In what Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) called the "Superbowl of Freedom," several thousand right-wing activists chanting "kill the bill!" descended on the West Lawn of the Capitol yesterday to protest health care reform. The event was organized by Bachmann and Americans for Prosperity (AFP) -- the billionaire-funded astroturf machine -- and endorsed by GOP lawmakers. With promotional help from Fox News and conservative radio, organizers called the event "an emergency house call on Congress" to stop heath care reform. Bachmann urged her followers to "scare" members of Congress, saying, "Nothing scares members of Congress more than freedom-loving Americans." Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) pandered to the crowd, saying, "Pelosi care is the greatest threat to freedom I've seen in my 19 years in Washington." While conservatives touted a crowd size of up to a million protesters, Capitol Police estimated the crowd was more likely around 4,000. As has become the norm at Tea Parties rallies, some of imagery was radical and offensive, with one prominent sign showing a gruesome an image of dead Holocaust victims to warn that the Democratic health care plan will do the same for Americans. The protests came on the same day as two key groups in the health care debate -- the American Medical Association and the American Association of Retired Persons -- endorsed the House Democrats' health care bill. The White House "seemed to pay little attention to events happening only blocks away," and House Democratic leadership is confident that the bill will pass this weekend.
ASTROTURFING: AFP, the corporate front-group founded in the 1980s by Koch Industries billionaire David Koch, worked closely with Bachmann to orchestrate the anti-health reform rally, encouraging right-wing activists to board their buses free of charge. Rep. Bob Latta (R-OH) praised the protesters for arriving at the Capitol without any assistance, but AFP's own staffers told The Progress Report that their group sent about 40 buses. Rep. Steve King (R-IA), a key promoter of the event, praised AFP for chartering the buses, saying it's "as if Paul Revere had ridden across America." The Progress Report found at least a dozen AFP staffers standing at their designated bus drop off point near the Capitol, handing out signs, directions, talking points, petitions, and donuts to protesters. AFP's daily activities are managed by Tim Phillips, an infamous astroturf lobbyist who built a career using Christian front groups to wage stealth campaigns. For example, his work includes fighting under the radar to promote energy deregulation for Enron and helping notorious lobbyist Jack Abramoff's clients. AFP and FreedomWorks have been instrumental in orchestrating dozens of anti-Obama tea parties and town hall disruptions. The Tea Party Patriots' listserv is managed by FreedomWorks staffer Tom Gaitens.
THE GOP TEA PARTY: Yesterday's "HouseCall" represented the GOP's strongest endorsement yet of Tea Party activism. The Tea Partiers have branded themselves as anti-government independents and many in the GOP have kept their distance thus far. But unlike the much larger 9/12 protests, which were chiefly promoted by Fox News personality Glenn Beck, elected Republican officials were the biggest cheerleaders for yesterday's rally. As MSNBC's Domenico Montanaro notes, "While other groups certainly got people to show up, the folks who came here ultimately came at the invitation of the Republican Party." In addition to "endless lineup of rank-and-file lawmakers and conservative All Stars" -- there were at least 60 GOP lawmakers on the stage -- party leaders like Boehner, Whip Eric Cantor (VA) and Conference Chairman Mike Pence (IA) all spoke, praising the activists and giving their full-throated support to the rally. As Politico's Johnathan Allen noted, "By the time activists started arriving at the foot of the Capitol around 8:30 a.m., it was clear no Republican leader could stay away." And while the crowd was "staunchly anti-government," -- "Politicians lie, people die" read one sign -- it "loudly cheered the House Republicans" when they spoke.
A RALLY BUT NO SOLUTION: Asked about the protest during his daily briefing, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said, "There is a rally going on without a solution on their side." Indeed, the recently released GOP alternative bill does little to address the problems facing the American health care system. The Congressional Budget Office found that the GOP bill would only insure about 3 million Americans, leaving 52 million without coverage while doing nothing to prevent discrimination for people with pre-existing conditions, as Boehner himself admitted. And because the plan allows coverage to be purchased across state lines, insurance companies would be permitted to ignore "all of the consumer protection laws or restrictions on rate changes of the state." The overall goal of the GOP proposal is to reduce costs, but millions of Americans would remain uninsured and continue to pay higher premiums. In fact, many members of the Republican House Leadership would likely be unable to find affordable insurance under their own proposal, should they chose to give up their government-sponsored plans. Republican leaders hosted an 12-hour-long web-cast "townhall" yesterday to defend their health-care proposal and "kill" the Democratic bill. The event, dubbed "Pelosi Plan Exposed: 12 Truths about PelosiCare and Republican Alternatives," stuck to right-wing talking points about the government "taking over" the health care system and did little to present the GOP plan as a rational alternative to the Democratic plan.
| ENERGY -- COAL INDUSTRY FRONT GROUP DISTRIBUTES COAL COLORING BOOK: Friends of Coal (FOC) is a front group run by the West Virginia Coal Association. It says its mission is to "inform and educate West Virginia citizens about the coal industry" and "provide a united voice for the industry." To make coal seem appealing, FOC has sponsored license plates, football games, basketball practices, plane jumps, fishing events, and scholarships. FOC's latest gimmick is aimed at selling coal to children. It has created a "Let's Learn About Coal" coloring book, which asks children to unscramble statements about the "advantages" of coal, such as "Than coal other cheaper is fuels" ("Coal is cheaper than other fuels"). Kids also learn that coal is "important" and "provides jobs for lots of people!" The FOC Ladies Auxiliary has been handing the coloring book out to children around West Virginia as part of a "Coal in the Classroom" campaign. Additionally, FOC Ladies Auxiliary members have visited children in West Virginia hospitals to give them a "special present": Mr. Coal, "a small, black Labrador stuffed puppy meant to bring a smile to kids' faces during hospital stays." (Coal pollution kills 24,000 Americans each year.) Find out more about what the coal industry is really doing to Appalachia at Appalachian Voices. |
A new labor report today indicates that the U.S. economy lost 190,000 jobs last month. Unemployment rose to 10.2 percent in October, the highest rate since April 1983 and "much higher than analysts expected."
Nidal M. Hasan's name "appears on radical Internet postings," including "posts that equated suicide bombers to soldiers who throw themselves on a grenade to save the lives of their comrades." A fellow officer says Hasan "argued with soldiers who supported U.S. wars," and while an intern at Walter Reed, Hasan reportedly had some "difficulties" that required counseling and extra supervision.
President Obama will make his first visit as president to Walter Reed Army Medical Center this afternoon. The White House says it scheduled the visit before the fatal shootings at Fort Hood yesterday. Obama is also pushing back a planned trip to Capitol Hill "aimed at discussing the proposed health care overhaul with lawmakers" from today to Saturday.
House Democratic leaders are trying to secure 218 votes to pass a health care reform bill this weekend. Of the 258 House Democrats, Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) -- while "confident of victory" -- is "working to limit defections to the roughly 25 Democrats viewed as 'hard no' votes."
The editorial boards of both the New York Times and the Washington Post today sharply criticized Congress' plans to expand a home buyer's tax credit as stimulus. "This costly giveaway to the real estate and mortgage industry will spend far more in taxpayers' dollars than it can ever deliver in economic benefit," writes the Times. The Post called the extension "a bad idea."
President Obama made a surprise appearance at yesterday's White House press briefing where he announced that the AARP and the American Medical Association endorsed health care reform legislation drafted by House Democrats. AARP CEO Barry Rand told reporters that the bill meets the goals of "making coverage affordable to our younger members and protecting Medicare for seniors."
Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas has warned that he will not seek re-election, an indication that President Obama's push for a Middle East peace deal "has fallen into disarray." Abbas' move comes among "tensions over the administration's failure to extract an Israeli settlement freeze or any concessions from Arab leaders."
The former chairman of Citigroup, John S. Reed, apologized for his role in leading the legislative charge that led to the merger that created the megabank. He said it was a mistake for Congress to repeal the Glass-Steagall Act and endorsed the breaking up of big banks.
Former New York Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik "pleaded guilty to charges of lying to Bush administration officials who vetted his unsuccessful 2004 nomination to be homeland security secretary." Kerik, a close friend of Rudy Giuliani's, "admitted to eight counts as part of a plea agreement with federal prosecutors, who are recommending a 27- to 33-month prison term."
And finally: A dramatic reading of Levi Johnston's tweets by William Shatner.
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