The legislation as sausage making analogy was never more true.

Waxie ..we're not werthy

This and cap'n trade...dang...he deserves a bonus

Who voted how?
My neighboring congressman, Bart Gordon, was one of 10 Democrats voting for Bush's tax cuts to the rich. Did he vote for whatever came out of the Energy committee?

If not, why should the party shouldn't the party let the health care industry, which gave him 27 percent of his 2008 donations, take care of him.

Waxman, Pelosi, the good guys and staffers -- thanks!

Looked like Rahm worked on getting this done too. Good job to all who got it through!

I am very proud of Waxman! My Congressman! He represents the West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, and Santa Monica part of greater LA. Very Democratic, very Liberal, tough and smart. If you want clean air, clean water, green energy, better education, a fairer tax code, and a continued march to Universal Healthcare ........ Waxie is your guy!

After a hard few weeks, this from the NyT report is sweet balm of Gilead.

Now the President has something to sell and the American people something to focus on...

Congress still has plenty of work to do in September to blend competing, sometimes contradictory health measures, but lawmakers have found a good deal of common ground on proposals that would profoundly change the health system.

Lawmakers of both parties agree on the need to rein in private insurance companies by banning underwriting practices that have prevented millions of Americans from obtaining affordable insurance. Insurers would, for example, have to accept all applicants and could not charge higher premiums because of a person’s medical history or current illness. All insurers would have to offer a minimum package of benefits, to be defined by the federal government, and nearly all Americans would be required to have insurance.

“The glory days are coming to an end for the health insurance industry,” Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Friday.

The chaos on Capitol Hill, combined with bitter disagreements over how to pay for the legislation and the role of a public plan, has obscured the areas of potential consensus.

Thanks, johnmccsf, for that reference to the nytimes article. I read it and posted what I got from it at Congressmatters--hope this is a good summation:

"There's a good article today from the NYT on using reconciliation to pass health
care:
http://www.nytimes.com/...

It points out that resorting to reconciliation could well strip health care of some important benefits--because of what the Finance and Health/Educ. committees have just passed, the reconciliation bill would have to find cuts which guarantee $2B in savings in 5 years. Doing that and getting to universal coverage would be 'very difficult'

Also, in the past Sen. Byrd put in provisions re reconciliation where you couldn't include money allocations without 60 votes--so back to needing 60 votes. Reconciliation would be scoured by the opposition for such allocations (apparently this is called getting a 'Byrd bath'!)

Then, the article says, you could split health care into 2 parts, policy and fiscal allocations, pass the money part with reconciliation, i.e. 51 votes, but then the policy part would still need 60 votes, i.e.some Republicans. The article points out that the Dems. now have only 58 votes at most as Ted Kennedy will not be able to come in to vote and Byrd is questionable. So--reconciliation is not a panacea."

wow, just watching Boehner--the coward--on CNN

what is the best way to act (don't have much money!) for people like me who live in an area where there is no chance our Senator or rep are going to budge? any strong organizers for calls to other states, etc.? suggestions please! thanks

BTW, I'm currently trying to start my own business and just got denied my own coverage a few days ago----------yeah!