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In a recent piece at the Huffington Post, Sally Kohn eloquently wrote:
The single greatest thing we can do to honor the spirit of Obama's campaign and life work is bring as much enthusiasm to holding Obama accountable as we did to electing him.
Personally, I could not agree more. I'm sure some people will be hesitant to begin pushing Obama. Many of you are still reveling in the glory of this historic election and want nothing more than to keep believing the ballots cast on November 4th will equal the change we need. But our civic engagement cannot end with Election Day. Obama's campaign proved that America can truly harness its people power for positive and progressive change. NOW is the time to keep that momentum rolling.
Ok, so, how can you help? For a start, you can tune into the December 4th event Realizing the Promise: A Forum on Community Faith and Democracy. , organized by the Campaign for Community Values and the Gamaliel Foundation (for which Obama once worked). This event is an unprecedented opportunity for real, everyday people to have a voice in shaping public policy in our country.
During the forum, community leaders will speak directly with elected officials about the issues that matter most for all of us and the policies and solutions we need to make America work for all of us.
Check out this great video. about the event and what Realizing the Promise means...
AND - 3 Maryland State Representatives are confirmed to attend: Rep. Chris Van Hollen, Rep. John Sarbanes and Rep. Elijah Cummings.
First, President-elect Obama gives the Democratic weekly address on YouTube, something that will be a regular occurrence once he assumes office:
Next, Rep. Elijah Cummings of Baltimore tears into Neel Kashkari, head of the Wall Street bailout program, over reports of AIG handing out multi-million dollar executive bonuses even after AIG was nationalized:
UPDATE: Shoulda done a quick Internet "news tour" before hitting Save - bill has passed. Title updated, otherwise too busy now to tidy up original text accordingly; consider it a(n) historical diary/post, or something...
UPDATE #2: Just took a look at the roll call. In the Maryland CODEL, only Roscoe Bartlett (MD-06) stayed with his original opposition, voting against this new version as well. Previous opponents Donna Edwards (MD-04) and Elijah Cummings (MD-07) voted in favor this time. Ugh...
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As widely reported, some version of the "Bailout Bill" close to that passed by the Senate will likely pass in the House soon. There is a full-court press on for its passage, including personal calls from Obama to various Democratic Congresscritters. While some of the major lefty economists and economic populists still oppose the latest versions (Dean Baker, Ian Welsh, David Sirota, and William Isaac were among them, last time I checked), big names like Paul Krugman, Robert Reich, and Joseph Stieglitz are falling in line, though very unhappily so.
While the "Skeptics Caucus" headed by Brad Sherman (D-CA) and Peter DeFazio (D-OR) continues to voice opposition from the left side of the political spectrum, theirs is likely a lost cause for the time being. From Brad Sherman's Website comes a 7-page criticism (.pdf) of the bill; a decent alternative would have been nice, but given the breathtaking speed at which events have transpired, it would have been a huge effort to put something decent together in so short a time. These criticisms will hopefully be taken seriously and considered during the development of responsible legislation under what will hopefully be an Obama Administration.
To wrap up, here is a You-Tube video of Brad Sherman on the House floor (0:48), providing further indication of just how hard arms are being twisted up on the Hill.
From Tuesday afternoon's press conference by the House Democratic progressives caucus offering their bailout alternative, here's Donna Edwards (1:30):
From the Website of Peter DeFazio (D-OR), after the jump comes the text of a "Letter to (his) Democratic colleagues", and the text of the proposed Act itself. And, if you have the appropriate software - Real Audio, I think - you can watch video of today's entire press conference (57min) from DeFazio and cosponsors, via cspan.org - you can try this direct link to see if it works; since I don't have the necessary Real Audio software, I was unable to check out the direct link myself, to see if it works.
UPDATE: I finally got into Donna Edward's {house.gov} Website, as well as Elijah Cummings'; hopefully the House server continues to stay up. Here is a statement Edwards released yesterday on the bailout, and Elijah Cummings also released a statement yesterday; although relevant, they are separate and distinct from today's just-announced DeFazio bill these two MD Dems are cosponsoring (see below). Both announcements have been inserted in this post - after the jump, at the bottom...
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There has presumably already been a press conference on this (scheduled for 3pm today, according to Stoller), but I am TV-less, so here is the information from SEIU's Website:
New Plan Would Protect Taxpayers, Tighten Regulatory Safeguards
WASHINGTON, DC - The two million-member SEIU (Service Employees International Union) is backing the plan announced today by Rep. Peter DeFazio and other Members of Congress to restore confidence in the financial markets. The new bill, called the "No BAILOUTS Act" (Bringing Accountability, Increased Liquidity, Oversight, and Upholding Taxpayer Security), is being introduced by Rep. DeFazio (OR-04), with Rep. Kaptur (OH-09), Rep. Scott (VA-03), Rep. Cummings (MD-07), Rep. Doggett (TX-25), Rep. Holt (NJ-12), Rep. Edwards (MD-04) and Rep. Hirono (HI-02).
[continued...]
The rest of SEIU's announcement is after the jump (along with Edwards' and Cummings' press releases from yesterday)...
Last night's speech from President Bush, urging Americans to stay the course (yet again) on Iraq, doesn't appear to be going over well, or at least isn't winning over any opponents. Fred Kaplan:
President Bush's TV address tonight was the worst speech he's ever given on the war in Iraq, and that's saying a lot. Every premise, every proposal, nearly every substantive point was sheer fiction. The only question is whether he was being deceptive or delusional.
He seemed almost broken to me. His voice raspy, his eyes watery, his affect exhausted, his facial expression almost bewildered. I thought I would feel angry; but I found myself verging toward pity. The case was so weak, the argument so thin, the evidence for optimism so obviously strained that one wondered whom he thought he was persuading.
The response from Maryland's congressional delegation has been similarly hostile:
Rep. Elijah E. Cummings, a Baltimore Democrat, said Bush's speech once again "changes the goals" for Iraq.
"There was going to have to be a drawdown anyway," Cummings said. "It's almost insulting to any informed citizen."
Democratic Rep. Chris Van Hollen of Montgomery County said Bush's speech delivered "more of the same," which he said would mean "more deaths, more billions of dollars lost, more insecurity."
It's also good to see the major Democratic presidential candidates call more strongly for ending the war now than they have (Garance Franke-Ruta rounds up their responses). I especially liked John Edwards' televised rebuttal:
Alyce Driver shed silent tears at a news conference yesterday to announce new pediatric dental programs aimed at preventing deaths such as her son Deamonte's, who died in February at the age of 12 after an unchecked tooth infection spread to his brain.
The Prince George's County woman has avoided attention since her son's death forced lawmakers here and in Washington to focus on improving dental care for children of poor families. But she attended the event at the University of Maryland Dental School in Baltimore to witness something positive come from her loss.
With Driver as their witness, officials with the dental school and UnitedHealth Group, a Medicaid provider, agreed to work together to train dentists in pediatric dentistry, hire a pediatric dental fellow to provide care to poor children full time and employ a case manager to ensure that Medicaid recipients, especially children, see a dentist regularly.
The deal was orchestrated in part by Rep. Elijah Cummings, who is also introducing "Deamonte's Law," which would expand dental care to low-income health centers and train more pediatric dentists, and supporting expanded dental coverage in the State Children's Health Insurance Program.
For myself, increased support for SCHIP would be the best thing to emerge from the tragedy of Deamonte Driver and other kids like him, because it could point in the direction of a more integrated health care system -- one that could better control costs while providing comprehensive care, and one less likely to make finding a dentist a harrowing experience for low-income people. Not for nothing has Rahm Emanuel called the recent push to expand SCHIP in Congress "spring training for universal health care."
Of course, as has been noted here and elsewhere, President Bush and the Republicans have vowed to let the SCHIP expansion go through over their dead bodies. Which might well happen (at least metaphorically): SCHIP is ridiculously popular, and let's face it, arguing for denying children access to health care is a losing proposition. And yet, that's what they're doing; not because it's not an effective program (it is), but because government simply can't be in the business of providing access to affordable health care -- even if it works, and often better than private insurance. As Paul Waldman observes, rarely has the GOP's antigovernment ideology been so openly on display:
It highlights the fundamental divide between the right and the left: Progressives believe we're all in it together, while conservatives say we're all on our own and we're all out for ourselves. Progressives think government has to do the things markets can't do -- and when it does them, it ought to do them well. Conservatives are so blinded by their antigovernment ideology that when they get hold of government they turn it into a corroded mess of cronyism, corruption, and incompetence, a dilapidated whorehouse where the plumbing doesn't work, the paint is peeling off the walls, and everything is for sale.
U.S. Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) and Maryland Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler (D) were announced today as Maryland co-chairmen of the presidential campaign of Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.).
Obama also released the names of 28 other elected Democrats from Maryland who are supporting his campaign. The list includes eight state senators, 17 delegates and three other local officials, including Glenn F. Ivey, the state's attorney from Prince George's County.
You can see the full list of politicians endorsing Obama at the link.
Now, assuming that Maryland will play a decisive role in the Democratic primary -- a notion I've cast doubt on -- and assuming that politicians' endorsements are an accurate proxy for voter sentiment, one could argue that this announcement signifies that no presidential candidate has a lock yet on our state. Hillary Clinton may have the Governor and the senior U.S. Senator, but Obama has an impressive set of advocates as well. Does anyone know if John Edwards has picked up any endorsements in Maryland?
Readers of the internets know that recently, the Nevada Democratic Party planned to hold a presidential debate later this year, hosted by Fox News. Soon, the liberal blogosphere, as well as rank-and-file Nevada Democrats, protested that it was not a good idea for Democrats to be legitimizing a Republican propaganda outlet. And indeed, after candidates John Edwards and Bill Richardson said they would not attend the debate, it was canceled. It was a great victory for Democrats -- they were not about to let the likes of Sean Hannity or Bill O'Reilly have a say in how Democrats choose their candidates for President.
Fox News, rebounding from a presidential debate squabble with Democrats, has a new deal with an old debate partner. The cable news network will co-sponsor primary debates for each party's presidential field this fall in association with the Congressional Black Caucus Political Education and Leadership Institute.
The Democratic debate is scheduled for Sept. 23 at Detroit's Fox Theater. The CBC Institute and Fox have not set a date and place for a planned Republican debate. The institute and Fox News teamed up to host two Democratic debates in 2003.
