Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
Rep. Alan Grayson (D-FL) is a freshman congressman representing Florida's eighth congressional district. He caused a sensation in late September with this speech about "the Republican Health Plan: (1) Don't get sick; (2) and if you do get sick… (3) DIE QUICKLY."
Republicans howled that Grayson called them out for their obstruction of health care reform and demanded an apology. Unlike his conservative Democratic colleagues who are easily intimidated and too readily appease Republicans, Grayson did not "validate" Republicans' feelings or apologize for speaking out of turn. Rather, he said "I apologize to the dead and their families," holding up this Study: 44,000 Americans Dead a Year From Lack of Health Insurance.
Grayson reminds me of the Democratic politicians with whom I was familiar when I was young. He is fearless – he takes no crap from anyone, and he tells it like it is speaking truth to power – with no apologies.
He is the kind of Democrat who has become a rare commodity with the rise of the DLC, New Democrats, Third Way and Blue Dog conservative Democrats over the past 30 years who triangulate Republican positions and all too often are ready to appease and empower the Republicans.
Grayson is a refreshing change from the cookie cutter drones churned out by the political consultant industry which has influenced politics, for the worse, over the past 40 years. Everything is demographic studies and poll tested positions, and political correctness – never say anything that may offend anyone, and apologize immediately if you do. Straddle the fence on every issue.
Well screw these overpaid political consultants and their drones! Give me an honest to God real person unafraid to tell me what they really believe and who will fight to defend their position, even in the face of constituent opposition, and who will fight for the core principles of the Democratic Party.
Even when people disagree with you, they will support you if you honestly speak your mind about what you believe and you are working to fight for them. Americans love a fighter. This is the test of leadership for Americans.
It's a shame that we do not have anyone with guts in the Senate who is willing to stand up and speak out like Grayson. In this speech from last week, Grayson tells it like it is. Why have White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel and Senate Finance Committee Chairman "Mad Max" Baucus wasted the summer bending over backwards to kiss "Queen Olympia" Snowe's ass in the hope of getting her solitary vote, when she has used the opportunity to badly undermine and weaken the committee's health care bill for her Republican allies, and in the end will vote against the bill anyway? "Queen Olympia" has been playing this "mythical moderate" from Maine game for years. How many times have we seen this before? Enough!
We have the Democratic votes in the Senate to pass a robust health care reform bill without any Republican votes that are never going to materialize. The only question is whether conservative Democrats will empower the obstructionist Republicans on a procedural vote for cloture to end debate.
Grayson: Madam Speaker I have words for both Democrats and Republicans tonight. Let's start with the Democrats. We as a party have spent the last six months– the greatest minds of our party dwelling on the question, the unbelievably consuming question of how to get Olympia Snowe to vote for health care reform. I want to remind us all… Olympia Snowe was not elected president last year. Olympia Snowe has no veto power in the Senate. Olympia Snowe represents a state with one half of one percent of America's population.
What America wants is health care reform. America doesn't care if it gets fifty one votes in the Senate or sixty votes in the Senate, or eighty three votes in the Senate– in fact America doesn't even care about that. It doesn't care about that at all.
What America cares about is this. There are over one million Americans who go broke every single year trying to pay their health care bill. America cares a lot about that. America cares about the fact that there are forty four thousand seven hundred eighty Americans who die every single year on account of not having health care. That's a hundred and twenty two every day. America sure cares a lot about that.
America cares about the fact that if you have a pre-existing condition even if you have health insurance, it's not covered. America cares about that a lot. America cares about the fact that you can get all the health care you need as long as you don't need any. America cares about that a lot.
But America does not care about procedures, processes, personalities– America doesn't care about that at all. So we have to remember that as Democrats. We have to remember that's what's at stake here is life and death, enormous amounts of money and people are counting upon us to move ahead. America understands what's good for America.
America cares about health care. America cares about jobs. America cares about education, about energy independence. America does not care about process or politicians, or personalities or anything like that.
And I have a few words for my Republican friends as well. I guess I do have some Republican friends. Let me say this. Last week I held up this report here and I pointed out that in America there's forty four thousand seven hundred eighty nine Americans who die every year according to this Harvard report– published in a peer reviewed journal– because they have no health insurance.
That's an extra forty four thousand seven hundred eighty nine Americans who die, whose lives could be saved– and their response was to ask me for an apology… to ask me for an apology. That's right… to ask me for an apology. Well, I'm telling you this– I will not apologize. I will not apologize.
I will not apologize for a simple reason. America doesn't care about your feelings. I violated no rules by calling this report to America's attention. I think a lot of people didn't know about it before hand.
But America does care about health care in America and if you're against it, then get out of the way. Just get out of the way. You can lead. You can follow– or you can get out of the way. And I'm telling you now to get out of the way.
America understands that there's one party in this country that's in favor of health care reform and one party that's against it and they know why.
They understand if Barack Obama were somehow able to cure hunger in the world, the Republicans would blame him for over-population.
They understand that if Barack obama could somehow bring about world peace, they'd blame him for destroying the defense industry.
In fact they understand that if Barack Obama has a BLT sandwich tomorrow for lunch, they will try to ban bacon.
But that's not what America wants. America wants solutions to its problems and that begins with health care. And that's what I'm speaking for tonight.
h/t crooksandliars.com
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No matter what anybody might say – height makes a difference. On foreign policy I think Dennis Kucinich is great but I think that a 6’5″ Kucinich would be 10 inches more effective.
height-ism – when will it end? Perhaps someone should pass a law (kidding).
Three cheers for Alan Grayson – the freshman Democrat who refused to be seen and not heard! I wish we had a ton of Dems with Alan Grayson’s clear view of what is really important. Now, as a woman, I don’t really want to dis Olympia Snowe – on the other hand, I am moved to apologize for a woman who lacks the clear vision of Alan Grayson!! By the by, I’ve read that he is 6’5″ tall – ya think that’s what makes the difference???????