Conservadems Are Doing This Because They Can

Posted on 12/26/2009 at 1:42 pm by Bob Cesca

They’re doing it again:

“I can only support a bill if the Cadillac plans are taxed at the level they are in the Senate [bill,]” said Landrieu. “It’s not because I’m thrilled about taxing those plans, which I’m not, but it is the No. 1 cost-containment measure in the bill. It’s what is going to drive costs down over time.”

Nelson said he would not support the final bill if it included the House proposal to impose a tax surcharge on individuals earning more than $500,000 and families earning more than $1 million.

“I’ve already said that would be a deal-breaker,” said Nelson.

Lincoln also said she has great concern. “If it moves very much at all from where we are, it’s going to be hard,” she said.

Bastards!

Question: How will ousting Bernie Sanders fix the fact that healthcare reform hinges on the conservadems? And it’s not just because the conservadems are willing to sabotage good legislation — it’s chiefly because they have the electoral leverage to do so.

In other words, a progressive-leaning candidate probably won’t win Senate seats in Arkansas, Louisiana or Nebraska until voters are convinced that progressivism is better. This is a decades-long process of ideological transformation. But that’s where progressive movement effort should be focused. Make it safer for Democrats to lean left. When that happens, we get more lefty laws.

Via John Cole

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  • roxsteady

    I’m so sick of these idiot conservadems. They don’t seem to give a damn about the majority of their Senate colleagues’ preferences. They’re taking total advantage of this bullshit 60 votes rule. I seriously hope that every conservadem that’s up for reelection next year gets kicked out of office. I’m just no going to hold my breath either. If Progressives continue to care to them, every bill will lean right. At some point they’re going to have to take a stand.

  • roxsteady

    That’s continue to cave to them!

  • http://politicalpartypooper.wordpress.com/ Political Party Pooper

    Lefty laws? What kind of laws might that be?Let’s just get health care passed. Lets work on what needs to be worked on, like getting the fucking money out of lobbying, killing PACS, and working toward public financing of elections.Let’s teach our Federal government how to balance a budget, how to spend money wisely, and how to keep pork out of defense spending bills. Let’s stop thinking of government as a Jobs program.Let’s draft legislation that gives taxbreaks to small businesses and corporations who pay much higher wages to their bottom rung employees, and who agree to share their profits and wealth by distributing income more evenly amongst all of its employees, and let’s gouge the shit out of those who don’t.Lefty laws aren’t an answer to anything. You want to tax the wealthy…fine. But when you do so, you leave them no incentive to spread their wealth to their workers. If they could be encouraged that they would be allowed to keep more of their own money by spreading their wealth amongst their employees, they’d do it. The lefty playbook says that the only thing which works is a nany state, in which every area of life needs to be GOVERNED by the government.To which I ask, does the government work for the people, or do the people work for the government.Lefty laws can stay where they are. High taxation and government control only breeds contempt. Is that the kind of country you want to build?

  • roxsteady

    One things for sure, if the Dems attempt to change the 60 vote rule to 50, you can bet that every conservadem will be against it because it would take away any power they have to affect Progressive legislation. I hope they change the rule and do it with a simple majority of 51 votes. If the Dems don’t attempt to change this rule I’m not sure how they’re going to get anything done. Every piece of legislation will be dragged out while the teabaggers continue to try and disrupt everything. They’d better start doing a head count right now of just how many Senators are willing to do away with this filibuster rule. Short of that, Progressives had better start doing some obstruction of their own.

  • roxsteady

    Actually, I don’t know why people assume that the wealthy will spend their money on anything but themselves. As for higher taxes, it’s the middle class that finally got a tax cut this year. Meanwhile over the last 8 years, the rich got tax cuts and got richer but, instead of spreading that wealth by hiring, they were losing 700,000 jobs a month this time last year. That trickle down theory is just that.As the dailykos noted a couple of weeks ago, the bureau of labor statistics found that since 1959, private sector job growth under Republicans is 5.4% while under Democrats it’s 11.7%. While the talking points from those on the right have gotten louder and louder on the issue of jobs, it’s clear that they have no clue about creating private sector jobs. Just more bullshit from the right. You would think that if Americans were more educated on the issues the Republicans would never win another election again. Unfortunately, most people are badly misinformed.

  • cassandra

    Can’t blame the electorate in Lincoln’s case. After all, according to the polls this fall, voters in Arkansas *wanted* a public option. Blanche Lincoln’s position didn’t reflect the desires of her constituents.The public option was not a hard sell to the public. It was corporations that make money through health care delivery who objected most strenuously.The bottom line is that when there is a conflict between corporate interests and the people’s interest, our “representatives” will take care of their corporate donors first. How else will they have enough money to run ads convincing us that they’re on our side?

  • roxsteady

    Actually, I still blame them in part if they knew what she was before they voted for her. I wonder if they knew that wanting someone conservative would mean that she would claim to be a deficit hawk but, would prove to be a liar when she refused to support the public option? Perhaps they wanted someone conservative right up until they saw how that moniker would translate when it came to legislation that they and the majority of the country favored? Now, I guess it’s also possible that they had no idea she would turn on them. The question now is, what are they going to do about this betrayal?

  • roxsteady

    By the way, anyone who thinks that even after campaign finance laws are changed someday that, companies won’t find another way to donate to their favorite whore is fooling themselves. While I’d like to see the laws changed, I sill say the only way to stop them is to use real majority rules of 51. These whores of commerce won’t be able to do a damn thing for their pimps if they’re simply out voted by a simple majority. They simply won’t be able to deliver enough votes if it only takes 50 plus Biden.

  • Jim in Michigan

    Bob is so Awesome, he of course cuts right to the chase, “In other words, a progressive-leaning candidate probably won’t win Senate seats in Arkansas, Louisiana or Nebraska until voters are convinced that progressivism is better. This is a decades-long process of ideological transformation.” The “impatients” as I’d like to start calling them won’t stand for that, they want it now or else. If they can’t beat up on republicans, they’ll beat up on their own. Whiny, pissy, crying, little wusses.

  • ceu

    Nelson said he would not support the final bill if it included the House proposal to impose a tax surcharge on individuals earning more than $500,000 and families earning more than $1 million.It’s heartwarming to know that the wealthy still have someone looking out for their interests.@PPP You want to tax the wealthy…fine. But when you do so, you leave them no incentive to spread their wealth to their workers. If they could be encouraged that they would be allowed to keep more of their own money by spreading their wealth amongst their employees, they’d do it.Reaganomics has been proven to be totally invalid. The wealthy got good-sized tax breaks during BushCo…it doesn’t appear to have trickled down to the workers, has it?? Ummm, no.@rox I sill say the only way to stop them is to use real majority rules of 51.You really need to get off this meme – it’s a very short-sighted view. You think it’s a panacea, but what are you going to do when a GOP majority is elected to the Senate in 2012 or 2014 and they want to repeal whatever healthcare bill is passed? Or appoint a Harriet Miers to the Supreme Court? No filibuster to stop them. And then we’re fucked all over again.

  • idabamaho

    Horse. Shit. Bob.So, Bob, these are the folks who you are going to “work with” to “improve” the Health Insurance Profit Protection Act?I laugh at your complete capitulation.Convince the electorate in Arkansas and Nebraska that progressivism is better?I laugh again.