Ed Schultz, "Single Payer Option" and my U.S. Senator

Portland, OR -- Infiltrating the historic Bagdad Theater for a Friday evening taping of Monday afternoon's Ed Schultz Show (courtesy of KPOJ-am 620), it was hot. It was Baghdad hot. But the record Oregon temperature didn't keep healthcare advocates away. Waving "Crooks in Congress Paid in Full" and "Single Payer NOW" signs, Portland progressives packed the standing-room-only theater to hear and see MSNBC/Air America's Ed Schultz turn up the heat for healthcare reform.

As Schultz fanned the just flames for a "single payer option" (curiously blurring the line between single payer and public option healthcare reform), he reminded Portland: "The mission, the mission, the mission is single payer" and U.S. Senators who stand in the way of, at the very least, public option will be sorely surprised.

So here's the playbook: Single payer is the mission. The way to get there, underscored Ed Schultz, is public option.

An unfortunate problem of the mission, however attractive of an ideal -- however noble of a national cause, is a misnomer: mission "single payer" is poorly titled. (Schultz, marrying "the option" with the single payer vernacular, got me thinking: Who's responsible for first coining the horribly unattractive moniker "single payer" for the single most important debate of our time?)

Advocates, we need a better descriptor for a plan that covers every American without question -- regardless of income (or lack thereof) and regardless of any pre-existing condition. We need a descriptor that sinks into the psyche of every caring American. We need a phrase that screams for the empathy, urgency and responsibility of a country that cares for its citizenry.

Well Care for All? National Coverage Plan? Medi-care for America? Universal something? National anything? (Please help!) Maybe it's just me, but -- no matter how ultimately attractive of a gold medal goal -- single payer is poorly marketed.

Like Ed Schultz, regardless of what we call it, I am not suffering delusions of single payer grandeur and will happily fight -- for the moment -- for the public option silver. That's the mission, right?

"Single payer is not going to happen . . . not now," announced Schultz to moans and groans of advocates. "It may down the road. But you've only got four (U.S. Senators) on the H.E.L.P. committee. How do we get the rest?"

Thankfully, Oregon's junior Senator Jeff Merkley, who visited Schultz's program, seems to get it. Serving on the aptly titled H.E.L.P. (Health, Education, Labor, Pensions) committee, Senator Merkley -- one of four U.S. Senators supportive of a single payer system whom Ed Schultz alluded to -- announced that the finance committee plan will not have a public option and the H.E.L.P. committee plan will. Further, Senator Merkley called upon advocates to, "Carry the message . . . everyone who serves in Congress needs to hear so much noise in the next few weeks."

And as anyone who listens to Schultz knows, noise is no problem. Ed pledged -- at the request of famed Portland pediatrician, Dr. Herman M. Frankel -- to reach out to a member of Congress per day until we see real healthcare reform (with, at the very least, a public option, and calling for single payer conversation to be heard).

Remember the mission.

Following Friday's event, I caught up with Tom Leedham, a Portland labor leader who, through Jobs with Justice, helped organize many of Friday's Q-n-A speakers; Dr. Rick Staggenborg, a staff psychiatrist with the VA in Coos County, Oregon; and the powerfully well-spoken Natasha "National Healthcare Refugee" Albury who passionately spoke about an injury she suffered overseas and the compassion/well-care she received in Japan versus America's $ driven system. The consensus was clear: When you have 72% of the American people calling for health care reform in the form of single-payer or public option, as Ed Schultz mentioned, we must call out U.S. Senators who fail to fall in-line behind, at the very least, a strong public option plan (like the one that stemmed from the Senate H.E.L.P. committee).

So what to do? We do the same thing we did for Barack . . . we get to work.

As Ed said, They may need some remindin'. Call your U.S. Senator today: 888-460-0813.

-Matt Keating, One in 48 million Americans without health insurance. WE NEED H.E.L.P.!

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MoveOn.org meeting re-cap, healthcare, clean energy and more

Thank you to the core members who attended this evening's Eugene-Springfield MoveOn.org Council meeting with Ruth, our Regional Coordinator from Portland and Jason, our Regional Field Organizer from Denver.

Apologies ahead of time for any typos; my vitals are being taken -- it's almost as difficult to type as it's been this past hour to breathe!

As I sit here in the hospital, breathing in-and-out on an Albuterol nebulizer, my thoughts are serendipitously on the upcoming health care reform battle and the tremendous amount of worthwhile work our local MoveOn.org council will do in the months to come.

First and foremost, however, we are tackling the clean energy issue with aplomb. Last week's Clean Energy Jobs Day was a great success.

*You can view video of the event here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PhYVBvx27Gw

Moving forward, our Eugene-Springfield group will host an end-of-the month rally (June 30-July2?) in which we will invite our U.S. Congressman as the featured guest speaker on clean energy reform/green job creation. Also, expect a full-council meeting on or before Sunday, June 14 at Cozmic Pizza to properly prepare for the upcoming event.

A few final items (and, yes, this Darth Vader-like breathing thing actually seems to be working):

1. Please actively recruit new members (friends, family, colleagues) to join our MoveOn Council. Ask your buddies to visit the following link:

http://www.moveon.org/team/members/jointhecorps.html

2. Our RFO suggested I ask you to help support my efforts to secure a Democracy for America scholarship to attend this summer's Netroots Nation on-line organizers/political bloggers convention in Pittsburgh. If you'd like to add you voice of support it's greatly appreciated! Voting ends this week and the link to support yours truly is:

http://democracyforamerica.com/netroots_nation_scholarships/472-matt-keating

(Thank you!)

3. Speaking of opportunities for training that will benefit progressive candidates and causes, the folks who presented Camp Obama are launching Camp MoveOn in mid-July in Denver, CO. This is an unique opportunity for our team to receive some dynamite training. Please e-mail for more info. The link to apply is:

http://www.moveon.org/camp/survey.html?id=16280-10452853-Z0hH6Ex&t=4

4. Finally, for info on our local MoveOn Council's activity, please visit www.MoveOn.org/team.

Thanks!
Matt

Kellogg's Phelps Flakes

Please, allow me to briefly rage at Kellogg's for dumping Michael Phelps because of the now infamous tabloid snapshot of the 8 time Olympic Champion snapping hits from a bong. The "Baltimore Bullet" wasn't exactly abusing performance enhancing drugs; he was smoking pot -- at a party. How dare he!!!

According to the ever-so-reliable www.chacha.com, nearly half of America (47%) has smoked pot at least once. Hell, among 12th graders, 22% regularly toke. (Unfortunately, chacha.com was unable to generate an answer to "How many American annually eat Wheaties" but I sense Kellogg's has dropped more than just a celebrity sponsor.)

Now, if you don't mind the pun, allow me to briefly rip Michael Phelps. Dude, you were hanging out with tools lame enough to A) snap a picture of you smoking weed; and B) tools who sold you out to a British tabloid. Who are these goofs you're partying with? Further, Mr. Phelps, your pitiful excuse of youthful indiscretion is lamer than lame: YOU'RE 23! You can legally drink, gamble, vote and enjoy all the other kick-ass perks that come with American adulthood. So stand up like an adult, please, and say, "Yep. I smoked pot AND I inhaled. Big deal."

I suppose the "big deal" may be the misdemeanor infraction situation. Or maybe it's a major corporate sponsor pulling the plug on your million dollar endorsement deal. Oh wait. That unfortunate series of events is already in motion. Damn. Guess the "I'm sorry I made a mistake" card didn't save the cereal deal, did it? Nope. And what's more: you lost an opportunity as our nation's greatest Olympian to stand up and champion the cause of common sense.

Phelps may need our help.

Calling for "sanity and reason (to be brought) back to the national discussion around drug policy," Students for a Sensible Drug Policy (http://www.schoolsnotprisons.com/) has recently helped promote a Facebook page in support of Michael Phelps (http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=nt4KJsVG7UzFFFA1prMeME2EWhaxsuDI). The Facebook petition urges users to ask the International Olympic Committee NOT suspend Phelps for four years for marijuana use. (Fat chance, but I'll still sign.)

Additionally, until Kellogg's reverses their Draconian decision to drop Phelps, SSDP calls for a boycott of all Kellogg's products including, but not limited to, Apple Jacks (R), Kellogg's Corn Flakes (R), Crispex (R), Eggo (R), Froot Loops (R), Frosted Flakes (R), Frosted Mini-Wheats (R), Honey Smacks (R), Pops (R), Kellogg's Raisin Bran (R), Rice Krspies (R), Special K (R), Pop-Tarts (R), Kashi (R) Chewy Granola Bars, Nutri-Grain (R) Bars, Fruit Leather (?), Keebler (R) crap, and Cheez-It (R) crackers that nobody really likes anyway.

My anti-Kellogg's rant may not be entirely popular with A) Kellogg's; and B) the "What about my kids" crowd, but it's high time (pun intended) we acknowledge that our system's failed war on drugs policy sadly penalizes people for smoking an herb far less addictive and destructive than alcohol and tobacco. Annually, United States law enforcement agencies arrest marijuana users to the tune of over one-half-million. And our society consistently seeks to penalize rather than normalize recreational use of marijuana. Pot smoking students, if prosecuted, face dramatic financial aid repercussions, serious fines, driver's license suspension, and even imprisonment. For what? A leftover law from the prohibition days that simply doesn't make sense.

In these crunching economic times, wouldn't it be more prudent for us to investigate a way for our government and legitimate local businesses to make money and keep our streets safe by not sending citizens to jail for soft crimes (where they simply learn how to be more hardened criminals). The answer may not be legalization tomorrow, but at least the conversation should be about decriminalization today.

Matt's Inauguration re-cap

Fourteen days.

I suppose I shouldn’t brag about the fact that it took me about as long as President Obama has now been in office to return home from my recent Inaugural road trip, but here I sit – at the L.C.C. computer lab in Eugene, Oregon – scribing Inaugural details and waxing patriotic.

Thanks to the diligence of our Oregon delegation executives, I was one of the lucky few thousand who scored a “silver ticket” to the Inaugural swearing-in ceremony. Indeed, from my vantage point near the Capitol Reflection Pool, President Obama looked like a far-off miniature Lego figure, but oh well. (The Western Ball, an official Presidential Inaugural gala later that evening, provided a much more intimate moment of First Lady and 44^th President magic.) Still, nothing compares to post swearing-in bliss of the hundred or so folks skating, literally, on thin ice of the Capitol Reflection Pool chanting, “Yes, we did!”

Inaugural consensus: controlled chaos, spontaneous jubilation and serious economic stimulus from the 2,000,000 visitors who, like me, descended on D.C. for the 2009 Presidential Inauguration (though, I doubt not many found regular solace sipping pastis at the Old Ebbit Grill across from the Treasury Department).

In regards to the controlled chaos at our National Mall, I’m proud to report there were no serious injuries, deaths, or arrests made as a result of Inaugural madness. However, a couple million of us are hopeful that 2013 will be far more organized than was witnessed on January 21, 2009.

I’d call the fact that we came out of the Inauguration relatively unscathed “luck” – but as old Obi-Wan Kenobi once noted, “In my experience, there’s no such thing as luck.”

Perhaps the Force was simply with all 2,000,000 of us. Considering the amount of snafus, near fiascoes and potential disasters we avoided, it had to be.

What Inaugural snafus did we experience? Tons – times ten .

The Metro – a terribly antiquated transit system that’s antithetical to the smooth system witnessed in Denver for the DNC – packed sardine-like Inaugural travelers in a two-hour, ten mile journey to the Nation’s Capitol. (Imagine the entire population of Orange County descending on Disneyland at the same time.) People who rushed barricades were somehow rewarded and though nobody had any clue as to where to go, families who were respectful and waited in an eternal line to nowhere were sadly left out in the cold. Seriously overloaded security systems, incredibly poor signage, lack of volunteers helping answer directional questions, mobs clambering atop patrol cars and spectators scaling not-so-small trees at the National Mall all added to the insanity.

I hope the above-described snafus simply represent the last Federal Government mishap of a failed Bush administration on its final day. After all, we found it ironic that the most well organized campaign in the history of American politics suffered a set-back on Day One because of a most disorganized Inaugural system and a rather haphazard security scene.

Radio-trained in the ways of maneuvering through such nuttiness, I was happy to have my laptop with me and my wits about me (video available at www.youtube.com/mkeating2008).

Had 2,000,000 people convened in D.C. for any other reason besides the Inauguration of President Barack H. Obama, I may not have fared so well . . .

Thankfully, the overwhelming sense of community from folks on the Mall who saw themselves as participants rather than spectators helped keep heads cool and the Inaugural mood celebratory. The realization of witnessing history-in-the-making elevated Obama’s Inaugural event from a peaceful transfer of power to a collective consciousness coming together for a common, positive cause: In regards to race – a true transcendence of our People.

The morning of Tuesday, January 21, on the tundra-like National Mall, we celebrated American democracy, our “patchwork heritage” and what President Obama’s Administration represents on a global scale. With the world watching, America announced it is back: “The beacon,” as the BBC reported, “is once again lit.”

Let’s hope, though, for safety’s sake, the Presidential Inaugural Committee (coupled with the Federal Government) get their act together for 2013. Because if my prediction is accurate and if President Obama’s first four years are as engaging as these past fourteen days, D.C. can expect a couple million to descend, yet again, on our National Mall . . . .

And yes, in four years, we will arrive even earlier.

-Matt Keating

Matt Keating is a National Delegate for Barack Obama (OR-4) and regularly documents his self-produced political video at www.youtube.com/mkeating2008.