Just got around to reading this email from Jon Greenbaum, local Metro Justice organizer, announcing a Labor Rally @ 10 am tomorrow to push for Health Care reform.  Rally’s are good, Health Care reform is great but I don’t understand why the email focuses on two of our 6 Federal Reps.  Also, what is up with the swipe at Massa? I don’t think it is deserved.  Here is the section from the email.

However, Louise Slaughter is beginning to waver in her support of a public option, writing in the D&C that “there may be another way to accomplish the same goal.” (Meaning she is signaling to the Senate that she is open to consider “coops”)

And Congressman Eric Massa is also sending mixed messages, saying he supports Single Payer but also saying he opposes repealing the Bush tax cuts to the wealthiest Americans to pay for health care reform and that he wants “tort reform” (See my article on the Tort Reform Myth Machine here). Congressman Massa is all over the map on this issue and it isn’t clear that he is helping push reform forward in the House.

We need to send a strong message as our Representatives head back to Washington. They need to deliver on Health Care Reform!

We do need Health Care reform but let’s discuss this note.

First off- Louise Slaughter - yes, it is difficult to pin Louise down on Health Care - we need reform but as you saw in the Need to Know Interview - she was all over the place.  So beat up Louise who had not been consistent.

Greenbaum’s take on Massa, however, is misguided.  Why?  Well, Greenbaum says Massa is all over the map - Single Payer, tax cuts and tort reform and it isn’t clear that “he is helping  push reform forward in the House.”

If anyone has been consistent and publicly open about his position it has been Rep Massa.  Yes, this is the same Congressman that the Working Families Party and their cohorts protested (Metro Justice is working/allied with Citizens Action on Health Care reform).  Apparently the same Working Families party that the local chapter has disavowed the protest. Remember when I wrote this?

In the strange bedfellows department - the Working Families Party, Citizen Action of New York and their allies TARGET Rep Eric Massa and accuse him of obstructing Health Care reform.  Yes, you read that correctly.  They were wrong when they sent out an email call to action and were wrong again when they protested outside Massa’s local office because he is opposed to HR 3200 as currently written. Yeah, the bill that really doesn’t do anything.  It cuts Medicare, Medicaid, and weakens and delays the public option,  etc.  A bad bill is not a victory people.

Got that?  A bad bill is not a victory.  Perhaps Mr Greenbaum is the one all over the place tossing things hoping they stick and  supporting HR 3200 before he realizes it is a lousy bill.  (For it before he was against it?)

What is Massa’s position?

Well, he is part of the progressive block that will oppose the House bill (currently HR 3200) because it doesn’t have a robust public option.  Something he has said, repeatedly, that the current bill in the House does not have.  The 40 or so progressives have sent letters to the President, demanded they met with President Obama (As Obama has met with Blue Dogs, and the GOP).

In fact there was a yet another email from Metro Justice urging- well, I quote -

Please send President Obama a message urging him to call for a strong public option which is tied to Medicare and ready to start on day one.

Um - sounds like the progressive block’s position.

but to Jon’s points about Massa -

Single Payer is not part of the current bill, unless somehow it gets amended.  Massa is a supporter of a Single Payer system (as I’m sure many people, including Jon Greenbaum are) but even Massa recognizes that is it not part of the current bill.  So why does this even get mentioned in this context?   Is Jon questioning Massa’s commitment to something that isn’t in the bill?  Why bother?

Taxing the rich?  Look, I’m all for taxing the rich as part of an effort to ensure everyone pays their fair share but taxing the rich to pay for a crappy bill simply isn’t going to get it done for me.  Taxing the rich for a crappy bill is a waste of tax money.  Frankly - I’m more concerned with HT3200’s cuts to Medicare and Medicaid.

Tort reform - perhaps we should review this clip from Massa’s first Health Care Town Hall meeting.  Basically he isn’t opposed to tort reform but says it isn’t be part of the current bill for a variety of reasons.  Unlike Rep Lee, Massa has not put tort reform over Health care reform.

HR3200 has a delayed Public Option, the billing rates aren’t tied to Medicare rates so, as Massa says, it really isn’t a Public Option anyway.  The White House is backing away from a Public Option if you read the news reports - Is Massa the problem?  No.  Hardly so why is he made out to be so?

The Progressive caucus is standing for true reform or perhaps Metro Justice would be more comfortable with the blue dog coalition rather than the progressive caucus?

Finally, where is a mention of Chris Lee and Dan Maffei in all this?  Schumer?  Gillibrand?  Please -

Come on Metro - got to to better than that.

Related posts:

1. Rep Louise Slaughter on Health Care - Frankly, IMHO, she isn’t helping
2. Get on the Bus for Health Care Reform
3. Lazy local news reporting - Obama’s Health Care plan
4. Robert Reich weighs in on health care reform
5. Health Care Lobbying efforts - “killing a key plank in Obama’s reform platform”