Vacation, huh. . Jim and I got talking last night about what would LBJ do in this situation. So here's my imaginary LBJ plan of how to deal with the opponents of health care reform, should they take a vacation without passing a health care plan.
- Minion number 1, make an Excel spreadsheet of all the Blue Dogs and GOP single payer and health care reform opponents. Find the Blue Dogs here at downwithtyranny's diary. Or here at their web site. Find the GOP here. (By the way, the Blue Dogs are not all worthless. . .)
- Minions numbers 2-N (N= as many as want to play), for each Blue Dog and GOP, make a list of the federal stimulus money passed by this Congress, signed by this President, in each of their districts. Pay particular attention to Louisiana, where Gov. Bobby Jindal, who hollered loud and long he wouldn't take any federal stimulus money, was photographed with those big phony cardboard checks with his name on the bottom, passing out federal money. Pay attention to Mississippi, where ex RNC Chair and current Republican Governors Association and MS. Governor Haley Barbour has been bawling about not taking federal stimulus money but secretly having an affair with a federally funded chocolate creme pie. Put all the info in that spreadsheet, in the column next to each name. So for example, Charlie Melancon, LA - 03, has a district that includes New Orleans, Baton Rouge, places devastated by Hurricane Katrina. Don't forget to sum the $ at the bottom of the column.
- Minions numbers 3 - N, list on that same Excel spreadsheet the home town newspapers, radio stations, and tv stations of each listed Blue Dog and GOP. Find their positions on health care reform. Mark in red the media that are against health care reform.
Now, if I were the President, with the above information I'd call up each of those Blue Dogs and say the equivalent of what LBJ once told Senator Frank Church of Idaho when Church crossed him on a vote by saying that columnist Walter Lippmann shared his view, "Frank, next time you want a dam in Idaho, you call Walter Lippmann and let him put it through."
In this instance, however, we are going further.
- Minions numbers 4-N, list the major church, synagogue, temple, and mosque congregations in each district. For example, Heath Shuler, NC-11, he's got Asheville, Hendersonville, Black Mountain and Waynesville as major cities in his district. Here is a short list of Asheville churches. .
- Minions numbers 5-N, distribute the information concerning each district to every local congregation - via email or in person - and invite every congregation to visit their Blue Dog or GOP while they are on vacation and say "We want health care for every one of us. See all this federal money in this District? Next time you want federal funding, you call (Name of newspaper/radio station/tv station against health care reform) and let him put it through."
- Repeat til they get it.