So I guess I am lucky. Living in Maine, I can at least tell two of the "gang of six" senators who are holding up Health Care reform in the senate how I feel. And I don't hesitate to do just that. Both Snowe and Collins got the following letter from me.

Dear Senator,

I am writing to let you know of my extreme disappointment with your decision to join with a very small group of senators to delay or derail the vote on health care reform, possibly the most pressing issue facing our nation today. Any delay in addressing this issue is unacceptable.

There is no debate that our health care system is in dire need of reform. By signing on to delay its consideration, you are, quite simply, costing people their lives. Millions of Americans suffer every single day with no health insurance, afraid every moment that they will require medical attention, forcing them into situation that no one in the civilized world, much less the United States should have to face.

Our current system is corrupt and immoral. The most vulnerable and fragile members of our society - the very ones who are in most need of health care - are locked out of the for-profit insurance model and have no where to turn. A government option could literally save their lives.

The for-profit insurance industry has a mighty incentive to keep things the way they are. The American people cannot afford to continue to subsidize these corporations, who are draining our economy dry. Costs must be contained and people must be put ahead of profits.

Decent health care is a right and not a privilege.  It is time for you and the rest of the US Congress to step up and do your job: make life better for this nation's people, not it's for-profit corporations.

Sincerely

Of course, I haven't gotten anything but an automated response to my letter, but I hope at least some aide in their office puts a tick mark in the "pro-health care constituent' column.

I've supported Obama from the start. I was impressed as hell with his convention speech in 2004 and predicted that we would be seeing ALOT more of him in the near future, although I thought it would a few years out from now (not that I am complaining.)

But in looking back at this long, long, loooong campaign, one thing becomes very clear. Hillary Clinton is the single biggest factor in the seeming insurmountable lead Obama is showing less than a week from Election Day.

Clinton put up a scrappy fight for the nomination and that is THE key element in Obama's poise and standing now. She got down and dirty; he survived. She changed up her message; he survived. She dug deeper, finding several factors that hurt him (Wright, intimations he was Muslim, him dressed in that silly garb); he survived.

It was trial by fire and he made it through. We have Hillary to thank for digging up Wright and  desensitizing people to it back during the primaries. We have her to thanks for putting the Muslim smears out here so that Obama could effectively counter them back in the Spring.

Hillary put the Obama campaign through it's paces, shoring up the discipline, tact and steadiness that have come to characterize it. She forced them to stay on message despite the crap she threw at them ad that trial by fire has served them well.

Of course, other factors have contributed to Obama's run, but from a purely political campaigning standpoint, surviving the HRC juggernaut is second to none.

I don't know about anyone else, but I don't want John McCain's "Cool Hand" anywhere near my tiller. Just wanted to say...

First Florida, now Ohio..if the polls are to be trusted... Dare we say it...LANDSLIDE? It does roll off the tongue, doesn't it?

I've heard some rumors that McCain is shifting resources to Maine to try to peel off a single electoral vote from the northern part of the state. I'm in Portland and would like to know if anyone else has heard this out there.

What's the strategy on this, do you think. Pull out of Michigan and start on Maine? There must be some sort of wild arithmetic going on the GOP campaign if they view this single EV as critical.

January 29, 2009

Washington DC: A mere 9 days after the death of President John McCain of a heart attack moments after his swearing in, President Sarah Palin has set up a showdown with congress with several controversial choices for her new Cabinet.

Leading the controversy is her selection of a Toro Power Max 828 LXE snow thrower to be Secretary of Defense, a choice Palin defends as “a bulkhead against Russian aggression”

“Ya know, you can put this device right over there on that island there and throw snow right across that narrow strip of water and into Russia,” the new President said. “And they’ll be so gosh darn busy shoveling that they won’t have time to invade any more countries.”

The Toro Power Max 828 LXE faces a tough confirmation fight in the Democrat-controlled Senate, although veteran senator Lindsey Graham has been tapped to usher it’s confirmation through.

“The president gets to pick the cabinet,” Graham said. “If this president thinks a two-stage snow thrower is the best way to keep our nation safe and secure, then this president should get what she wants.”

However, Charles Schumer (D-New York) questioned Palin’s judgment in some of her choices. “For God’s sake, what kind of person tries to appoint their pregnant 17-year old daughter as Secretary of Health and Human Services and at the same time change it's name to the "Department of Chose Life!?” Schumer fumed. “And her husband clearly is not qualified to be Secretary of the Treasury, despite the fact she claims he balanced their checkbook back in Wasilla.”

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid promised in-depth hearings into Palin’s choice of a Siberian Husky named Jake as Attorney General.

Reid also promised an investigation into the massive power failure that knocked out power to all of New England and the Mid-Atlantic, as well as New York, California and Oregon last Tuesday.

The power failure has been blamed for shutting down 95 percent of the polling places in those states for 12-14 hours.

McCain’s democratic opponent, Senator Barrack Obama (D-Ill), sat with his head in his hands in the senate chambers, silently weeping.

McCain/Palin are floundering. No one suggests otherwise. So far, when the going has gotten tough, McCain has pulled some sort of stunt to draw attention away from the strengths of Obama and focus attention on himself. Palin at the convention, 'suspension'of his campaign a he 'rushes' back to DC to eventually-scuttled talks...more and more. Palin gave him a bounce, but now that her true colors are showing, that's gone. The suspension didn't play and the failure of the bailout (caused by his own party and specifically the group that he had courted) made his look weak and ineffectual. So what can he do now? What stunts are left? I can think of a few: 1. A Bristol/Levi wedding. This would focus attention back on Palin, his one bright spot (pollwise) and probably away from the disaster that tomorrow night is haping up to be for him. Of course, a Republican shotgun wedding could backfire as a celebration of American Family Values. 2. Some sort of terror attack. Fear works, as we saw in 2004 and I don't put anything past the Repubs at this point. McCain has shown clearly that he is willing to do ANYTHING at this point and an attack on American soil can only bolster him...or so his people probably thing. 3. Cancel the remaining debates. A true Hail Mary, he may be desperate enough to do this, since he could only fight to a draw with Obama in the one debate he was expected to win. Taking away the national audience for Obama to once again show how presidential he really is may be, in McCain's mind, a way to stop the bleeding. 4. Capture/Killing of Osama Bin Laden. This might be seen as what is probably is: an October surprise orchestrated by the Repubs solely for the purpose of the election. Big chance of backfiring and accusations of "Why now" and "why did it take 8 years?" The Repubs are clearly desperate so nothing is out of reach at this point...except winning.

Alan Wolfe has some insightful analysis in Salon on why McCain and Palin have no choice but to lie, lie and lie some more. His basic point is that conservatism as it is practiced today offers no solutions to what is ailing the country and modern conservatives need to portray themselves as liberals to get people to even listen to them, much less vote for them

Find it here: http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/09/18/lies/

John McCain must be down on his knees every night reciting the following: Hail Sarah, full of votes, the Lord speaks to thee; blessed art thou among radical right governors, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb (not to mention the fruit of her womb) Holy Sarah, student of Rove, pray for us wingnuts, now and at the hour of our election. Amen

As the McCain/Palin freak show continues to live in a fantasy world populated by sex-ed boogey men and magical Bridges to Nowhere, it comes to mind that this campaign has hinged on metaphors and similies. So I offer up a few of my own regarding this nightmare ticket... 1. for John McCain, Sarah Palin was a Hail Mary. The crowd went wild when the ball came down in her hands on the 5-yard line, but in the last few days, the American People have gone to the taped replay and are discovering that they play may not have been made after all. 2. Saying Sarah Palin killed the Bridge to Nowhere is like saying the minister who presided over a murder victim's funeral pulled the trigger. 3. If you believe that Palin has sufficient foreign policy experience because Alaska is next to Russia, then you won't mind if I perform open heart surgery on you because my next door neighbor is a cardiac surgeon. I could go on and on...anyone have any others?