Hypocrites at the Chamber

On a recent road trip to the southwest, I caught lots of campaign ads along the route and occasionally saw some of the more vicious ads on TV. It is nasty out there. Everywhere! One constant thread is the nastiness and blatant hypocrisy of the Chamber of Commerce.

CCC has commented on growing hypocrisy and partisanship of the Chamber of Commerce in earlier posts. It is an organization with a reputation in many communities of being business-oriented and conservative but not openly partisan. The chamber could be fair, it could host local candidate forums in a nonpartisan manner, and its information (although conservative) was generally factual and could be trusted. But, as far as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is concerned, those days are apparently a thing of the past. Various groups and even the national media are finally picking up on and commenting on recent trends in the chamber's new status as an international trade association that pits nation against nation in an attempt to get its laissez-faire way.

The chamber's hidden sources of funds supporting their attack ads are the focus of much of that attention. Are they using foreign funds to influence American elections? We don't know because the chamber won't say, but the probable answer is yes... just as they use funds raised in the U.S. to influence politics in other nations.

But if we pay close attention, the chamber's hypocrisy is shoved right in voters' faces. Take the recent ad attacking Tom Perriello. The ad doesn't mention Perriello's opponent or even the election (but if you are running an ad in this season the intent is obvious) and is clearly designed to damage the Democrat. Regardless of its veracity (not much), the ad strikes this bird as blatantly hypocritical when it says: "Government run health care. Medicare cuts. Have you had enough? Tell Congressman Perriello, stop hurting Virginia families."

So the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is upset with health care reform and upset with cost savings in Medicare? The chamber defending Medicare? In all likelihood the chamber would dramatically gut or dismantle Medicare if it were not so popular. Hypocrisy!

Health care reform helps many small businesses which the chamber purports to represent at the local level. But, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, with its international business mindset, isn't really looking out for the little guys any more. Maybe it is time for those folks to wonder why they pay dues to a trade association that is increasingly removed from Main Street realities.

Act Blue - put your money where your heart and mind is

Okay... we're stuck with Bobble-Headed Bob in Congress for the next two years. Marching in lockstep with Tan Man Boehner and the other right wing "just say no" crowd. But good Democrats in Virginia's 6th District can help elect other progressives and keep Congress in the hands of people who look forward rather than backward. Representatives who will stand up for the middle class rather than bend over for the rich, the powerful, and the PACs. I've recently made a few donations and hope you will too. Suggestions:

• Tom Perriello (VA-05)
• Jack Conway (KY-Senate)
• Tarryl Clark (MN-06)

Want more choices... want to spread your donations around to more Democrats? Visit Act Blue.

Valley Dems host event for Perriello

Without a candidate of their own in the November congressional elections, Valley Democrats are hosting an event for Tom Perriello (VA-05). Apparently, some local Dems had suggested organizing a good ole bungie jumping opportunity for the incumbent congressman - of course, they said no strings would be attached. Anyhow, cooler minds prevailed and these Dems decided to help out Representative Perriello from the sprawling district located just across Afton Mountain. Unlike the local guy, Perriello's votes in Congress have help mitigate some of the damaging effects of the Bush recession and bring jobs not only to the 5th District but to all Virginians.

Although Tom won't be able to attend, these Valley Dems will have a cookout and cover dish to raise money for his campaign while talking politics and having a good time on a summer evening. Here are the details as provided by hosts, Marshall and Megan Pattie:

Come out and show your support for Tom Perriello! There will be live music, free food and drinks, roasting smores over a bonfire, and enjoy some conversation – don't forget to bring along your blankets, chairs, and favorite drinks! Also, feel free to bring potluck dishes! The distinguished senator Donald McEachin will be present to talk about Tom's accomplishments for Virginia. Take this opportunity to see how we can help Tom get re-elected. Volunteer to help canvass, make phone calls and donate to his campaign.

The fun, food, and politics will be Saturday, July 24 from 6:00 to 10:00 PM at their home, "Lazy Dog Mountain," at 3806 Shutterlee Mill Road, Staunton, VA. Map & directions. For more information and to RSVP, contact Marshall at 540.292.5243 or email him at marswp@yahoo.com. Can't attend? You can still help Tom Perriello by mailing your check payable to "Perriello for Congress" to the address above.

Get it done

Healthcare reform will take giant stride this weekend when the House of Representatives formally moves it forward. Hopefully Rep. Tom Perriello (VA-05) will show the courage of his convictions and support the bill. I expect he will, although he is certainly facing lots of hateful lies and distortions being spread like manure on the fields in spring.

Republicans will scream and holler that the bill isn't bipartisan. Well, no it isn't... mostly because Republicans won't support much of anything on President Obama's agenda. They long ago made the political decision to oppose him on every turn - not because it was good policy, but according to their calculations, it was good politics. Their calls to delay or restart the debate are transparent.

There is misleading rhetoric being fired from the left too. Some claim that if various leaders had been stronger advocates that the public option would still be in the bill. But, that is at best a pipe dream... too many moderate Democrats either weren't for it or were worried about their seats. Make no mistake, the public option is probably necessary for real reform and real cost savings to occur. Medicare for all. But, current political realities make the public option untenable and the speaker and president don't want to spend political capital of their Democratic allies on a poison pill. Sometimes change in America has to come one step at a time.

While many in the public don't know the details of the reform bill (blame the president and Democrats for not doing a better job of explaining things in simple terms) it is pretty clear most Americans are either for it or against it. Not many undecideds out there. But today's report from the Congressional Budget Office that healthcare reform will actually cut the federal debt should nudge some Americans and just enough congressmen to win the bill's passage. Didn't hear about the CBO report? How does a $138 billion reduction of the deficit over the next ten years sound?

Sure, healthcare reform may become a hot issue in the 2010 elections, but by then the deal will be done. Once off the front page, issues of jobs and the economy will take center stage and healthcare reform will be a bit of an afterthought. Even if the issue remains hot, Democrats should have great opportunities selling reform as deficit reduction package and as helping small businesses to create jobs. The GOP will also be talking jobs, but without much of a program to produce any.

The politics of healthcare reform is changing before our eyes - President Obama is winning the public opinion war, the nonpartisan CBO acknowledges the budgetary benefits, the GOP can't quite shed the "party of No" label, and the tea party wingdings are running short of steam. Healthcare reform will pass. As the programs go into effect there will be adjustments. Medicare for all will happen - but, maybe not before I'm on Medicare the old fashioned way.

In league with liars

It isn't just Senate Republicans who are engaging in a systematic campaign of lies and fear mongering about healthcare... various front groups are right there spreading much of the same garbage in TV ads in local markets. One of those front groups, the League of American Voters (are they deliberately trying to confuse us by sounding like the very responsible League of Women Voters?), is running an ad attacking Rep. Tom Perriello (VA-05). With their nice name, it sounds like we are all members and Dick Morris, their main ad writer, is speaking for all of us. Nothing could be further from the truth. If the name is a lie, how can we believe anything else they say?

According to SourceWatch, the League of American Voters essentially consists of Morris and one other staff member. They share an address with another ultra conservative front group, Americans for Tax Reform, and have overlap with organizers of Tea Parties. In other words, the league does not represent you and me - it really represents Morris (who is trying to sell his book), big pharma, health insurance companies, and right wing crackpots.

FactCheck.org says the league's ads are filled with buzzwords like "rationing" and "tax surcharge" and include a number of misleading claims - incorrectly stating future costs and asserting there will be a tax increase without saying that very few people make enough to pay it. The ads are running nationwide against Democrats in targeted districts like VA-05, which is represented by a courageous freshman incumbent.

Educate yourself. Tell your friends about the lies in the ads. Tell NBC29 they are airing garbage. And even if you don't live in VA-05, make a donation to Tom Perriello's campaign.

Wolf in sheep's clothing

Tom Perriello has been besieged with attack ads on NBC29 since his courageous vote on healthcare reform. Many of those ads are paid for and sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce. The Chamber, which was once seen as nonpartisan and in many communities as a civic group akin to the Ruritans or Lions Club, has increasingly become aligned with the Republican Party. From where I roost, the Chamber of Commerce has joined the NRA and others as virtual wings of the GOP.

Another group by the name of 60 Plus Association has joined in the attacks against Rep. Perriello. Their ads feature grandma and grandpa types blasting the congressman for selling out Virginians. Being unfamiliar with 60 Plus Association I got a little assistance from our friends at Google to see what I could learn.

Claiming to be a "non-partisan seniors advocacy group with a free enterprise, less government, less taxes approach," 60 Plus appears to actually have few members and depends on funding from the pharmaceutical companies and other conservative groups. Its "leaders" seem to be in an interlocking directorate with conservative groups and individuals ranging from Amway, the National Right to Work Committee, and the Heritage Foundation to GOP direct mail mastermind Richard Viguerie. There's more online including at SourceWatch.

Below, Rachel Maddow exposes the right wing connections of 60 Plus in August of this year:

It is always helpful to know who is really spreading the BS. It may not be the pleasant looking grandma like you thought.

Over the mountain

Across Afton Mountain from the Shenandoah Valley we find ourselves in a different political universe. Much of the Valley is strong Republican turf and the congressman from the 6th District, Bob Goodlatte, rarely if ever breaks from his party ranks. Goodlatte, who has a good number of constituents who will benefit from meaningful healthcare reform, was nevertheless a predictable NO vote yesterday.

But, just a few miles across the Blue Ridge, freshman Democrat Tom Perriello of the 5th District voted for the legislation. Last summer, Perriello held 21 town hall meetings on healthcare reform across his sprawling district. He'd been working behind the scenes to influence the legislation so it won't add to the deficit, to protect Medicare, and to assure it will be fair and beneficial to rural areas like much of his district. After the historic vote, Perriello stated:

[The bill is] profound shift away from the status quo towards progress and better, cheaper health care for more Americans. [It] will make health care more affordable for the middle class, provide security for seniors and reduce the federal deficit.

Whether for or against health care reform, most people in the district asked me to fight for deficit reduction, a fair shake for rural doctors, and no federal funding for abortions. I helped to score major victories on all three fronts. Today’s vote on health care legislation came down to a simple choice for me: do we sit back and let premiums skyrocket for middle-class families and small businesses, and watch the cost of prescription drugs bankrupt seniors and the cost of health care bankrupt the federal government? Or do we take this step today to support middle-class families and small businesses by encouraging competition to bring down premiums?

The time to act is now, because Virginians deserve a competitive health care market,” he continued. They deserve access to affordable health care, and they deserve better choices when purchasing insurance.

Perriello has been hammered for weeks in TV ads sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce and other conservative/GOP groups. Several potential Republican challengers are on the campaign trail attacking Rep. Perriello. The barrage of misleading litter will continue all the way until November 2010.

Right now it appears unlikely that Democrats will field a candidate against Bob Goodlatte in the 6th District. So, I'd like to make a modest proposal to progressives and Democrats in the Shenandoah Valley - make a "Thank You" donation to Tom Perriello's reelection campaign. It is quick and easy to do online and it will send a message that Democrats across the state are standing with Rep. Tom Perriello because he had the courage to do the right thing for his district and country.

On recess, Bob?

National and local news is filled with the drama of the town hall meetings on healthcare reform that have been conducted by President Obama and many representatives across the country. Of course, the media is mostly obsessed with the confrontation and emotion that has erupted at some of the meetings and with repeating the outrageous (and deceitful) things some are saying about "death panels" and socialism. Fortunately a few in the media are exposing the orchestrated campaign by the GOP, drug companies, extremist front groups like FreedomWorks that is designed to shout down rational debate rather than seek bipartisan consensus.

With all these town hall meetings going on, I thought Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R) would have conducted several in the 6th District of Virginia. After all, across the mountain in the 5th District, Rep. Tom Perriello (D) has already held eight "Tom in Your Town" meetings and has about a dozen more in the works. Most of those have seen high turnout and each has attracted groups more intent on disruption than discussion. But, at the "Tom in Your Town" in Charlottesville, residents supporting reform equaled the shouters and a good exchange of ideas took place. I suspect the same is true at many other forums around the country, except you'd never know it from our sensationalized main stream media.

So far, Rep. Goodlatte seems to have taken the word "recess" seriously (skipping rope?) and I'm unaware of any town hall meetings conducted in the 6th District. Now comes word that he'll hold some "tele-town halls" and will announce a series of face-to-face town hall meetings soon. But, don't count Goodlatte among those congressmen really seeking honest input and discussion. He's already called the America's Affordable Health Choices Act "misguided" and has repeated the Republican talking points about eliminating waste and fraud in the current system and medical liability reform. My bet is that the congressman's office is already working with extremists like tea party and Americans for Prosperity to make sure he is surrounded by friendly faces and loud shouting to try and drown out supporters of healthcare reform.

So, keep your eyes open for one of Rep. Goodlatte's town hall meetings near your where healthcare will be "discussed." In the meantime, you can call his D.C. office at 202.225.5431 and tell him you want genuine and meaningful healthcare reform. For email and regional office contact info, click here. It only takes a quick read at his website to see Goodlatte's mind is already slammed shut and he'll hop in lockstep with Republican marching orders. But, that doesn't mean rational and thoughtful voices shouldn't be raised in the 6th District.

Push Back Payoff

Finally some push back against the crazed mobs that have been storming town hall meetings on health care reform hosted by Democratic senators and representatives. You know the story: opponents of health care reform fill the room carrying signs about "socialism" and more hateful ones depicting Obama as some sort of "Hitler." Shouting out lies about things like "death panels" their tactic has been to misinform, confuse, scare.... and if that doesn't work, to simply shout down any reasonable discussion of the issues. This well orchestrated GOP/insurance industry campaign has dominated the news for the past couple weeks. Reminded this bird of the rude and coarse behavior exhibited at the Augusta Co. reassessment hearing earlier this year.

Last night in Charlottesville, that came to an end. The auditorium was again packed for Rep. Tom Perriello's (D-05) town hall meeting. This time though, the audience included many supporters supporting reform who took to the microphone with reasoned, rational statements. When the realization crept over the mob that other opinions would be heard and the debate would be responsible, respectful, and issues-based they simply walked out. That seemed to verify my contention that opponents of health reform aren't interested in democratic debate, consensus building, and compromise - they want it their way or no way and they want to defeat anything they see as part of the "Obama agenda."

Lesson of the story: If supporters of health care reform want to be successful we will have to respectfully but forcefully push back at the town hall meetings citing facts, truths, and turning out in sufficient numbers so as to not be intimidated and shouted down. We can also:

• Call or email our senators and representatives;
• Write letters to the editor;
• Post on blogs;
• Talk to friends and family.

Video of the Charlottesville town hall meeting on NBC29.