America Can't Wait
by Gov Howard Dean MD
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Thu Sep 17, 2009 at 09:57:02 AM PDT
We're in the final stretch in our campaign for healthcare reform including a public option.
The good news is we're winning.
I know that sometimes it is hard to tell. After all August was a brutal month filled with right-wing fear mongering and misinformation. Whether led by Glen Beck, FOX news or Rep. Joe Wilson, too many Americans were told to disrupt Town Halls rather than participate in them. And of course the media covered every moment of it.
But the real story of August is that these scare tactics didn't work. Support for President Obama's Healthcare Reform Plan which includes the choice of a public health insurance option has increased since the beginning of August.
This is a testament to the fact that you never gave up. All summer we worked together to make sure Congress got the message that inclusion of a public option in any healthcare reform bill passed this year is non-negotiable. And every time Republicans tried to kill it or the insurance industry claimed it's already dead, you stood up and proved them wrong.
Now what we keep hearing is that Congress doesn't have the votes to pass a public option.
Once again, thanks to your help, we have proven them wrong..........................
When we work together, we're unstoppable. Thank you for everything you do.
-Howard
Governor Howard Dean, M.D.
AmericaCantWait.com
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more:
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2009/9/17/783419/-America-Cant-Wait...................
Howard Dean Blasts Baucus Healthcare BillSeptember 16, 2009 05:51 PM ET | Paul Bedard, Nikki Schwab | Permanent Link | Print
By Nikki Schwab, Washington Whispers
Howard Dean, former Democratic National Committee chairman, minced no words about Sen. Max Baucus's healthcare proposal, unveiled to the public this morning. "The Baucus bill is the worst piece of healthcare legislation I've seen in 30 years," Dean said last night at a healthcare town hall and book signing in Washington. "In fact, it's a $60 billion giveaway to the health insurance industry every year," he said. "It was written by healthcare lobbyists, so that's not a surprise. It's an outrage."
The Baucus bill leaves out some of the president's goals for healthcare reform, such as the controversial public option. While more palatable to Senate moderates, the Baucus proposal also drew criticism from Sen. Jay Rockefeller, a Democrat from West Virginia, who said yesterday he would not vote for it in its current form. "I'm glad Senator Rockefeller is not going to vote for it. I wouldn't vote for it at all under any circumstances," Dean added. Instead, Dean said Senate Democrats
should and would end up using the reconciliation process to pass a plan with the public option. "It can be done, and that's how it will be done," Dean said, pointing out that a majority of Senate Democrats still support a more robust bill.
more:
http://www.usnews.com/blogs/washington-whispers/2009/09/16/howard-dean-blasts-baucus-healthcare-bill.html