What Progressives Can Do Now

Yes, it's about as bad as it can be, for reasons that reach far beyond health care reform. But the real work has not even started.

Aimai gets it right: first, she channels righteous rage into the most cogent, tightly-argued, concise-yet-comprehensive analysis yet of how Obama failed health care reform.

As I watch this health care debacle break out into open warfare I'm just stunned. Just personally stunned by the utter incompetence of Obama and his administrative staff. If you have to come out and plead with your own party to support a signature initiative you've already fucked up beyond imagining.

The whole thing is well worth your time.

Then she offers a positive, practical path for progressives to salvage health care reform.

I also think this may be a teachable moment for the Progressives and for Obama and Rahm. I think the Progressives should go to the White House and say "we will stick with you and the bill on several conditions."

One: remove the mandates.

Two: agree to force the good parts of the bill through reconciliation before 2010 is out.

Three: take a fucking class in negotiations.

Four: Reid and the Dems have to blow up the filibuster, immediately if possible, when the new Senate rules are hammered out in 2010 if necessary.

Five: Lieberman takes punishment. As soon as the vote is finalizes Lieberman is stripped of his chairmanship, stripped of his seniority, dumped into a coatroom for his offices, and he is not permitted to offer any legislation with a Democratic sponsor--no matter how good the legislation.

As long as the Democrats think Lieberman is indispensable for something they will continue to cater to him and that is inherently destructive of good government since Lieberman is, in fact, opposed to good government. I'm all for the results and I'd never say this if Lieberman could be shown to be trustworthy on any individual thing--like Cloture--but that ship has sailed.

Six: Nelson, too, takes punishment. Whatever it is, it should be harsh. Party discipline on major initiatives must be maintained.

I think, on balance, the Bill needs to go through, flawed though it is. But the notion that it goes through and we can "build on it" is a fantasy--Obama won't build on it if he doesn't have to. If the Democrats--the real ones--in the House and the Senate are to go to bat to preserve this flawed, botched bill they must demand something in exchange. Everyone else got their slice of the pie. Its the progressives' turn. Lieberman has shown them the way: the more you demand, and at a pivotal time, the more you get. What's sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander.

The progressives should go to the President and demand all the concessions they can get in exchange for their support for the bill. And the biggest concession of all is, to my mind, that he should fire Rahm and hire someone who actually knows what he's doing.

Read the whole thing.