Blue Dog Democrats

Now I'm not a litmus test kind of guy, but if there is one litmus test for the Democratic Party, it has to be access to affordable healthcare. Christ Almighty, we as a party have been trying to get this basic right for Americans since FDR's first term.

The idea that there are Democrats who still want to enrich the insurance industry at the expense of the least of the us, is totally beyond me. Why don't these Blue Dogs just go ahead and switch parties and save us all the drama?

So, if I were POTUS, here's what I'd do. I would personally call each Blue Dog and give them an ultimatum: either vote for this watered-down bill or consider yourself on my personal, political hitlist. That hitlist would include anti-Blue Dog fundraising, radio and television ads denouncing the member as being anti-family, and proactive recruitment of a Progressive challenger.

If I were the Senate Majority Leader: I would ensure that any Democrat that doesn't vote for this watered-down bill, loses his or her chairmanship and any consideration for future chairmanships.

If I were the Speaker of the House: I would remove the office privileges of any Democrat who doesn't vote for this watered-down bill. In other words, I would deny the Blue Dog office space in the House buildings. This is totally within Speaker Pelosi's perogative. Even the wingers would have to respect that level of chutzpah by the Speaker. Can you imagine a House Member having to go back to his or her district whining "Nancy Pelosi won't let me in." Poetic justice at its best.

Another alternative to consider is a good-ole-fashioned ass whipping, administered by SEIU "thugs." If we're going to allow the right-wingers to frame them as such, they might as well earn their rightful title.

Now the alternative to all of the above radical ideas is this: Call each and every Blue Dog, detailing your relationship to the Member of Congress (i.e. My Aunt Millie lives in your district; I used to serve at Naval Station Umpty-Squat), and ask him or her to please stand up for working families, children, the disabled, and seniors. Follow up by writing a letter to the editor of the largest newspaper in the MC's district stating the same thing.

After all, "The only thing politicians fear is the next election."