By GottaLaff
Independents are all the rage this year. Just ask Michael Smerconish:
The Hill makes the case that Florida Gov. Charlie Crist (R), trailing badly in a tough Republican primary, is more and more likely to run for Senate as an independent.Wave bye bye to the Party of No, Charlie.
Crist has recently stood up for President Obama on Fox and Friends and is beginning to defend the stimulus once again. He has also "parted ways with some key campaign staff" over the past few weeks.
By GottaLaff
The national GOP is a party of exclusion and litmus tests, dominated on social issues by the religious right, with zero discernible outreach by the national party to anyone who doesn't fit neatly within its parameters. Instead, the GOP has extended itself to its fringe while throwing under the bus long-standing members like New York Assemblywoman Dede Scozzafava, a McCain-Palin supporter in 2008 who told me she voted with her Republican leadership 90 percent of the time before running for Congress last fall. [...]
Where political parties once existed to create coalitions and win elections, now they seek to advance strict ideological agendas. [...]
Collegiality is nonexistent today, and any outreach across an aisle is castigated as weakness by the talking heads who constantly stir a pot of discontent. So vicious is the political climate that within two years, Sen. John McCain has gone from GOP standard-bearer to its endangered-species list. All of which leaves homeless those of us with views that don't stack up neatly in any ideological box the way we're told they should. [...]
I think President Obama is earnest, smart, and much more centrist than his tea party caricature suggests. He has never been given a fair chance to succeed by those who openly crow about their desire to see him fail (while somehow congratulating one another on their relative patriotism).
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By GottaLaff
Michael Smerconish has President Obama on his radio show as we speak. I'll liveblog:
Re: Sebelius... She didn't misspeak, she's been saying the same thing for awhile. He reiterates that you can keep your insurance, but it'll be more regulated: No lifetime caps, similar to Congress plan where you can buy into bigger pool, buying from private insurers along with public option.
Public option is a good idea, but we haven't said it's the only aspect of health insurance. What Sebelius said nothing new: Cost control, good quality options.
Michael: You want it all, you want to be in banks, auto industry, now health care.
O: Intervention started by a conservative Republican administration, not me...and rightly so. We needed intervention. Same with auto industry, but instead of writing blank check, we held them accountable. Perception is that we engaged in extraordinary interventions, but we had financial crisis.... This wasn't ideological, it was necessary.
Health care: It's not working without gov't. intervention. (lists all the problems with health care). We said, let's keep private system in tact, but allow those without insurance to buy in, and have consumer protections.
Michael: Cash for Clunkers is great idea, but payments are late... If govt. can't run this, how can it run health care?
O: C for C... successful beyond anyone's imagination. Now, it happened so quick, dealers are overwhelmed, and has only gone on for a few weeks. We've hired 3x the number of people than we originally had. US govt didn't have delays... this is a good news story. Sales highest in years... they'll get the money, but must be processed properly. Can't be careless about it, we'd be breaking the law... and you'd be asking me about scandals where checks were being wasted to people who hadn't bought cars. This is a high class problem to have. Backlog in application process... it's getting fixed.
Caller: Employee health plan is good... Congress won't join public plan, want to keep theirs. Will you urge them to join it, or be willing to open up fed. plan?
O: Currently, fed employees can leverage insurance co's. They have the numbers in workforce. Premiums are lower. Same concept is in the health insurance exchange... market place. Pool numbers for leverage, go on website, see options, private plans, and choose the best. We're trying to duplicate the fed. employee plan. And let's make the pub. option ONE choice in the exchange. I see nothing wrong with having that for fed. employees too, but nobody would be obligated to choose public option. You can choose Blue Cross, or anyone else. You are not obligated.
Michael: People want you to stand up and say, we will live with these parameters...
O: Make public option to fed. employees, too. It would be just a choice.
Caller: You said public option was a sliver, and till then I thought it WAS your proposal. What are bullet pts?
O: Illegal immigrants: Misinformation. NO plan includes illegal immigrants. NOT TRUE.
Michael: What is their fate?
O: They will be treated if they show up, because if some child is in emergency room and they have TB, and don't get treatment, and go out to playground... Standard of decency... we'll provide emergency care, but NOT health insur. to illegal immigrants... Bullet pt #1: It has to be deficit neutral. Pt. 2: Must bend cost curve, we have to create plan that experts say will reduce h/c inflation. Adding people w/o controlling costs will blow up deficit. Must control costs. #3: Insur. reforms for those who already have insurance, even w/ preexisting conditions, no lifetime caps, no dropping due to age, illness. #4: Must have health exchange like Cong. has, set of options for small businesses... look at options, got to make it affordable for middle class families. If you can't afford market based premium , we can help.
Michael: Personal responsibility? Obesity, for example?
O: This is already happening in private companies: SafeWay... urges employees to get fit. Shows up in paycheck. Create incentives for prevention, cash incentives...
Caller: Ticked off that [his phone is cutting out]... people aren't willing to compromise. Are your knees buckling?
O: We'll get reform done. People are hand wringing, press are following every little twist and turn of process... passing a big bill is messy. FDR was called a socialist for passing SS. This is the process we go through, people are suspicious of govt. until govt. helps them. I'm confident we'll get it done. Negotiations? Let's see if we can get this done w/ consensus. I'd love to have R's in process. 1993-4 page is being taken out of playbook, but shouldn't be. Snowe is dedicated, Grassley, Enzi are meeting in Fin. Committee... I want to give them a chance, but not give up on basic premise. Reduce health care inflation, keep what you have: my priorities.
Michael: Lockerbie.
O: We told Scotland we objected. We've contacted Libya, make sure he's not welcomed back, under house arrest. Talked to families. Not appropriate, what has happened.
Michael: Bin Laden... Where are we? We had major victory with #1 Taliban guy.
O: We are continuing to pressure in Afghanistan. Seems like successful election. McChrystal is there, more troops pressuring... And Pakistani for first time is being aggressive. That's how we got rid of top Taliban guy. Goal is to have a pincer... squeeze on both sides. Make it difficult to operate, eventually flush them out. Great cost, though. I sign letters to families of fallen. We have to focus on finishing job in Afhgan. but it will take time.
Caller: Reform yes, but govt. no. Concerned that $$ will go to cost of administering bureaucracy. Why not give $ to state? In NY, we have free health care for those who can't afford it. But shouldn't go to 20something's SUVs. It's not free, we'll all pay for it. We want to make decisions, not govt.
O: Part of reform plan would involve the states. In some cases, could expand Medicaid to cover more, like SCHIP. So, permanently uninsured could get insurance from states. Nobody's saying govt. would administer all of health care... a public option you could sign up for, that has to collect premiums, etc. Track record is good: Medicare. Lower admin. costs than private. Part of it is because signing people up is automatic. Insur. Co's are trying to cherry pick, spending lots of $$ to do that. It's easier to get insurance if you're young, these days. Not 50-64, that's harder. Last: Young people opt out, so we want to let them stay on parent's insurance till 26.
An aside from Chuck Todd. I thought it was weird until I googled and was reminded Smerconish endorsed the President last election. Should be an interesting interview.
Obama’s Thursday: Obama also will have an interesting Thursday. The White House tells First Read that the president tomorrow will be a guest on conservative talk-radio host Michael Smerconish’s program, and they’ll discuss health-care reform. Smerconish will broadcast his program from Diplomatic Room at the White House, and it will be the first radio show to be broadcast from the White House since Obama took office.
By GottaLaff
Further proof that the media is as librul as they come. Couldn't get much libruler, nosireebob. Via a Tweeter:
email from Fox booker to Smerkonish: we have a guest who says Hillary is trustworthy, we need someone to say she's untrustworthySmerkonish reveals Fox cable booking secrets: "we're looking for someone to say Barack is cocky and that it's hurting him"No way! Really? How shocking. Show me proof. I dare you.
By GottaLaff
The above audio is that of conservative Philadelphian Michael Smerconish endorsing Barack Obama.
Smerconish is taking a lot of heat from his fellow GOPers, as one might imagine.More and more Republicans are taking heat for this. Just ask Colin Powell on Sunday. It's getting awfully hot these autumn days, isn't it?
Research 2000: North Dakota is a Dead Heat
A new Research 2000 poll in North Dakota confirms the state is in play. Sen. Barack Obama and Sen. John McCain are tied with 45% support each.
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