If I were to guess what the American people are looking to buy, it would be something that can be articulated pretty simply and emerges from some basic American values of fairness and common sense. I’d say it is really about these three things:

1. Every American gets a baseline level of solid health care. No one is left behind.
2. No American need be at risk of financial ruin or bankruptcy because they get sick.
3. The program is manageable and fiscally responsible. Americans want to feel reasonably certain we won’t see mushrooming costs like with Medicare and the prescription drug plan.

That’s it, Mr. President. We don’t need “Free! Free! Free! Preventive Care!” or a set of Ginsu steak knives to sweeten the deal. Put together a package that does these three things, pitch them clearly and simply, and you’ll close the sale.

What’s telling about the conversations surrounding the “evils” of government run health care is how many people seem to reflexively applaud the notion of government staying out of the business of health care…and yet nobody who’s on Medicare wants to get rid of it.
Watch the following clip and tell me it’s not frustrating to watch…

And [...]

The Senate remains the best chance to divide this government in 2012. Predictions three years out are indeed foolish, but barring some as of yet unrevealed scandal close to the President, I expect he will be reelected. The best chance to restore fiscal rationality in 2012 is for Republicans to take the Senate, and that will take two election cycles. A journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step, and the first step is for Republicans to pick up a couple of seats in 2010.

The GOP is finally able to get rid of one of their more embarrassing Senators.
The reason?
Money…
The writing on the wall may have been the news reported Sunday by the Louisville Courier-Journal that more than 100 former Bunning donors have signed up with Secretary of State Trey Grayson, a fellow Republican who has formed an exploratory [...]

This is just the Senate Health Committee’s bill, and there will be more to follow.
Still, if you want to take a glance…

More here.

So, Franken has finally won.
Now comes the hard part: establishing credibility.
Read the rest at True/Slant.

Nearly 9 months after the election, there appears to be some light at the end of the tunnel for Minnesota.
From the AP:
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) – The Minnesota Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered that Democrat Al Franken be certified as the winner of the state’s long-running Senate race.
The high court rejected a legal challenge [...]

You probably noticed that I didn’t write anything about John Ensign’s affair because it seemed like just another hypocrite doing what hypocrites do.
But when I read the following letter penned by one of Ensign’s former employees (as well as the husband of the woman Ensign pursued), I was moved enough to share it. You’ll find [...]

House Dems are bound and determined to make a public option their first priority, and I can understand why. This has been a long time coming and they’re convinced that only the federal government can compete with private industry.
But what she’s missing is the idea that Kent Conrad brought up…which is the public option may [...]

Burris went on Hardball tonight and Matthews took him to task for the latest revelation that he talked to Blago’s brother about raising money for the then Governor.
It’s must see stuff…

So sounds bad, right? But nothing will come of it. Here’s why…
Technically, Burris never did raise any money for Blago, and talking about it isn’t [...]

Popular Republican governor Charlie Crist is set to announce whether or not he’ll try to join the federal government, but sources are already saying it’s a done deal.
From Politico:
Florida Gov. Charlie Crist (R) will be announcing Tuesday that he will be running for the Senate, according to a source close to the governor, giving Republicans [...]

Republicans can call Arlen Specter an opportunist all they like and maybe they’re right. But the fact remains, the senator’s party jump is the direct result of the Republican’s increasing intolerance of moderates within their party.
I understand that Specter is not a model Republican and that a primary challenge is often the price a politician [...]

This is pretty big news. Reports out of Washington indicate Pennsylvania Senator Arlen Specter will switch parties moving from a Republican to a Democrat. The announcement is expected today or tomorrow.
Republicans in Pennsylvania have been planning to mount a primary challenge against Specter because the senator is viewed by party operatives as too liberal. Well, [...]

And of course Coleman will appeal, but it’s looking more and more likely that we’ll be calling the former SNLer Senator Franken in the very near future.
From Star Tribune:
After a trial spanning nearly three months, Norm Coleman’s attempt to reverse Al Franken’s lead in the recount of the U.S. Senate election was soundly rejected today [...]

That’s the word out today and it sounds fairly damning for Jackson because how would folks come to Blago and promise this if it wasn’t backed up by Jesse Jr.?
From Chicago Sun Times:
Former Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s camp was told last year that U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. (D-Ill.) would raise up to $5 million in [...]

It’s all done for Coleman, and yet…
From Star Tribune:
Democrat Al Franken today extended his lead over Republican Norm Coleman in Minnesota’s U.S. Senate election, after the counting of about 350 formerly rejected absentee ballots this morning.
Franken captured 198 of the ballots, while Coleman took 111. The ballots added 87 votes to Franken’s recount lead, enlarging [...]

In the wake of the Justice Department’s decision to drop charges against former Alaska Senator Ted Stevens, Alaska’s Governor is joining those making a rather absurd call:
Gov. Sarah Palin (R-Alaska) called on Sen. Mark Begich (D-Alaska ) Thursday to step down from his seat and run in a special election in the wake of the [...]

Thanks to a little-known congressional budget procedure called “reconciliation,” Democrats could pass sweeping healthcare reform without fear of a Republican filibuster in the Senate. When President Clinton wanted to use the rule in 1993, Democratic leaders in the Senate decided they didn’t want to abuse Senate rules on such important legislation. Sixteen years later, [...]

Senate Banking Committee Chair Chris Dodd has had better days. Looks like the AIG bonus scandal just found a political whipping boy:
Dodd just admitted on CNN that he inserted a loophole in the stimulus legislation that allowed million-dollar bonuses to insurance giant AIG to go forward – after previously denying any involvement in writing the [...]