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POPSObama Abandons Public Option
Many progressives had hoped for a single-payer, universal health care system, the kind that many industrialized countries have and which have a demonstrable history of working well. But it was clear that when Obama ran for president that possibility would never materialize during his administration. The "public option" was the best one could hope for. Now Obama is ready to abandon that idea in favor of co-ops, a sort of Fanny-Med approach to public health care. Because these co-ops will be required to maintain the same financial reserves as private insurerers, the competitive adavantage they will provide to private insurers will probably little better than marginal. The upshot will be the continuation of millions of Americans without health insurance of any kind. Continued bankruptcies, the continuation of people dying from the lack of health care, etc. A slight improvement perhaps, but everything remaining much the same. The political need for Obama to declare victo
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POPSMore Red-Baiting of Obama: The "Socialist" Joker Here we have yet another demonstration of lablelling substituting itself for critical thought. Obama gets red-baited once more. It's a pity that Tyler Nixon at Delaware Libertarian isn't an artist because if he were he could do an image of Obama as a fascist, something he labeled the President in a recent post: http://tinyurl.com/nq7bjn Thoughtful criticism must be difficult for these people.
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POPSIs the GOP Rank & File Daft? Basically, 58% of the GOP either think that President Obama was not born in the USA or are unsure about his place of birth. That is nuttiness on a massive scale.
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POPSAre Prtospective Mothers Eager to Abort their Black Babies? Notice what this bigoted dunderhead, Rep. Todd Tiahart, is suggesting. Notice how his two examples are of the mothers of black children (President Barack Obama and Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas). I think it’s clear. If the prospective mothers of black babies could have their fetuses aborted and have it paid for by the government, they would do so. That is what this--it must be pointed out--Republican congressperson implied.
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POPSAre Prospective Mothers Itching to Abort their Black Babies? Notice what this dunderhead, Rep. Todd Tiahart, is suggesting. Notice how his two examples are of the mothers of black children (President Barack Obama and Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas). I think it's clear. If the prospective mothers of black babies could have their fetuses aborted and have it paid for by the government, they would do so. That is what this--it must be pointed out--Republican congressperson implied.
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POPSObama to Let the Torturing Thugs Off It's as disgusting as something gets: let the criminals go Scott free. Obama intends to let off those CIA officials who tortured others during the George Bush regime. The reason? Because these thugs were told their acts were legal by the Bush administration. It's Nuremberg defense all over again. Apparently, as long as you believe you are following a lawful order, you have no obligation to check the law for yourself, much less employ your conscience or have one. There has never been a tyrant and his henchmen in the history of humanity that hasn't employed the same rationalization for their brutalities.
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POPSThe Way Federal Government Contratcs are Awarded to Change Those who tell you that nothing substantial has changed from the Bush to the Obama administration will be hard put to explain how nothing substantial results from saving hundreds of billions of dollars by changing the rules for awarding contracts. But who knows? Perhaps their frenetic zeal to conflate Obama with Bush will compel them to make light of your hundreds of billions of tax dollars. This is a welcome and responsible change. Ignore the naysayers who will belittle it.
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POPSTerrifying Memos from Bush Administration Released by Obama Just be deemed a "terror suspect" and many of your constitutional rights could be suspended some Bush administration memos held. Even freedom of the press and speech were potentially on the chopping block. All the memos apparently were in force until a few days before the Bush administration closed shop. Obama signed an order negating the biding nature of the memos. But don't let that cause you to believe that anything has changed from the Bush administration to the Obama administration. (I'm being sarcastic.)
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POPSI Call It Racist Here's the excuse the New York Post gave for its threatening and racist cartoon directed at President Obama: "The cartoon is a clear parody of a current news event, to wit the shooting of a violent chimpanzee in Connecticut. It broadly mocks Washington's efforts to revive the economy." It broadly mocks Washington's efforts to revive the economy? Please! That effort is clearly associated with Obama and it uses a monkey to depict him, a racist image. The message that "someone else" will now be needed indicates that the cartoon has someone in particular in mind in the representation of the dead chimp. That someone is clearly Barack Obama.
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POPSObama Reverses Bush Stance on Pollution Case While many argue incessantly that Obama is not significantly differing from the policies of the Bush administration, here is an example they will have difficulty explaining away. Unless, that is, they consider reducing brain damage in babies isn't significant.
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POPSMust He? Must George Bush inflict himself on the American public one last time? On his last day can't he just slip quietly out the back door and let us now enjoy the illusion that he is already gone?
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POPSObama Plans to Take the Stimulus Package to the People According to the article below, the Congressional GOP feels that Obama's plan to bring his stimulus plan to the people of the US is a way of leaving them out of the discussion: "By mounting an aggressive public relations campaign, Obama may be seen as bypassing the GOP en route to a major legislative victory. For a new president who promised bipartisanship, Obama's methods could leave Republicans feeling isolated and marginalized." Of course one shudders at the thought of the Congressional GOP feeling "isolated and marginalized" after they did it to the Democrats during the height of the Bush years. But more interesting is their sense that by taking the stimulus plan on the road to the American people, the GOP feels left out. Isn't that what every administration SHOULD do for every major legislative initiative--take it to the people? Why is that so threatening?
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POPSObama & The Wired Presidency Armed with an e-mail database of 10 million supporters, Barack Obama is poised to instantiate the first "wired presidency." Obama used his e-mail database to great effect during the election. He could use it to great effect to marshal support for his policies as President as well.
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POPSColin Powell Says No to Sec. of Education Post This is a welcome development. It wasn't clear what credentials Colin Powell had to serve as an effective Sec. of Education. Besides, Powell hit the right note. It's time for a new generation of leaders. The USA voted for change and change isn't replacing the old with them as retreads.
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POPSDoes Sarah Palin Even Understand the 1st Amendment This is what happens in a country where an icon of wisdom can "credibly" be a Forrest Gump...a nation in which intelligence is ridiculed and suspected as subversive and high social achievement is to be counted among the good ol' boys. Sarah Palin doesn't even understand what can be learned in an elementary civics or US history class. Yet she is running to be Vice President of the USA. She is WAY out of her depth and yet some conservatives see her as the GOP's standard bearer for 2012. That's pathetic.
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POPSWas McCain a Socialist in 2000, Obama Asks Red-baiting is a 2-edged sword. And while I' at it, I will interject an argument I heard one commenter make on TV tonight: Sarah Palin is the most socialist governor in the US. After all, her state publicly owns its oil fields, it leases those fields to oil companies and the state provides each Alaskan with a check from the rent the state charges the oil companies. If Palin wanted a true capitalistic arrangement, she would support selling the oil fields to private concerns. But she doesn't. Does anyone think, therefore, she is a commi?
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POPSEvery Woman in America Should Be Angry at John McCain After Barack Obama described how he opposes late term abortion except where the life and health of the mother are placed at risk, John McCain cast aspersion on the relevance of the health exception by using air quotes and treating the seriousness of the exception sarcastically. I guess the long-term health of pregnant women has little regard to John McCain.
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POPSRacist Acts at Sarah Palin Rally As predicted the McCain/Palin strategy of attacking Obama as "other than us" is reaping great dividends among racists. Only idiots didn't know that such swill would feel emboldened by such an approach.
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POPSMcCain Blames Obama for Wall Street Crisis Is he senile or just dumb? McCain, who has been in Washington DC for 3 decades and has lobbyists as advisers out the yin-yang, says Obama is the Washington insider who brought the crisis about? That's how I spell desperation.
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POPSThe "TR" Swear Words Remember the infamous "L" (liberal) word? Well, it might have been replaced by 2 new swear words: "TR" or "typical Republican." It's now a curse to be a "typical Republican" and John McCain is one in the minds of the public.
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POPSRepublicans Play the Sexism Card "It's that damn liberal press" was the first excuse that the McCain campaign gave for the discoveries that the press and bloggers easily made after the campaign was caught failing to vet Sarah Palin. Now the new excuse targets the Obama campaign. Criticism of Palin makes one sexist. Specific criticisms don't have to be answered. They can all be dismissed by playing the sexism card. The translation: make all the criticisms go away because we can't answer them.
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POPSObama is Correct about the Palin Pregnancy Story Barack Obama is correct. Sarah Palin's daughter's pregnancy is no one's business. It should be totally off limits in assessing Gov. Palin's ability to be a Vice President. Her young daughter isn't the first teenager to get pregnant outside of wedlock and she won't be the last. In itself the event says nothing about anyone. Barack Obama has shown himself to be a man of real integrity in this matter. He didn't resort to the no comment response that some politicians use when they hope that the scandal will hurt the opponent. Instead of viewing this as a political opportunity, he told the press clearly that they were stepping over a line that should be sacrosanct. Good for him.
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POPSIt's Joe! Barack Obama chose Sen. Joe Biden from Delaware as his running mate from Delaware. I'm from Delaware and I couldn't be more proud. Biden is an excellent choice and one that arguably suggests that Obama looked to the quality of the candidate instead of any electoral college advantage by choosing someone from the 2nd smallest state in the nation. Besides his long and distinguished expertise in foreign affairs, Biden adds rhetorical abilities to the ticket that are only matched by Obama himself. By choosing Biden, Obama has shown extreme confidence in himself. Not even someone with the rhetorical and political skills of Joe Biden can upstage Obama. Moreover, this ticket is probably one the smartest in US history, a welcome relief to the reign of idiocracy of 8 years of the George Bush administration.
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POPSMcCain Lies About Obama's P:osition on Taxes Obama wants to give most low and middle income families and wage earners a tax cut up to $1,000. I wonder why McCain's ad failed to mention it? It's a lie by omission. Clearly, John McCain is a man with few scruples.
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POPSMcCain's Latest Attack Ad: Obama Thinks He My Be "The One" McCain has reached a new low. Now he is suggesting that Obama believes he is a divine and messianic figure. Notice how he takes clips out of context and even skews Obama's statement "WE may by the oneS" as Obama claiming that he is "The One." McCain has achieved a new level of lying in a campaign. He has gone beyond the usual patriotism and red-baiting smears. Now he is suggesting that his opponent is committing sacrilege. What's next? Will he suggest that Obama is the anti-Christ? At this point, I wouldn't put it past him.
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POPSMcCain Lied about the "Evidence" of Obama Not Visiting Wounded Troops McCain claimed that Obama didn't visit the troops because he couldn't take reporters & cameras with him. That wasn't true. In fact, it was never true. He had no plans to take reporters with him. The McCain campaign claimed that press reports indicated that Obama planned on taking reporters with him, but their "proof" didn't substantiate their claim: "It is safe to say that, according to press reports, Barack Obama avoided, skipped, canceled the visit because of those reasons," he said. "We're not making a leap here." Asked repeatedly for the "reports," Bounds provided three examples, none of which alleged that Obama had wanted to take members of the media to the hospital. McCain's campaign lied, plain and simple.
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POPSGeography John McCain Style It's amazing that this man believes he is actually more skilled in foreign policy than Barack Obama. There are teenagers that don't make the errors that John McCain makes routinely.
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POPSIraqi Prime Minister Backs Obama's Withdraw Plan For such a neophyte according to McCain, Obama certainly seems to be making the right foreign policy calls. Emphasize Afghanistan instead of Iraq. Set up a diplomatic relationship and negotiation with Iran. Use a specific timetable to withdraw from Iraq. The Bush administration is signing onto to each of these but in different terms. John McCain is beginning to look like a stuck-in-the-mud in contrast.
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POPSBush & McCain Move Toward Obama's Position on Iraq Troop Withdraw Within a week's time, Bush comes out in favor of a quasi-diplomatic recognition of the Iranian government and now a "time horizon" for withdrawing troops from Iraq. In both cases, John McCain signs onto the ideas and in both cases they play in the same ballpark of Barack Obama's positions. Clearly, Obama and his views are winning the argument.
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POPSMcCain Redbaits Obama Taking a page from Joe McCarthy and Delaware Republican ex-blogger Dave Burris, John McCain decided the best way to attack his opponent is to suggest that he is a socialist. Usually such suggestions result from political desperation and extreme intellectual need.
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POPSOn Jesse Jackson's Apology One of the odd criticisms of Jesse Jackson is his insistence that others apologize if they make offensive or racist comments about another individual. Here is an example of Jesse Jackson practicing what he preaches. Apologies are important. (I made one yesterday.) They restore what was made out of balance among persons back to a state of balance as closely as possible depending on the circumstances. They are a way of taking responsibility for one's actions and are an admission, of what we often don't want to acknowledge, our finitude. As such they are a way of inspiring trust in those realistic enough to realize that imperfection is a universal trait. I applaud Jackson's apology. It makes me trust him more.
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POPSVandalism and Racist Slurs Against Obama The business cards praising Hillary Clinton is probably not from any of her supporters but from those who want to smear her as well by implicating her supporters in this crime. Disgusting.
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