And since their constituents have shown no interest in voting them out of office if they don’t support single payer, we’re stuck with that reality.

I hope single-payer-or-nothing advocates do mobilize against those who won’t support it in 2010. And again in 2012, and then go for broke in 2014. I sincerely hope it works. Never has before, the public has never prioritized health care reform that highly, and certainly not a demand for single payer, but maybe it will now.

In the mean time, I’m not sure how it helps any one to oppose something that can get passed now. In fact it seems rather cruel and absolutist. I usually want to smack people who say “let’s not let the perfect be the enemy of the good,” but in this case I think it actually may apply.

From a progressive perspective we can organize against the Blue Dogs who oppose him, but that’s pretty much it unless he really steps in it like he did on FISA.

We may be able to nudge things in a progressive direction on certain issues, which is why I took the poll on the McCaskill bill to limit executive compensation for TARP recipients — there is overwhelming support. But Obama himself took a public swipe at that, so we’d only be amplifying sympathies he’s already demonstrated.

The question is more along the lines of “Do you want single payer universal healthcare and not have to worry about getting sick in this country or do want some variant of the current crappy system?”

What I was trying to point out above is that Obama and the “mainstream” Democrats are really closer to the Blue Dogs in their positions than they are to ours or those of most Americans on health issues.

Also, I’m not sure who you’re talking about when you say “leadership.” Are you talking about labor leadership or congressional leadership? It seems like we started with the former and wound up with the latter, because if you’re accusing labor leaders of “going against the wishes of the people they are supposed to be representing,” I’d like to know specifically what you’re referring to.

Congress on the other hand? Yes. Absolutely. It’s been a problem for a while. Again, wishing for it to be otherwise is not going to make it go away in any time soon.

gotta go now (someone is waiting on me) but will hope for more conversation later.

unless there is a significant political realignment there isn’t going to be that kind of drastic change in the near future.

i guess i see the political realignment coming from mobilization around things like single payer as well as other efforts (like accountability now).

it’s easier to mobilize around the policy we want even though compromises may come – but like the current stimulus bill, too much compromise early on saps the momentum, energy and excitement needed to mobilize lots of people.

i’m not a smart analyst of anything political though…. just a v little experience in local grass root organizing, so i’m quite willing to entertain the idea that i have it completely wrong. would just like the case to be made in a way i and others can understand.