Today's Healthcare Debate In The Senate

I watched the "debate" today on whether or not there should be a healthcare reform debate. Listening to the Republican claptrap obstructionism was actually embarrassing. That men like David Vitter (R-LA), Jeff Sessions (R-AL) and Kit Bond (R-MO) are in the Senate is nothing short of a disgrace. Sheldon Whitehouse, the junior senator from Rhode Island is the opposite of a disgrace. He's someone who actually knows how to debate, and how to make sense, or even cares about making sense! And he doesn't mind stepping on toes cloven hooves. He started his remarks by noting that the "irony department of the Republican Party is working overtime... We're hearing these criticisms about deficits from the party that, when it had control in the Bush years, ran up over 8 trillion dollars in our national debt... the biggest spendthrifts in history, an orgy of fair-weather debt. They didn't have any hesitation about deficits then. On the wars in Iraq and in Afghanistan we have never heard any interest in having those paid for on a current basis. Borrowing for wars is completely satisfactory to them, it appears." He keeps going; he was the best debater today. Watch his 10 minute speech:



By the way, I live-tweeted the debate today. Here's some of it (clicking on the image should enlarge it and make it legible):








In the end, the cloture vote was 60-39, all Democrats plus Lieberman voting to shut off the grating and annoying Republican filibuster, and all Republicans filibustering... except one. George Voinovich (R-OH) didn't vote; he was already back in Cleveland when the Senate voted. He's not running for re-election-- so he could give a rat's ass.

For me a highlight was when Blanche Lincoln got up and complained about the pressure she got from "outside groups." Blue America has run more ads pressuring her than every other group combined. Tomorrow John King plans to show our latest ad on his CNN show. Let's keep the pressure up on her; it sure seems to be working. And, please remember, a $3 donation gets the ad shown on CNN in the seven most important Democratic counties in Arkansas, counties no Democrat can lose and still win statewide.