Good to see the numbers on Obama's deliberate failure ...

From Greenwald:

A new CNN poll today finds that Americans oppose the current health care plan by a margin of 59-39%, but a sizable portion of those opposed -- 13% -- oppose it because "it is not liberal enough" ...

Thus, a majority of Americans either support the plan or believe it should be more liberal (52%), while only a minority (43%) oppose the plan on the ground that it is too liberal.

I'm one of the 13%. I think Obama did this deliberately. He got a teensy bit of improvement in insurance coverage (maybe) at a tremendous cost to the country's citizens while working to fill the coffers of the greedy, crooked insurance and pharmaceutical industries. And he calls that a victory.

Now that's creepy.

Today's quote ...

So basically Limbaugh and the boys are projecting again when they get themselves all worked over "the end of America." They are the ones who are undemocratic, but they've seamlessly re-looped the left's criticism of themselves back on the Democrats. And then supercharged the outrage. I think it may be a form of therapy for them.

Sometimes John McCain is funny and sometimes he is pathetic ...

From digby, here's an example of the pathetic John McCain:

I guess the Dems have really gone and done it this time:

Democrats shouldn't expect much cooperation from Republicans the rest of this year, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) warned Monday.

Terrifying prospect.

Well if the reThugs don't 'cooperate' the rest of the year then they will have succeeded in their goal of non-cooperation for the entire year. 100% non-cooperation is such an impressive sign of success for the reThugs. Congrats. Take the rest of the year off. Go home or somewhere out of sight. Maybe try exercising your brain, instead of your mouth, for awhile.

Seem to think? ...

... [Republicans] seem to think Democracy means that that elections are irrelevant, majorities are meaningless and that all legislation is contingent upon the permission of the Republican Party.

This is they way Republicans have operated for decades. Why shouldn't they? Democrats cave repeatedly. That is Dems either cave or they've been lying to their constituents all along. Which is better? Cowards or traitors?

Just like Bush, Obama works oh so hard to ensure failure ...

But not to worry, all Obama needs is a few super speeches to convince us that his failures are successes. And if he can't fool us all the time, or even some of the time, then he will make the reThugs very happy as he, with much help from the House and the Senate, takes down the Democratic party.

Fact Sheet: The Truth About the Health Care Bill

Not that taking down the Dem Party is much more a loss than the destruction of the reThug Party. Neither party intends to govern this country as a representative democracy.

What's the problem? ...

Whatever else is true, the American Right is now openly siding with a foreign government against their own, and bitterly Blaming America for these problems. They're protecting this foreign government's actions even though our top Generals say those actions undermine our war effort and directly endanger American troops. They're advocating policies -- such as the Israeli bombing of Iran -- which America's Joint Chiefs Chairman has gravely warned will seriously impede our wars and lead to the deaths of our soldiers. They're demeaning the top American General with command responsibility for two theaters of war. And, in a Time of War, they're attacking the President of the United States, the Commander-in-Chief -- and relentlessly depicting him as weak and inept -- all because he's prioritizing American interests over those of a foreign country. All of that seems to severely breach the standards of Patriotism they have long advocated and which have long prevailed, to put that rather mildly.

It's always OK when the reThugs (Republicans, Conservatives, far right, Lieberman) do it ...

Today's quotes ... on disillusionment ...

... it is both disheartening and illuminating to realize that the progressives in Congress have no true commitment to anything but putting on a show.

and

Few organizations resisted the urge to whip for the very bill they asked members of Congress to oppose last August during the fundraising drive for the public option. The entire progressive movement devolved into complete message incoherence as the unions announced their willingness to step outside of the Democratic party in order to enforce corporate deals within it. ...

and

... The thing I have learned above all else in this campaign is that the corporate control of government is much more extensive than I ever imagined, and the tools we have to fight its influence are ineffective.

and

... In the end, what we learned is that we can’t count on members of Congress in either party to do anything but play their part in “villain rotation”

Quote of the day ...

Succinct. And unfortunately, oh so accurate:

... The fact is that after a campaign that appealed so successfully to idealism, Obama hired a bunch of saboteurs of hope and change.

Which is why expecting much, if anything, that Obama promised, or even claimed to support, is hopeless. Obama rivals the reThugs in hypocrisy.

What is pragmatism ...

Obama's pragmatism leads him to follow, perhaps reluctantly, in the footprints left by Bush and Cheney, and to work for Banker and Insurance Industry friendly legislation at the expense of 90% of the US population. Obama's pragmatism is tied up with 10%, or less, of the American people. He behaves as if he thinks his pied piper routine of the campaign is all that is needed for the rest of us. Obama's pragmatism leads him to ignore majorities, ignore popular support, ignore justice, ignore law, ignore constitution, ignore principle and cater to the rich, the loud, the corrupt, the greedy.

At firedoglake.com, Jane Hamsher's pragmatism is a quite the opposite:

As for FDL, we’ll continue to maintain the position we’ve held since June 23 and insist that a health care bill must actually achieve its goal of helping people, rather than the the unregulated monopolies who exploit them. That’s not being a “purist.” It’s just being pragmatic.

I'm with Jane.

Alan Grayson is my hero ...

Alan Grayson’s Four-Page Medicare Buy-In Bill Introduced

What couldn't the United States do if we had more like him ...

Talk about myopic ...

Jonathan Chait thinks that Obama, the Scampering One, is actually trying to pass some form of health care 'reform.' (link via digby: Better Than Goldilocks)

Obama is playing around with health 'insurance' with the apparent aim of handing over to the Insurance Industry and to the forced-birthers a nation enslaved to their every whim.

And after he signs the abomination that a Congress with a Democratic majority passes he plans to decimate Social Security and Medicare.

And Chait thinks we should be oh so gratefull as Obama continues Bush the Lesser's destruction of even the appearance that the United States is a democratically governed nation.

Thanks ... so ... much ... oh, follower of Bush!

Is Obama going to 'scamper' again? ...

For years, Democrats have failed to grasp the fact that they are perceived as "weak" not because of any specific policies, but because they are perceived -- rightly -- to believe in nothing (or at least nothing that they claim to believe). It is hard to imagine any act that could more strongly bolster that perception than to watch Barack Obama -- yet again -- scamper away from his own claimed principles all because the GOP is saying some mean things about him.

Scamper may provide the best imagery so far for what Obama does so well.

Scamper away little mouse, and all your little mousy friends in your administration and in Congress; scamper away into safe little holes but get out of our government and out of our lives. Then maybe we can find some people of courage to help rid us of the reThugs.

For those who cannot see ...

... this says it all:

No public option. No consumer protection agency to stop Wall Street from abusing Main Street. No accountability for Bush administration lawbreaking. Yet the progressives are supposed to get in line behind a supposedly Democratic administration. Good luck with that.

The truth about Rahm boy? ...

Both versions cannot be accurate. What is probably the dismal truth about his stewardship of the Obama vessel can be found toward the end of last August’s Times story, which showed the chief of staff steering without any rudder of principle, and playing captain in policy and political waters too deep for him. He is largely responsible for the fiasco of financial reform, the soured deal with the pharmaceutical and insurance interests on health reform, and the botched retreat from the president’s promise to close Gitmo.

Whether and how to change the White House staff is a problem that Obama will have to face eventually. Even sooner, however, the president must decide whether to accept Emanuel’s insistence that he had nothing to do with the Post articles, which have inflicted real damage by depicting Obama as a weak and hapless foil to his brilliant deputy. If he cannot disprove that portrait, his presidency will continue to drift.

Taking Obama's intelligence for granted is becoming more and more difficult ...

Political Problems Multiply As Obama Embraces Republican Health Care Ideas

Liz Cheney and Bill Kristol ...

Most likely Liz Cheney and Bill Kristol are proud of their McCarthy-hood.

Along with Darth Cheney, these are very dark, deranged and puke-ugly people bent on ensuring as much destruction and pain in the world as possible.

The foul ad produced by the Liz Cheney and Bill Kristol group is here.

Per the usual Republican naming conventions when the Liz Cheney and Bill Kristol group use the term 'keep America safe' they mean quite the opposite (as with Bush's Healthy Forests).

Glenn Greenwald says it best: "As always, those who most flamboyantly and shrilly anoint themselves Arbiters of American Patriotism wage the most vicious wars on its core principles."

Talk about cutting off one's nose to spite one's face ...

Employees at Catholic Charities were told Monday that the social services organization is changing its health coverage to avoid offering benefits to same-sex partners of its workers ...

.. Catholic Charities will not offer benefits to spouses of new employees or to spouses of current employees who are not already enrolled in the plan. ...

... "We looked at all the options and implications," said the charity's president, Edward J. Orzechowski. "This allows us to continue providing services, comply with the city's new requirements and remain faithful to the church's teaching." ...

One wonders what the term 'social services' actually means to the Catholic Church. Something like "Burn, baby, burn"?