I can't, for the life of me, understand how one Senator can hold so much power as to effectively kill real health care reform, but it seems that Senator Joe Lieberman (I-CT) has managed to do just that. Since he is an Independent who normally caucuses with the Democrats, who need 60 votes to prevent a Republican filibuster, they are doing everything in their power to make Lieberman happy to get him to vote their way, even if that means accepting all of the cuts to health care reform that he demands. That's the problem with having such a razor thin majority in the Senate. The Democrats need a wider majority to keep from being held hostage by one member who is an Independent who is willing to go any way the wind blows. So it looks like we won't get anything meaningful in the way of health care reform and people like me with employer provided health care that has been cut to the bone are still going to face having to skip out on necessary medical treatment because we can't afford to pay for it out-of-pocket. Needless to say, I am deeply disappointed that Lieberman is able to use his position as an Independent to manipulate things his way like this to where he ends up being able to hold all the cards. I didn't elect this man and he's going to end up being able to dictate health care policy for the entire country, one person with the power to determine just how much health care the rest of us are going to be able to have. That's a lot of power to accumulate and it doesn't seem fair that we're being held hostage like this to the whims of one rogue Senator. Unfortunately, with midterm elections coming up next year, those elections are historically unfavorable to whatever political party holds the White House, meaning that we will most likely see a return of Republican majorities to both the House and the Senate. In turn, this is going to make it even more difficult for President Obama to be able to enact his agenda in the closing years of his
Presidency, and I get the very strong feeling that Sarah Palin is positioning herself for a run for President in '12. Given her popularity among the extreme conservative wing of the Republicans and how quickly she can gather a crowd, I have a very strong feeling that she'll be the Republican candidate for President in 2012. Who else has come forward that can get so many of them so excited? Nobody, as far as I can tell. She's young, glamorous, folksy and has, among the conservative wing of the Republican party, great appeal. She certainly draws a crowd the way few people in her party can right now. She's a hockey mom who hunts moose so she can bring home the bacon and cook it, too. Never mind that she's dumber than a brick. People in this country are generally disdainful of intellectuals, "elites", as they call them. Give 'em a hockey mom who can wield a rifle, kill a moose, dress it and serve it up for dinner. Well, it just looks like the next few years, whether it comes to health care reform or upcoming midterm elections, and the 2012 Presidential election which also begins next year immediately following midterms, are going to be a long hard slog. All of the ardor and enthusiasm of the Obama campaign last year has long since worn off with a cold shower of reality this past year. Everything we hoped and dreamed might happen under an Obama administration has not come to pass and more than likely never will because of how determined conservatives are to trip him up at every turn and sadly, they've largely succeeded so far. Does anybody besides me smell Karl Rove behind much of this conservative effort to destroy Obama?
I can't, for the life of me, understand how one Senator can hold so much power as to effectively kill real health care reform, but it seems that Senator Joe Lieberman (I-CT) has managed to do just that. Since he is an Independent who normally caucuses with the Democrats, who need 60 votes to prevent a Republican filibuster, they are doing everything in their power to make Lieberman happy to get him to vote their way, even if that means accepting all of the cuts to health care reform that he demands. That's the problem with having such a razor thin majority in the Senate. The Democrats need a wider majority to keep from being held hostage by one member who is an Independent who is willing to go any way the wind blows. So it looks like we won't get anything meaningful in the way of health care reform and people like me with employer provided health care that has been cut to the bone are still going to face having to skip out on necessary medical treatment because we can't afford to pay for it out-of-pocket. Needless to say, I am deeply disappointed that Lieberman is able to use his position as an Independent to manipulate things his way like this to where he ends up being able to hold all the cards. I didn't elect this man and he's going to end up being able to dictate health care policy for the entire country, one person with the power to determine just how much health care the rest of us are going to be able to have. That's a lot of power to accumulate and it doesn't seem fair that we're being held hostage like this to the whims of one rogue Senator. Unfortunately, with midterm elections coming up next year, those elections are historically unfavorable to whatever political party holds the White House, meaning that we will most likely see a return of Republican majorities to both the House and the Senate. In turn, this is going to make it even more difficult for President Obama to be able to enact his agenda in the closing years of his
Presidency, and I get the very strong feeling that Sarah Palin is positioning herself for a run for President in '12. Given her popularity among the extreme conservative wing of the Republicans and how quickly she can gather a crowd, I have a very strong feeling that she'll be the Republican candidate for President in 2012. Who else has come forward that can get so many of them so excited? Nobody, as far as I can tell. She's young, glamorous, folksy and has, among the conservative wing of the Republican party, great appeal. She certainly draws a crowd the way few people in her party can right now. She's a hockey mom who hunts moose so she can bring home the bacon and cook it, too. Never mind that she's dumber than a brick. People in this country are generally disdainful of intellectuals, "elites", as they call them. Give 'em a hockey mom who can wield a rifle, kill a moose, dress it and serve it up for dinner. Well, it just looks like the next few years, whether it comes to health care reform or upcoming midterm elections, and the 2012 Presidential election which also begins next year immediately following midterms, are going to be a long hard slog. All of the ardor and enthusiasm of the Obama campaign last year has long since worn off with a cold shower of reality this past year. Everything we hoped and dreamed might happen under an Obama administration has not come to pass and more than likely never will because of how determined conservatives are to trip him up at every turn and sadly, they've largely succeeded so far. Does anybody besides me smell Karl Rove behind much of this conservative effort to destroy Obama?
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