the rightwing czar

Consider this your token bone thrown from the Almighty One himself. This way Captain Barry can try and make himself look like a moderate against the lunatics running Congress.

The White House disagreed this afternoon with the contention by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Maryland, that the disruptions at town hall meetings are “un-American,” as the Democratic congressional leaders contended in a USA Today op-ed this morning.

“I think there’s actually a pretty long tradition of people shouting at politicians in America,” White House deputy press secretary Bill Burton told reporters on Air Force One when asked about the comments.

Clever how Team Barry words this, right? They want you to know that they don’t think you’re being un-patriotic, but still can’t acknowledge that you’re doing anything more than “shouting at politicians.” Good call, Mr. President.

The White House might not think we’re un-patriotic, but they definitely think we’re delusional. Their new website to confront the “myths” about “health insurance reform” was put together to give us “reality checks.” And the links to share such “reality checks” via Facebook and Twitter have the condescending  instructions to “Give others a healthy dose of reality.”

Well, gee thanks Mr. President. I really appreciate you listening to my concerns about healthcare reform. Er, I mean, health insurance reform. It’s good to know that you think I’m in need of a “healthy dose of reality.” At least you don’t think I need a “healthy dose of patriotism.”

If this nervous, stuttering, man who has an absolutely horrible time speaking in front of the camera doesn’t scream “organized astroturfer” then I’m not sure who does.

And I say that with all do respect, of course. This guy is clearly just an average American worried about healthcare for his son. He isn’t polished and he’s not rattling off talking points that sound like they’ve been force fed to him by the RNC.

So what say you Ms. Pelosi? Is this one of the un-patriotic Nazis that the Republican opposition has been organizing into fake protests and angry mobs? Or are you just as full of it?

The most puzzling thing about this health care debate is why exactly Obama and the more left-wing Democrats in Congress are so intent on passing a bill that would destroy them in 2010 and beyond? That’s what I can’t figure out.

Sure, it makes sense that they have a particular ideological agenda – and that they want to satisfy the left-wing special interest groups and their base – but surely they realize they are going to alienate the moderates in the country, who are ultimately the ones that decide which party will be in power. The only reason to take extraordinary steps to satisfy your constiuents is to remain in power – but the hard-left in the country isn’t going to get you reelected in 2010.

What’s even more odd is that, despite polling that shows Americans do not want ObamaCare, left-wing Democrats keep telling us they do. What do they think that is going to do, besides piss people off when they see you clearly aren’t listening to what they’re saying?

The news this week has been that Obama’s approval on handling the health care mess has now dippedunder 50%. Less than half the people trust ObamaCare these days, but Pelosi still insists that they are going to ram the bill down our throats because Americans have been waiting too long for it:

Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Wednesday she intends to move forward with a vote on health care reform this summer and indicated Democrats may keep the House in session past its scheduled summer break if needed.”We believe that the American people have waited long enough,” Pelosi told reporters. “I want to see a bill.”

That’s fine, Ms. Pelosi. It’s your funeral. The question is though, are you so intent on passing this health care bill that you’re willing to give Congress back to the Republicans?

I’d love to see Republicans take back some power next year, but I can’t quite seem to figure out why the left-wingers running Congress seem like they’re working toward the same goal.

Just to ease the minds of those who were worried that the House was going to bankrupt your employer with taxes:

To raise revenue to pay for reform, the House Democrats health care bill would impose a surcharge on individuals making $280,000 or more and families making $350,000 or more.

Pelosi is now suggesting starting that surtax at individuals making $500,000 and families making $1 million.

So I guess the real question is which poison do you middle-class Americans want? Do you want the people paying your salary taxes out of their minds, or do you want our nation to crumble under its deficit? Well too bad, you’re probably going to get both.

At the end of the day, Pelosi is just going to try and make sure Democrats get reelected, regardless of what it does to the country. And this move today likely comes from another piece of news that probably has her a little worried.