Motley Moose – Archive

It’s amazing that there’s pushback on raising taxes on the wealthy from anyone other than the rich, but there always will be, so long as the GOP can convince the middle and lower class rank’n’file that placing higher taxes on the rich is socialism or deadly to the economy. Sometimes phrasing matters, and it’s important to note that Republicans seem to have an advantage when it comes to controlling the narrative. I’ve never been sure exactly why this is: do we just not fight back hard enough, or is the reach of Fox “News” really that broad? My guess is that it’s a combination of factors.

Just seems to me like a pretty raw deal for most of the country when the wealthy don’t even have to pay their fair share.

At 7:00 PM Eastern (4:00 PM Pacific), President Obama will address a joint session of Congress to deliver his plan to create jobs and grow the economy. Senior Advisor, David Plouffe, who has been a key figure in crafting the strategy, says we can expect to hear the President detail a plan that will rebuild our economy, and further, issue a challenge to Congress to meet their responsibilities. All indications are that the address will be part policy, and part politics:

Barack Obama is to throw down the gauntlet to Republicans, demanding they back his $300 billion jobs plan or face the wrath of voters blaming them for refusing to help revive the American economy.

The stakes are high, and so are expectations. This just might be the President’s last, best chance to jumpstart the economy and bring some semblance of balance to the debate in Washington, where The H2tN (Hell to the NO!) Party have been dry-humping the agenda since the midterms. The challenges are immense: Can he appeal to D.C.-weary independents? Appease liberals? We’ll find out soon enough.

The House and Senate passed the compromise legislation to finance the Federal government for the balance FY 2011, with 59 House Republicans breaking ranks to vote against the deal. The overall vote in the House was 260-167. Eighty-one Democrats gave House Speaker John Boehner the votes needed for the bill’s passage.

In the Senate, the vote was 81-19, with dissenting votes mostly coming from more conservative Republicans. In the Senate, 48 Democrats, 32 Republicans and independent Joseph Lieberman of Connecticut voted in favor.

Please feel free to use the text below to let your representatives know your opinion on this issue. Select and copy the text below then click here to send a message to your congressional representative and senators.

As a constituent, I urge you to support the repeal of the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy of our Armed Forces. As Americans, we have long been supporters of equal rights and equal access under the law. As Americans, we have long been supporters of personal responsibility and the rights of individuals to live their personal lives without the intrusion of the State.

Gays and lesbians have long answered the call for this nation in our armed services. Their sacrifices have been often ignored, or minimized because of sexual orientation, and the whims of a fickle society that often chooses to ignore their vital service over a matter of interpretation of Scripture–and an interpretation that is not shared by all members of either the Christian, Jewish, or Muslim faiths. This nation was founded upon the idea of religious freedom, and by allowing only a few voices to dominate the debate, and use that platform to deny our servicemen and servicewomen recognition of their sacrifice and duty, we allow those voices to refute that essential freedom.

Our freedoms exist not to protect popular speech or popular behaviors. Our freedoms exist to protect those who disagree. That is the essential nature of our freedoms, and I urge you support the free expression and the rights of all our citizens. It is not just the right thing to do for our citizens, it is the right thing for our party to stand for. We have allowed bigots and the small minded, who forget the lessons of the past, to dominate the debate, and I would welcome you to stand for our citizens and what our nation and Constitution represent.

One of the promises President Barack Obama made while campaigning was a repeal of the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell (DADT) legislation that discriminates against gay and lesbian members of the Armed Forces. So far, the administration has been content to let this matter be handled by Congress. This is understandable, considering all of the other issues the administration has on its plate.

Congress has responded with efforts in the House and Senate aimed at repealing DADT.

The House effort is being led by Rep. Ellen Tauscher (D-CA) who introduced the Military Readiness Enhancement Act (MREA) in the 110th Congress. There are currently 163 168 co-sponsors for this bill with Rep. Patrick Murphy (D-PA) as lead sponsor.

The Senate effort is being led by newly-appointed Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY). Senator Gillibrand has received a promise from Senator Carl Levin (D-MI), the chairman of the Armed Services Committee, to hold hearings in the fall. Any Senate bill on this issue is expected to be introduced by Senator Edward Kennedy (D-MA). He is apparently searching for a Republican co-sponsor before introducing a bill.

It’s 3:30 in the morning and I should be asleep. Instead, I’m reading about health insurance reform on the web. My late night reading may have been worth it. These are some of the best words I’ve read about health insurance reform. The whole speech is worth reading or watching, but I found the ending to be especially good.

From Barack Obama’s Weekly Radio Address:

…That’s why, under these reforms, insurance companies will no longer be able to deny coverage because of a previous illness or injury. And insurance companies will no longer be allowed to drop or water down coverage for someone who has become seriously ill. Your health insurance ought to be there for you when it counts – and reform will make sure it is.

With reform, insurance companies will also have to limit how much you can be charged for out-of-pocket expenses.  And we will stop insurance companies from placing arbitrary caps on the amount of coverage you can receive in a given year or a lifetime because no one in America should go broke because of illness.

In the end, the debate about health insurance reform boils down to a choice between two approaches. The first is almost guaranteed to double health costs over the next decade, make millions more Americans uninsured, leave those with insurance vulnerable to arbitrary denials of coverage, and bankrupt state and federal governments. That’s the status quo. That’s the health care system we have right now. 

So, we can either continue this approach, or we can choose another one – one that will protect people against unfair insurance practices; provide quality, affordable insurance to every American; and bring down rising costs that are swamping families, businesses, and our budgets. That’s the health care system we can bring about with reform.

Thank you.

‘

Full transcript

Read, listen, discuss.

Tom Periello, the Democrat running for Congress in VA-05- a district that runs from the North Carolina border almost all the way to the DC exburbs (or, for those of us from Virginia, from UVA to Martinsville Speedway), was gracious enough to take some time out of his busy schedule recently to sit down with the editors of The Motley Moose. For those of you who aren’t familiar with our wonderful district, it’s probably more nationally recognized as the home of this man:

Recognize him? See if this rings a bell:

The Muslim Representative from Minnesota was elected by the voters of that district and if American citizens don’t wake up and adopt the Virgil Goode position on immigration there will likely be many more Muslims elected to office and demanding the use of the Koran.

How about his desire to repeal the 14th Amendment of the Constitution, or his opposition to supporting mental health billing reform, and his unmitigated support for Big Tobacco? Hey, at least we know he’s got our back taking down online gambling– probably one of the most important issues currently facing this nation, right?

For those of us here in VA-05, Tom Periello is a godsend. Devilstower, over at the Daily Kos, had an excellent diary on this subject. Tom donates ten percent his volunteers’ time right back into the community; he’s a proud progressive and a member of the Red to Blue program. He’s hopefully going to be one of many new Democratic additions to the House of Representatives this election cycle.

We are also the second of only two political websites Tom has agreed to sit down and have a talk with, the other being Richmond-based Raising Kaine. Given the uphill battle Tom’s facing in VA-05, that’s truly an honor.

Tom, in his own words: