Speech to the New Hampshire Democratic State Party State Central Committee

St. Anselm College
Saturday, December 16th, 2007
(as prepared for delivery)

I would like to talk to you about another issue. A quagmire which we Democrats did not create, but which we now must help resolve.
The Problem in Iraq

Like all of you, I am sure, I have struggled for a long time over Iraq. Like most Americans, I am saddened by the horrific violence that takes dozens, scores of innocent lives every day. And like most Americans, I believe that our country has a moral obligation to do what we can to help the Iraqis end that violence.

Democrats in State Capitols Push Antiwar Resolutions

Published on Friday, February 16, 2007 by the New York Times

by Jennifer Steinhauer

LOS ANGELES — Frustrated by the inability of Democrats in Congress to pass a resolution opposing President Bush’s policies in Iraq, state legislators across the country, led by Democrats and under pressure from liberal advocacy groups, are pushing forward with their own resolutions.

Larry Hamilton of Charlotte, Vt., viewing debate on a resolution urging withdrawal of American troops from Iraq in the Capitol in Montpelier. (AP Photo/Toby Talbot)

The Health Care Racket

February 16, 2007
Op-Ed Columnist

By PAUL KRUGMAN

Is the health insurance business a racket? Yes, literally — or so say two New York hospitals, which have filed a racketeering lawsuit against UnitedHealth Group and several of its affiliates.

I don’t know how the case will turn out. But whatever happens in court, the lawsuit illustrates perfectly the dysfunctional nature of our health insurance system, a system in which resources that could have been used to pay for medical care are instead wasted in a zero-sum struggle over who ends up with the bill.

Vote NO on HB 2006!

Urge your Representative to VOTE NO on HB 2006!
Last week, House Bill 2006, the so-called "Unborn Victims of Violence Act," moved out of committee and to the House floor. This bill would alter the state criminal statute to redefine "human being" to include the unborn.

The entire House will vote on it Monday.
HB 2006 is troubling because it:

1. Attempts to undermine Roe v. Wade by redefining personhood to include the unborn—from the moment of fertilization.

2. Emphasizes the fetus over the woman and diverts the attention away from the real problem: violence against pregnant women.

National Health Insurance Now, Not Later

National Health Insurance Now, Not Later
By Stephen Fleischman, AlterNet
Health care costs continue to skyrocket, and 47 million people remain uninsured. Sooner, if not later, the system will crash. Must we wait for that to happen?

Read more »

Edwards Gets It Right
By PAUL KRUGMAN

February 9, 2007
Op-Ed Columnist
Edwards Gets It Right
By PAUL KRUGMAN

What a difference two years makes! At this point in 2005, the only question seemed to be how much of America’s social insurance system — the triumvirate of Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid — the Bush administration would manage to dismantle. Now almost all prominent Democrats and quite a few Republicans pay at least lip service to calls for a major expansion of social insurance, in the form of universal health care.

Progressive message

I know this is about a Progressive in Minnesota, But I have to post this because it's a great statement. The more progressives out there the better for all of us.....

Hi, I'm Al Franken. I'm running for the United States Senate here in Minnesota.

I'd like to talk to you about why I'm running.

I'm not a typical politician. I've spent my career as a comedian. Minnesotans have a right to be skeptical about whether I'm ready for this challenge, and to wonder how seriously I would take the responsibility that I'm asking you to give me.

Top 10 Solutions for a More Perfect UnionAlterNet

By Katrina vanden Heuvel, The Nation
Posted on January 27, 2007, Printed on January 29, 2007

The "thumping" taken by the Republican Congress on election day was not just a rejection of K Street corruption and the catastrophe in Iraq. It was a call to action on issues that are more immediately relevant to people's lives. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will begin to answer that call by pushing a "100 Hours" agenda -- including common-sense legislation to increase the minimum wage, cut interest on student loans and open the way for Medicare to negotiate prescription drug prices.

A National Health Program for the United States: A Physicians' Proposal

“Health care is an essential safeguard of human life and dignity, and there is an obligation for society to ensure that every person be able to realize this right.”

—Cardinal Joseph Bernardin

Introduction

U.S. health care is rich in resources. Hospitals and sophisticated equipment abound; even many rural areas boast well-equipped facilities. Most physicians and nurses are superbly trained; dedication to patients the norm. Our research output is prodigious. And we fund health care far more generously than any other nation.

The Impeachment of George W. Bush

by ELIZABETH HOLTZMAN

[from the January 30, 2006 issue THE NATION]

Finally, it has started. People have begun to speak of impeaching President George W. Bush--not in hushed whispers but openly, in newspapers, on the Internet, in ordinary conversations and even in Congress. As a former member of Congress who sat on the House Judiciary Committee during the impeachment proceedings against President Richard Nixon, I believe they are right to do so.

I can still remember the sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach during those proceedings, when it became clear that the President had so systematically abused the powers of the presidency and so threatened the rule of law that he had to be removed from office. As a Democrat who opposed many of President Nixon's policies, I still found voting for his impeachment to be one of the most sobering and unpleasant tasks I ever had to undertake. None of the members of the committee took pleasure in voting for impeachment; after all, Democrat or Republican, Nixon was still our President.