even been privately critical of his recent actions.

Literacy in India: A Gift That Never Stops Giving

Marissa Bronfman, 12.18.2009

Writer

Since the early 1990s, every WLC program has given a pivotal role to women's groups in Hindi -- as they have proven to be extraordinarily powerful forces in promoting female literacy and empowerment in India.

Thoughts on the State of Health-Care Reform

Michael J.W. Stickings, 12.18.2009

Founder and editor of The Reaction, a liberal political blog

I'm not happy there's no public option, I'm not happy there's no Medicare buy-in, and, in general, I'm not happy it's not a single-payer system like t...

2009's Worst Person of the Year: The US Senate

Bob Burnett, 12.18.2009

Berkeley writer, retired Silicon Valley executive

At the end of a decade marked by a general failure of US leadership, 2009 saw the collapse of the Senate. Confronted with an array of difficult proble...

Medical Malpractice and Health Care Costs: A New Study

D. Brad Wright, 12.18.2009

Doctoral candidate in the department of health policy and management at the University of North Carolina

In a slight change from the usual, I'm going to take a closer look at one of the major issues on the right: The need to reform the medical malpractice system.

Radical New Idea: Medicare Buy-In For Everyone

Cenk Uygur, 12.18.2009

Host of The Young Turks

If Congress were to pass a Medicare buy-in through reconciliation and just scrap the rest of health care reform, the only losers would be insurance companies and the White House.

Why Public Health Care is Better than Private Health Care

Hale "Bonddad" Stewart, 12.17.2009

Tax lawyer, former bond broker, financial blogger

While I will almost always advocate for a market based economic approach to allocating resources, health care is not an area where the profit motive should dominate decision making.

It Is Time Mr. President

Joe Peyronnin, 12.17.2009

NYU Journalism Professor

Remember just a few weeks ago when political pundits were declaring the demise of the Republican Party? That Republicans were teetering on the edge of...

Fire Robert Gibbs...Or At Least Make Him Apologize to Howard Dean

Miles Mogulescu, 12.18.2009

The Obama administration seems to think it can throw the concerns of its base supporters overboard and rely on Rahm Emanuel's version of Karl Rove's "K Street strategy".

The Bill Can Not be Killed, Progressives Should Use Their Leverage to Fix It

Josh Nelson, 12.18.2009

Publisher, EnviroKnow

There has been a lively debate for the past few days about whether or not progressives should work to block the passage of the current 'compromise' he...

Health Insurance Age Rating Equals Corporate Welfare

Natale Zimmer, 12.18.2009

Health Policy Director, OWL - The Voice of Midlife and Older Women

Age discrimination in the form of age rating, the practice of allowing private insurers to charge people higher premiums solely based on age, is wrong. And Congress is buying the false argument.

Lieberman to Filibuster with GOP if Democrats Propose Subway or Panda Express for Senate Lunch

Ben Berkon, 12.17.2009

Comedy Writer/Blogger, SomethingYouShouldRead.com

Lieberman claimed that the Democrats knew he wanted Dominos, and that he even relented last week when they forced him to order from Wendys.

How to Pass Health Care Reform - -Promise Voinovich the Moon

William Klein, 12.17.2009

Political strategist, writer, humorist in Washington, D.C.

Why not be the man who goes down in history as saving health reform? Voinovich has in the past bucked the conservative tide.

Health Care Reform: A Handjob for Insurers; Here's a Band-Aid, Shut up and Sit Down

Matthew-Lee Erlbach, 12.17.2009

Playwright, Actor

In what amounts to legalized robbery, we have gone from a public option to the expansion of Medicare, to a handjob for private insurers wherein a mandate forces us to buy private insurance for more.

How to Cut $154 Billion From Medicare Without Hurting Seniors

Mark Miller, 12.17.2009

Syndicated newspaper columnist, blogger at RetirementRevised.com

Many reform critics have frightened senior citizens by claiming that reform will threaten Medicare. In fact, reform will make Medicare much more efficient.

Will Liberals Really Kill Health Reform?

Will Marshall, 12.17.2009

President and Founder, Progressive Policy Institute

The never-ending story of health care reform took another turn for the weird this week. It began with liberals working themselves into a lather over ...