Rep. Connolly provides his perspective on health care reform. I agree with him that nothing should be a "matter of theology" when it comes to legislation, but I do think the public option is a crucial piece of the health care reform puzzle. Also, I really don't agree that we need to keep chasing the "bipartisanship" mirage any more, given that the Republicans have refused to deal in good faith, have spread insane rumors about "death panels" and the like, and have always wanted Obama to fail so they could "break him." On the other hand, I do agree with Connolly that Obama needs to speak with some passion, not just cool intellect, tomorrow night. I believe that's exactly what he did yesterday at the labor event in Ohio and am confident he will do so again tomorrow night. With that, heeeeere's Gerry!
I don't think we ought to be making these things a matter of theology and drawing lines in the sand, because that's gonna make an ultimate compromise - which is inevitable - much harder to achieve. If we are really committed to getting meaningful healthcare reform in America, and I certainly am, then I think we need to sort of keep our powder dry and work through the system with a set of principles certainly we're committed to, but retain some flexibility about how we get to the outcomes all of us want to see.On the politics of all this, Connolly says that "to do nothing, to have this effort fail, is far more perilous from a political point of view than to try to get some meaningful healthcare reform done this year." Finally, Connolly says that what President Obama says tomorrow night is "critical," that Obama has to lay out what he wants with "specificity" and "has to show some passion...if we're going to get it done."
