Time to Get Tough

by: Entenza for Governor

Wed Jan 20, 2010 at 19:14:39 PM CST

I'm annoyed.

Listening to NPR earlier today, I heard that in the wake of losing ONE U.S. Senate seat, some Democrats are suggesting it's time for them to sound the retreat; to stop doing the work and fighting the fights people sent them to Washington to do.

The thinking goes like this: Voters in Massachusetts sent a message last night, one that all Democrats better listen to. If we don't stop working for what we believe in, we'll lose in the 2010 elections.

Wrong. Wrong. Wrong.  

Last night on MSNBC, amid national Democratic despair and hand-wringing, former Vermont Governor and Democratic National Committee Chair Howard Dean said this:

"The Democrats, if we wanna govern right, we're gonna have a message. We're gonna have to show decisiveness. We're gonna have to show boldness. We're gonna have to show toughness and we're gonna have to show leadership.

   "People who blame others are losers. If you want to win elections, you stop blaming and get to work."

Are you tired of wimpy Democrats? It is time to stand up for what we believe in.

This is all eerily familiar for me. You see, in 2005, when I was leader of the DFLers in the State House and we were in the minority, there came a point when we were staring down Tim Pawlenty over the budget. The issue was saving MinnesotaCare for thousands of Minnesotans - or giving in to the governor and breaking our promise to those thousands of people.

I knew where I stood: I intended to fight. But some in my caucus were less sure. "Let's give in to the governor," they said, "and then in November, we can blame him for everything that's gone wrong."

Blame the governor? Minnesotans don't trust us with their votes so that we can play the blame game. They elect us to face challenges and help create opportunity; to stand up to special interests. To get things done.

You might remember that that summer, Minnesota saw a temporary government shutdown. It was not easy; many made sacrifices. But unable to reach a budget deal with an obstinate governor, then-Sen. Majority Leader Dean Johnson and I decided the work we were elected to do was too important to just give in.

After a week of that shutdown, the governor suddenly wanted to talk. Apparently after days of bad media coverage, he re-evaluated whether he wanted to continue a standoff with two stubborn Norwegians - or do his job.  

We saved MinnesotaCare. We helped our schools and our towns. And we forced the governor to raise a tobacco tax - the only time he has conceded a revenue increase during his administration.

Our leaders have to be willing to work with each other, even when the disagree. But that doesn't mean we let ourselves get rolled because we lost one seat.

I am working hard to be elected your governor in November. When I am elected, we are going to make some changes. We're going to get rid of No Child Left Behind, which is hurting our schools. We're going to get rid of Tim Pawlenty's failed JOBZ experiment, a shell game in which jobs move from community to community and promises of better economic times are never fulfilled. We're going to stand up to the special interests that have too much influence on our state leaders and show them it's the people who are in charge in Minnesota. We are going to be strong and bold. That is what Minnesotans want... and what they deserve.

Last night we lost a seat in Massachusetts. It is indeed a loss, especially given the historic hands that have held that seat. But it's time for us to busy our hands and get back to work.

Join me.

www.entenza.com

Veterans Day - Remembering My Brother Dave

by: TwoPuttTommy

Wed Nov 11, 2009 at 11:00:49 AM CST

A fellow veteran emailed me a story from The Huffington Post:  "2,266 Veterans Died In 2008 Because They Were Uninsured"

According to a study released by the Harvard Medical School, 2,266 veterans under the age of 65 died last year as a result of not having health insurance. Researchers emphasize that "that figure is more than 14 times the number of deaths (155) suffered by U.S. troops in Afghanistan in 2008, and more than twice as many as have died (911 as of Oct. 31) since the war began in 2001."

The 1.46 million working-age veterans that did not have health insurance last year all experienced reduced access to care as a consequence, leading to "six preventable deaths a day."

Like other uninsured Americans, most uninsured vets are working people -- too poor to afford private coverage but not poor enough to qualify for Medicaid or means-tested VA care," said Dr. Steffie Woolhandler, a professor at Harvard Medical School. (HuffingtonPost.com):  

Were it not for family and friends, that would have been my brother Dave's fate, years ago.    Dave simply could not afford rent, food, medications, doctor co-pays, and insurance - fortunately for him, family and friends were there to make up the difference.  Although an honorably discharged veteran, Dave did not qualify for VA health care.  By the time Dave applied to the VA, it was too late:  the Republican Party closed the door to Category 8 Veterans on January 17th, 2003.

Veterans deserve better than that.

And everybody deserves to be able to die with their dignity intact.  The op/ed I wrote about my brother Dave's death, and was published by The Eden Prairie News, is below the fold.

Well, "Grandstand, Oppose, and Pretend" Is True, Too!

by: TwoPuttTommy

Mon Nov 09, 2009 at 11:46:59 AM CST

Rep. Ed Markey, D-MA says differently.  Let's look!!!

Markey: You know the G.O.P. used to stand for Grand Old Party. Now it stands for grandstand, oppose and pretend. They grandstand with phony claims about non-existent death panels. They oppose any real reform and with this substitute they pretend to offer a solution while really doing nothing. G.O.P.--grandstand, oppose and pretend and make no mistake about it the Republican substitute is not real reform. It does nothing to curb skyrocketing healthcare costs. It does nothing to provide real insurance coverage to millions who are now uninsured. It does nothing to stop the unfair practices of insurance companies. I urge my colleagues to vote no on the Republican do-nothing substitute.

Specifically, who might have Rep Markey been referring to, as a Grandstander, Opposer and Pretender"?  Let's look!!!

(h/t's to CrooksAndLiars.com and MediaMatters.org and Political Muse)