There's your fucking bullshit healthcare reform bill, Senators.

[smoogatz]

That's what the voters in one of the most liberal states in the country think of it, and that's just a little preview of how it's going to look in November if you don't fix it.

[mrbarber]

1. There's you cutting off your noses to spite your faces, voters.

[FLyellowdog]

2. I've already posted this, but here it is specially for you.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/01/19/AR2010011904346.html?hpid=topnews

[RedCloud]

7. Good point there!

[smoogatz]

8. I think he's completely wrong.

I think it was entirely a referendum on the performance, or lack thereof, of congressional Democrats--and the non-leadership coming from the White House. The voters want to stick it to the health insurance companies, they don't want to be forced to buy their shitty product. The senate came up with the ultimate anti-populist "reform" bill, basically a huge gift to the insurance companies, and voters are angry. Not with the idea of healthcare reform--with the bullshit result. Democrats should see this as a warning shot coming from one of the most liberal states in the country.

[fascisthunter]

3. that's about right

don't expect them to see it that way though. Their eyes and ears are fine, it's what's in between that doesn't function well because of money.

[Codeine]

4. Yeah, because electing a Republican

really sends a message about HCR that screams "move left!"

You people are out of your fucking minds.

[smoogatz]

9. It's not about left or right for indies and moderates.

Most people don't think that way. Poll after poll shows that voters don't want mandated health insurance, and they do want a public option--and in fact Obama ran opposing mandates and in favor of the PO. The senate Democrats gave voters exactly what they said they did not want, both in recent polling and in November. If I'm out of my mind, so is Howard Dean--he's saying pretty much the same thing.

[WonderGrunion]

5. A teabagger won tonight

That will just convince Democrats to vote more like teabaggers.

If you wanted to send a message you would have gotten a Green or Socialist elected. That would push them more to the left.

[smoogatz]

11. It's not me sending the message.

Given the chance, I'd have voted for Coakley. But you don't give voters in a very liberal state a passionless, center-right technocrat in Democratic clothing and expect them to get fired up about it. The other side had voter enthusiasm through the roof, and they ran a guy who was charismatic and well-spoken, and who ran what I think was probably one of the most disingenuous senate campaigns in recent history, except maybe for a few of the new Dem senators in the 2006-08 cycle, who turned out to be a lot more conservative than they let on. If Democrats govern/run even further to the right, they'll get absolutely pounded in November. The base will stay home, and leaners and indies will throw the bums out. The problem we have, I think, is that a lot of sitting Dems neither understand nor support core Democratic values. Voters can tell when politicians are evasive and equivocal in their beliefs--and those are the incumbents that will get their asses handed to them in the fall.

[jpak]

6. Fuck yeah - and when Obama appoints another Supreme, we'll teach him another lesson!

no namby pambly liberal activism baby killin' judges for our new friend Scott Brown!

He's gotta curlin' iron *AND* a coat hanger.

fuck yeah!!11

:thumbsdown:

:puke:

[smoogatz]

10. You obviously misunderstand me.

I think Brown's win tonight is a catastrophe. But it doesn't surprise me one little bit, and Democrats had better pay attention. If they don't start acting like the populist reformers they campaigned as, things are going to get seriously ugly in November.