In Afghanistan, we're incurring more soldier deaths now than in any time since we've been there in 8 years. When you engage the enemy, they will shoot at you. Today's in-studio guest, Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said in a way we're starting there anew. Karl Eikenberry, the U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan, via satellite during the segment, said success depends on Afghanistan's government being able to apply take care of its citizens in all facets.
We're a long way away from that point. Simply because we're picking up the ball in Afghanistan in a time when we've given the opposition (The Taliban) a chance to mend and regroup. And why is that? Because we were bogged down in Iraq, a completely unnecessary war, for the past 7 years. If the U.S. had not gone into Iraq and kept the pressure up in Afghanistan, we would not see the military losses we're seeing now. Also, as a aside, if Saddam were still in power right now, you could hypothetically say that the U.S. would have also had a diplomatic opportunity with Iraq's [read: Saddam's] natural enemy - Iran, especially given what happened with the recent elections and subsequent unrest in that country.
So the question posed on whether or not this is a war of necessity or a war of choice now? Unfortunately, both Iraq and Afghanistan now are of necessity. The Taliban, if in control, would most certainly given safe haven for Al Qaeda, but more importantly use the southern part to disrupt stability in Pakistan. With that in mind, our presence is required, don't you think?
However, it is disconcerted when you set a quote for Special Envoy to Afghanistan Richard Holbrooke say we'll know success when we see it - Mr. Gregory rightly noted. And Ambassador Eikenberry said success in terms of self-governing is years away. The new approach the Chairman pointed out, is a robust cooperation between civilian entities and the military - enacted because of lessons learned, Admiral Mullen said, from Iraq... Lessons certainly learned well.
We're physically mired in Iraq and Afghanistan, but mentally, we're mired domestically in old habits of being stalled by fear, which 'joyfully' brings us to the healthcare debate with Senators Orrin Hatch (R-UT) and Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY), both on the finance committee, in the second segment.
Senator Schumer pithily framed the public option this way - its like private colleges versus state universities - the two coexist so that more people have access to a college education. It's not completely apples to apples as an analogy for the public option, but it's close. And the people do not have a problem with a public option in the healthcare bill. Let's be clear, the Congressional Republicans have a problem with the public option.
But is the President backing away from the inclusion of the public option. Senator Schumer said no, Tavis Smiley of PBS, in the last segment, said yes. Based on President Obama saying that the public option was just a 'sliver' of healthcare reform, you would have to conclude that yes, he is. But he should not back away. Just the opposite, he should be using the full weight of his office to get the 'blue dog' Democrats in line/on board with what he wants and push it through. It is time to heed Congresswoman Maxine Waters' (D-CA) advice.
If Democrats want to really show that they can lead, they have to close ranks and the President needs to step up - shove the Republicans out of the way - just as the Republicans did during the Bush years. Because all the Republicans can do right now is spread wrong information - see all of today's answers by Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT). He said that the Congressional Budget Office said that tens of millions of people would go into the public plan and bankrupt us. What's nakedly obvious is that he's really saying that if there is a public option, the insurance companies will lose tens of millions. Mr. Gregory rightly corrected the Senator, pointing out that the C.B.O. said that 10 million would go into the public option but that also another 3 million would go into private insurance plans. Senator Hatch also proudly states that 85% of the people in the U.S. have health insurance but never mentions the details, where the information and not the devil, are contained. Such as the number of people who are under insured - 25 million people. Or the unknown number of people who will have their claim denied for one reason or another (an arbitrary insurance adjuster's decision). Senator Schumer talked about taking on the Insurance companies, and sadly this is never a rhetorical tact that the conservatives take, but it does give one a clear sight line into a blatant agenda. They are hoping for an Obama Waterloo.
There are three more things we'd like to quickly comment on from the program in terms of the healthcare debate. One, Mr. Gregory asked Senator Hatch if Senator Kennedy's absence from the debate was a big lose. He was right and wrong in the same sentence. Sen. Hatch said that yes, Sen. Kennedy is missed (the correct answer) and he continued to explain that Sen. Kennedy would be calling him up and saying let's work this out (the incorrect answer). Sen. Kennedy would be getting people in line with the public option, certainly not calling Sen. Hatch to get that done. Sen. Kennedy is sorely missed from the debate because most people don't realize how important of an issues this has been to him over the years.
And inside this fight we come to point number 2, which is that there is a 'gang of six' in the senate finance committee supposedly coming up with a bi-partisan bill that will serve as the Senate's bill. Isn't the most democratic notion to question why these six individuals are deemed to have so much decision making power. The Senate bill should reflect what the President wants and then get it through with a majority.
This brings us to the third part of this small trifecta. Senator Hatch said that reconciliation (a rarely used procedure in the senate that attempt to push a lawyer through with a simply majority - 51 votes - instead of the traditional two-thirds majority vote of 60) would be an abuse of Senatorial process in using it for Healthcare reform. The Democrats should be clear that if reconciliation is needed, it will be employed and if it's not made clear, then we'll continue to be mired in a endless list of concessions, which will render healthcare reform completely impotent.
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