The Whole Delivery

In an era where the average Beltway reporter still practices "both sides still do it, both sides say this" incompetent journalism, it really is refreshing that Greg Sargent continues to never be that and just report facts. To do this everyday at a powerful newspaper like The Washington Post , where the era of centrism and not upsetting the elite for their hypocrisy and lies is most reporter's objective, Sargent continues to just do the job that other reporters in DC don't have the courage to do: honest journalism. I definitely planned to do this last week for sure for Greg, and I'm just glad that he continues to work through a lot of constant incompetency in the Beltway when it comes to American news. A lot of reporters think they are doing a hell of a job in the nation's capital. But Greg Sargent can be one of the rare few actually doing just that. You can follow his blog on a daily here , as well as his tweets here . 

Photo from Pete Souza In reminding our indolent and arrogant colleagues in centrism American media once again that only one side is to blame for this wrongly labeled 'fiscal cliff' nonsense, intrepid Greg Sargent this morning displays the latest reason why Republicans are fully incapable of ever being rational or honest again . As always, there simply isn't any equivalence here. Even if you think the Democratic offer is too light on spending cuts, the basic fact remains that Dems have made a substantial proposal, while Republicans haven't. Now it's just important for most to recognize here, especially rational people in this country (which consist of liberal Americans who pay attention, who know who they are dealing with in regards to all current political figures, and/or who are not knee jerk pessimists or polemics), this salient point in my view: Deep down inside, Obama knows a majority of Republicans in these modern times just will never agree to ever ...

Weiner's letter to Bloomberg after his fine actions on Tuesday with no purpose of tackling the real issue . Sargent puts it right into perspective : Weiner "honors" Bloomberg for taking a "powerful" stance, without endorsing the sentiment that made Bloomberg's position so powerful. * Indeed, Weiner seemed to play both sides, suggesting it's legit to probe the financing of the mosque, the stance of the project's critics. And especially when bigot nutcase Senators show their full cards on this issue , a strong response from a man that is being held as this supposed strong liberal Democratic hero is certainly needed instead of cowardice. This normally cool Brooklyn guy is surely representing his last name well right now. I guess it's the pressure AIPAC can put on him at anytime I guess.

As most know the story by now, Phil Griffin banned Kos today from MSNBC because Joe Scarborough runs his world . Greg Sargent brings up a great point of how hypocritical and utterly gutless Griffin's decision was. Griffin, trying his best Jeff Zucker/Dick Ebersol impersonation, put out the anathema on Kos as soon as possible once Scarborough whined to him. But Griffin and his no stringent attitude was nowhere to be found when Liz Cheney happily smeared two of his night time hosts Keith Olbermann and Ed Schultz when she had her wonderful ad calling them virtually "cowards" towards her. And Sargent makes sure that everyone remembers that : It's funny. I don't recall the chief of MSNBC publicly banning Liz Cheney from appearing on the network when she cut an entire Web video "publicly antagonizing" Keith Olbermann and Chris Matthews for allegedly being too frightened to debate her about terrorism: It really is disheartening, as a fledging journalis...

Come on, I hope you did not think that he would say anything different now : With another aid ship steaming towards Gaza, Harry Reid, the second most powerful member of the Democratic Party in the country, issues an oddly-timed statement strongly defending Israel's flotilla raid: "Israel is one of our strongest and most important allies, and the United States stands firmly with Israel at this critical time. "I deeply regret the loss of life in the flotilla incident, including the death of an American citizen. "Israel has an obligation to protect its citizens and therefore has a clear right under international law to prevent weapons from getting in the hands of terrorists determined to target them. Israel indicated it was willing to put in place a process to ensure that legitimate humanitarian relief reached Gaza. Unfortunately this offer was rejected. "Israel has pledged to carry out a transparent and thorough investigation of this incident, and I look ...

Sigh : Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has been privately asking foreign leaders to "dial down" criticism of Israel until all the facts of the flotilla attack are known, according to a source who personally discussed the matter with her. "She says she's been working the phones for last 24 hours trying to get people to cool off a little bit, to see what the facts are," the source tells me, adding that she said she was trying to "dial down some of the rhetoric of the inernational community." "It's difficult," the source adds. "She says people are furious." Covering up for them again I see. It not surprisingly though, especially when you see Anthony Weiner do his same usual "love for Israel forever" dance , no matter what stuff the IDF and the Netanyahu Administration does. We'll only hold accountable anyone who is not named Israel, that is the top policy model for the State Department to follow. I sure...

In an ad that truly sheds no tears, the AFSCME gets about as brutally honest as you can get on the future ex-Senator of Arkansas Blanche Lincoln. It is indeed truly a relentless ad that delivers the straight truth to any Arkansans still indecisive going into the runoff in a fortnight's time . From the SEIU to now the AFSCME, the ad hammering that Lincoln has taken from labor groups has been such a joy for many to witness (and I don't even remember the AFL-CIO delivering their own add or MoveOn.org's own delivery to rub more salt into appropriate wounds). And mentioning her Virginia home as well? It's a perfect delivery, a perfect tone, and a perfect day to laugh at arguably the most "Me, Me, Me, Me" Senator in "The House of Lords." And that is an amazing thing to do, to win that difficult distinction, isn't it?

Ezra Klein said this perfectly yesterday , among many things, about the man of the week: So I take Paul at his word that he's not a racist. What he is, however, is an ideological extremist. He is so categorically opposed to public regulation of private enterprise that he cannot even bring himself to say that the Woolworth lunch counter should've been desegregated. Instead, he falls back on the remedies of the market: "I wouldn't attend, wouldn't support, wouldn't go to," a private institution that discriminates, he told Rachel Maddow. But he would let them discriminate. And in the segregated South, that would've been a perfectly viable business model for many, many very important institutions. And he still can't say it : Paul had a chance this morning on ABC News to clarify his views on the proper role of Federal power vis-a-vis discrimination by private entities and institutions. He conspicuously declined to do so. During that remarkable ...

  The best analysis of smart and timely move from Mr. Sargent : Richard Blumenthal just wrapped up his damage control presser, and it seems obvious enough that he'll survive this mess. Quick reaction: * It was obviously a well-staged event; he was joined on the stage by veterans who were visibly and emotionally pulling for him. They reacted with seemingly genuine anger when a reporter asked Blumenthal if he felt he should apologize, which was a nice touch. This event was orchestrated by professionals, almost certainly with extensive input from national Dems. The generally defiant tone Blumenthal struck suggests that he's been told by the big national players that he should be able to survive this. He repeatedly said he regretted misspeaking. But no apology. And the ending: Botttom line: It seems clear he'll survive. But man, what a colossal train wreck. Don't do it again, Dick. It is some of the best stuff you will read all day, guaranteed.

Now let's see if Senator Durbin , who signed the Benett letter in its earlier days, will tell Bernie Sanders later today to not do this . Senator Bernie Sanders, in a brief interview in the Capitol just now, confirmed to me that he’s willing to commit to introducing an amendment that would add the public option to the Senate bill’s reconciliation fix. Anybody still uttering the sentence of "The public option is dead" is someone that really really is an idiot or hasn't been playing attention to the growing momentum for it in the last four weeks This is important, because as far fetched as this seems, if this amendment is introduced, a vote on it would be very hard for the Senate Dem leadership to block. The only thing that could stop it from happening, according to Senate expert Robert Dove, is for the parliamentarian to rule that it’s not germane to the Senate bill somehow — something that seems unlikely. “I think somebody should do that, and I’d certainly ...

For some reason, it just won't. And that's a good thing : The White House’s declaration last week that the public option can’t pass Congress has dumped a vat of cold water on the possibility of a vote on the public option via reconciliation, but this is still an interesting development: Senators Dick Durbin, Patty Murray and Jeff Bingaman have now all gone on record saying that if such a vote is staged, they will vote Yes. That brings the total who have signed the letter pushing for this vote or who support the idea in principle to 30 — more than half the Dem caucus for the first time. Keep the total going .

Let's hope it's not a "Whatever happens in Vegas, stay in Vegas" type deal as one commentator named accumbens at the Kos said . Greg Sargent reports that Harry Reid, in a day where him and President Obama were state hopping in Nevada, will support reconciliation through a public option : With more and more Senators signing on to the letter urging Reid to hold an up or down vote on the public option under reconciliation rules, Reid spokesman Rodell Mollineau sends over a statement signaling Reid’s qualified support for the move: Senator Reid has always and continues to support the public option as a way to drive down costs and create competition. That is why he included the measure in his original health care proposal. If a decision is made to use reconciliation to advance health care, Senator Reid will work with the White House, the House, and members of his caucus in an effort to craft a public option that can overcome procedural obstacles and secure enough vo...

First, NYCEVE is at a free health clinic in Kansas City. It is a deep : Here is live coverage of that Health Care Clinic: Visit msnbc.com for breaking news , world news , and news about the economy Jew Lewison has written something that is probably the realest post today that can be made about the entire process as a whole: I tend to doubt there's any chance of this happening, but I'm thinking it would be smart for President Obama to concede that the Senate health care bill has serious flaws, even though on balance he believes it is a step forward on health care reform. The basic reason is simple: it's the truth, and that's something the public appreciates from its leaders Instead, the only thing you'll here though is "This bill isn't perfect, but it's a good start" or something along those lines. Nancy Pelosi softens her stand on the public option , and that will make fierce House progressives not happy. Apparently, Harry Reid sent more that one t...

But first, remember this : "It's just killing the left wing in this country that they can't force CNN to fire me" HAHAHAHA. And now, Greg Sargent asks this important question: When right wing bloggers got Dan Rather fired from CBS, traditional news orgs widely hailed the role of right blogostan in exposing the shortcomings of Rather’s story on Bush and the National Guard and gave the right full credit for bringing him down. Now that Lou Dobbs — also a major media figure — has quit CNN, it remains to be seen whether the online left will get anywhere near the same level of credit. Now Rather was much more important than the racist Dobbs, but all the right-wing sites were patted on the back for their accomplishment of ousting Rather for his National Guard report on Bush being not so good. But now, will the same love, as well as Hispanic groups, get the same approbation in return? I don't think the "liberal media" will rush to give credit to those who show ...

And a health insurance company's nightmare : In another step forward for the public option, I’m told reliably by a source that House leaders have been given a new Congressional Budget Office “score” finding that the evolving House bill — when you include a robust public option — reduces the deficit and is under the President’s cost goal of $900 billion. The CBO estimate, which is newer than the one reported over the weekend, will likely be discussed at the Dem caucus meeting tonight. This is a step forward because it could make it more palatable to Blue Dogs to support a House bill with a robust public plan, meaning one that reimburses providers at Medicare rates plus five percent. I don’t have the exact score but will update if I get it. Now, will fiscal conservative Democrats still favor their "supposed principles." Or will they just need to get fully renamed "corporate" Democrats", if they aren't already? We'll see.

Man, oh man. In another possible sign that a real showdown is looming over the public option, Nancy Pelosi offered some surprisingly harsh condemnation today of the idea of a public option with a “trigger,” denouncing it as “an excuse for not doing anything.” A Pelosi aide sends over a transcript from her presser today: Continuing PELOSI: We’re thinking and deciding about it. And the evidence seems to point, at this caucus that I just went to, that a trigger is an excuse for not doing anything. But everybody is open to listening to what people have to say. The point was made over and over again that for one reason or another the trigger was not effective in the Medicare Part D bill. Sargent makes a very salient point here: It’s hard to see how she could support it later if she believes it’s tantamount to doing nothing. No question about this, and again, it highlights the external roller coaster ride but internal consistency that the House Speaker has shown on this issue. One day stand...

Greg Sargent takes note of how T-Paw, as he calls him, is getting nuttier by the day . It says something when Joey boy and Mikaness press you. Pawlenty's downward spiral just continues .

Greg sees the peculiar disappearance of a word that the majority doesn't mind saying at all Okay, so the White House is circulating an upbeat polling memo citing a bunch of public surveys showing that public opinion still tilts heavily in Obama’s favor on health care. The memo, by Obama pollster Joel Benenson, doesn’t mention the public option (the White House may not be committed to it) and largely cites general numbers showing support for action and for Obama’s plan. But here’s the funny thing: We went back and checked, and virtually every poll cited in this memo also found strong support for the inclusion of a public plan. And just check the rest of that from Sargent's post and you'll see how a public option is wanted way more from the people than Fox wanting the day of its fall show "Glee" to come. Plus the people aren't omitting those two words. And also, read the comments section of that post from Greg, because he forwarded this to the White House. No e...

It seems almost a daily given that Greg Sargent writes a post at his Plumline blog that you find so unbelievably ridiculous that it has to be made up. (Un) Luckily though, in this political reality that we live in, the ridiculous is virtually a main part of the current events of our times. At a health care town hall thrown by little known Republican House member Wally Herger in Redding, California this past weekend (Friday to be exact), read this if you may . As a staunch advocate of no public option (what a surprise indeed), Rep. Herger was certainly receiving accolades from the heavily partisan crowd of skeptical government viewpoints in the town hall. So extreme were these people that the town hall included this fascinating moment that the local paper includes (once again, through via Sargent's post). Herger said the federal government does have a limited role to play in health care noting, “We do lots of things that are not in the Constitution.” “There are things we can do wit...

That is the question from the story you saw in today's agenda : As you know, a debate has been raging for days over what exactly happened last week when a bunch of SEIU guys got into a fight with black conservative Kenneth Gladney outside a town hall meeting in St. Louis. Fox News, Rush Limbaugh and others on the right have hammered away at the idea that video of the scene proves that union thugs attacked a conservative in order to deny him free speech — a version that’s strongly disputed by some on the left. But it turns out there’s actually a disinterested witness who was on the scene and may have witnessed the fight — and he has yet to share his version of events. And Sargent makes a great point here: The argument over what happened during that scuffle is at the center of a white hot national spin war over where public opinion is on health care reform right now — a battle whose outcome could shape the final legislative result. So if Wagman did witness the start of this figh...