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Today I wrote some comments that were posted at CNN’s Political Ticker and I sent a letter to Harry Reid.
Thought I’d share them with you.
“King’s Monday memo: Some strong yearnings for good earnings,” particularly referring to this part of the article: “The House Financial Services Committee will be looking to the future, holding a hearing Tuesday on proposed regulatory reforms. Adding heat to that debate, top White House officials railed Sunday against Wall Street interests it said were lobbying forcefully against new regulations. The administration says the new regulations will help protect against the abuses that contributed to the 2008 financial crisis.”
My comment, which CNN kindly published:
www.firedoglake.com
October 19th, 2009 10:48 am ETAs a concerned citizen, I contacted Rep. Melissa Bean’s (D-IL) office and had an exchange with Jonathan Lipman, her communications director.
Her office apparently will not give substantive answers to simple questions from the public about Rep. Bean’s position on regulatory preemption, about numerous reports re her efforts to minimize consumer protection in the financial services industry by means of a proposed amendment to Rep. Frank’s bill that creates a Consumer Financial Protection Agency, or about which banks and mortgage lenders have made campaign contributions to Rep. Bean.
In response to my questions, Lipman so far has only directed me to a page at her website that has no information to answer my simple questions and to FEC filings.
Well, I went to take a look at the amounts of money contributed to Rep. Bean’s campaign from the various industries, and am amazed at how cheaply a member of Congress can be bought and paid for.
“Health care critic advises ‘divide and conquer’ strategy,” an article about Rick Scott of CPR’S advice to those on the “right” side of the health care reform debate.
My comment, which CNN kindly published:
www.firedoglake.com
October 19th, 2009 12:11 pm ETTo all you people throwing money at Rick Scott and groups like his in order to defend the health insurers’ right to make excessive profits beyond the wildest dreams of avarice:
You do realize that Rick Scott and his CPR are largely irrelevant in this debate, right?
The argument is entirely between 1) real Democrats like Chuck Schumer, Jay Rockefeller and Tom Harkin, and 2) fake Democrats like Max Baucus, Evan Bayh and Blanche Lincoln.
Keep throwing your money at Rick Scott.
It’s like throwing it into the garbage as far as this debate is concerned.
“Progressives hit Harry Reid on health care”, an article about the PCCC’s latest ad to run in Nevada.
My comment, which CNN kindly published:
www.firedoglake.com
October 19th, 2009 11:41 am ETI proudly contributed to Democracy for America and the Progressive Change Campaign Committee ad campaign to pressure Sen. Harry Reid and Sen. Olympia Snowe.
I made the contributions via ActBlue.com.
Real health care reform that must include a public health care option is not a liberal or progessive issue.
A public health care option is far too popular among all Americans to call it anything but a moderate position in the debate over how to reform health care.
AND IT IS THE LEAST THAT THE OBAMA ADMINISRATION AND THE DEMOCRATIC CONGRESSIONAL LEADERSHIP CAN DO FOR MILLIONS OF AMERICANS NOW AND IN THE GENERATIONS TO COME.
Finally, after making the contribution to the PCCC so they could continue to pressure Senator Reid, I couldn’t resist sending him the following letter via the contact page at his website. Sorry it’s so long. At least I made the point early on!
Dear Senator Reid,
I have written to you a few times in the last couple of weeks. I told you that I have been nothing but a Democrat my entire adult life, for nearly twenty years. And I told you that I have supported Democratic candidates and the Democratic Party with votes and money.
Well, today I have now made yet another contribution to add to the ones I’ve already made to FDL Action, the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, Democracy for America, and Health Care for American NOW.
This time, I contributed to the PCCC’s ad that will now be running in Nevada.
In that ad, the nurse says that she will be waiting to see if you can pass real health care reform that includes a public health insurance option. She wants to see if you’re a strong enough leader.
Well, I made this contribution because I’m embarrassed by my party’s leadership, especially for its failure so far to support strongly and publicly real health care reform and to fight for a public health insurance option.
I have written to several Senators to ask them to blow off your leadership if you fail, if you come out of this conference with a merged bill that does not include a public health insurance option like the one that appears in the Kennedy-Dodd HELP Committee bill.
If you do not bring forward a real health care reform bill – if you allow a handful of so-called Democrats in the Senate, who are threatening the majority of the United States Senate, the 52 or more members of the Democratic caucus who do support a public health insurance option – then you will be granting this small group of immoral Senators who call themselves Democrats a de facto veto power in the United States Senate, which is what they will have if you allow them to succeed in using the threat of joining with Republicans to block cloture as leverage to get what they want.
They are, in fact, demanding to have the power to reduce one bill after another to worthless garbage as they force the Democratic Party time and time again to betray its core principles.
And so I have asked several Senators to consider joining with Republicans to block cloture in the event that the bill you come out of conference with is something that you call health care reform, though it is not. Without a public health insurance option like the one that appears in the Kennedy-Dodd HELP Committee bill, it is not real reform.
At that point, if you come out of conference with a bill that does not include a public option, you will have proven that your leadership is a complete failure.
Senator Reid, you shouldn’t be negotiating with Sen. Olympia Snowe and this handful of so-called Democrats in the Senate behind closed doors.
As Majority Leader, you should be shaming the Senate Blue Dogs publicly for what they are trying to do.
Despite reports on CNN and other media outlets, we know that you do not need 60 votes to pass the health care reform bill. Bring the bill to the Senate floor with a public option. It deserves a clean up-or-down vote.
It took the base of the Republican Party six years to begin to see that the Bush Administration and the Republican Congress weren’t really working for their interests.
On the other hand, it has taken less than six months for the base of the Democratic Party to see that the Obama Administration and the Democratic Congress are on the verge of throwing away once-in-a-generation opportunities to bring real change on behalf of all Americans for generations to come.
Unless we see change, we’ll be showing you all the exit very, very soon.
Sincerely,
Brc
16 Comments
Thanks for sharing your contributions. We need more straight talk. I particularly appreciate your letter to Mr. Reid.
They never read letters, and could give a shit what people think. If they did things would be different. Nice try.
In response to iremember54 @ 2
Some Democrats in the House and Senate, as well as many members of their staffs, do give a shit, as you so eloquently put it.
Others don’t.
That’s the whole flipping point.
The ones who prove that they do listen and do give a shit deserve our support. I know I’m doing what I can to give it to them.
The ones who don’t deserve our support, on the other hand, the ones who call themselves Democrats, though they are not, the ones who don’t listen and don’t give a shit, the ones who are failing the American people: they are getting our opposition, are being called out, and will soon be shown the exit.
They don’t have to listen to us, so long as we continue to speak out and make sure that their constituents hear us.
Have you seen the new PCCC ad? It’s in the PCCC link I provided in the diary post. Check it out.
Dreamin Dreamin You will be always dreamin.
Keep supporting them while they sell us out, tax us saying it is fixing climate change, and cost you and your children their last dollar.
You could put the good democrats on the head of a pin, but couldn’t get goods republicans on the point. There are no good ones, get the point.
When your revolution starts, let me know. Seriously, you’re not accomplishing a damned thing by continuing to write these comments. You’ve already stated your opinion. So, thanks.
Your welcome, but you haven’t learned a thing.
Melissa Bean is an interesting target If we can find a Primary challenge for her. Next election if we can target even a few blue dogs and win we can scare the rest Left.
I don’t know why haters like you, Knoxville, come to these sites. Republicans don’t even stand for anything.
WTF?
Where did you get the idea iremember54 is a hater or a republican? He expressed doubts that writing representatives does any good. I agree. I don’t see myself as either a hater or republican. I suppose it may not be politically correct to tell Knoxville her letters probably won’t change anything, but Knoxville should consider the possibility 54 may be right. As in all these things, we shall see.
Knoxville, your letters are getting better and better!
And I can’t believe how cheaply the whores sell their wares either.
Thanks! I’m learning a lot about how to present my views more clearly and accurately from all of you at the Lake. Everyone here has been great!
In response to ekunin @12
Nosmanic didn’t call iremember54 a hater or a Republican.
Nosmanic called me a hater, presumably because he or she thinks that I want to help Republicans get elected. I don’t want to help Republicans get elected. I do want to hold elected leaders accountable when they call themselves Democrats, but don’t stand up for core principles of the Democratic Party. I believe that working to get fake Democrats out of office and to remind real Democrats what it is that we Democrats stand for is a good thing for the Democratic Party. Not sure why that makes me a hater.
I wrote sixty congress poeple and senators, and got only one answer from Bill Nelson. That aught to tell You someting.
I get answers from all three of my representatives to Congress, not that I like their answers. Sens Lamar Alexander and Bob Corker and Rep. John Duncan, Jr. just don’t see the obviousness of the situation and the need for the public health insurance option.
All the other letters I write are to members of Congress who aren’t my reps, so they either can’t respond by law or don’t respond because of Congressional etiquette.
I’ve written directly to members of their staffs – mostly communications directors – and have gotten responses, sometimes even getting into short email exchanges.
But I’ve been thinking about what you’re saying and, maybe you’re right, sort of.
First, they do have people who summarize the letters and present them to the leaders in terms of how many of such and such a type they received. They might not read my letter in its entirety, but they know that I was one of x number of people who wrote a letter like it. When I spoke with someone in Sen Corker’s Washington office today, she was typing an abbreviated version of what I was saying, making a record.
Second, and I think perhaps more importantly, every single email and letter and fax gets archived. They can’t just delete them or throw them away. Hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of letters sent just in the last couple of months on the single issue of health care reform will remain for future generations to see and to know that the American people pushed hard to make this change happen.
I think it’s worth it.
I had a friend that worked as a Pentagon aid to the Congress, he told of walking into their offices, and one person might be looking at the mail, and answering the phones. Two hundred others were folding campaign flyers, and sorting posters.
All I’m trying to tell You is they are not there working hard for us as we think they are, and they really care very little what we think and want.