ChrisWeigant.com » Health Care

Friday Talking Points [194] -- Out Of Touch

Chris Weigant — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 00:31:19 +0000

OK, to be completely honest, we just felt like beating up on some Republicans today.

Governor O'Malley Is Right

Chris Weigant — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 00:50:55 +0000

O'Malley makes a good point. President Obama's re-election team should heed it.

Friday Talking Points [193] -- Run It Up The Flagpole

Chris Weigant — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 23:50:57 +0000

Not a whole lot has been happening in Washington, due to Congress being out on one of their countless month-long vacations. Not a whole lot of Democrats have been in the news, either, since the Republican primary season is sucking all the oxygen out of the political arena right now.

My 2011 "McLaughlin Awards" [Part 2]

Chris Weigant — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 22:08:16 +0000

Her campaign so far has been the populist model for every other Democrat to mimic if they want to catch the wave of anger at Wall Street, and use it to their benefit. Without question, Elizabeth Warren is Destined For Political Stardom.

From The Archives -- Question For Obama: How About A Science-Based Drug Policy?

Chris Weigant — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 00:26:58 +0000

Two-and-a-half years ago, I wrote the following column, hoping that the Obama administration was going to live up to its promise to have a "science-based" drug policy. I spoke of two examples: medical marijuana, and the "morning after" pill. Today seemed a real good day to re-run this column.

Championing Rapists' Fatherhood Rights

Chris Weigant — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 22:33:37 +0000

This was, to put it mildly, completely unacceptable to a large swath of the Republican base. Cain hastily backtracked, and is now as "pro-life" as he can humanly be, stating that abortion should be illegal in every single case -- no matter what the extenuating circumstances.

Friday Talking Points [183] -- What I'd Call "Class Warfare"

Chris Weigant — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 23:26:06 +0000

Last week (as with this week) the subject de semaine was "class warfare." The comment which inspired this week's mini-rants contained a simple, repetitive concept: "When [something outrageous pushed by Republicans happens], nobody calls it 'class warfare'. Maybe we should."

Friday Talking Points [177] -- Corporations Are People, Mitt?

Chris Weigant — Sat, 13 Aug 2011 00:17:25 +0000

But perhaps I'm being too harsh. The reason the clip was edited down so much was that the other heckling clip was so much better -- Romney misspeaking, and then instead of just immediately walking it back, actually digging the hole deeper. In answer to a question about raising taxes on corporations, Romney answered (at first) that he wasn't going to raise taxes "on people." When the questioner yelled back "Corporations, not people!" Romney could easily have said something along the lines of "Sorry, I meant to say corporations -- I'm actually not going to raise taxes on people or on corporations, and here's why...." It would have just melded the whole thing into standard Republican dogma, and Romney would have been safe.

A Wisconsin Centennial Worth Celebrating

Chris Weigant — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 23:42:28 +0000

Since the news this morning out of Wisconsin is a bit depressing for progressives (and Progressives), I thought it was time to mark an important upcoming centennial there. On the first of September in 1911, the first constitutional workers' compensation law took full effect in Wisconsin. The law had been passed on May 3, 1911. By all rights, I should have written about it back then, or waited until September for the anniversary of the law taking effect, but I thought today was a good day to reminisce about when Wisconsin was at the forefront of the Labor movement, instead of where they find themselves today.

Which Three Democratic Senators?

Chris Weigant — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 23:46:00 +0000

The House and Senate are getting ready to vote on the deal struck to avoid America defaulting on her debts. Nobody knows exactly the magnitude of what is being cut in detail yet, and the news media seem more interested in the eternal "who's up/who's down" horserace nonsense than in informing the public what exactly has been agreed to in this deal. This should come as no surprise, since it is (as always) ever so much more fun for "journalists" to blather on about "what it all means" seen through the political lens, instead of "what it all means" in terms of... well, what it actually is going to mean for America. Perhaps in a few days, when they get bored with the political aspects, we'll finally find out exactly what the cuts are going to cover.

Breaking Down The Polling Numbers

Chris Weigant — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 00:51:02 +0000

This is but one poll, to be sure. But most of the other polls I've seen this week back up the data presented here. Americans are turned off by Republican extremism, and open to Democrats' willingness to compromise. They are disgusted with the way the lawmakers in Washington are operating, and they may just take out this anger next year at the polls.

2012 Republican Presidential Field Update

Chris Weigant — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 22:24:31 +0000

In the past few weeks, one rising star has appeared in the Republican firmament (or two, depending on how you count them), and more than a few have begun fading -- perhaps permanently -- from center stage. But the field itself is not yet set (in terms of who is actually running and who will sit this one out), as the Republican Party continues to search for the perfect candidate to defeat President Obama. In fact, two of our four frontrunners this time around have not even announced their candidacy yet -- showing how volatile the entire race still remains.

Historical Context Missing From Debt Ceiling Reporting

Chris Weigant — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 23:17:40 +0000

I've always been astounded at the near-complete lack of historical memory regularly exhibited by both Washington politicians and the "journalists" who purport to cover them. Nothing I've seen in the past few weeks has caused me to change this opinion, either, as the fight over raising the federal debt ceiling has played itself out.

Friday Talking Points [171] -- Excerpting Obama's Press Conference

Chris Weigant — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 23:29:20 +0000

Since the year is now exactly half over, I took the opportunity yesterday to tally up how much vacation time Congress has taken this year, so far. The answer is pretty shocking -- the House has taken 46 out of a possible 125 non-holiday weekdays off, and the Senate (not to be outdone) has gone on vacation for 49 days out of those 125. To put this another way, out of 26 weeks Congress could have worked, the House took over nine weeks off on vacation, and the Senate took almost ten weeks to play rather than work. Something for everyone to ponder as we all enjoy our measly three-day vacation this weekend!

Friday Talking Points [170] -- Newt Loses Two, Huntsman Gains An "H"

Chris Weigant — Fri, 24 Jun 2011 23:13:30 +0000

Well, it's certainly been an eventful couple of weeks, hasn't it?

We're back on our regular weekly schedule here after returning home from our second trip this month (this one to Netroots Nation), after which I can firmly conclude that flying, these days, sucks. Big time. Sigh.

Spinning Hochul's Special Election Win

Chris Weigant — Wed, 25 May 2011 23:39:41 +0000

Sometimes special elections are harbingers of things to come. And sometimes they are not. The tricky part is that nobody can tell the difference until long afterwards. Which certainly doesn't stop rampant speculation in the meantime. Last night, a Democrat pulled off a surprising upset in New York's 26th congressional district, in an election that was forced due to the resignation of a House member who got caught trolling the internet (with shirtless pictures, no less) for extramarital fun and games. What this signifies for the 2012 election is anyone's guess, at this point.

Republican Field Shaping Up

Chris Weigant — Mon, 23 May 2011 23:34:49 +0000

With all this frantic jumping in and out of the race, I thought it was time to take another look at the Republican field to see how it is shaping up. At this point, there are only a few holdouts left on the sidelines, as most of the bigwigs (and some decidedly "smallwigs") have made their intentions known.

Friday Talking Points [168] -- Zombie Attack!

Chris Weigant — Fri, 20 May 2011 23:46:17 +0000

A word here about timing is necessary, I think. While the blog post is quite obviously meant as a semi-joke, wouldn't this have been more fun in, say, mid-October -- a few weeks before Hallowe'en? Instead of this week, with the "End of Days" prophesied for midafternoon this Saturday? I'm just saying....

The Ryan Budget Acid Test

Chris Weigant — Wed, 18 May 2011 22:41:56 +0000

It's rare for me to have a moment of pity for someone like Newt Gingrich, but I have to admit I'm feeling a little sorry for the guy this week. But before we delve into Newt's campaign problems in greater detail, it seems to me that most pundits are missing a big underlying new reality in the Republican Party. The focus has all been on Newt himself, what he said, and the subsequent ire directed at him by prominent Righties. But after the dust settles on the incident itself, people are going to notice the bigger fact this fracas has illuminated: Republicans are doubling down on Paul Ryan's budget rather than backing away from it, to the point where it has now become the acid test for Republicans in 2012. Which should be good news for Democrats.

Gang Of Five?

Chris Weigant — Tue, 17 May 2011 23:50:01 +0000

So we're now down to a "Gang of Five," I guess.

Friday Talking Points [166] -- Osama Bin Laden Is Still Dead

Chris Weigant — Fri, 06 May 2011 23:01:46 +0000

I don't care how ironic that sounds to some, it's true. Osama Bin Laden declared war on America, waged that war for years (and killed Americans in doing so), then hid for many more years, and was finally hunted down and killed like an animal. Mission accomplished.

Friday Talking Points [165] -- Royally Screwed

Chris Weigant — Fri, 29 Apr 2011 22:58:56 +0000

For reasons which surpasseth all understanding (at least to myself), I was actually up very early this morning, before the dawn as a matter of fact. This was due to a scheduled television appearance which, unfortunately, did not occur (for technical reasons). Since I was up, though, I caught the tail end of the British royal wedding, which (for us Pacific Coast Time folks) happened in the middle of the night. Surprisingly enough, I have a few things to point out about the event.

Friday Talking Points [164] -- Skynet Attacks!

Chris Weigant — Fri, 22 Apr 2011 23:34:17 +0000

Again, this is not science fiction. It's a reality that already exists in the skies over at least two countries right now (and possibly more). Robots are killing humans. These robots are not acting on their own, they are fully controlled by human operators -- but the next generation of drone aircraft will not need a human to operate them (again, this is fact, not supposition). Robot artillery, robot tanks, and robot infantry cannot be all that far behind. War as the ultimate video game, in other words.

Obama Hits His Rhetorical Stride

Chris Weigant — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 00:08:48 +0000

But I have to say, just on the scale of speechifyin' alone, Obama seems to be starting his re-election campaign very strongly -- by framing his issues within a basic Democratic narrative which has been missing in action for quite a while. For that reason alone, both of his recent speeches are worth reading.

Friday Talking Points [163] -- The Ads Just Write Themselves

Chris Weigant — Sat, 16 Apr 2011 00:33:35 +0000

Something the media largely missed in the midst of multiple budgetary battles this week was the fact that this is what bipartisanship looks like. The media, at least the "serious" ones, residing either inside the Beltway or in lower Manhattan, have long made much sport out of decrying "partisanship" -- at least, when Democrats act like Democrats, at any rate. Politicians are supposed to "work together" in some Utopian dreamland, to "get serious things done." It sounds great in an editorial, and all of that.

Breathtaking Republican Hypocrisy On Medicare

Chris Weigant — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 23:46:30 +0000

Republican hypocrisy on "cutting" versus "saving" Medicare has reached the point where it almost literally knows no bounds. To be sure, Republicans have always fundamentally been against the concept of Medicare, from the very beginning. That's an ideological position which you may or may not agree with, but Republicans have at least held to it fairly consistently over the past half-century or so. But the fetid stench of hypocrisy entered into Republican discourse last year, when they attempted to position themselves as (believe it or not) the ones who were going to "save Medicare." One year later, they are attempting to end the program as we know it within ten years. In other words: Republicans were against Medicare, before they were for it, before they were against it, again.

Happy Birthday, Romneycare!

Chris Weigant — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 23:59:02 +0000

One person who (assumably) won't be celebrating the fifth anniversary of Romneycare is Mitt Romney himself. This is because the entire issue has become the biggest albatross around his neck, politically, as he tosses his hat in the 2012 presidential ring. So don't look for him to be cutting a "Romneycare fifth birthday cake" today. In fact, as far as Romney is concerned, it would be just fine if everyone conveniently forgot about the issue altogether.

Suggestions For Obama's Medicare Counterproposal

Chris Weigant — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 00:21:59 +0000

President Obama has now called a "do-over" on his 2012 budget proposal. This news broke on the Sunday morning political television chat circuit, as the dust was settling on the government shutdown standoff for the remainder of the 2011 budget. Obama's move was prompted by the budget proposal put on the table by Republican numbers guru Paul Ryan, which seeks to "reform entitlements" by turning Medicare into a voucher system. Obama's new proposal will reportedly also offer "entitlement reform," although no specifics have leaked out yet. What the president should realize at this point, though, is that Ryan has just put him in the driver's seat. Ryan's proposal is so radical that it's going to be very easy for Democrats to present themselves as a more humane alternative to the Republican agenda, and it's going to be very easy for whatever Obama comes up with to look a lot better than just handing seniors a voucher and saying: "Good luck with that medical insurance marketplace."

Friday Talking Points [162] -- Budget Standoff Continues

Chris Weigant — Fri, 08 Apr 2011 23:51:20 +0000

Sigh. What's depressing about the whole thing, to me at least, is how the entire knock-down-drag-out fight is merely the preliminary round. This whole government shutdown walk-to-the-brink-and-stare-into-the-abyss thing is nothing more than the warmup for the next budgetary battles -- which will be much bigger. The entire initial fight is about staking out ground for the next two fights -- raising the debt ceiling, and the 2012 budget. Nobody involved -- not the Tea Party Republicans, not President Obama, not John Boehner, not Harry Reid -- really cares all that much about how this particular round ends up. They're all stuck thinking: "If I give in now, they'll want more later" -- and they're all entirely correct.

The More Things Change...

Chris Weigant — Fri, 08 Apr 2011 00:14:50 +0000

The president and the newly-resurgent congressional Republicans at an impasse. Republicans put a bill on the table which was unacceptable to the White House, because of ideological "riders" added. The debt ceiling has to be raised. Republicans talk of reducing the size of government and deficit slashing. The president says they just want to make deep cuts in Medicare. The government shut itself down.

Real Budget Battle Hasn't Yet Begun

Chris Weigant — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 23:01:42 +0000

The media is currently obsessing over the prospects of a government shutdown next Friday, and over the congressional budget negotiations currently taking place which could prevent it from happening. But this is a relatively small fish to fry, because the real budget battle will be officially joined next Tuesday, when Republican Paul Ryan unveils his budget plan for 2012, complete with 10-year projections. What is currently being debated pales in consequence to the fight over the 2012 budget, although it may take the media a while to realize it, because it is so much more fun to say "government shutdown" in a scary voice on television.

Friday Talking Points [158] -- In Non-Charlie-Sheen News...

Chris Weigant — Sat, 12 Mar 2011 00:38:46 +0000

And then -- you simply can't make this stuff up -- the anchor uttered the worst segue I think I've ever heard, possibly the worst in all of television news history: "We turn from the live feed of the tsunami in Japan to a police raid on Charlie Sheen's house in Los Angeles...."

On Tactics

Chris Weigant — Fri, 11 Mar 2011 00:23:22 +0000

To be fair, Democrats and Republicans alike are prone to doing this sort of thing. Both using political tactics such as these, and decrying them as being somehow "unfair." There's no monopoly by either party on this type of political hypocrisy. Yes, hypocrisy is the right word to use. Unless you'd prefer "political moral relativism of the worst kind," which is slightly more accurate but a little wordy. Either way, the equation reads: "This sort of thing is just fine when our side uses it, but downright evil when the other side does the same thing."

Obama Challenges Republicans By Supporting Wyden-Brown

Chris Weigant — Thu, 10 Mar 2011 00:30:26 +0000

Last week, President Barack Obama tried to make some news on the healthcare issue. Unfortunately for him, the story was all but swallowed by bigger news (Libya, the budget fight, Charlie Sheen...). But this is a story which deserves some attention, because it might prove to be the answer to the endless bickering on Capitol Hill on what to do about the newly-passed healthcare law. Obama, by backing a bill put forth by Democratic Senator Ron Wyden and Republican Senator Scott Brown, has essentially tossed a gauntlet down in front of the Republican Party. The heart of Obama's challenge: "You think you can do healthcare reform better in your states? Fine. Go ahead and do it better."

Friday Talking Points [156] -- Fighting On Several Fronts

Chris Weigant — Sat, 26 Feb 2011 00:20:52 +0000

We've got so much to cover this week, we're going to have to move pretty quickly here. In international news, North Africa and the Middle East are still seething. The American news media, however, are (I actually heard this phrase being used by someone with a blowdried haircut the other night on television) experiencing "revolution fatigue." Seriously. They're bored with the whole storyline. Another dictator fell? Crowds of unarmed people being machine-gunned? Yawn. Don't we have an Oscars story we could run, instead?

Opening The Floor Debate

Chris Weigant — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 00:36:12 +0000

Incoming Speakers of the House of Representatives always like to put their own personal stamp on things. Most of them make pledges to do things differently, and promise to make radical changes in the way the lower chamber of Congress does its business. Bold ideas are tried, but most of these usually fall by the wayside later (or become considerably dialed-back), as the status quo has its say.

Obama: Too Many Boats Have Been Left Behind

Chris Weigant — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 23:31:05 +0000

Corporate America is on our minds today, because President Obama just gave a speech to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. With the future decidedly uncertain, Obama made overtures to the corporate community, and also called on them to be responsible and help build the middle class of this country, by insuring that all boats are lifted by the tide, and not get (as he put it) "left behind, stuck in the mud." This wasn't the only time in the speech he got Kennedyesque, also calling on the corporate titans to: "Ask yourselves what you can do to hire more American workers, what you can do to support the American economy and invest in this nation."

A Different Kind Of Speech

Chris Weigant — Wed, 26 Jan 2011 05:02:43 +0000

I'd have to sum up my immediate reaction to tonight's State Of The Union speech with the old Monty Python line: ".... and now, for something completely different ..."

"State Of The Union" Predictions

Chris Weigant — Tue, 25 Jan 2011 01:01:52 +0000

Well, it's that time of year again. The time of year when pundits across the land helpfully (oh, so helpfully) offer the president advice on what he should say in his "State Of The Union" speech tomorrow. While I've engaged in this sort of thing before, this year I'd like to make predictions of what President Obama will say tomorrow night (as opposed to what I would like him to say). Which means I'm not endorsing any of this personally, merely attempting to predict what will be in tomorrow night's speech in advance.

Friday Talking Points [152] -- A Palin-Free Month?

Chris Weigant — Sat, 22 Jan 2011 00:48:07 +0000

With some regularity, this column excoriates the mainstream news media for all sorts of continued idiocy in the way it conducts its business. But every once in a while, we have to applaud them when they get something right. This week, Dana Milbank of The Washington Post deserves mentioning, for pledging to stay Palin-free for the month of February. Details on this in a moment.

Symbolism Versus Substance

Chris Weigant — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 01:04:19 +0000

The House of Representatives, as expected, just voted to repeal the landmark healthcare law which President Obama signed less than a year ago. This vote was a symbolic victory for Republicans, but not any sort of substantial change. To truly repeal the law, the Senate would have to also pass the bill the House just passed, and then both houses would have to muster a two-thirds majority vote to overcome Obama's veto. None of which is going to happen. Democrats still control the Senate, and Harry Reid has all but pronounced the bill "dead on arrival" in his chamber, meaning that today's House vote is the only victory (and a symbolic one, at that) Republicans should expect in their mad dash to repeal healthcare reform.

So Long, Joe

Chris Weigant — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 02:36:33 +0000

Senator Joe Lieberman will announce tomorrow (from all reports) that he will not be seeking another term in the Senate. Democrats across the land are collectively heaving a large sigh of relief at the news. "So long, Joe," seems to be the prevailing sentiment, although if you listen closely you can hear the muttered "... don't let the door hit you on the way out," or other less-than-endearing sentiments.

The Search For Meaning

Chris Weigant — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 02:16:34 +0000

Both of these urges run deep. It's part of the human condition to try to fit things into a rational framework in our minds, and to reassure ourselves that if we only had done things a little differently, we could have avoided this tragedy. The problem is, neither one of these is any sort of universal truth. Sometimes craziness happens for no reason other than mental imbalance, and sometimes it happens explosively with little warning.

Friday Talking Points [150] -- A Fortean Week

Chris Weigant — Sat, 08 Jan 2011 01:18:52 +0000

Sometimes it is hard to come up with a metaphor to describe the week that was. This was not one of those weeks.

My 2010 "McLaughlin Awards" [Part 2]

Chris Weigant — Sat, 25 Dec 2010 02:34:02 +0000

Welcome back to our annual year-end awards column!

111th Congress Ends With Bang, Not Whimper

Chris Weigant — Thu, 23 Dec 2010 01:08:08 +0000

President Barack Obama gave an afternoon press conference today, and he sounded a lot more confident than he has sounded for quite a while. The reason for this is that the 111th Congress is ending with a bang, and not the expected whimper. After the Democrats' "shellacking" (to use Obama's preferred term) in the midterm elections, few inside-the-Beltway prognosticators figured much of anything would get done in the lame duck session of Congress before the newly-elected Congress is seated in January. As it turned out, this conventional wisdom was wrong. The lame duck Congress produced more weighty legislation than most lame ducks manage -- a fitting end to two years with more significant legislative victories than any Congress since Lyndon B. Johnson (or even Franklin D. Roosevelt, depending on how you score these things). Which is why President Obama had good reason to sound as confident as he did today.

Thank You, Joe Lieberman

Chris Weigant — Tue, 21 Dec 2010 00:46:47 +0000

Both houses of Congress have now passed the bill which repeals the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy (DADT), which did not allow gay Americans to openly serve their country in military uniform. President Obama has scheduled a signing ceremony for the repeal bill this Wednesday. While this is a significant achievement on the civil rights/gay rights front, it is also a significant political achievement. And one man stands out as the driving political force behind the successful effort to repeal this discriminatory federal policy. Which is why, today, I'd like to publicly thank Senator Joe Lieberman.

My 2010 "McLaughlin Awards" [Part 1]

Chris Weigant — Sat, 18 Dec 2010 00:45:59 +0000

My apologies to anyone tuning in who was expecting to see the 150th "Friday Talking Points" column, since it will be pre-empted for two weeks here. But the good news is we're doing so to bring you our annual "McLaughlin Awards," which are even more fun!

From The Archives: Dump The Individual Mandate

Chris Weigant — Wed, 15 Dec 2010 00:21:24 +0000

But, as Howard Dean points out, healthcare reform can succeed without it. Which means there shouldn't be anything standing in the way of throwing the whole idea of the mandate under the political bus, so to speak. Or, since the Tea Partiers hate it too, perhaps "throw it overboard" would be a better metaphor.

The Deal

Chris Weigant — Wed, 08 Dec 2010 01:08:49 +0000

What a lot of people seem to be entirely missing in this debate is that President Obama and his team at the White House tried an utterly new tactic (for them) -- getting involved in the process.

Friday Talking Points [148] -- Aliens Landing?

Chris Weigant — Sat, 04 Dec 2010 00:42:51 +0000

So the good news this week was apparently that giant mutant space monsters are not, in fact, about to arrive and (assumably) enslave humankind and eat our children for snacks.

Exclusive Interview With Populist Caucus Chairman Bruce Braley

Chris Weigant — Wed, 17 Nov 2010 22:13:41 +0000

Representative Bruce Braley, from Iowa's First District, returned to the House of Representatives this week, after surviving a very brutal re-election campaign in which millions of dollars of outside money from anonymous right-wing donors were spent against him. His campaign was an interesting one, because rather than try to distance himself from his own party or from what Democrats have accomplished in the past few years, Braley instead embraced his own record, and proudly defended it to his voters.

Friday Talking Points [146] -- Clowning Around

Chris Weigant — Sat, 13 Nov 2010 01:15:07 +0000

But for anyone who thinks that American voters just elected a bunch of clowns to represent them in Washington, I humbly draw your attention to Brazil, where they just elected a real clown to their Congress.

Obama's Navel-Gazing

Chris Weigant — Fri, 22 Oct 2010 01:17:53 +0000

President Obama, of late, has been doing quite a bit of soul-searching over his first two years in office. It is odd for this to be made public just before an election, instead of just after one, but it does show, at the very least, that Obama is starting to learn some important lessons from his performance so far. Of course, it can be argued that it may be too late for Obama to have learned these lessons, but then he still does have over half of his term to serve -- so I say better late than never, personally. And (without a shred of evidence to make such a claim) I would also say that the fact that Obama's realization that he has room for improvement comes almost immediately after Rahm Emanuel left the White House is, indeed, no coincidence.

Pledge Mostly Ignored By Republicans, So Far

Chris Weigant — Wed, 06 Oct 2010 01:04:26 +0000

The House Republicans' "Pledge To America" document, released last week with much ballyhoo, appears to not be quite the rallying cry they had hoped for. It seems that very few Republican candidates for office are embracing the Pledge as a ready-made campaign platform, or as some sort of blunt instrument to wield against Democrats. But none of this may matter, depending on how the media eventually decides to tell this story. Because the myth is always stronger than the reality, and the media simply loves simplistic storylines. Meaning the Pledge may indeed eventually be seen as the second coming of the "Contract With America." Which is, ultimately, even more ironic.

Friday Talking Points [141] -- Rahm's Exit Contest Winner Announced

Chris Weigant — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 21:46:17 +0000

I will begin today's column by drying a tear as we all wish Rahm Emanuel a fond farewell. Actually, I am lying. I am drying no tears for Rahm because I am crying no tears at his leaving. Chicago's loss is the White House's gain, as far as I'm concerned.

Friday Talking Points [140] -- Pledging Nonsense

Chris Weigant — Sat, 25 Sep 2010 00:29:53 +0000

The White House has been in the news this past week, mostly for who will be leaving it soon. One is tempted to insert the old "will the last to leave please turn out the lights" joke here; but one will not, because one holds oneself to a higher standard than that. Ahem.

Dump The Individual Mandate

Chris Weigant — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 00:27:45 +0000

Friday Talking Points [138] -- "Candidate" Obama Returns

Chris Weigant — Fri, 10 Sep 2010 23:36:52 +0000

And dominate he did. Monday, he gave a rousing pro-worker Labor Day speech, Wednesday he gave a rousing speech on the economy, and Friday he held the first press conference he's held in months. Finally, the White House seems to have woken up and realized that "overexposure" of a president is a myth propagated by those who oppose him. The "bully pulpit" is there to be used, in other words, not there to gather dust until Fox News decides it is OK for the president to speak to the public.

Some Good News For Obama

Chris Weigant — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 23:32:13 +0000

President Obama got two pieces of good news today: the Senate passed Wall Street reform, and the volcano of oil on the seabed of the Gulf of Mexico may finally have been brought under control. Whether this does him any good with the public remains to be seen, however.

The Fall Political Schedule

Chris Weigant — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 23:11:51 +0000

The next few weeks could turn out to be the most important politically in the remainder of this year. Because this may be the last chance Congress has of passing any big or contentious legislation, before politics consumes everything (even more than at the current time). This is due to a combination of factors, but mostly boils down to the congressional calendar and the midterm election season.

Friday Talking Points [129] -- Incrementalism Wins Big

Chris Weigant — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 23:52:55 +0000

We're going to begin today with the news that a popular New Jersey beach is considering allowing women to sunbathe topless. And then move right on to the financial reform bill, by way of a neck-snapping segue. Just to warn you up front.

Friday Talking Points [127] -- Letting A Crisis Go To Waste

Chris Weigant — Sat, 12 Jun 2010 00:28:54 +0000

President Barack Obama's administration was supposed to follow a basic premise: never let a crisis go to waste. That was according to one of his own advisors, shortly after Obama took office. But so far, their track record on doing so has been decidedly mixed.

Friday Talking Points [123] -- A Working Senate

Chris Weigant — Sat, 15 May 2010 00:59:13 +0000

Now, you can take this as a joke in one of two ways. The first, of course, pokes fun at the fact that the Senate takes an absolutely gargantuan amount of vacation time every year, when they are instead supposed to be doing "The People's Business." The second, of course, refers to the fact that the Senate is somewhat of a broken mechanism these days, notorious for not getting much done, ever, on anything. Compare, for instance, the amount of bills the House passes to the glacial pace of "work" in the Senate, of late.

Democratic Primary Overview

Chris Weigant — Tue, 11 May 2010 01:43:40 +0000

While the Tea Party folks have gotten a lot of attention from the media in the Republican primaries so far, there are a few Democratic primary races which may have just as interesting an impact on the Democrats as the Tea Party challenges are having for Republicans. And since last week I took a look at the effect of the Tea Partiers in Republican races, today I thought it would be worth paying some attention to the Democratic side of the aisle. Because the anti-incumbent "throw the bums out" feeling seems to be happening to some degree in both parties this year. What it all means for the general election remains to be seen, of course. For now, let's take a look at a handful of these upcoming primary races.

Reid Leads

Chris Weigant — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 23:08:53 +0000

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid just showed Democrats what real leadership (and what bargaining from a position of strength) looks like. After three days of repeated cloture votes to bring Chris Dodd's Wall Street reform bill to the floor of the Senate for debate, it appears the Republicans are ready to blink. The Republicans successfully managed to block the debate, in three successive votes, but they know they're paying a political price for doing so. At this point, the only question is how many of them will jump the aisle and vote with the Democrats in the next vote.

Ben Nelson Twists In The Wind

Chris Weigant — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 00:48:03 +0000

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid held a second vote today on whether to begin debate on the Wall Street reform bill put forth by Senator Chris Dodd. As expected, all the Republicans voted against openly debating the bill once again. Also as expected, all the Democrats voted to move forward. Except one.

Friday Talking Points [120] -- Republicans Chicken Out

Chris Weigant — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 08:53:09 +0000

Democrats had a pretty good week last week. As attention shifts away from unpronounceable volcanoes (more on them in a moment) to the struggle in the Senate over Wall Street reform, the two parties almost seem to have changed their normal methods of playing the political game. The Republicans are all over the map on the issue, and extremely worried about the impression by angry voters that they are doing Wall Street's bidding -- as well they should be. Republicans are, one day, loudly denouncing the reform bill, using their standard Big Lie technique... and then, the next day, saying a deal is very close, and even voting for strong reform in committees. Republicans (some of them, at least) are chickening out of the upcoming partisan battle the Republican leadership seems to want over the issue (more on chickens later on, too). Democrats have, so far, managed both to admirably stay on message and showed an amazing amount of backbone in countering specious Republican arguments. And, so far, polls show the voters are solidly on the Democrats' side on this one, and just not buying what Republicans are telling them. As I said, we seem to have entered BackwardsLand, or something.

D.C. Legalizes Medical Marijuana

Chris Weigant — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 01:17:59 +0000

The Washington, D.C. Council voted today to legalize medicinal marijuana. The Washington Post reported the story in a straightforward manner, which failed to note the amusing part of the story:

Friday Talking Points [119] -- Democrats, Sell Yourselves!

Chris Weigant — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 23:43:33 +0000

There was an amusing story in the news recently about some folks who got word that a beer company had sent hundreds of cases of beer to the local dump, because it was past its expiration date. Finding this a shame, these enterprising folks "liberated" themselves 50 cases of free beer, presumably to drink it forthwith. The most amusing part was the closing quote in the article, from the beer company's president: "Beer is a popular product."

Can Harry Reid Deliver?

Chris Weigant — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 23:12:20 +0000

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid already had a lot of things on his plate to get done in the Senate this year, even before last week's news broke. Now he's facing two more big issues in the midst of an election year (and in the midst of a fight for his own political life in Nevada) -- a new nuclear arms reduction treaty with Russia, and an upcoming confirmation battle over a Supreme Court nomination. Given that Harry Reid's Senate is not exactly known for moving with blinding speed (to be fair, few Senates are), one has to wonder whether Harry Reid can deliver on some of these big issues before the midterm elections or not.

Obama Gets His Groove Back

Chris Weigant — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 00:28:44 +0000

You can call it his groove, or you can call it his mojo, or (if you're less Austin Powers-minded), you can call it his political momentum. But whatever you choose to call it, Barack Obama has emerged, phoenix-like, from the ashes of the healthcare debate rancor and is now forging ahead on many fronts. This political rebirth is not guaranteed of success in any way, but it certainly is refreshing to see, I have to say.

Friday Talking Points [117] -- Piece Of Cake

Chris Weigant — Fri, 26 Mar 2010 23:36:18 +0000

No matter how you slice it, President Obama and the Democrats in Congress have achieved a stunning legislative accomplishment -- one which had been pronounced dead over and over again for the past year by the punditocracy. Obama has now delivered upon one of his signature campaign issues, and (by doing so) dramatically improved his party's chances in the upcoming midterm elections.

From The Archives: Healthcare Reform Struggle Will Not End This Year

Chris Weigant — Fri, 26 Mar 2010 00:25:26 +0000

No matter what healthcare bill passes, it is not going to remain static. It is going to be revisited again and again over the next few decades. Everyone may remember the initial passage years from now as the big historic "turning point," but there will still be a lot of work left to make it a truly historic change. That's the way of lawmaking. Rather than bitterly denouncing whatever emerges from Congress as being far short of what you expected, see it instead as merely the beginning of the long road towards making the system work the way you want it to. See it as a call to action, and not a defeat, if you really want to make it better. And don't get discouraged, because these things always take more time to get right than anyone expects.

Republicans Embrace "Party Of No" Label

Chris Weigant — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 00:55:54 +0000

The Republican Party has, up until recently, tried to distance itself from the "Party of No" label which Democrats are fond of using against them. "It's all the Democrats' fault that we can't bask in the sunshine of bipartisanship," they used to say. But since Barack Obama's signature health reform legislation passed, the Republicans seem to actually be embracing the "Party of No" concept.

Will Democrats Come Out Swinging?

Chris Weigant — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 00:04:07 +0000

Examining the politics of the recently-passed healthcare reform legislation is tough, at this point, because the game is in the immediate process of changing. President Obama's team likes the term "game-changer," and it is rare indeed to be able to identify such game-changing while it is still in process. Usually these things are only apparent after the fact, when viewed in retrospect. But, for better or worse, passing healthcare reform has indeed changed the political game for this year's midterm elections.

Health Reform Post-Mortem

Chris Weigant — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 23:39:53 +0000

A post-mortem, in the medical sense, is when you carve up a body to figure out why it died. But the term has migrated into the patois of American business, where (in corporate terms) a post-mortem is a meeting held after the completion of a project, where you review the course of the project from beginning to end. You look at what went right, and what went wrong, and then you try to improve the procedure for future projects, in an effort to avoid making the same mistakes over again. Now that fight for health reform legislation (in one form or another) is just about over, I feel it's time to take a look back, and identify some areas for improvement for the future Democratic legislation.

Guest Column: Celebrating My First Year As An American

Chris Weigant — Sat, 20 Mar 2010 23:45:19 +0000

One year ago I wrote about my experience becoming an American citizen. Yesterday, I celebrated my first anniversary as an American. When I became a citizen, I felt that I now "belonged." I felt that I had made a commitment to this country. I felt that I had a responsibility to be a participant in the political process and an active member of my community.

Friday Talking Points [116] -- Is It Sausage Yet?

Chris Weigant — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 23:51:35 +0000

If nothing else comes of it, you've got to admit that the health reform movement has given a lot of people a very detailed education about the sausage-making process in Washington. Remember when the word "reconciliation" was universally understood to mean "getting back together" instead of "open partisan warfare," for instance? The tortuous process health reform has wound in its progress from where we were a year ago to where we stand today at least provided many "teachable moments" on how things actually happen in Washington. And -- as the term "sausage making" implies -- some of it ain't pretty.

Can Democrats Govern?

Chris Weigant — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 00:23:45 +0000

The next two weeks in Congress may provide an answer to the metaphysical question "Can Democrats govern?" If the answer turns out to be "no," then a large part of the electorate is going to decide that it is pointless to bother electing large majorities of Democrats to Congress, because they simply can't get anything done when they get there. If the answer turns out to be "yes" (or even "kind of"), then Democrats may have a chance to make the case this fall that electing lots of Democrats is the way for the voters to go.

Friday Talking Points [115] -- Git 'Er Done!

Chris Weigant — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 01:20:03 +0000

However, we must also give a nod to Larry the Cable Guy here, and put it even more forcefully (and less ay-LEET-ist, of course) by phrasing it: "Git 'er done!" Just to give credit where it is due.

One Year Ago On Reconciliation

Chris Weigant — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 20:21:46 +0000

[Today's column is going to be a rerun of a column I wrote exactly one year ago. This is somewhat of a coincidence, since today I will be taking care of some previous commitments in the non-online world and will be too busy to write a new column. So I went looking for an old column on healthcare reform, just to see where we were a year ago. I read a few columns from last March, and picked one out on not just healthcare reform, but the concept of reconciliation in the Senate. After I had read it and decided to use it, I realized it was posted one year ago to the day, so it serendipitously works as a good reprint article, since it looks pre-planned (even though it isn't).

Friday Talking Points [114] -- When Will Rahm Go? Place Your Bets!

Chris Weigant — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 01:14:21 +0000

This sort of "mistakes were made, but not by me" legacy-polishing, it should be noted, is usually done as a politician is leaving the stage. Which is enough of a reason for us to optimistically look into the future, here. So we are going to open the betting for when Rahm Emanuel will exit the White House. Or, to be more accurate, when he will announce his exit. Because we're just going to assume (for the fun of it) that if Rahmbo's already covering his tracks by attempting to cast history over-favorably toward himself, then his exit can't be all that far ahead. To be followed, as is usual, by signing a book contract worth at least seven figures. Rahm was said to be interested it running for mayor of Chicago at one point, but whatever excuse he ultimately uses, we're taking bets on the actual date Rahm announces he is leaving.

Obama's Remarks On Healthcare Reform

Chris Weigant — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 01:57:17 +0000

President Obama, almost a year to the day after kicking off his efforts on healthcare reform, tried to nudge the process across the finish line yesterday, in front of a group of doctors and other health professionals. While some of this made the news as chopped-up soundbites, I thought it was an interesting enough speech to print the entire transcript here. Obama spoke for 19 minutes, and touched on the process he hopes to see in Congress on the issue soon. Without further introduction, here is what the president had to say yesterday.

Obama Poll Watch -- February, 2010

Chris Weigant — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 22:54:11 +0000

When will Obama turn this around? Will Obama turn this around? Well, there is a little good news recently, and Obama's numbers have gotten a bounce from his health reform "summit," but as this was at the end of February, it doesn't show up yet in the monthly figures, and it remains to be seen whether he will sustain it or not throughout March. But we'll all have to wait until next month to see the outcome.

Friday Talking Points [113] -- Republican Reconciliation Hypocrisy

Chris Weigant — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 01:47:24 +0000

Once again, here is an enormous present, handed to Democrats on a silver platter. Let's hope that Democrats don't (once again) ignore the present itself, and wind up on the floor playing with the shiny wrapping paper and the empty box.

Just The Facts, Ma'am

Chris Weigant — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 23:17:53 +0000

This will be easy enough for President Obama to accomplish, since he's probably the most Joe-Friday-ish of the bunch. But he should be backed up by Democrats who have the facts close at hand, in detail and in great number, from unimpeachable sources. If Democrats counter Republican rhetoric with hard, cold facts, it may not guarantee success for their objective; but it certainly will go a long way toward showing who is serious about fixing the problem, and who is not.

Reid's Smallball Paying Off?

Chris Weigant — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 01:02:12 +0000

Now, I know what you're thinking. You're thinking: "Chris, it is way too early for baseball metaphors!" You are correct. It is. But "smallball" is the only metaphor which sprang to mind, even in advance of spring training. There's probably a hockey term I should have used, but I don't watch hockey much, so there you are.

Friday Talking Points [112] -- Public Option's Last Stand

Chris Weigant — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 01:13:34 +0000

Before we begin here, I'd like to humbly propose a new law. No American television station should be allowed to have an exclusive contract for any Olympic games. Period.

The Heisenberg Effect Of Televising Political Negotiations

Chris Weigant — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 01:25:38 +0000

I'm going to start off today's column with a chart. I'm doing this for several reasons, not least of which is the fact that it's a really good chart. It is simple, easy to read, and involves very little mathematics (meaning it is accessible to a very wide spectrum of the American public). And it is a very effective way of presenting the facts, free of media spin. The chart comes from the White House, and shows the monthly number of jobs lost for approximately the past two years. It also uses color very well, to separate George W. Bush's term in office from Barack Obama's. Without further introduction, here is the chart:

Friday Talking Points [111] -- Use It Or Lose It

Chris Weigant — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 02:44:24 +0000

President Obama this week has successfully put the Republican Party on the defensive. Now, this could be a fleeting thing, or it could be the start of a whole new way for Obama's administration to operate. Time will tell.

Can Obama's Health Summit Succeed?

Chris Weigant — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 00:30:44 +0000

President Obama has recently announced a health reform summit, to take place across the street from the White House, with the C-SPAN cameras rolling. He's invited Democratic and Republican leaders from Congress to this summit. Many cynics have dismissed the effort already, either pronouncing it less than worthless, or calling it some form of political Kabuki theater which will do no good. I think these pronunciations (especially the latter one) are a bit premature, to say the least. Because either on a substantive level or a political level, I think there actually is a chance for some limited success for Obama in this exercise.

Obama Poll Watch -- January, 2010

Chris Weigant — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 23:44:23 +0000

When taken as a whole, President Barack Obama's poll numbers last month moved the least amount of any month of his presidency so far. His approval rating continued its trend of moving downwards, but only by two-tenths of a percent. His disapproval rating continued upwards, but only by four-tenths of one percent. Meaning January was a pretty stable month for Obama.

Grammatical Interlude

Chris Weigant — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 23:06:37 +0000

Today's column is a short interlude, or perhaps even intermission, from our usual political wonkery. This is due mostly to the fact that we're busy around ChrisWeigant.com Central preparing charts for tomorrow's "Obama Poll Watch" column.

Friday Talking Points [109] -- Obama Enters Lions' Den, Bells Cat

Chris Weigant — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 00:59:54 +0000

Ahem. Where was I? Oh, right, last week. Last week, when conservative "journalists" weren't pulling fratboy pranks on federal property (and getting arrested for such -- here's a tip to conservative "gotcha journalism" types: if you're going to do something this risky, might I suggest not doing it in a federal building where the F.B.I. probably has an office on the next floor? I mean, you're making it too easy, guys, really.

Friday Talking Points [108] -- Obama's Pivotal Week

Chris Weigant — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 01:26:57 +0000

Here's a bit of news you may have missed: Democrats still control the Senate. Really! This seems to have escaped a lot of people, leading the Village Voice to run the hilarious tongue-in-cheek blog headline: "Scott Brown Wins Mass. Race, Giving GOP 41-59 Majority in the Senate."

Friday Talking Points [107] -- What A Week

Chris Weigant — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 00:43:58 +0000

Much of the frenzied activity took place this week behind closed doors (and most decidedly not on C-SPAN), as healthcare reform entered its final negotiating phase. President Obama even decided to get involved, meaning we must be almost at the end of the fight. Ahem.

Obama's Last, Best Chance

Chris Weigant — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 00:53:29 +0000

Let's be blunt -- this coming year may be Obama's last, best chance to have a successful presidency. Or, at the very least, make any progress at all on his agenda. Because, no matter what happens in the House of Representatives, all it is going to take is Democrats losing one or two seats in the Senate for massive legislative gridlock to descend upon the Nation's Capital until 2012.

Flagpole Season

Chris Weigant — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 01:18:19 +0000

To be blunt, Obama needs to pick a few fights. Healthcare reform is winding up, but this particular fight has been so long and hard-fought that even proponents of the reform bill are exhausted and would really prefer not to hear or talk about it much longer. This is telling, because Democrats (all the way up to Obama) have simply not done a good job on the communications front during this battle. Who would have thought, a year ago, that Obama's main problems would be a lack of communication skills, and a perceived lack of passion in fighting for what he said he believed in?

Obama's Second-Year Potential

Chris Weigant — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 01:20:36 +0000

President Barack Obama has the potential of having a pretty good second year in office. Conventional inside-the-Beltway wisdom is that "nothing much gets done in a congressional election year," but this ignores the fact that life itself does not halt for electioneering, but rather keeps right on happening. And there are quite a few positive things either explicitly scheduled for 2010, or at least very likely to happen. This doesn't automatically mean the president is guaranteed to have a great year, but it certainly sets the scene for Obama managing to have a fairly good year.