The National Association of Free Health Clinics is holding its second clinic this Saturday in Little Rock. This was inspired by our friends Keith Olbermann and his healthcare warrior producer, Rich Stockwell.
I'll be there with Rich to tell you and Blanche Lincoln the stories of real Americans denied healthcare.
If you need free high quality care, please CALL 1-877-236-7617 for an appointment to register.
In the meantime, Blanche Lincoln the senior Senator from Arkansas remains way off the reservation.
And Arkansas, the state she represents in the United States Senate, ranks 48th in the delivery of basic healthcare per the Commonwealth Fund!
Senator Lincoln is under intense political pressure, her approval rating is 43%. She should also feel just a tad of moral pressure as well to do the right thing when it comes to her vote on healthcare.
Blanche Lincoln doesn't want to be rushed into any decisions, despite the fact that as a nation, we've been trying to pass healthcare reform for seventy years.
"What people want is for us to take our time and not rush into something that we haven't thought completely through,"
If you live in Arkansas, we're asking you to call Ms. Lincoln's office and demand that she vote for cloture. We need 58 Democrats and the two independents, Lieberman and Sanders to vote as a block.
355 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
(202) 224-4843
Fax (202) 228-1371
912 West Fourth Street
Little Rock, AR 72201
(501) 375-2993
Fax (501) 375-7064
Toll Free 1-800-352-9364
Blanche Lincoln will need to decide whether she wants to be on the wrong side of history. Our job is to encourage her to make the morally correct and politically correct decision. This shouldn't be so damn hard, 34% of her constituents are without health insurance! Ultimately she may decide to vote against the bill once it passes through the cloture hurdle. That of course, is her decision. I would hope even at that juncture, she will side with the people. But that comes later.
She risks a really nice primary challenge if she dares to vote against the people she represents.
In the process, Lincoln has riled liberal groups including MoveOn.org, which is targeting her with radio ads, direct mail and rallies outside two of her Arkansas offices. Perhaps more ominously, MoveOn -- working with the liberal group Democracy for America -- has amassed $3.5 million in pledges to fund primary challenges against any Democratic senator who sides with Republicans to block an up-or-down vote on a bill with a public option.
"We think it's really important for her to see there are negative political consequences to being on the wrong side of this issue," said Ilyse Hogue, MoveOn's campaign director. "There's no arguing she's in a conservative state, but she's going to face a tough election no matter what, and she can't do it without the base. These are the activists, the people who knock on doors, and she is really running the risk of alienating them."
But Blanche doesn't have to believe me that she's eyeball to eyeball with a primary challenge.
All we want is for her to vote as a Democrat. Very simple, clean and neat, one would think. To vote with her Democratic colleagues, and allow the bill to get to the floor of the Senate. Blanche is in a tough reelection, and her perceived electoral difficulties are weighing heavily on her. From what you read, she is placing her electoral realities and the fact that McCain carried Arkansas ahead of the needs of her constituents.
Speaking of John McCain, the man who carried Arkansas and makes Blanche Lincoln tremble in her amoral boots, how's this for his most recent pandering. This time McCain goes mano a mano against his erstwhile best friends at AARP. This from the man who without shame was pleased to make Sarah Nobody Palin vice president of the United States.
MCCAIN IS A CASE STUDY IN POLITICAL EXPEDIENCY A LA BLANCHE LINCOLN.
DID YOU KNOW, MCCAIN LOVED AARP BEFORE HE HATED THEM BECAUSE THEY STRONGLY SUPPORT HEALTHCARE REFORM?
HERE'S MCCAIN EXTOLLING THE VIRTUES OF AARP. OOH, HE MAKES ME SHIVER, HE'S SO MAVERICKY.
Just the other day at his town hall in Arizona, he told his sycophants to "tear up their AARP cards".
Will the political class ever understand why the American people hold them in such low esteem? How much of this is our responsibility, after all, we elect people like Joe Liberman, Blanche Lincoln. Mary Landrieu, Ben Nelson and others.
Ultimately, the American people are responsible for the likes of Sarah Palin and all those who vote against us. We buy the books they peddle and we lap up the lies they spew.