Showtime!

I heard that silver haired fuckfox R-IND on CNN declare that Candy Crowley should stay tuned when she asked what, in lieu of sufficient votes, the Rethugs could do at this point.

I for one intend to be soundly asleep when the voting commences, and hope that the flesh has been cleaned up before I start making coffee in the morn.

Remember to drink at each threat of secession.

Jesus, Nojo, are you trying to kill us? I mean, you’re looking at a serious case of alcohol poisoning from the Texas delegation alone.

Right now, the GOP is threatening to run on HCR repeal and I can’t fucking wait. That’s the moronic move that’s going to hand the 2010 elections to the Democrats. I’m sure Democrats are awaiting, with glee, their chance to tar their opponents as “Wanting to repeal the law that prevents insurers from denying you or your child coverage based on pre-existing conditions.”

When this happens the GOP is going to rue the day they handed to car keys to the fucking lunatics who run the TEA party movement. For they are going to ensure that all GOP candidates run on a pledge to repeal HCR, and in doing so they’ll drive the GOP wagon straight off a cliff.

Mark my words: HCR reform will become much more popular in the coming months once people begin to understand what’s really in the bill.

There’s a pub here called Manuel’s Tavern where all the Demoncrats, libtards and pinko statehouse journalists hangout, and I’m weighing whether to go there, versus actually doing homework in the library to increase my chances of getting my master’s degree and maybe moving to a blue state.

@Serolf Divad: I hear that worked well for Alf Landon in 1936.

@Serolf Divad: I’m sure Democrats are awaiting, with glee, their chance to tar their opponents .
I’d feel a lot better if we hadn’t lost who knows how many races/votes etc. because of the Dem failure/refusal to tar their opponents as anything.

@Serolf Divad:

I’ll take that bet.

Latest schedule, via TPM:

House convenes at 1:00 PM.

1:00 – 1:15 PM – One minute speeches

1:15 – 2:15 PM – VOTES – pending suspensions

2:15 – 2:45 PM – Debate Unfunded Mandate Point of Order

2:45 – 3:00 PM – VOTES – Point of Order

3:00 – 3:30 PM – Possible debate Earmarks Point of Order

3:30 – 3:45 PM – VOTES – Point of Order

3:45 – 5:00 PM – Debate rule providing for consideration of Motion to Concur in the Senate Amendments to H.R. 3590 – Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and H.R. 4872 – Reconciliation Act of 2010

5:00 – 6:00 PM – VOTES – Previous Question and Rule

6:00 – 8:00 PM – Debate H.R. 3590/H.R. 4872

8:00 – 8:30 PM – VOTES – Motion to Concur in the Senate Amendments to H.R. 3590

8:30 – 8:45 PM – Debate Motion to Recommit on H.R. 4872

8:45 – 9:30 PM – LAST VOTES – Motion to Recommit and Final Passage of H.R. 4872

MSNBC: Stupak voting Yes.

@nojo:
Could be because most of the Stupak block S-chipped away leaving him in a bad place.

@ManchuCandidate: It’s related to an executive order being discussed over the weekend — something Obama would do that reaffirms the Hyde Amendment, which prohibits guvmint spending on abortions.

Supposedly this would bag six critters, including Stupak. But no formal announcement yet.

@Mistress Cynica:

That’s true… I might just have to ramp up my YouTube operation again and show them how it’s done. Here’s how I’d do it:

Begin commercial with images of American flags waving in the wind, fields of what and a bald eagle soaring in they sky.

Voiceover: On March 21, 2010 a historic vote took place in congress. In the face of uniform Republican opposition, 216 Democrats passed a historic Health Care reform bill that for the first time in history guarantees coverage to 290 million Americans much like you. It prevents insurers from dropping your coverage when you get sick. And subsidizes policies for hard-working Americans who cannot afford to purchase health insurance on their own. [image of a smiling Barack Obama]

Now, Terry Teabagger wants to turn the clock back progress. He has pledged to repeal the law that for the first time in history prevents insurers from denying you or your child coverage due to a pre-existing condition. [image of a child’s gravestone with a teddy bear leaning up against it]. That’s right, Terry Teabagger wants to give health insurance companies the right to deny coverage based on pre-existing conditions. That’s not right. It’s not fair. And it’s not the American way.

This November vote to preserve our hard won right to affordable health insurance that can’t be taken by some faceless insurance industry accountant. Vote for Danny Democrat.

And now, fifteen minutes of sixty-second blathering.

Also, SFL, if you’re watching, I’ve found you another photo of that fabulous scarf explosion Nancy was wearing yesterday, thanks to the lefty Limeys at the Guardian.

Louie Gohmert says the executive order is a sham.

@Serolf Divad:

So I’m thinking – first we need to agree the over/under on the the number of net GOP takeaways in the Senate and House.

We’ll need to clarify what happens if only one branch wins – either some formula equalizing Senate gains v House gains, or simply a “no bet” if it isn’t definitive in both houses.

Then – the stakes – a bottle of 15 year old Laphroiag sounds good to me.

Now taking a 15-minute vote to honor the Clarence D. Lumkpin Post Office.

C-SPAN helpfully explains that the long vote buys time to herd the critters and count heads.

CNN: No, Stupak’s still out.

TPM: “An anti-health care reform protester from Connecticut named Mary tells me that reports of epithets thrown at members of congress by protesters yesterday are either false or the result of rumored ‘plants’ by pro-reformers among protesters on the hill this weekend.”

@libertarian tool: I’m not comfy with an over/under, but right now I don’t see Demrats losing control of either chamber. Then again, I’ve already said that we won’t have a clear view until Labor Day.

Clearly the rats won’t have a 60-vote Senate. So, next question: Will they nuke the filibuster at the opening of the 2011 session?

Teabaggers outside chanting “Nancy… Nancy… Nancy…”

Reminds me of my college days courtside.

@nojo: Gosh, I hope so.

C-SPAN taking phone calls during the (now extended) vote — imagine reading comments on a CNN story. Or, better yet, don’t.

Douchebag Ed Gillespie on MSNBC now … you can see the Obama hatred in his eyes.

Okay, fine. WTF is going on? What’s this business about suspending the rules and passing? Does that mean this circus might be over soon?

@blogenfreude: You can see his eyes?

Have you seen the MSNBC promos? Ed may win the self-aggrandizement derby for his.

@nojo:

I’m surprised “Mary” didn’t blame ACORN. After all, everyone *knows* they have mind-control powers that got Obama elected. :)

@JNOV: They’re voting on renaming a post office, which is really a trick to make sure everybody’s present. The big action is still to come.

@nojo: Oh, and is that why that Georgian is bitching?

So: the 15-minute vote lasted 25 minutes. We’re now in a five-minute vote for National Women’s History Month, presumably also to buy time.

@JNOV: He’s bitching because of the 10-minute vote extension. He wants the Chair to say they held open the vote because Demrats are tardy reaching the floor.

@JNOV: The headliners are still partying it up in the green room, so they’re running the opening acts long to keep the crowd quiet.

Well, it’s damn near 2 in the afternoon. Those yodelheads need to learn to show up on time.

Disturbance in the Gallery! Drink!

@JNOV: I imagine they’re still cutting deals.

@nojo: Seriously? I mean, I figured as much, but does it really have to come down to the wire like this ALL THE FUCKING TIME? People have known what they were going to do for quite some time now. This is bullshit.

@nojo: DeLay held votes open all the time, so fuck the GA rep and the rest of the GOP.

@JNOV: You don’t get Air Force One rides by tipping your hand too early.

Meanwhile, looks like the Rules vote at 3 p.m., followed by a couple of hours of debate. The Rules vote sets the terms for the “real” votes.

@blogenfreude: DeLay held open the vote for hours on something Really Big, but I forget which. So yes. But might as well sit back and enjoy the show.

@nojo: Of course it’s a sham. It’s the only possible way to respond to a sham.

Apparently Bart Stupak doesn’t care how he gets in the history books, he just wants in. What does it matter that it’s as an embarrassing footnote?

Bad chunky highlights, Gentle Lady from TN.

Note again that after all the maneuvering, the House will vote on the Senate bill first — which, if approved, immediately goes to the Prez for a signature. Barry could sign that as-is, whether the Reconciliation bill passes the House or Senate.

In other words, Senate Repugs can’t kill the bill. They can only kill the fixes.

@karen marie: Every day Bart remains in the news, Rachel runs another delightful segment on his C Street connections.

Handouts? Are we talking about bringing cupcakes on your birthday?

TPM: “After a protester is removed from the House gallery for shouting ‘Kill the bill,’ Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) tells reporters: ‘I’ve never seen members of the House cheering on a guy resisting being kicked out of the gallery. It’s a dangerous situation and the Republicans are cheering him on.’ Some Republicans were reportedly applauding anti-reform protesters.”

Editorial note: It’s only 11:11 in Sandy Eggo. Fun day ahead.

@nojo: It was the Medicare Part D plan in 2003.

@karen marie: Thank you. I had a hunch it was painfully relevant.

@karen marie: Speaking of which… Paul Ryan, R-Wisc: “This bill is the mother of all unfunded mandates.”

TPM: “Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA) was asked this morning on Washington Journal about protesters who veered into ugly bigotry and intimidation yesterday on Capitol Hill. His explanation? When Democrats use ‘totalitarian tactics,’ people act crazy.”

Meanwhile, we’re now formally debating the Rules. Rules vote at 3-ish.

WaPo: “But former Republican House speaker Newt Gingrich said Obama and the Democrats will regret their decision to push for comprehensive reform. Calling the bill ‘the most radical social experiment . . . in modern times,’ Gingrich said: ‘They will have destroyed their party much as Lyndon Johnson shattered the Democratic Party for 40 years’ with the enactment of civil rights legislation in the 1960s.'”

Rules vote now guesstimated for 4 p.m. Two hours of additional debate follow.

Oh, there’s that screaming Kennedy again. Dude — you have a mic.

Wrong-on-everything Bill Kristol says HCR repealed by 2013, so it should stand up to any attacks.

@nojo: This must be the distributed talking point. I was attempting to call Congressman Pomeroy (D-ND) and got Blackburn’s (R-TN) office instead. As long as I was on the phone, I asked (like I didn’t know) how she was voting. I was told she was voting no because “it is an unfunded mandate.”

The phones are jammed. Voice mailboxes for all the Dems are full and no one’s answering the phone, although Republicans like Nune (R-GA) have staff awaiting your call!

UPDATE: Change that to “CA.”

SALINAS! REPRESENT!

The Capitol Hill Kinko’s must be doing gangbuster foamcore business.

C-SPAN: We might be looking at 9 p.m. for the final votes.

God, I hate Chaka Fattah.

Ears Ryan, shut up and go make some cheese.

C-SPAN: Rules vote now guesstimated for 5 p.m.

Really, just add two hours to each estimate.

@karen marie: And now they’re voting on the “unfunded mandate”. The first of many interim votes, most likely.

Stupak: “There is no agreement [on an executive order], so until there’s agreement I’m a no vote.”

Devin Nunes, R-Cali: “There are organizations in this country that use ‘Catholic’ in their name, but really are leftists.”

More Nunes: “Totalitarian tactics they’re using to bring on this new era of Socialism.” (Morning C-SPAN interview they’re playing over vote.)

Just tuned in. What does it mean that they are voting to “consider the resolution?”

@nojo:

Much like there are organizations that have the word “Freedom” in their name that are fascists. Too bad none of the Dems would actually have the balls to stand up and point that out…

@nojo: Why are they giving this chump a soapbox? So bizarre.

@Dodgerblue: Series of procedural challenges to the Rules committee roadmap for the vote. This is going to stretch on for awhile.

Whoa. Is that the GEICO commercial guy on MSNBC?

@nojo: Well, at least there’s some eye candy now.

TPM: Stupak may still be in play. The Hill sez his half-dozen votes are needed to pass.

@mellbell: Yeah — I couldn’t take it.

Who is this jackass from my fair state?

@Dodgerblue: Issa?

@Dodgerblue: Devin Nunes.

The Gatorade Bank Job? Have to admit I love these labels…

@JNOV: Issa’s on the floor. Nunes was on C-SPAN.

Outside, Repugs unfurled the Don’t Tread on Me flag. Off the Capitol balcony.

Dale Kildee (D-Mich) asked his priest, satisfied that Senate Bill won’t endanger his eternal soul.

30 attorneys general will sue! 40! Lots!

Now that Demrats have separated the Senate Bill and Reconciliation, Repugs are trying to nail them on passing the Cornhusker Kickback et al right now. But everyone saw that coming.

Arf a mo. Cor. Bangers and mash. I’m in a pub. It’s dead brill.

I’m allergic to English people. I’m a mass of asthma/allergies. I have no internet access. I feel like George Elliot. I witnessed men going to Sport today. And now they’re all drunk staggering about the streets puking. Help.

@Nigel Cringe: I’m sorry, I’m watching Oscar Wilde script a major argument over 25 seconds of debate time.

Just about to call my flight outta Phoenix — I don’t suspect they’d have any votes of consequence before I land.

Meanwhile: Cornell leading Badgers. This will be, officially, my last chance to look like a genius before I resign myself to utter ineptitude, bracketwise.

@chicago bureau: 9 p.m. is the estimate for the Real Vote.

Stupak schedules press conference for 4 p.m. Will he cancel at 4:01?

@nojo:

The whole “we won’t vote unless the abortion language is über-nasty” nonsense is really pissing me off. FFS, I have to put up with my tax dollars going to defense contractors and mouth-breathers in Red states – Stupak and his gang should be able to hold their Bibles over their noses and vote for the bill.

I kinda like Issa. You want an asshole leading your team.

Back from the grocery and now, mixed drink in hand, I ask you: What did I miss?

No baby yet, they induced around 10 am pacific.

I actually am bullish on the Dems for the first time Ina while because of this bill. Newtie accidentally let slip a little factoid when he brought up the disasterous effects of civil rights legislation (besides black men in his shower stall at the golf club, that is). The Repugs are looking at this as their biggest defeat in forty years. If our boys and girls play this right- big if- we might not be looking at that many seats lost come November. Everybody likes being on the winning side…

@blogenfreude: No goals scored, but play on the field is very entertaining.

Off to see a friend cross the finish line at the LA Marathon. Carry on.

Noted: Daily Kos frontpage reporting that Ann Althouse offered, “so what?” in re racist chant directed at John Lewis (D-Preach!). Annie just is a big tandem-trailer of AWESOME sometimes.

@Tommmcatt Loves The Giant Floating Head: Whatever happens in November, I don’t think HCR will be a part of it. Watch the late-summer unemployment stats.

CHILD PROP ON FLOOR AWAITING DEPLOYMENT.

God. If this thing goes down on account of LADYBITS… the headshaking from Yurip may cause a tsunami to move across the Atlantic.

TPM: “Rep. Steve King (R-IA) just appeared on the balcony above the protesters with a photo of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Evan McMorris-Santoro reports. The crowd booed as he pointed at photo, mugged a sad face, shook his head and gave a thumbs down.”

Note to self: Netflix Bananas.

Douchebag Frum on MSNBC right now … what did I do to deserve this? He’s fucking Canadian – he HAS free health care.

David Frum: Repugs Waterlooed themselves.

@Fearless Leader: get Howard Cosell to describe the TENSION, on the floor, and the extreme concentration and intensity of Nancy Pelosi as she comes out of the Speaker’s Lobby.

@blogenfreude: I’ve been sticking with C-SPAN, but I switched to MSNBC for the Stupak press conference.

@chicago bureau: The only Cosell I can easily find is his Sinatra intro.

I no haz MSNBC at Sky Harbor — what’s that douchebag gonna do?

TPM: “The Hill and Politico are reporting that a deal has been reached between the White House and anti-abortion Democrats led by Rep. Bart Stupak. From The Hill: ‘We’ve changed [our votes],’ said Rep. Steve Driehaus (D-Ohio).”

@Fearless Leader: is that the ballgame?

@nojo: I’m too lazy to change the channel … although am switching back and forth to BBC – Attenborough is on Life of Mammals.

@chicago bureau: If so, yes — gives the Demrats 220 votes, according to an earlier calculation.

@blogenfreude: MSNBC reporter demonstrates why I only watch Keef and Rachel.

And somebody needs to primary Stupak …. And does Luke Russert have any credentials other than being the son of Dick Cheney’s favorite interviewer?

TPM: Executive Order text on tap… I’ll post here when available.

Too long to post, but TPM has it…

TPM: “The order reaffirms that the health care bill upholds the Hyde Amendment. It does not make the Hyde Amendment permanent.”

Hi, Bart! How much did the Family subsidize your C Street rent?

I think George Carlin said that the GOP (and prolife dems, I suppose) cares about you … until you’re born. After that, you’re on your own.

Breaking: Jesse James apologized to Sandra Bullock.

Oh, and Stupak’s a Yes.

So, to confirm: This rolls up six seven holdouts, which should remove any drama from the rest of the day. Demrats now have a minimally comfy margin to pass.

If anyone wants to wander off for a few minutes and read great dissection of Richard Posner, it’ll be worth your while.

Meanwhile, back at C-SPAN: Rules vote now guesstimated for 5:30 p.m. The Rules vote sets the two “real” votes in motion.

@nojo: To me this is similar to the time a buddy popped into my office about 3 pm on election day to say Kerry was going to win. There’s a lot of ratfucking yet to come.

@blogenfreude: Yes, I found it difficult to stomach the US Catholic Bishops urging defeat of this bill over the abortion question when they spent decades doing nothing to protect actual living children from pedophiles. Enabling and sheltering child molesters pretty much removes you from the moral high ground permanently.

Let’s check in with Fox for the latest talking points…

Cavuto’s interviewing Florida AG McCollum. Hot courtroom action to come!

Fox: Nancy walked arm-in-arm up Capitol steps with other Demrats — except one!!! What could it mean?!!!

@nojo: Been hopping among wingnut blogs … they’re shitting themselves. Dan Riehl, for instance.

@nojo: How many arms does she have? Maybe she really is Kali the Destroyer.

@blogenfreude: Yeah, Memeorandum is gonna be fun tonight. And Fox is keeping a camera trained on the teabaggers outside.

I’ll give this a few weeks to play out, before everyone finds something else to bitch about.

TPM: “Rep. Steve King (R-IA) brushes off the tea partiers who yesterday screamed racial epithets at a black congressman and spit on another. ‘I just don’t think it’s anything,’ King said. ‘There are a lot of places in this country that I couldn’t walk through. I wouldn’t live to get to the other end of it.'”

I just turned on C-Span. What a bizarre process this is.

Apparently this is the open mic portion of the entertainment.

@nojo: Nunes compared Barry to Saddam and Mugabe when he was on Beck’s show the other day. He’s a fucking tool of the Big Ag and factory farms who have no regard for their workers or environment.

Greta: Vote “still too close to call.” In other words, we still have a shitload of commercials on deck.

@nojo: @nojo:
There is no shortage of things for wingnuts to bitch about. I suspect many of them will be if HCR passes and survives. They need to bitch. Their lives are so empty without anger.

Gah! Michigan State screws up what remains of my bracket!

“I ask unanimous consent to extend and revise my remarks in opposition to this flawed health care bill.”

This reminds me of nothing so much as the Seinfeld episode where Kramer gets a bit part on a Woody Allen film.

“These pretzels are making me thirsty!”

@nojo: Orwellian …

@karen marie: C-Span is actually more amusing than Fox right now.

@SanFranLefty: I know almost nothing about college b-ball, but one year I did a bracket at work and won six hundred bucks. Given the chaos this year, I should have filled out a second one.

@karen marie: What is this, guerrilla warfare in the Congressional Record?

@SanFranLefty: It’s getting crowded in the basement of shame. We’re gonna need more flaming hot cheetos.

GOP talking points disappointing: They’re saying the Executive Order does nothing about abortion. Is that all they got?

Plum Line: “Rep Ciro Rodriguez of Texas has confided to colleages that he was hammered by ethnic slurs by people opposed to reform passing, one of those colleagues tells me.”

Even though tonight now looks like a done deal, we might still have some fun in the galleries.

Breaking, via TPM: “Reps. Michele Bachmann, Steve King and others will hold a press conference at 6 p.m.”

Popcorn moment!

@nojo: Oh good. I’m at work but will look around for some booze.

Wait — some moran is quoting Dennis Praeger? OMG.

@nojo: They’re about the craziest of the crazy … I can’t wait!

@Dodgerblue: TPM sez the parade of Revise & Extend is a delaying tactic that won’t be available after the Rules vote passes.

David Dreier: Sharp Dressed Man.

I think we’re now in another herd-gathering vote — itself insignificant, but designed to buy time to get everyone in the building.

Which may or may not delay the Crazy Eyes presser. Not sure yet.

Over at Clown Hall they’re just short of threatening violence …

Fox moneyhoney: “This is a Bernie Madoff, Enron, Worldcom bill rolled into one.”

Important note: Moneyhoney sits at a breast-enhancing angle toward camera.

@nojo: Not that there’s anything wrong with that.

@Dodgerblue: I believe it’s called the Kitty Harris in the trade.

GOP hammering at Executive Order in presser; no Crazy Eyes yet.

Mean Jean standing behind the dope who’s talking now on MSNBC … and somebody is going to get a visit from the Secret Service.

Meanwhile, the Rules Vote is finally underway. That sets the stage for the real votes tonight.

Butchery of Repo Man quote:

J. Frank Parnell: Ever had any Free Market Healthcare? De-Re-gul-a-tion. Yes, indeed. You hear the most outrageous lies about it. Half-baked goggle-box do-libruls telling everybody it’s bad for you. Pernicious nonsense. Everybody could stand a paying out thousands a year for no real coverage. They ought to make it a law, too. When they brought in regulation it almost did me in. One day my mind was full to bursting. The next day – nothing. Swept away. But I’ll show them. I had a lobotomy in the end.
Otto: Lobotomy? Isn’t that for loonies?
Parnell: Not at all. Friend of mine had one. Designer of the pre existing clause. You ever hear of the pre existing clause? Destroys people – keeps the money flowing. Fits in real small print. It’s so small, no one knows it’s there until – BLAMMO. Kids die, adults cry, everybody broke. So immoral, working on the thing can drive you mad. That’s what happened to this friend of mine. So he had a lobotomy. Now he’s well .

@blogenfreude: Yeah, that’s over the line. Feds will seize his computer — I wonder what other interesting stuff will be on it? Besides the usual kiddie porn, I mean.

Okay — that was a preliminary Rules vote. Now we’re in a 15-minute actual Rules vote.

portentious? Is that even a word?

@nojo: “I think the ayes have it.” “Nooooooooooo . . .”

and damn Bachmann delivered on the crazy – looked like she was juggling for a minute there.

@blogenfreude: It’s a word I would use, so Crazy Eyes and I agree on that one.

TPM: “The National Organization for Women is angry President Obama compromised with pro-life Democrats.”

So: Repugs say the executive order is meaningless. NOW says the executive order is a sellout.

@nojo: not a word:

Main Entry: por·ten·tous
Pronunciation: \pȯr-ˈten-təs\
Function: adjective
Date: 15th century
1 : of, relating to, or constituting a portent
2 : eliciting amazement or wonder : prodigious
3 a : being a grave or serious matter b : self-consciously solemn or important : pompous c : ponderously excessive

Plum Line update: “And another opponent called Rodriguez’ home and told the family member who answered to ‘go back to Mexico.'”

@blogenfreude: I reserve the right to revise the English language as I see fit.

@nojo: My favorite use of the word – I believe it was Washington Irving who said, in the run up to the Civil War, that the air was filled with “auguries, omens, and portents dire”.

The Rule passes, and we’re Go for the night shift…

@nojo: I reserve the right to revise the English language as I see fit.

We shall call it the “Bush/Quayle Rule” …

Boner’s now apparently claiming that voting for the bill is voting for “taxpayer-funded abortions”. Apparently he’s reading a different paper than the rest of us; can someone get a page over there with an *accurate* copy of the bill?

Sooo, the schedule is so roomy today that we have time to vote on recognizing shot-down aviators?

@flippin eck: I’m guessing it was another time-buying vote they had ready if needed.

Stinque rejoins its continuing HCR coverage in the next post, already in progress.

New thread on homepage … ready … jump!

@blogenfreude:

“And somebody needs to primary Stupak …”

Won’t happen. He represents Yoopers. Upper Peninsula of Michigan. As Great White North as it gets. Only reason Dems keep this seat in November will be due to his grandstand.

I can’t watch this. Watching the Cal Bears get beat by Duke. Down by 9 early in 2nd. Slightly more suspense than the vote.

@rptrcub: There’s a pub here called Manuel’s Tavern where all the Demoncrats, libtards and pinko statehouse journalists hangout

Damn, I’ve been dwelling on that all day. I think you just nailed something important about a blog and its community. Especially the regulars.