Now that their scams have all been laid bare, Democratic leadership has resorted to firing on their own troops and threatening to run them all out of office if they don’t vote for the AHIP/PhRMA bailout.

So, it looks like it’s time to whip.

Why doesn’t Blanche Lincoln and Joe Lieberman ever get this kind of treatment?

Mickey Kaus, contrarian irritant — rumored ungulate predator, runs for Congress.

I can’t help thinking the primary deadline may have passed, but it is not at all too late for an Independent to step in, because there are going to be a lot of pissed off, pro-choice women in Marin County.

There has been a terrible and sad void in the birther community while its Jeanne d’Arc, Orly Taitz, appeals her numerous and varied cases against the Trilateral Commission, the Illuminati, and the Girl Scouts of America before the High Tribunal of Federated Planets. But not to worry. There’s a new wild-eyed, bugfuck crazy person stepping [...]

Marion Berry (D-AR) is unlikely vote for the Senate health care bill in the House, but he has recently submitted is own, less comprehensive health care bill. Primarily, what it does is fix the problems with the Medicare Part D program created by former Republican Rep. Billy Tauzin, which Democrats have been promising to fix for years. That is until President Obama promised now PhRMA lobbyist Billy Tauzin to not fix Medicare Part D as part of health care reform.

We have to do more than just be against the war. We have to expand the debate and allow for other solutions to be discussed besides just removing the troops.

Al Gragg’s Manifest Hope DC documents the grassroots art movement inspired by Barack Obama’s candidacy. Shot primarily at the opening of the Manifest Hope temporary gallery in Washington DC, the film features interviews with artists, musicians and community organizers set against a driving soundtrack and live performances, intercut with animation. It is really exciting to hear from the artists about their creative processes and to see how their conscious and unconscious minds expressed their feeling about Obama and the central issues of the progressive/liberal movement.

The outcomes in the House Budget Committee were somewhat revelatory. Allen Boyd voted against reporting out the reconciliation bill: he moves from a lean No to a No. Marcy Katpur, Marion Berry, Bob Etheridge and Tim Bishop voted Yes. In fact, Etheridge and Bishop took leadership positions on some of the motions to instruct; Etheridge’s words were absolutely enough for me to take him off the board; he’s a Yes. Bishop and Kaptur become lean Yes votes. Berry is harder to figure; he just put forward his own alternative health care bill, which signaled to me that he was giving up on this process. And he’s expressed support for the Stupak bloc. I’ll move him from a firm No to lean No, but no further.

If President Obama and other members of Congress actually thought the Progressive Caucus was honest and stuck to its promises, they would have moved heaven and earth to figure out a way to add a public option to the reconciliation bill.