Good Morning, All. Just as I was thinking I hand nothing to share with y'all this morning I came across this. Steve Clemons posted this on TPMCafe. It is interesting if for not other reason than to illustrate the lengths to which some Republicans will go to interfere with the Obama Administration. If this is all true, I have to wonder how many other appointments are being similarly held up. It seems to me that Republican Senator Joseph McCarthy's spirit is alive and well. Can't we have an exorcism, Please!!!

A small bit of the news last night announced that Obama will address a joint session of Congress to try to regain control over the health care reform debate. And he will provide some details of his plan. I hope he does. I also hope that it signals a recognition that the Republicans don't really want bipartisanship on any matter. That has been evident to most of us from the beginning. They talk a good game and then totally fail to deliver. Their definition of bipartisan ship is 'my way or the highway.' It is time to boot them in their collective asses (and the blue dog Democrats with them) and tell them to grow up.

Ronni Bennett at Time Goes By has a good post this morning on the health care issue. She links to a new web site set up by NCPSSM which provides a lot of good information about Social Security and Medicare. Two points she makes should be emphasized to the maximum. If health care reform fails the next option to bring health care costs under control will be cuts in funds. All of those dear protesters who have been shouting that their representatives should 'keep government hands of my Medicare' should note this well. And those who are most strenuously resisting reform and who would lead the charge to cut or even dismantle Medicare are the intellectual children of the 'economic royalists' who tried to kill Social Security and those who opposed Medicare from the beginning. (For those who don't know--economic royalist is the term FDR used to describe those who opposed his economic programs. Make no mistake--they are still with us. Maybe another exorcism??)