As I see it, YES!
image from greeblie on flickr.

Politics is not always best played with the direct approach. Often, success rests upon instigating disarray amongst the ranks of one’s opponents while retaining a steely discipline in the face of uncertainty. The calm, cool and collected presentation instills admiration and brings more folks onto the cause.

In the current health care reform debate, progressives, liberals and advocates of vigorous reform have been second in disarray and uncertainty only to our common opponents, the Republicans and corporate interests who through ideology or direct financial interest have a stake in keeping the status quo in place. Now is the time for us to capitalize on their disarray and our unity, to move in for the kill.

Over the past few months, as opponents of real reform have been frothing about various increasingly shrill evils alleged to be present in the various, changing proposals, they have lost currency with the public. Indeed, each and every reactionary structural substitute for Medicare for All has been cast by the wayside from co-ops to individual state exchanges and the like.

At the same time, insurers have gone ballistic at the notion that they will not get everything that they demand, and have left the reservation. The response from the Democrats appears to be one of if not spine, then bluff, as they are calling for the ending of the special exemption to the Sherman Anti-trust Act for insurers. Can Big Pharma be far behind? Is the Individual Mandate destined for extinction given that politically it would implode the Democrat Party?

Fortunately for us, the progressive caucus is beginning to walk in power, to assert itself as the largest caucus in the House, and flex its muscles to compel favorable changes to public perception first, and then to the contours of the legislation. And the consensus that “Medicare for All,” is the linguistic intervention best suited towards winning support for a government health care finance option seems to be gaining traction as well. The only problem with this, for the moderate Democrats, at least, is that people who support a PO tend to get upset when they learn that it will only be open to those who do not have access to corporate insurance.

Now is the time for progressives to walk in power because power is flowing our way, to replace the narrative of disempowerment, of protest, and of freaking out, losing it, with one of empowerment and command of the debate. We’ve all learned that the Democrats will not do our bidding unless we continue to keep pressure on them to force them to. Sure, I’m going to hit the civil disobedience for single payer Medicare for All, but we need to make such protests a celebration of our power, a festive event where getting our message out to others in an affirming manner is more important than being led off in cuffs as a martyr for a movement.

Martyrdom like that is depressing, involving ritualized surrender to the power of the state and very little substantive change–the ultimate display of disempowerment. Our presentation needs to be much more affirming, as the Oct 15 demonstration in San Francisco where progressives were upbeat with the Brass Liberation Orchestra cranking out the creative, affirmative tunes, while the tea baggers scowled solemnly.

At this point, with a friendly television media, a first for a progressive policy initiative of this magnitude, we are poised to coerce a progressive outcome as never before. To do this, we need to learn the lesson of the past few months, that since “Medicare for All” is where the sweet spot lies with the public, that is three words explain it all, we need to ditch the anachronistic, wonky and impenetrable “single payer” and “public option” language as ineffective, tainted and not fit for political consumption.

Efforts by independent pressure groups to coerce conservadems into the fold are invaluable. The only things these people understand are credible threats to their reelection and the image of masses of people demanding policies that benefit them. Good political operatives are feared, not loved.

Nobody said that this was going to be easy, but then again, nobody could have predicted that the progressive elements of reform would not only survive the attack of the tea baggers, but consolidate, while the sops thrown to the moderates and conservatives would sink of their own weight. I’m in general a pessimistic middle aged radical, especially where the Democrats are involved, but at this juncture, I see daylight.

As I see it, YES!