Now that the Democrats have had time to settle in, having won control of both houses of the US Congress, we can assess their recent record and bask in all the successes they’ve made.
- They didn’t just go along with the invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan. A majority of them voted on principle to not define the US by war and oppression, but by close examination of facts and evidence even when it meant questioning the US President. And let’s be practical, who wants to be a party to war crimes? They haven’t altered this clear anti-war stance for years.
- Somehow the invasion of Iraq happened anyhow but the Democrats ended the occupation once they were put into office during the 2007 mid-term election. That’s why you won’t find any American troops, American mercenaries, or American corporations in Iraq today. The Democrats used the power of the congressional calendar (which the Democrats control) and setting conditions on how to spend money on the occupation in order to say “This far and no further!”.
- The Democrats kept impeachment alive and we’re all better off for it. We’d look like first-class dumbasses if we supported some party that said they wouldn’t consider holding people responsible for corruption on the order of “high crimes and misdemeanors”! The Democrats are keeping our heads where they belong: challenging the wars abroad so we don’t have to challenge each other at home.
- The Democrats’ strong support for HR676, a single-payer universal health plan also known as “Medicare for All”. That’s why the 47+ million Americans without health insurance is a thing of the past. No more fearing that you’ll be left to the tender but expensive mercies of the emergency room; no need to worry where chronic care will come from (like insulin for insulin-dependent diabetics) because Americans are all covered now. The Democrats didn’t ignore the majority of Americans who have long held that universal health care is desirable even if it means paying more in taxes to get it (this, despite Americans paying already more per capita for health care than countries that already have universal coverage). While Vice President Cheney glibly dismisses public opinion the Democrats highlight their difference by obeying the clarion call of ordinary Americans and pushing aside their would-be corporate paymasters (not that the Democrats would let corporate money influence their decisions!). Just listen to the strong endorsement Democratic Party presidential candidate and New York Senator Hillary Clinton gave to universal single-payer health care at a recent debate in Los Angeles: (audio, high-quality audio, video, transcript)
Sen. Hillary Clinton: We cannot get to universal healthcare, which I believe is both a core Democratic value and an imperative for our country, if we don’t do one of three things. Either you can have a single-payer system, or””which I know a lot of people favor, but for many reasons is difficult to achieve””or you can mandate employers””well, that’s also very controversial””or you can do what I am proposing, which is to have shared responsibility.
to which that nay-saying Nellie, Amy Goodman, host of Democracy Now!, responds:
Amy Goodman: It’s interesting to note something Hillary Clinton says in that clip. When she mentions a single-payer system, the audience applauds and cheers, even though it’s an option rarely seriously discussed by politicians or the corporate media. And Hillary Clinton acknowledges the applause by saying, “I know a lot of people favor [it], but for many reasons [it’s] difficult to achieve.” She doesn’t explain why she thinks it’s difficult to achieve. And polls repeatedly show a majority of Americans favor it. An A.P. poll in December found nearly two-thirds of voters want universal healthcare, in which everyone’s covered in a Medicare-type program, while more than half of voters explicitly said they support single payer.
Barack Obama’s unwavering support for single-payer universal health care shines through when he rejects the current buy-it-yourself HMO-based system of American health care:
Sen. Barack Obama: What they’re struggling with is they can’t afford the healthcare. And so, I emphasize reducing costs. My belief is””is that if we make it affordable, if we provide subsidies to those who can’t afford it, they will buy it.
And only Obama has the fearlessness to cite the job loss inside HMOs we’d suffer by switching to universal single-payer health care. With leadership like what the Democrats are offering, it’s hard to know which candidate will support my favorite HMO best!
I’m sure this is merely the tip of the iceberg. Yes, it makes so much sense to support the Democratic Party now that they’re showing us what they’ll do with their power. Once you see how much they’re on your side you really have no other alternative. That scoundrel Ralph Nader who makes all the Democrats so upset, is just a Republican-lite, a mere imitator. One look at his campaign website, his articles, his almost-blank political history and you’ll agree that Nader clearly wants more corporate control of our economy which means more war, more environmental pollution, and more recession—policies which present no clear differences from those of the two major parties.
Pingback: So many voices, so many choices.