Okay, we know that it’s the conservative members of the House that are called “Blue Dogs” (not members of the Senate), but what a perfect visual for the actions of the North Dakota Democratic-NPL party’s put-down of its own senator, Kent Conrad (D-ND).

The party’s members recently reaffirmed a commitment to an even much more progressive health reform idea – single payer – but support a public option as a fallback. And in a letter to its three-member congressional delegation, it put its disagreement with Conrad out for all to see.

Conrad has been a nattering nabob of negativity when it comes to the public option – and as a member of the Senate Finance Committee, he’s used his position to try to euthanize. As far as the public option is concerned, several conservative Dems on the finance committee have essentially been their own  death panel for the proposal.

The Democratic party in Nebraska is also wielding a rolled-up newspaper. Senator Ben Nelson (D-NE) is another example of an elected official stubbornly pulling back on the leash while his masters are trying to walk forward.

Looks like the winter temperatures in these Midwestern states are going to be more frigid than ever for these two senators, bringing to mind the old Warner Bros. cartoons where the shivering dog looks longingly through the window while Sylvester lies curled up by a roaring fire.

That ain’t dog food

Political contributions from the health industry:
Conrad: $1.6 million
Nelson: $2 million

U.S. Rep. Alan Grayson hit the hornets’s nest squarely this week and then hit it again for good measure. We have a hunch he’s not about to put down his stick.

Now, Rep. Grayson faces the prospect of a bunch of ticked-off Republicans who suddenly are OK with the idea of a huge debate in Congress over Grayson’s antics, which include a rather pointed audiovisual presentation. It was a cute little stand-up routine and it spoke loudly and clearly of health reform proponents’ frustration with Republican efforts to stymie forward movement of the legislation.

Trouble is, we don’t feel a House debate over whether Grayson needs a trip to the woodshed is worth the wasted legislative hours. And we’re already tired of the coverage.

Not only that, but we were just plain irritated when opponents of health reform compared President Barack Obama to Hitler. Did we really need a reference to the Holocaust at this point?

If there’s something positive to come out of this, it’s that Grayson took the time to remind the media that up to 45,000 Americans die each year because they lack adequate health insurance – or lack any insurance at all.

The fact is, health care really is a life-or-death issue. If you don’t have health insurance, you’re more likely to die. Period.

We’re tempted to say that President Obama got Punk’d yesterday by the Senate, as Majority Leader Harry Reid announced that the Senate will not be able to get a health reform bill wrapped up before a month-long Congressional recess that starts in August.

We would love to have had Congress hammer out the bill. We took some satisfaction in knowing that legislators were going to have to put in long hours and burn the midnight oil in order to craft the legislation by the President’s deadline. (”Welcome to the world of overtime, Senator.”)

But deep down, we understand – and we agree – that this legislation has to be right. And we’re giving the President some props for backing off on his do-or-die August deadline, while still standing firm on his oft-repeated mantra that health reform must happen this year.

In his press conference Wednesday night, President Obama reassured the American public again that, as much as health reform legislation moving through Congress has faced a stiff wind of opposition, the legislation is steadily moving forward. As much as Democrats may complain about the dozens of amendments introduced by Republicans, we agree with his assertion that contributions from those amendments actually constitute progress – and will make the final bill that much better.

And while some in the opposition may say that this delay might mark President Obama’s “Waterloo,” we’re convinced that it simply reaffirms what we already believed: that unlike his detractors, this President isn’t focused on “winning at all costs,” especially if that win means the nation would end up with flawed health reform. The President’s pledge of bipartisanship is not a slogan, but something that comes from his core – and if moderates on the both sides follow his example,  America will enjoy a little more government and a little less politics.

In this case, President Obama’s patience is definitely a virtue.

Yesterday (February 26) the U.S. Senate voted to give the District of Columbia full membership in the House of Representatives. Next week, the House votes and the legislation is expected to pass easily. We applaud this long overdue move.

Image from Wikipedia. Public Domain.

Due to the District’s unique position as the seat of the federal government, voters in the District currently have  a non-voting representative in Congress and no Senators. Curiously, its residents could not even vote in Presidential elections until 1961. The disenfranchisement of those voters seems to spit in the face of the cry that launched this country: “no taxation without representation.”

Opponents of the bill (and readers of the children’s book “If You Give a Mouse a Cookie,”) fear that granting the District a voting member in the House will embolden it to seek two seats in the Senate. We think this is an unfounded fear.

House membership is apportioned on population, and  – on this basis  – the District deserves a vote. Members of the Senate represent distinct entities known as states. The city of Washington, D.C., may have more population than the state of Wyoming, but it is still simply just that – a city.

Naturally, there are political considerations as well. Because D.C. is an entirely urban area, most concede that the Democrats would have a lock on both new seats, upsetting the balance of power in the 100-seat Senate. While we might welcome Democratic members as being two likely votes for health care reform, we’re not convinced the move would be fair.

Other proposals to level the playing field for the District include a movement to seek statehood for the District, but at first blush, that appears to be a stretch. With a total area of about 68 square miles, the District is a mere 4 percent of the size of our teeniest state to date – Rhode Island.

So how about this? Instead of creating a micro-state or city-state, Congress might move to have the District reabsorbed into Maryland, from whence it came. Others have suggested this, and it would certainly fully enfranchise the voters living there.

Regardless of the solution, it’s time to give the District a real voice.