It's Single Payer Day in Washington, DC

I'm in DC, meeting with congress members all day with PDA on single-payer, rallying at 1 pm at Upper Senate Park, doing event with Congressman Kucinich whose amendment (passed by the Education and Labor Committee) -- if left in the bill -- would allow states to create single-payer healthcare, and California State Senator Mark Leno who is leading the way to make California the first part of our country to join the civilized healthcare world. There are, at 7 a.m., already busloads of people with single-payer shirts on Cap Hill -- a good sign. Reports and photos will be updated here all day. We'll celebrate PDA turning 5 tonight at Busboys and Poets 5th Street: no Bud Lites!

What? More pressure is needed? We aren't all satisfied yet? That's right.

UPDATE: I've been in meetings with what pass for important progressive congress members. They've barely heard of Kucinich's amendment to allow states to do single-payer. They assume, based on nothing, that it would create more trouble with the scary Blue Dogs, even though not a single Dem voted against the bill in Ed and Labor because of it (and even Republicans voted for the amendment, saying they were doing so for states' rights, not that they'll ever vote for any bill). They're obsessed with latest fits from Blue Dogs and effort to retain a shred of a token of a public option. The Progressive Caucus is refusing to stray from talking about purely the public option enough to include support for the Kucinich amendment.

After the August recess (for weeks into the fall), the leadership and the Rules Committee, at best, are going to have to piece together three different bills, only one of which includes Kucinich's language allowing states to do single-payer. During August, a lot of groups will stay quiet or oppose efforts for a bill that does not include the Kucinich language. Meanwhile there's no evidence that making clear that language will stay in would cost a single Blue Dog. So, you'd think that strategically this would be a smart move. But when you tell progressive members about this, they reply about the public option or the need for the president to create the bill and talk about it on teevee all the time, or the importance of countering the lies of the Blue Dogs and Republicans.

Meanwhile single-payer advocates are, at best, asking members to vote for the Kucinich amendment (which won't bring it up for a vote; they should be asking members to ask the leadership to leave it in, and to make public statements). Other single-payer supporters in town today are simply asking for HR 676 to be passed, and that's all. They're actually against doing state-by-state what we obviously can't do this year nationally.

It's enough to make you want to just sit at a picnic table and drink beers. But then another crowd of single-payer citizen lobbyists passes by and you're glad just to see them here.

UPDATE: Meanwhile there's no word from Congressman Weiner on when or if his amendment to create national single payer will ever get a committee vote (the Energy Commerce Committee is meeting now), but Weiner HAS put out a statement announcing that -- as a trick to call his colleagues' bluffs -- he'll introduce an amendment to eliminate Medicare:

Weiner to Offer Amendment to End Medicare
Litmus Test for Foes of Government Run Healthcare
Put-Up or Shut-Up Time for GOP?

Washington, DC – On the 44th anniversary of President Lyndon B. Johnson signing the Medicare program into law, Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-Brooklyn and Queens), a member of the Health Subcommittee, announced he will offer an amendment to the America's Affordable Health Choices Act that would eliminate the Medicare program. The move comes amid a chorus of Republican members decrying the notion of government run healthcare.

"It’s put-up or shut-up time for the phonies who deride the so-called ‘public option’," Rep. Weiner said.

That'll show em!

But it won't let a single state provide a single person with better healthcare. This place is a circus.

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Graphic by Chip

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UPDATE: Rep. Weiner's amendment for national single payer is up in the committee now.

We met with my congressman, Tom Perriello, and he told us he supports the Kucinich amendment allowing states to do single-payer. He didn't commit to doing anything to promote keeping it in there. But he told us it should be in there, and we can broadcast that news to the leadership and the Rules Committee, I think.

I'm now at a big rally in Upper Senate Park. John Conyers spoke, and spoke in support of keeping the Kucinich amendment in. Donna Smith then introduced Barack Obama's doctor who spoke very well in support of single-payer, but not any particular action.

Dr. David Scheiner – President Obama’s personal physician of 22 years.

Now Senator Bernie Sanders is speaking very well in support of single-payer.

We'll be posting videos. HERE ARE VIDEOS.

And more video.

List of speakers:

Jos Williams – President , AFL-CIO Metropolitan Washington Council
Dr. David Scheiner – President Obama’s personal physician of 22 years
Sidney M. Wolfe, MD - Acting President of Public Citizen
Dr Margaret Flowers - Physicians for a National Health Program
Terry O’Neill - President, National Organization for Women
State Senator Ferlo - Pennsylvania State Senator
Sameer Dossani - Demand Dignity Campaign Director, Amnesty International
Barbara Ehrenreich - Feminist, sociologist, and political activist, and author of nearly 20 books including Nickled and Dimed
Congressman John Conyers
Congressman Dennis Kucinich
Congressman Eric Massa
Congressman Anthony Weiner
Senator Bernie Sanders
Jonathan Tasini - Candidate for US Senate Seat New York State
Medea Benjamin – Cofounder of Code Pink and Global Exchange
Tim Carpenter - Progressive Democrats of America, Executive Director
Donna Smith - Community Activist and Legislative Advocate, California Nurses Association, whose story of financial bankruptcy was featured in Michael Moore’s film, “SiCKO.”
Nadina LaSpina - Disabled in Action
Dr Ogan Gurel - Walked 700 miles from Chicago to DC for healthcare reform gathering stories along the way.

Now Dr. Margaret Flowers is speaking.
Now a young girl arrested in Iowa last week for single-payer.
Now the new president of the National Organization for Women (NOW), Terry O'Neill.
Now a state senator from Pennsylvania, Ferlo, is speaking.
Now a California labor speaker.
And now California State Senator Mark Leno.

All speeches for single-payer, all stuff everybody here and most people not here already agree with. But the people here are the people to tell what to DO. I'm lobbying some speakers to tell them.

WHAT TO DO: Lobby your reps to publicly and privately push to keep the state single-payer language in the bill. Lobby your senators to add it in.

Barbara Ehrenreich now speaking, and Larry Frankel from a DC cab company.

Dr Ogan Gurel speaking now.

All good speeches. All same old stuff we all know.

Now Jonathan Tasini, senate candidate from New York, is speaking, reading messages sent to him by supporters. All good "single payer is a basic human right" stuff.

Who's going to strategize with this crowd of thousands on what to DO?

I just found a great article on single-payer and the damage done by pushing the "public option" from Jeff Cohen.

Tim Carpenter of PDA is up, urging people to elect Tasini, Massa, and Edwards.

Huh? These people are moments away from lobbying Congress and we're telling them to elect candidates?

Tim is the best. This crowd is the best. But come on!

After this event yet another thing that is ... "Robust":

MEDIA ADVISORY:

CPC TO HOLD PRESS CONFERENCE ON HEALTH CARE REFORM

Washington, D.C. --- Members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus will hold a press conference today to reiterate their demand that health care reform legislation include a robust public option.

WHAT: Congressional Progressive Caucus Press Conference

WHO: Members of CPC

WHEN: Thursday, July 30th, 2:30PM

WHERE: House Triangle

Medea Benjamin just gave a good rally-the-crowd cheering speech, but nothing on what specifically to ask congress members for.

UPDATE: When I left the rally Donna Smith told me she agreed with me and would tell those still sitting in the baking sun what to do when they left -- if they didn't pass out.

Also Tim Carpenter assures me everybody got good packets of info on paper.

I went to the CPC press conference where they presented a letter with 53 signatures committing to voting No on any bill without a "robust public option." I was able to ask a question on behalf of Democrats.com and I asked whether they would fight to keep the state single payer language in the bill. I told them that it had passed with bipartisan support and not cost the bill a single vote in committee. Lynn Woolsey asked Keith Ellison to answer the question and he said hell yes, but he didn't say what specifically they would do. Sam Husseini shouted out a follow-up: would they commit to voting No without the states language in there. Ellison responded that they would vote No without the public option.

Halfway through the press conference a crowd of single-payer advocates had marched noisily over and held up signs, mostly quietly, some heckling. Woolsey, Lee, Velasquez, Honda, and Grijalva spoke. Nothing new except the letter. Also of note: when I asked my question, Woolsey looked around for Kucinich to answer it, but he wasn't there because they hadn't wanted to include him and the state single-payer issue. Also slightly of note: just before me a young woman from ABC News tried to ask a question and literally couldn't communicate a coherent question. And how much money does Disney Corp. have, again?

Now I'm on KPFA radio with Kris Welch from the hallway outside an event in Rayburn House Office Building that is packed to overflowing where Kucinich and Leno are speaking.

VIDEO OF KUCINICH.

Dean Baker was on too.

So, here's the deal. There are backroom negotiations to get the Kucinich amendment left in the bill that may or may not succeed. Congressman George Miller voted against it in his committee because Obama had told him to. Congressman Waxman is now in charge. Rangel and Miller are sidelined. What can persuade Waxman, Pelosi, and Hoyer to stand up to Obama?

We should leave Blue Dogs and Republicans alone on this. Blue Dogs are most likely to think it's no big deal if we leave them alone about it. Republicans will vote against any healthcare bill regardless.

We should target Waxman and the leadership and lobby all progressive members to themselves lobby the leadership to keep the state single-payer language in there.

Beyond that, we should lobby every Democrat to tell us how many people covered how soon at what cost counts as "robust."

But tonight is for celebrating five years of PDA and congratulating Tim Carpenter and the thousands of PDA activists who have built us up almost to the point of being able to influence our government.

Updates from Rep Weiner:

Doing the end-Medicare bluff-calling amendment tonight.
Single-payer amendment tomorrow (Friday).
Weiner's opposing the BlueDog bill and non-robust public options.

Update on CPC Letter:

57 signers. PDF

Update from PDA's 5th Bday party:

Conyers got here early and announced "You are all under arrest," no doubt articulating what he fantasized about saying to Karl Rove, whom he questioned in secret out-from-under-oath for the second time today.

Here's action alert and whip list on Weiner's national single-payer amendment.

Here's video of Weiner introducing his end-Medicare bluff-calling amendment.

Midnight Update: I'm on Air America with Nicole Sandler, http://airamerica.com/listen

Conyers Says Healthcare Could Limit Obama to One Term.

Woolsey Supports State Single-Payer Option.

Fairly good account of where things stand from the Los Angeles Times.

PDA Spends Fifth Birthday on Healthcare Not Warfare.

David Sirota on the undemocratic procedures of Congress that allow corporations to block legislation by buying only a handful of members.

Pelosi has now reportedly promised a floor vote on single-payer which is not the same thing as a floor vote on letting states do it, which is not the same as leaving in the bill (without another vote) the language allowing states to do it. But this does allow us to demand Yes votes on single-payer.