8/12: August Is The Cruelest Month

Liberal bloggers are growing increasingly frustrated with the way that the health care reform debate has proceeded during the August recess. Many bloggers are complaining that conservative activists have been able to "dominate the narrative" by disrupting Dem townhalls and asking congressmen angry questions about health reform. Chris Bowers laments: "The human focus of health care reform has shifted from Americans in need of a better health care system to conservatives yelling crazy things at Democratic members of Congress." Meanwhile, other lefty bloggers think the WH and the DNC should have done a better job mobilizing health care reform supporters in anticipation of the recess. Jane Hamsher writes: "Even though it was widely known that there would be massive pressure on members of Congress during the August recess, Organizing for America does not seem to have done much in the way of planning for the month." The bottom line is that the mood in the liberal blogosphere is grim. It's easy to see now why lefty bloggers were working so hard to pressure House Dems to pass a health care bill before going on vacation.

What else is happening in the blogosphere?

• Conservative bloggers (Richardson, Hinderaker, McCarthy, Klein, Geraghty) are accusing Pres. Obama of lying at yesterday's townhall when he denied having supported a single-payer system. Righty bloggers are pointing out that Obama (1.) described himself as "a proponent of [a] single-payer universal health care plan" back in '03, and (2.) said that he was willing to consider an eventual shift toward a single-payer system in '08. At least one liberal blogger (David Sirota) agrees with conservatives that Obama is "lying" about his past support of a single-payer system.
• Yesterday we noted that Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-GA) had criticized AK Gov. Sarah Palin's claim that the Dem health care reform bills would lead to the creation of "death panels." However, after Obama cited Isakson's comments while refuting Palin's claim, Isakson released a statement distancing himself from the House bill and its end-of-life counseling provision. Liberal bloggers (Cole, Lewison) believe that Isakson is afraid of angering the GOP base since he is up for re-election in '10.
• Conservative bloggers (Erickson, Geraghty) are arguing that VA GOV candidate Creigh Deeds (D) is showing his desperation by attacking his opponent Bob McDonnell's (R) anti-abortion views.

HEALTH CARE REFORM: Growing Frustration On The Left

Liberal bloggers are growing increasingly frustrated with the way that the health care debate is proceeding, since they believe that conservatives are controlling the narrative:

• TPM reader DM: "It really is amazing to watch a fringe right-wing movement completely dominate the narrative surrounding the health care debate. The Democratic Party has the strongest governing coalition we have seen in years, and yet, they are being run over by misinformation campaign that includes lies so bold and outrageous that one actually grows to gain begrudging respect for the Machiavellian mindset that allows otherwise seemingly rational people to perpetuate this stuff on a public whose gullibility should never again be underestimated."
• Open Left's Bowers: "The health care reform debate narrative should be about average Americans struggling against a powerful, for-profit health care financing industry. Instead, it has become a narrative about grassroots conservatives (no matter who funds them) against Democratic politicians. While this is still a people vs. the powerful debate, it is not exactly the people vs. the powerful debate we want to be having. The human focus of health care reform has shifted from Americans in need of a better health care system to conservatives yelling crazy things at Democratic members of Congress. This may be a good way for Democratic members of Congress to get free media play, and thus appear to be champions of health care reform simply by appearing to be the strongest targets of the right-wing (which would benefit those Democrats gearing up for primary elections). However, it isn't helping us win the overall argument as well as an average American vs. for-profit health care company narrative would be."

Meanwhile, Firedoglake's Hamsher believes that the WH and the DNC should have done a better job mobilizing their supporters in anticipation of the August recess: "Even though it was widely known that there would be massive pressure on members of Congress during the August recess, Organizing for America does not seem to have done much in the way of planning for the month. [...] The teabaggers know what they stand for. The White House, in its desire to take credit for whatever passes and call it a 'win,' has remained deliberately vague. Nobody wants to walk into the right wing meat grinder with a bunch of crazies over an issue as passionate as health care when the only thing they're rallying around is a bunch of vague platitudes. There's only one thing that can fight back against big lobbying money, and that is popular support. The failure of the President and his support organizations to inspire and mobilize those who want to support health care reform well in advance of this moment is short sighted almost beyond belief."

HEALTH CARE REFORM II: Just Ignore Them; They're The Fringe

Many liberal bloggers are arguing that the conservative activists who are attending these townhall events represent only a narrow slice of the electorate:

• AMERICAblog's John Aravosis: "[T]hese people came over from FOX News and the Rush Limbaugh show, mixed in with some Dick Armey astroturfing to boo. They're not real. They don't represent America. They represent the 20% of Americans who still call themselves Republican, who still think George Bush did a bang up job. They've been told to disrupt [townhall] sessions, and like the good mindless lemmings they are, they're doing just that. There is no logic behind it. They're rude, boorish far-right extremists who will never accept a Democrat as a legitimate elected official. The sooner the Democrats realize what they're up against, the better."
• Firedoglake's Blue Texan: "I've made this point previously, but I think it's worth repeating: these town hall protests (why do they continue?) are not about the country debating health care reform. They're ideological hissy fits, orchestrated by the Republican party and their corporate cronies. Their purpose: to vent about 'SOCIALISM!' -- which for the Teabaggers is everything from the stimulus to Medicare and Social Security -- and fatally wound a Democratic President in the process."
• BooMan: "Another day, another town hall meeting full of lunatics. It's going to be a long, long recess. Fortunately, no 'real Americans' are opposed to health care reform."

Meanwhile, Think Progress' Matthew Yglesias doesn't understand why congressmen continue to hold these townhall events: "There's been so much focus on the spectacle of the whole thing that nobody's really stepped back and explained what the purpose of these events are other than to give us pundits something to chat about. Obviously this is not a good way of acquiring statistically valid information about your constituents' opinions. And it doesn't seem like a mode of endeavor likely to increase the popularity of the politician holding the town hall. The upside is extremely limited, and you're mostly just exposing yourself to the chance that something could go wrong."

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: How Conservatives Are Blowing Their Chance

The Atlantic's Marc Ambinder:

"The American people remain anxious and confused about health care reform. That is an underlying reality that Republican activists are so eager to exploit. But doing so required a certain restraint -- and a willingness to traffic in at least approximate truths -- and an ability to make distinctions within their own ranks about which tactics were valid and which tactics were venomous. [...] Remember, the target audience for Republicans is Blue Dog Democrats in Congress. They won't panic unless they perceive organic anxiety. The White House's goal was to prevent the Blue Dogs from panicking. The swing constituents in these congressional districts aren't angry Republicans, and the Blue Dogs know this. They're political independents for whom the sanctity of the process is important. These are the type of voters who like President Obama because he appears willing to bring people together even though they don't agree with their policies.

As usual, in a pattern that the left patented during the Bush administration, the organized right lost control of its message. Lawmakers, Republicans and Democrats, were being asked to respond to non-sequiturs (would you support a health care reform plan that grows the deficit? Health care grows the deficit right now, so it's a nonsense question, one that is easy for politicians to answer); they found their meetings full of engorged spleens. Unrestrained, these town hall meetings are going to turn off the type of voters Republicans most need to pressure Blue Dog Democrats -- independents who don't have red genes or blue genes. Both Fox and MSNBC televised Sen. Arlen Specter's raucous town hall meeting live. It was full of confrontation and protest. There were boos when Specter reaffirmed his president's Americanness."

LEST WE FORGET: Spoiler Alert

McSweeney's contributor Wayne Gladstone makes a list of "Spoilers I've Delivered To English Lit Majors":

• Godot never comes.
• Bartleby is a lot like humanity in his preferring not to.
• Peyton Farquhar sure has an active imagination at Owl Creek.
• Your close reading skills and knowledge of symbolism will not be rewarded in your job as a lawyer or coffee barista.