As usual, Jane Hamsher is three steps ahead of everyone. She called from the airport to give me a heads up on Pete Stark.
We don't love doing this, especially when it involves a really good progressive like Pete Stark. But no one on our side should not be yukking it up with lobbyists. Not now. Not when the most critical legislation in our lifetime is wending its way through the perilious legislative process.
Take a look at the Stark invitation here.
I'm going to make a public appeal to Congressman Stark. Please take the Whip Count Pledge.
It's a total no-brainer for him to agree to vote against any House legislation that does not contain a robust public option available to all Americans on Day One.
Many refer to Stark with great affection, as the new "father of Medicare". Stark maintains a fiercely protective shield for the program as chairman of the Ways and Means subcomittee on health, and to have the support on the Whip Count of a man of his stature, would be monumental.
Please don't be harsh with Stark's office. He's very much on our team, and I'm personally willing to forgive and forget. He can even have his evening with the lobbyists--if he takes the pledge.
Congressman Stark, we'd like to make a video of you taking the pledge, later today or tomorrow--at your earliest convenience.
Tell Pete Stark that we want to add him to the Health Care Heroes Honor Roll.
Here's the contact information for Congressman Stark.
Washington Office
239 Cannon Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
(p) 202-225-5065
(f) 202-226-3805
Fremont Office
39300 Civic Center Drive,
Suite 220
Fremont, CA 94538
(p) 510-494-1388
(f) 510-494-5852
Now, on to my daily very urgent housekeeping request. Please continue to help us do this work.
We hope you can continue to support this work. It costs money, can you please continue to donate. Thank you for your ongoing generosity.
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Big announcement coming tomorrow.
We believe we'll be adding a healthcare holdout to the Health Care Heroes Honor Roll. We're waiting for a statement which we've been advised to expect by the end of the day. As soon as it arrives, you'll know about it.
This is 100% due to the incredible work you've been doing. Please, please, please keep it going!
And now, let's convince Pete Stark to take the pledge.
Take a look at a new videos. Why do we put these up? Not to humiliate these people, but to educate the American people. And if they're humiliated, tough shit, they should be.
We're also showing you these videos because healthcare is the great moral issue of our time. These people are walking away from the dying. This is what they are doing. It's as plain as the nose on your face.
This is Bobby Bright. It's generous to say that Bobby simply lacks a moral compass. He is a man without a soul.
So, I'm going to educate you.
First, you may see a trend emerging. All those Democrats pathetic losers who want to kill healthcare reform, seem to alway be running away. Running from their defenseless position, and running from their constituents.
Shame on the Runners. Shame on Mike Ross. Shame on Bobby Bright.
Did you know that Bobby Bright joined the House Democratic caucus' most reactionary member, Jim Marshall (Blue Dog-GA), in opposing the Democratic Party's attempt to reach needy children with health insurance (S-CHIP). They were the only two Democrats to vote against the bill, which passed in a massive landslide, 289-139, with 40 mainstream conservative Republicans joining the rest of the Democrats to pass it. Currently there are 76,000 uninsured children in Alabama (and 307,000 in Georgia).
Remember the landmark Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009? When it came up for a vote, Bright was one of only 5 Democrats to cross the aisle and join the GOP to register their contempt for the concept of equal pay for equal work for American working women, the others being Dan Boren (Blue Dog-OK), Allen Boyd (Blue Dog-FL), Parker Griffith (AL), and Travis Childers (MS).
And here's a little more information on Mike Ross:
This is from an email Jane Hamsher and I recived from a long time Kossack who happens to live in the district Mike Ross represents.
The reason I'm writing you is that I live in Hot Springs, Arkansas, in Mike Ross's district. He already knows I'm a liberal rabble-rouser and never listens to anything I say (because I'm a real Democrat after all). So I just wanted to offer my help if there's anything you need done in Ross's home district. I'd be glad to make calls and write letters, though it's never moved him a bit in the past. But if there's anything I could do for you here on the ground in his district, please let me know.
Also, just FYI, here's some background on Ross. Apparently he is close friends with the Clintons and was Bill Clinton's driver when he was first running for governor. They went all over the state together. I've also been told (by Ross's district director) that Ross was hand-picked by Bill Clinton to run for Congress in this district, because the incumbent congressman, a Republican, had pushed for Clinton's impeachment.
And please keep in mind that this district is where Bill Clinton was born (Hope, Arkansas) and raised (Hot Springs). This is hard-core Clinton country, and if Hillary had been elected president and offered this same health plan, I guarantee you that Ross would be leading the charge for it. (A couple of years ago I was complaining to Ross's district director about health care. The director told me everyone knew Hillary was going to be elected, so how would I like to be able to buy into the same health plan Congress has? Once Hillary lost, apparently they didn't like that idea anymore.)
[Note: nyceve added the link]
HERE'S WHAT WE NEED YOU TO DO.
1.LETTERS TO THE EDITOR.
Look at this brilliant tool which Jane Hamsher devised. I'm telling you Jane is running on sixteen cylinders and cooking with gas!
Write a Letter to the Editor, and ask these Congresspeople why they want to kill healthcare reform?
John Barrow - GA 12
Mike Ross - AR 04
Baron Hill - IN 09
Bart Gordon
Jim Matheson
Charlie Melancon
Zack Space
1. LOCAL RADIO AND TELEVISION.
Can anyone get us a list of local radio and television stations in these districts? If you can compile this, please email it to me, and I'll update the diary, or put it in an upcoming diary.
3. STATE BLOGS.
Please register and post on all state blogs. You can post anything I write in its entirety, and I'm sure I can speak for slinkerwink as well. Just lift the whole damn thing and get it up on all the state blogs. And God bless you for doing it.
We hope you can continue to support this work. It costs money, can you please continue to donate. Thank you for your ongoing generosity.
https://secure.firedoglake.com/...