Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy
With the last best chance for health reform in this generation on the line, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi tonight delivered the message in support of this crucial legislation that America has been waiting to hear. Sitting in the Capitol, in an interview with Rachel Maddow, Pelosi said lawmakers and citizens need to stop talking about side issues like reproductive rights and start talking about what health reform could do for America. Pelosi:
Think of an economy where people could be an artist or a photographer, a writer without worrying about keeping their day job in order to have health insurance. Or that people could start a business and be entrepreneurial and take risks, but not be job-locked because a child has a child has asthma or diabetes or someone in the family is bipolar. You name it, any condition is job-locking. Think of a situation where we can be internationally competitive because we don't have this weight on us that other countries, that other businesses really don't have in other countries because they don't have this expense of health care which will all be reined in, those costs, under this bill.
We cannot afford the status quo. We will make this difference, and it will make a wonderful difference in the lives of our people, but also in the vitality of our economy. That's what we want people to talk about, not about, you know who has that number of votes.
Plus: Pelosi dodges the question, politely, on Rep. Eric Massa.// Pelosi on reforming the filibuster // Pelosi on accountability for the last Bush administration and campaign finance
Pelosi's full pitch for health reform, after the jump.
[T]he more we talk about [abortion], the less we talk about innovation and prevention and wellness, about affordability for America's middle-income families, about access for those who have not been able to access health care before; about holding the insurance companies accountable, ending any denial of access to health care because of preexisting condition, capping the premiums but not capping the benefits either annually or on a lifetime basis; about what it does for children and young people to stay on their parents' policy until they're 26 years old; about what it does for seniors, in terms of closing the [Medicare] doughnut hole.
If you're not a senior, which you are not, but which I am, the closing the doughnut hole means it makes purchasing of . . . prescription drugs more affordable for them.
And if you are a woman, women have so much to gain from this bill. Right up until now, being a woman is a preexisting medical condition. If you're a woman, if you're of child-bearing age and you've had children, preexisting condition. If you can't have children, it's a preexisting condition. If you have a c-section, it's a preexisting condition. A victim of domestic abuse, it's a preexisting condition.
So you can't -- everybody has so much to gain from this. Small businesses, as I say, seniors, young people, women, our economy.
Think of an economy where people could be an artist or a photographer, a writer without worrying about keeping their day job in order to have health insurance. Or that people could start a business and be entrepreneurial and take risks, but not be job-locked because a child has a child has asthma or diabetes or someone in the family is bipolar. You name it, any condition is job-locking. Think of a situation where we can be internationally competitive because we don't have this weight on us that other countries, that other businesses really don't have in other countries because they don't have this expense of health care which will all be reined in, those costs, under this bill.
We cannot afford the status quo. We will make this difference, and it will make a wonderful difference in the lives of our people, but also in the vitality of our economy. That's what we want people to talk about, not about, you know who has that number of votes.
The full text transcript for tonight's show can be found here.
Leave a Comment:
Nancy Pelosi is a strong woman, and can be an authoritative and persuasive leader. Unfortunately, we haven't seen the results yet. At least not as reflected by the President's actions. It seems that the tough Chicago politician we voted for with the expectation that, congressional majority in both hands, he would be our Refrigerator Perry, busting into the end zone on health care, defending our rights by killing the Patriot Act, has turned into just another season that could have been for 70 million Prozac-eating Cubs fans.
All four of our top leaders -- the executives and the legislators -- need to throw their weight around with real authority, and if they continue to let the White Christian Fascist Republic Party, Inc. (the organization formerly known as the "Republican Party"), who are in the MINORITY now for a damn good reason, they're going to find themselves with a whole lot fewer Democratic arses in the seats after November's coming electoral massacre.
Maybe the President is being a little more conservative because of his historic position as the first African-American to hold this office. I can understand that, and even live with that. But what does Joe Biden, the President of the Senate, have to lose by seriously twisting a few arms? Let's put Biden and Joe Lieberman in a room and, you know, see what happens. This should have happened months ago! WHY is Lieberman allowed to caucus with the Democrats!?
How many people have died needlessly, while the Republicans have been screwing around playing "keep-away" in the Senate? What is the worst thing that could possibly happen if ONE BRAVE DEMOCRATIC SENATOR -- why not the soon-to-be former Senator from Nevada, the Senate Majority Leader -- stood up and nuked the damn filibuster? Surely Biden would follow suit, and that would be it: Put a sock in your pie-hole, Tom Coburn. Grab some pine, Jim Bunning.
I asked Bernie Sanders that exact question on the Thom Hartman Show two weeks ago. He answered with a soliloquy of horse-manure. I'm going to ask him again tomorrow, if I can get through. I died on hold last week, but I did express my displeasure to the producer.
I do believe Speaker Pelosi has made her presence known in the House. At this point, I trust she's got things well in hand. I wish she'd tell Kucinich to stuff a sock in it, because although I support single-payer as he does, I wouldn't throw the whole game for a Medicare buy-in.
I love your show, Rachel. You never fail to entertain and inform. But I'll spare you the schmaltz. =o) I've got a progressive blog at politicalfootballtoday.com, and would welcome your comments. Thanks for doing what you do. Srsly. kthxbai!1!!
Quite frankly, I am disgusted that there aren't enough progressives in the house to push a single payer system. Or at least a broad public option. More Anthony Weiners!
But what really annoys me is they are all missing the bigger picture, which is that the country really needs serious wage reform and a better appreciation for labor (the don't need a degree kind). Neither my US Rep nor my Senators have answered my questions about this. But here in CT an average full living wage would run a minimum $25/hour/40hours/week. Or a very unglamorous 52k a year gross. If wages for all working adults really were competitive and met costs, we could afford to put into a public pool a reasonable chunk of pay for health care without fees at the point of service.
If the economic crisis proved anything it's that money is a pretend thing -- we all agree that money equals a particular abstraction in order to barter for goods and services, despite currency having no inherent, absolute value of its own. So why can't we all just make more money and carry the burden more fairly? They're not dollars; they're points in columns. And we let people starve and live on the street and get sick and stay sick for points? Wanna wager that's bound to implode soon?
And if they really wanted to reform health care they would propose a wellness based system and start by defunding corporate agriculture so farmers could grow real food that's really healthy so fewer people would eat crap, thereby reducing illness. You know, good food makes you healthy just like reducing air/water pollution and soil contamination caused by mega agribusiness. But what would I know? I just live in the US.
Thank you Rachael for asking about accountability. Maybe we better not ever stop asking for justice on these issues. It is of real concern that the violations to international law and our Constitution are being ignored by congress and I think that is a primary reason they poll so badly. It's their job to protect our Constitution and they haven't done their job. The entire interview with Speaker Pelosi was well done and informative. It was the most information I've heard on this health care bill for a year. We need more information like this instead of the spreading of fear and lies we seem to consistently hear from the media.
I also appreciated and agree with the previous comments.
I was impressed with Speaker Pelosi. I seem to hear negative, off the cuff remarks about her too often. After this interview and the one on Charlie Rose, I see those negative remarks as opposition tactics. She's smart, caring, and capable, and to some that's not to be appreciated but to be feared. Too bad! I believe these interviews have done her good.
She's a smart cookie and I have a lot of respect for her. If she keeps on glowing like this, the ugly right-wing talk show smearing will lose most of its clout. She's extremely honest, and I really like the "freedom" angle. I'm stuck in the exact same employer-trap as she's eloquently described. I'm a mom - I'm a walking preexisting condition. My insurance is through my husband's awful job. He can't leave because of me and the kids. Weird...
Where's the money going to come from?
The present value of current obligations of the federal government, debt and entitlements, is $63.6 Trillion. And you are going to add to that, Nancy?
As to those with enthusiasm for single-payer, would you tolerate an insurance company having a monopoly over the country? No, I but not, and I wouldn't.. Then why give government a monopoly? The only thing that will keep government honest (or anyone else) is the threat of losing clients, and you don't have that with a single payer system.
It is a human nature thing, and there are as least as many bums in government as in the private sector, only the government bums cannot be fired. Look at disciplinary actions for clearly incompetent school teachers. No business would function could function that way, but government does.
Do you really want this?
Why didn't you ask her about the mandate for us to buy private insurance without any real cost costrols in the bill?
Let me get this straight......we're trying to pass a health care plan written by a committee whose chairman says he doesn't understand it, passed by a Congress that hasn't read it but exempts themselves from it, to be signed by a president that also hasn't read it and who smokes, with funding administered by a treasury chief who didn't pay his taxes, all to be overseen by a surgeon general who is obese, and financed by a country that's broke.
What the hell could possibly go wrong????
Mark -- well, when you put it THAT way .... lol