CO-04 (Special Election)
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(R) Greg Lopez
(R) Trisha Calvarese
90%
10%
President (To Win Colorado)
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(D) Joe Biden*
(R) Donald Trump
80%
20%↓
CO-01 (Denver)
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(D) Diana DeGette*
90%
CO-02 (Boulder-ish)
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(D) Joe Neguse*
90%
CO-03 (West & Southern CO)
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(D) Adam Frisch
(R) Jeff Hurd
(R) Ron Hanks
40%
30%
20%
CO-04 (Northeast-ish Colorado)
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(R) Lauren Boebert
(R) Deborah Flora
(R) J. Sonnenberg
30%↑
15%↑
10%↓
CO-05 (Colorado Springs)
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(R) Dave Williams
(R) Jeff Crank
50%↓
50%↑
CO-06 (Aurora)
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(D) Jason Crow*
90%
CO-07 (Jefferson County)
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(D) Brittany Pettersen
85%↑
CO-08 (Northern Colo.)
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(D) Yadira Caraveo
(R) Gabe Evans
(R) Janak Joshi
60%↑
35%↓
30%↑
State Senate Majority
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DEMOCRATS
REPUBLICANS
80%
20%
State House Majority
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DEMOCRATS
REPUBLICANS
95%
5%
August 07, 2009 10:16 PM UTC
22 Comments
In a way it seems arbitrary — this kind of lunatic rhetoric is being very skillfully managed by the anti-health reform lobby; and note the same degree of acrimony wasn’t developed around the climate change bill.
You raise a good point: this extremist activism has made health care reform opposition the repository for all the visceral rage of the 9/12’ers, the Birthers, and the Teabaggers. At an event yesterday, I heard Jeff Crank say that he didn’t know what was in the bill, but he was agin’ it.
Let’s face it, the Teabaggers are anti-taxers opposed to a plan that reduced taxes for the majority of them; most of the anti-healthcare crackpots are senior citizens eligible for and receiving Medicare; and climate change deniers seem deeply invested in protecting Big Oil’s strategy, that has deeply hobbled America’s economic and national security.
I’m left wondering, does all this “issue rage” just boil down to dog whistles for classic identity politics, as Krugman asserts?
Summed it up very nicely. Excellent post.
I would really like to see Glen Beck perform the feats of strength.
their fellow wingnut President, backed for years by his rubber stamp congress, the Dems safely cowed by post 9/11 fear of not looking sufficiently tough on terror, never mind whether or not the wingnut anti-terror strategy ever made a lick of sense.
They just can’t believe that their nightmare has come true. Democrats all over the place from the statehouse to congress to the White House and the one in White House isn’t even a white man. Good golly!
In fact, white folks aren’t even going to be the majority pretty soon and already pols can lose the white vote and still win. That’s not the spot these people ever thought they’d be in. Their world has been turned upside down and they aren’t going to accept it without a lot of kicking and screaming. About everything and anything.
But you have a majority of Americans opposed to this bill, and the President just called out a goon squad who got caught attacking a peaceful protester in St. Louis. Who happens to be black and was racially taunted and assaulted.
Healthcare is over. EFCA is definitely over. All we have to do is show that video over and over. Who would trust the unions to make fair and just decisions regarding elections after watching purple shirted thugs beating unarmed, well-behaved people protesting proposed government policy?
This looks like it might have been the tipping point.
And the majority of people are not against healthcare reform. Besides the just say no Rs on the one side you are forgetting that disapproval of the bill also comes from those who don’t think the bill goes far enough but will support substantial progress over your party’s do nothing alternative.
As to your video remark, it’s a stretch on a number of levels and you don’t seem to be bothered at all by any video of your folks shutting down all discussion by shouting down speakers only at Dem events, comparing non-existent grandma killing elements of the bill to the Nazi extermination of 6 million Jews, falsely claiming everyone will be forced onto a public plan and private insurance will be outlawed, or giving their babies swastika signs to hold, for God’s sake. All of that is just fine with you.
I’m deeply disappointed in you on this whole subject, LB. Disgusted, in fact, more in sadness than in anger, to see you standing shoulder to shoulder with ignorance, fear and hate.
Listen to what they are shouting about. Half the time it has nothing to do with healthcare and is all of a piece with the birther nonsense and anything else they can come up with in their desperate attempt to escape the reality of the way we are now with a mixed race president and white people headed toward losing their majority status. Your gloating over your precious tipping point just might be a tad premature. At least I hope so. May you be soundly defeated on this one, LB
I still haven’t seen anyone actually “shouted down” and unable to speak. If you have video, please post it. I think it’s a canard being used out of desperation that this bill has unexpectedly run into so much trouble within the Dem party and an enemy has to be created to refocus attention on.
Anyone using Nazis comparitively is a moron. Nothing is like the Nazis.
I know you want to lump in authentic opposition to this bill with birthers and racists, but the truth is, the numbers aren’t working for you. Many, many people (in both parties) have big questions about this bill and opposition to portions of it.
That’s why we’re getting such a frenzied conflict over it. It’s THE piece of legislation Obama wanted, and now it’s in terrible trouble, and it’s tangible opposition from inside your own party, otherwise it would have flown through the House and Senate.
Sorry if you’re disgusted with me. I really am.
So you’re not interested in dialogue, just in condescending?
You are just repeating rightie talking points. I’m done now. It’s too depressing.
Too bad.
We are clearly getting nowhere talking past each other. It seems pointless to continue this way. There have been other subjects on which we could engage in the past and I’m sure there will be in the future but I think we’ve said all we have to say to each other on this one. Seems like a good time to take a little disengagement break.
I hope you have a great weekend. No snark.
Now just for the record, what kind of insurance do you have for your family? How secure is your access? I don’t mean to invade your privacy, seriously. But your win hurts my family. I want to know how you have managed to keep your family immune from the consequences.
My family is dealing with preexisting conditions and insurance linked to jobs which are vulnerable, as our everyones, in this economy. When I talk about family, I am talking about what I call, affectionately my house of many colors…I am talking about extended family and adult kids….Medicare takes care of me. I am doing just fine.
So how do you do it, LB…
Let’s actually reform healthcare, not just soak the rich and allow government to take it over.
Any bill that doesn’t even mention tort reform doesn’t have reform in mind. It has power in mind.
I pay for my own insurance for my whole family. It’s expensive, but I have to do it. I’m really happy with Kaiser – as you probably know with little kids there tend to be a lot of doctor visits. I have three jobs and my wife also works. We’re not rich at all, but we’re happy, and I’m proud to work so hard to provide for my family.
One of the reasons healthcare is so expensive is the uninsured using the emergency room as their PCP, and not paying for it. That must be a terrible position to be in, and I’d be willing to pay higher taxes to find an option for people that simply can’t afford it. I simply see no reason to eliminate my options (yes, the bill effectively does that) in order to accomplish its goals.
I read a really interesting look at the debate on Greg Mankiw’s blog, where he contrasts the dissection of the bill by Krugman and Keith Hennessey.
That breaks it down for me, as well. The lunatics are controlling the debate on this one, though, unfortunately.
I think the Dems are unwilling to acknowledge that the majority of opposition to the bill really isn’t coming from asshole racist birther fringe teabaggers, but from people like me who bother to engage in civil (mostly) debate with a bunch of liberal Dems on a blog like this. Like Bluedog Dems.
Yes, the usual suspects are opposing it because they oppose it, but is that really a surprise? They’re just more prominent because they have a bigger group that agrees with them on this one.
I’m incredibly disappointed in the way the administration has handled this one. The email enemies list thing might actually be illegal, and it’s so stupid and unnecessary. Sending the SEIU into these meetings to intimidate people is only going to hurt his cause.
That video is very damning, and if they’d let the small fringe of awful people at these rallies be, you’d have video just as bad or worse. Instead he’s played right into the hands of the Limbaughs and Coulters by basically being complicit in a racist beating by a group of people wearing SEIU shirts and a Carnahan staffer. In the information age, it’s a total disaster.
There’s hope that this bill can be reworked to actually accomplish some reform instead of just raising taxes and expanding government. It’s a fundamental disagreement that I will respectfully probably always have with most of you here. I will never want to have the government in charge of any aspect of my healthcare, and I’ll try to do whatever it takes to make that happen.
Now, I don’t know kaiser. Can they drop you for any reason, other than not able to pay? The HMOs make a profit on something called Medicare Advantage (I think I got that right) ….if the gov drops that plan and that looks like it is going to happen, regardless of health care reform, then Kaiser may raise premiums…what is your outside limit for premiums?
so there are two parties to this contract…you and Kaiser…your ability to maintain your part is dependent on your ability and that of your wife to keep working four jobs. Kaiser’s part of this is to be able to keep covering you and your family without compromising its financial health. There are a lot of variables there which could compromise your ability to continue….do you have a safety net?
As for tort reform, we have had it in Colorado for more than twenty years. How do you see that helping the health care picture here? Is Kaiser cheaper in Colorado than other places????
The uninsured using emergency rooms for routine care is one factor in rising costs….as is the incredible profit insurance companies are making….as is the growing number of older people which makes care more expensive even before hitting medicare….cancer starts hitting in the 40s. There are many other factors and I welcome your willingness to look at them.
I congratulate you on the lengths you are going to provide health care for your family.. i wish you good health and full employment.
But malpractice costs and tort reforms are NOT the big issue in the cost of Health Care. I know that it’s SOP for Repubs to hoot about how lawyers cause all the evil in the world, and now the health care debate lets them drag out their tired and angry hate speech, but it’s getting old.
We already HAVE caps on Malpractice awards in Colorado….and it still doesn’t prevent medical professionals from doing “defensive medicine.” They still do the extra tests over and over again.
Also, despite the bogus mythology that malpractice lawsuits are the equivalent of wining the lottery for the plantiff, the majority of money awarded in these cases is for long-term care, not BMWs and vacation homes in Vail.
If we have real health care reform in terms of bringing down the cost of care, that portion of any malpractice settlement drops significantly.
Instead of going with the traditional GOP whipping boy of evil lawyers, a better solution is what Pres Clinton put in his health care reform bill – indemnity from malpractice if the medical professional follows a set of best-practice guidelines. Partner that with binding arbitration with a special Ombudsman trained in both the law and medical procedures, and that takes care of 90% of bogus lawsuits.
And we need something that Pete Coors proposed in his Senate Campaign – A malpractice court.
There, a panal of doctors reviewed the case and either found that there were errors or not. It was not a binding decision, but if they found for the patient, nine times out of ten, the insurance company would settle, w/o suing…which really saved on the cost. If they found for the doctor, the patient still had the option to sue, but it would be discouraging…I moved out of state and I don’t know the current situation…
Here, in Colorado, in my house of many colors, we have had two cancers since tort reform…both now in remission, Thank God, however…both were delayed diagnosis by doctors who chose not to do the “endless tests”….in one case, the cancer spread, in both cases the delay meant more expense, worry and a certain amount of suffering……malpractice…under those conditions?….no lawyer would touch it….not worth the contingency…and
IMHO….what tort reform has done in Colorado has allowed a wider margin for doctors to make mistakes…..so protocols are not as strict…I absolutely could be dead wrong…just my humble observation….earned at great cost.
I’m permanently uninsurable due to a preexisting condition, so I either always have to work for someone else, or go without health insurance and pay cash and pray. How’s that for encouraging entrepreneurship?
The government is not taking control of any aspect of your healthcare in this bill. You can still go out and buy whatever insurance you want. Stop parroting banal, moronic talking points and read the friggin bill. The wackadoodles spend more time accusing Congress of not reading the bill than it takes to actually read the bill. In fact, Congress has all read the whole thing (at least the Democrats have). They went to mandatory caucus meetings where they went through the bill section by section.
I’ve read it. 1200 pages is not that much when it’s a maximum of 25 lines per page. You can burn through it in a few hours.
you’re completely out of your mind. I know that you don’t like unions, and I completely agree that the SEIU employee who punched out the guy handing out flags was a thug, but until you can show me some hard evidence–as in, something other than “punch back twice as hard”, which was hardly a call for violence, and was completely metaphoric–that the White House is directly related to it then it’s not a legitimate part of this debate. You want to have a civil debate, then stop throwing in red herrings every post.
Like Thilly said, read the bill, and point me to some supporting evidence form the source to back up your claims. Until you can do that, it’s all empty talking points.
That being said, I am very glad to have you here discussing this issue. I wish more Republicans could treat it like you have, and stick around for the conversation, rather than turning it into a power grab.