Why Nancy Pelosi deserves the credit for Health Care Reform
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Sunday. Charles Dharapak/AP
Who would have ever though that C-SPAN could rival ESPN March Madness in terms of crowds, angry team members and pure testosterone? There we all were last night, glued to the procedural votes and parliamentary procedure of the Health Care Reform Bill like a nation of first year debate team captains.
But when the air cleared and the last motions to recommit were defeated, the horserace of politics melted away as we all recognized the importance of this moment in the history of this country. That doesn’t happen much in politics anymore and more than anyone, it was House Speaker Nancy Pelosi who made it all happen. Getting rid of Deem & Pass? Pelosi. The Stupak compromise? Pelosi.
Last night, we were treated to the sight of House Democrats pumping their fists in the air, shouting, ‘Yes, We Can!, Yes, We Can!’, but I imagine in the White House, Barack Obama was saying to himself, ‘Yes, She Did.’
Whether you agree with the Health Care reform package passed by the House or not, there’s no denying that its passage makes Obama, whose been in office a little more than a year, the greatest President in the past 50 years. It is by far the most sweeping legislation of a generation.
We’ll soon see that the impact of this bill is a lot wider than simply reforming health care, however. The Republican Party has made its bed by refusing to meaningfully engage in the health care reform debate and now they’re going to have to lie in it. Last night, as Minority Leader Boehner yelled, “Hell, no!” from his podium, as an unknown southern Republican called Michigan Congressman Bart Stupak a “baby killer” and as a cavalcade of angry, red-faced old white dudes invoked everything from ‘Bubbacare’ to ’socialism’, you could feel that a new political reality in D.C. had arrived.
Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California holding the gavel used to pass Medicare Reform
The long-awaited-for ‘realignment’ had come and the right side of the aisle looked every bit the part of a dinosaur who just witnessed a meteor crash. Is it any wonder there’s a Twitter hash tag called “hotforspeaker”? One poster even gave her a new title: Head Bitch in Charge.
Americans like winners. They tend to vote for winners and last night, the Democrats looked like winners. Among all the Democrats smiling, none was happier than Pelosi. At an early morning press conference following the vote, Pelosi kept talking about “this evening”. When a reporter pointed out it was now technically morning, she smiled broadly, swung her finger in exclamation and declared, “Not in California!”, which the punch drunk press corps lapped up.
When the history books are written, it’ll be Pelosi’s cajoling, wrangling, consoling and corralling of the fractious big tent Democratic majority which will get the credit for passing Health Care reform. House Democratic Whip Jim Clyburn puts it simply, ”If she’s not the best (Speaker) to do this job, she’s certainly in the top two or three in history.”
White House insiders privately admitted last month that they thought they’d lost the chance to pass the bill, with Chief of Staff Rahm Emmanuel arguing the bill should be broken up into easier to pass individual pieces. It was Pelosi who argued for keeping the bill together. As Democrat Rep. Anna Eshoo said, she “kept the steel in the President’s back.”
Pelosi on Thursday before news conference.
Republicans like to portray Pelosi, the nation’s first woman to hold the title of “Speaker of the House” as a dilettante leftist who sips ‘San Francisco values’ from her organic recyclable mug, but she emerges from the Health Care Reform win as a woman with enormous power. There’s a few interesting elements to that power that will be instructive to those looking to govern in today’s politically divided power structure.
While Pelosi shares many of the same values as the progressive movement, she never showed any qualms about keeping the perfect from being the enemy of the good. She practiced her own brand of Obamian pragmatism; recognizing that when you’re the leader of a big tent, consensus is key and so is recognizing that if you’re at ‘A’ and you want to get to ‘Z’, there’s a whole bunch of letters you need to deal with along the way first.
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As someone whose watched the Speaker a lot these past few months, I’m struck by her style. She’s unflaggingly polite, yet never wavers. When Rachel Maddow interviewed her before Rep. Stupak had agreed to sign on to the bill, Maddow tried to get her to publicly put the heat on Stupak. Pelosi demurred, praising the Congressman and making a point of saying she respected where he was coming from, all the while dismissing his concerns as an inaccurate reflection of the bill.
You get a sense that this is how she operates in general. She respects and addresses the concerns of individuals in her caucus, but if they don’t get on board, they’re at risk of being left behind. It’s a pointed contrast to the tactics of Dennis Hastert who’d just threaten (via Tom Delay) to destroy the reelection chances of any member of his own party who failed to go along with administration plans.
Whatever she’s doing, she’s doing it well; the House has passed every major piece of legislation the White House has asked for. But for those who voted for ‘change’ in the last election, Pelosi’s efforts have proven to us that government is still capable of addressing big problems with bold solutions.
UPDATE: If you don’t believe me, check out GOP.com’s new ‘Let’s Fire Pelosi!‘ site. Flames! Fire! She’s the devil!
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[...] Why Nancy Pelosi Deserves the Credit for Health Care Reform – Japhy Grant – California S… [...]
Her win is the country’s loss….it ain’t no basketball game
Thanks for that refreshingly content-free comment.
In response to another comment. See in context »Content?
You want to reason with communist bastards like pelosi and obama with content? Their brains are content free
In response to another comment. See in context »I’ll tell you what: When the bill becomes law, we’ll all be able to read it for the first time and THEN you can tell me whether the Speaker deserves credit or blame. If there is blame to be distributed in this bill, that blame belongs to Ms. Pelosi as well. She twisted arms with the very best of them. Most of the people voting for this bill have little idea what is in it. Ms. Pelosi pushed for that as well.
I will really enjoy watching the Democrats squirm, wring their hands, and squeal trying to explain that they voted for something without knowing exactly what it was. I’m going to make sure I have lots of popcorn to watch the returns from the next election.
I’m determined that I’ll at least get good entertainment for my money. Without being able to know what’s in this bill, I have significant doubts about the health care part.
I’ve gotten really tired of this old chestnut. The bills (there were two of them) the House passed last night have both been available on-line for weeks if not months.
Your failure to understand how Thomas.gov works is neither Nancy Pelosi’s nor President Obama’s fault nor is it an excuse to pretend that either the government or the Democratic party has been operating in secret.
In response to another comment. See in context »as i mentioned in a taibibi (sp?) post:
1. go ahead and tell me with a straight face that all the kongresskritters have read this bill…
if you are not lying, then you KNOW that MOST of them have not; they either rely on staff, industry lobbyists, or their party talking points to know how to vote… true or false ?
…but I -a nobody with no expertise, no legal experience, no background- am SUPPOSED TO read this (and EVERY bill?) just to be a backstop for the kongresskritters? ? ?
don’t tell me: you’re for ‘direct-democracy’ too, richtig ? *snort*
2. it is now MY JOB -since my kongresskritters don’t do theirs- to read a 2000 page bill, be an expert on all the ins-and-outs, understand all the legalisms, know what the other laws referenced are about, figure out the ramifications, AND check up on the CBO bullshit to make sure it is kosher ? ? ?
is that what you are fucking telling me ? ? ?
gee, i THOUGHT that is what i elected REPRESENTATIVES to do…
3. here’s a funny concept: kongresskritters actually REPRESENT US li’l peeps interests, INSTEAD of US having to monitor them CONSTANTLY to make sure they aren’t giving away the store…
(oops, too late…)
4. here’s an even weirder concept: PAID JOURNALISTS -who are SUPPOSED to be MY PROXY- READ THE FUCKING BILL and TELL US what the fuck is in it… ’cause we all have time to read, parse, analyze, and -you know- consult all our medical, political, legal experts and formulate a reasoned opinion…
5. on TOP of that: ASSUME i read every jot and jittle of a moving target (IT IS STILL BEING CHANGED!), have up-to-the-minute knowledge of all the backroom deals and arm-twisting, AND i just happen to be a world-class expert on every fucking bill that goes through kongress:
ARE THEY GOING TO LISTEN TO JOE NOBODY -a non-lobbyist, a non-donor, a non-fatcat, a non-korporate-overlord- about what the bill contains, what the implications are, AND WHAT WE L’IL PEEPS REALLY WANT ? ? ?
here, i’ve got a little dose of reality for you, pollyanna: the answer is NO! NEVER!
they are going to do their korporate donors bidding REGARDLESS of what 90% of us say…
jerk, i’m REALLY tired of this old pile of horseshit…
art guerrilla
In response to another comment. See in context »aka ann archy
artguerrilla@windstream.net
eof
Dear Art G. Ann,
1. True but what industry? the INSURANCE INdustry? You’re talking about the republicans borgs right? The assimilated ones, the ONE VOICE of talking points. snort.
2. Don’t panic…krazy kat…read this:
http://energycommerce.house.gov/Press_111/20090714/hr3200_summary.pdf
3. Well…Washington is full of wascally wabbits and you have the keep on eye on them…or find someone to do it for you, someone who hates wittle gway wabbits.
4. hey…cbs or kbs in did it: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20000846-503544.html
But Fox didn’t go figure.
5. the house can’t change a word…stupid kongress rule…damn kommies and their stupid rules…not a single word.
hoo r the korporate donors for the democrates? Name thaat korporate overlord and wee little yellow and pink peeps will go git em.
PEEP POWER PEEP POWER.
In response to another comment. See in context »As for who’s read the bill? Anyone who has knows that there are no ‘death panels’ and that it is anything but a ‘government takeover’.
The comaparison ofthe House Republicans to dinosaurs is very unfair………to dinosaurs.
Here’s how it works. Repugs and wingers make sh*t up to scare and anger the rubes, and then say “look the rubes are scared and angry! They don’t want HCR!” Let’s see them turn down, campaign against or attempt to overturn the following:
1. BEGINS TO CLOSE THE MEDICARE PART D DONUT HOLE – Reduces the donut hole by $500 and institutes a 50% discount on brand-name drugs.
2. IMMEDIATE HELP FOR THE UNINSURED UNTIL EXCHANGE IS AVAILABLE (INTERIM HIGH-RISK POLL) – Creates a temporary insurance program until the Exchange is available for individuals who have been uninsured for several months or have been denied a policy because of pre-existing conditions.
3. BANS LIFETIME LIMITS ON COVERAGE – Prohibits health insurance companies from placing lifetime caps on coverage.
4. ENDS RESCISSIONS – Prohibits insurers from nullifying or rescinding a patient’s policy when they file a claim for benefits, except in the case of fraud.
5. EXTENDS COVERAGE FOR YOUNG PEOPLE UP TO 27TH BIRTHDAY THROUGH PARENT’S INSURANCE – Requires health plans to allow young people through age 26 to remain n their parents’ insurance policy, at the parents’ choice.
6. ELIMINATES COST-SHARING FOR PREVENTATIVE SERVICES IN MEDICARE – Eliminates co-payments for preventative services and exempts preventative services from deductibles from the Medicare program.
7. IMPROVES HELP FOR LOW-INCOME MEDICARE BENEFICIARIES – Improves the low-income protection programs in Medicare to assure more individuals are able to access this vital help.
8. PROVIDES NEW CONSUMER PROTECTIONS IN MEDICARE ADVANTAGE – Prohibits Medicare Advantage plans from charging enrollees higher cost-sharing for services in their private plan than what is charged in traditional Medicare.
9. IMMEDIATE SUNSHINE ON PRICE GOUGING – Discourages excessive price increases by insurance companies through review and disclosure of insurance rate increases.
10. CONTINUITY FOR DISPLACED WORKERS – Allows Americans to keep their COBRA coverage until the Exchange is in place and they can access affordable coverage.
11. CREATES NEW, VOLUNTARY, PUBLIC LONG-TERM CARE INSURANCE PROGRAM – Creates a long-term care insurance program to be financed by voluntary payroll deductions to provide benefits to adults who become functionally disabled.
12. HELP FOR EARLY RETIREES – Creates a $10 billion fund to finance a temporary reinsurance program to help offset the costs of expensive health claims for employers that provide health benefits for retirees age 55-64.
13. COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS – Increases funding for Community Health Centers to allow for a doubling of the number of patients seen by the centers over the next 5 years.
14. INCREASING NUMBER OF PRIMARY CARE DOCTORS – Provides new investment in training programs to increase the number of primary doctors, nurses, and public health professionals.
[...] Why Nancy Pelosi Deserves the Credit for Health Care Reform True/Slant – Mar 22nd – 05:04 [...]
1. O.M.G. “credit” ? ? ? “reform” ? ? ?
another koolaid drinker exposes himself…
(“shhh! don’t embarrass Big Daddy…”)
2. i will say this for the millionth time, and there has not been ONE refutation:
the o-rahm-a borg COULD HAVE used their political capital to pass REAL health care REFORM, NOT
The-Entrench-&-Enrich-Insurance-Parasites Act, but THEY chose NOT TO DO SO; IN SPITE of the overwhelming popularity of single-payer/public option or medicare-for-all among EVERYBODY…
oh, EXCEPT about .001% of the population who are on the boards of the Big Medicine korporations…
THOSE are the people who really count, and -quite coincidently- give millions in donations; poor, pissed-on, sick people, not so much…
3. INSTEAD, saint obama CHOSE to bailout the very millionaires who looted and collapsed the economy, AGAINST overwhelming public sentiment (not to mention the few honest and progressive economists around)…
WHAT does that tell stupid baby-citizens ? ? ?
NOT: oh, we better not trust these power elite functionaries…
BUT: oh my doodness, we better suck up HARDER to our power elite toadies to make them feel sorry for us and MAYBE give us a few crumbs…
yeah, that fucker is weally big and bwave when it comes to standing AGAINST the VALID desires of the overwhelming number of (non-donating) citizens; but -wow!- what a Fearless Leader in ‘defending’ the right of our korporate overlords to rape and pillage us…
4. and -for the millionth time- koolaid drunks are too busy snoopy-dancing to address the fundamental issue : IS a federal mandate to buy private stuff LEGAL OR NOT ? ? ?
the virginia AG is a jackoff, BUT i am glad he -as well as a bunch of other states- ARE contesting this vital legal principle…
maybe short-sighted, blind-faith dem’rat sheeple don’t give a shit, but i do…
YOU HAVE ESTABLISHED (assuming it passes judicial scrutiny, which is by no means a given) a ‘legal’ principle which WILL come back to bite you in the ass WHEN stupid rethugs are back in power… idiots…
5. tell me ONE ‘pledge’, ‘promise’, or ‘principle’ corrupt dem’rats stood up for in this insurance bailout ? ? ?
open, transparent process ?
um, nope
protect women’s choice ? ? ?
um, nope
public option ? ? ?
um, nope
*and* he pre-sold-out on public option, as it turns out… (as if we didn’t know…)
um, *why* was it single-payer -BY FAR the most popular option WE ALL WANTED- was ‘taken off the table’ AND NOT EVEN ALLOWED TO BE DISCUSSED ? ? ?
why was that again, big bwave dem’rats ?
we get crumbs, the korporadoes raping us take the cake…
i’m registered green, and i’m either -for the first time in my half century- NOT voting at all, or voting for every POS rethug against dem’rats…
fuck’em all…
art guerrilla
aka ann archy
eof
i’M wITH YOU KRAZY KAT…LET’S START A gREEN PEEP PARTY…
tHE GREAT GRAND gREEN PP!
In response to another comment. See in context »Interesting retrospect from over 3 years ago. The end ALWAYS justify the means regardless of the Change We Can Believe in. Check this video out — Barack Obama’s response to Bush’s final State of the Union http://youtu.be/cmNCALGHOC4
While personally I am against the health care bill. I flatly find the GOP’s and Tea-Party’s mis/dis information and flat out lies about the bill revolting.
I still can’t understand why they would not fight the bill on true grounds of it being (though legal) expanding government power.
Personally I dislike expanding government power because to be honest I fear governments. Especially those that throw away rights (see: Former President Bush) to solve problems.
I’d be more welcoming to the health care bill if the President would end the Patriot Act signaling that he respects my rights and that he’s not the tyrant every conservative makes him out to be.
However, even though I’m against this bill, the way the GOP has acted in this legislation has not garnered a vote from me. They proved themselves to be self-serving fools during the Bush years. How they acted during the debate of this legislation has only proved to me they still are nothing more than self-serving fools.
[...] Quién lo iba a pesar de que el C-SPAN podría rivalizar con ESPN "March Madness" en términos de las multitudes, los miembros del equipo de ira y de la testosterona pura? Allí todos estaban ayer por la noche, pegados a los votos de procedimiento y tramitación parlamentaria de la Ley de Reforma de Salud como una nación de año el debate capitanes del primer equipo. Pero cuando el aire despejado [. . . ] URL del artículo original http://trueslant.com/japhygrant/2010/03/22/why-nancy-pelosi-deserve-the-credit-for-health-care-refor... [...]
[...] Why Nancy Pelosi deserves the <b>credit</b> for Health Care Reform <b>…</b>… [...]