Rahm: Passing Health Care Will Be Just Like Passing NAFTA - FireDogLake

[WillyT]

Rahm: Passing Health Care Will Be Just Like Passing NAFTA
By: Michael Whitney Saturday December 26, 2009 1:55 pm

<snip>

In case you had any doubts the passage of the health care bill will be just as disastrous for Democrats and the labor movement as the rout of 1994, Rahm Emanuel is here to reassure you. It will be just like NAFTA! And Rahm thinks that’s a good thing.

White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel has been telling Democrats a win on the health issue will reverse the slide in public opinion, just as passage of another controversial proposal, the North American Free Trade Agreement, lifted President Bill Clinton in the polls.

Gulp.

If the unions aren’t listening, they better now. Rahm has been pushing through this health care bill for Obama and has had unions at his side, or at least neutralized. SEIU has been with the White House from the beginning on health care, and continues to support the legislation. And while the AFL-CIO has continually critiqued the bill and held its demand for a public option, the federation hasn’t opposed the bill or the White House.

The Senate bill will be, for all intents and purposes, the final health care bill. That means a Chevy tax on middle class health insurance, no public option, no employer mandate. This bill is so disastrous for unions that Jon Walker has warned “every private sector union will be dead in nine years,” once the Chevy tax kicks in to full gear. (First to go? AFL-CIO unions like CWA, which have given up wage increases for benefits for years. Last to go? Low wage workers like those represented by SEIU.)

While unions have been with the Democratic Party in calling for universal health care and reform for decades, they must recognize that where we are now is not acceptable. Indeed, by supporting this bill, unions are digging their own graves. So why aren’t they fighting? Unions feel they need to stay on the good side of Rahm and the White House in order to hang on to the last strands of labor law reform, which they hope and pray will come up (and pass) in the new year.

<snip>

Link: http://workinprogress.firedoglake.com/2009/12/26/rahm-passing-health-care-will-be-just-like-passing-nafta/

With friends like these... who needs enemas???

:wtf:

[Joanne98]

1. We can expect a WH/GOP coalition on a few things now.

[OHdem10]

13. The DLC has been running the show all along. They will get the GOP

push it over for them. We have enough DLC Free Traders coupled
with GOP. This is how Bill Clinton did it, Welfare Reform\
Nafta, etc.

The DLC and GOP will be happy to bust unions.

Psst. The Teabaggers hate Nafta.

[leftstreet]

2. K&R

[Cleita]

3. Yes, and the low rate of unemployment is a testimony to the success

of NAFTA. :sarcasm:

Rahm needs to read up on some current events after he extracts his head out of the DLC propaganda sand.

[ProSense]

4. What a stupid thing to say.

I think it's time for someone to partner with Grover Norquist and charge him with being a criminal.

[Donnachaidh]

9. best you got?

:rofl: When are you going to start calling Jane a doodie head?

[ProSense]

10. Actually, no. Better:

Jane is an idiot.

[ipaint]

28. Well so far you've failed on proving that. But of course your entitled to your opinion.

No matter how ill formed.

[Name removed]

51. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[RetroLounge]

87. ...

:rofl:

Another post, another DLC $ for you?

:rofl:

RL

[KittyWampus]

5. what a weird obsession some have with Rahm Emmanuel. Almost as sick as the Right's obsession

with the Clenis.

[Vincardog]

12. Right you are, Rahm Emmanuel is only there because Obama WANTS him there. They have the SAME POV

[FLAprogressive]

21. They are both corporatist centrists/neocons.

[Vincardog]

75. Correct they are both opposed to any PROGRESSIVE or LIBERAL agenda (once they are elected)

[SharonAnn]

58. Is Rahm Emanuel our own Karl Rove? Do we have to have someone to demonize?

[Vincardog]

77. No we do not HAVE to have someone to demonize but they keep forcing themselves on us

[Jakes Progress]

81. How about addressing the issues raised in the OP.

Do you approve of NAFTA? Is it a program that you think has helped the Democratic party?

[chill_wind]

6. "Sound familiar?"

Business Week, December 1993.

Likewise, labor will embark on a suicide mission if it withholds support . Clinton is probably as good a friend as labor can get. Indeed, a senior White House official says, the Administration will “redouble efforts” to push for worker-retraining legislation and a bill to bar the replacement of striking workers. And Clinton’s help in ending the flight attendants’ strike against American Airlines Inc. is a far cry from Ronald Reagan’s firing of air-traffic controllers.

But for labor and the Clintonites to reach an accommodation, union leaders must abandon efforts to stop immutable economic forces. Instead, they must take the lead in preparing workers to face upheaval. Labor and Democrats share an ambitious agenda that includes health care, job training, improved schools, and worker-safety initiatives. “We had an intense squabble, but it’s time to move on,” says Labor Secretary Robert B. Reich. After the passions of NAFTA have cooled, unions may discover they agree.

[Political Heretic]

11. Yeah BusinessWeek - excellent source of corporate talking points.

It's why people should actually read BusinessWeek and the Financial Times... because you get some real insight into what's really going on and how the major players actually think...

Business week warns labor that they will die if they don't concede on NAFTA... go figure. :)

[chill_wind]

14. Exactly. n/t

[Individualist]

7. K&R

[inna]

8. he's not a friend.

Illinois Congressman Rahm Emanuel is a member of the so-called New Democrat Coalition (NDC), of group of center-right pro-business Congressional Democrats affiliated with the Democratic Leadership Conference, which is dedicated to moving the Democratic Party away from its more liberal and progressive base. Numbering only 58 members out of 236 Democrats in the current House of Representatives, the NDC has worked closely with its Republican colleagues in pushing through and passing such legislation as those providing President Bush with "fast-track" trade authority in order to bypass efforts by labor, environmentalists and other public interest groups to promote fairer trade policy.

Emanuel began his political career as a senior adviser and chief fundraiser for the successful 1989 Chicago mayoral campaign of Richard M. Daley to seize back City Hall from reformists who had challenged the corrupt political machine of this father, Richard J. Daley. Emanuel later became a senior adviser to Bill Clinton at the White House from 1993 to 1998, serving as Assistant to the President for Political Affairs and then Senior Advisor to the President for Policy and Strategy, and was credited with playing a major role in shifting the Clinton administration's foreign and domestic policy agenda to the right. Emanuel was the single most important official involved in pushing through the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), the bill ending Aid for Families with Dependent Children (AFDC), and Clinton's draconian crime bill, among other legislation.

Leaving the administration in 1998, Emanuel worked as an investment banker in Chicago, where he amassed an $18 million fortune in less than three years prior to being elected to Congress.

As head of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee since 2004, Emanuel has promoted pro-war and pro-business center-right candidates against anti-war and pro-labor candidates in the primaries, pouring millions of dollars of donations from Democrats across the country into the campaigns of his favored conservative minions to defeat more progressive challengers.

Emanuel was a major supporter of the Iraq War resolution that authorized the invasion of Iraq. Indeed, he was the only one of nine Democratic members of Congress from Illinois who backed granting Bush this unprecedented authority to invade a country on the far side of the world that was no threat to the United States at the time. Even more disturbingly, when asked by Tim Russert on "Meet the Press" whether he would have voted to authorize the invasion "knowing that there are no weapons of mass destruction," Emanuel answered that he indeed would have done so, effectively acknowledging that his support for the war was not about national security, but about oil and empire. Not surprisingly, he has also voted with the Republicans in support of unconditional funding to continue the Iraq War and has consistently opposed efforts by other Democrats to set a timetable for the withdrawal of U.S. occupation forces from that country and related Congressional efforts to end the war.

At a time of record budget deficits, Emanuel has been a passionate supporter of increased spending for the Pentagon and has resisted efforts by fellow Democrats to trim excesses in the Bush administration's bloated military budget. For example, he has repeatedly voted against amendments to cut funding for Bush's dangerously destabilizing missile defense and even voted against an amendment to identify unnecessary Pentagon spending by examining the need, relevance and cost of Cold War weapons systems designed to fight the former Soviet Union.

A major hawk regarding Iran, Emanuel has also voted against Democratic efforts to prevent the Bush administration from launching military action against that country and has joined the administration in exaggerated claims about Iran's alleged nuclear threat. He is not opposed to nuclear proliferation if it involves U.S. allies, however. Emanuel has consistently voted against a series of Democratic amendments that would have strengthened safeguards in the Bush administration's nuclear cooperation agreement with India to prevent U.S. assistance from supporting India's nuclear weapons program.

...

more: http://www.alternet.org/story/106189

[bajamary]

25. Rahm is Mr. Corporate and Daley Machine inner circle member

In 2006, Chicago Tribune columnist John Kass reported he had a newsroom confrontation with Emanuel over Kass’s continued speculation that Emanuel only won his 2002 election because convicted former Chicago water department boss Don Tomczak sent in his employees to work for Emanuel. He also speculated that Mayor Richard Daley’s “underlings” who were sentenced to federal prison for organizing “patronage armies” also helped Emanuel.

You're absolutely right that Rahm was senior adviser and chief fundraiser for the successful 1989 Chicago mayoral campaign of Richard M. Daley to seize back City Hall from reformists who had challenged the corrupt political machine of this father, Richard J. Daley.

Emanuel is an ally of former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich

Open Secrets reported that Emanuel "was the top House recipient in the 2008 election cycle of contributions from hedge funds, private equity firms and the larger securities/investment industry" (http://www.opensecrets.org/news/2008/11/obamas-pick-for-chief-of-staff.html)


I've met Rahm on several occasions. He was my Congressperson from IL district 5 and he lived a few blocks from my home.

He's a mean spirited, nasty, rude egomaniac who would slit his own Mother's throat if he thought it would help him out in any way.

Rahm never did a thing for the people of the 5th IL Congressional district.

I can't wait to hear the FBI tapes of the conversations Rahm and with the Impeached former Gov. Blagovich where Rahm is telling the then Gov, to make sure that a "seat warmer" runs for "his job". You see, at that point Rahm thought he would go back to the Congress and take over Nancy Palosi's position as Speaker of the House.

Imagine this: Mr Speaker of the House, Rahm Emanuel.

All Hail, Rahm

[inna]

31. you know, i might be completely off on this, but somehow

purely intuitively i've suspected for months that Blago was just a fall guy for Rahm.

laugh at me, or whatever.

:hide:

___________________________________________


"Imagine this: Mr Speaker of the House, Rahm Emanuel.

All Hail, Rahm"


Tell me about it. Certainly possible. :banghead:


P.S. Please post more often, it's people like you who make this forum great! :yourock:



------------------------------------------

"He's a mean spirited, nasty, rude egomaniac who would slit his own Mother's throat if he thought it would help him out in any way."

my impression exactly. thanks for a first-hand account.

[snagglepuss]

49. This needs to be a separate thread to get the attention it deserves.

How many people are aware "he was the top House recipient in the 2008 election cycle of contributions from hedge funds, private equity firms and the larger securities/investment" or aware of Kass' speculations? Please consider posting this as a OP.

Will the FBI tapes be released?





:yourock:

[bajamary]

64. waiting for the FBI tapes to be released

Alas, the FBI audio tapes of the more than three conversations between Rahm and the then Gov Blagovich have yet to be released by the Federal prosecutor's office.

I have faith that the top Fed prosecutor here in the Chicago Fed district won't be intimated by Rahm's extremely powerful friends, so that he, Patrick Fitizgerald (my hero) will release these audio tapes when he can.

[Fire1]

93. In reference to your personal commentary re: Mr. Emanuel,

I can believe it. He has a Napoleon complex and "ego mania" comes with the territory.

[Vinca]

15. Considering the jobs crisis, it seems unwise to invoke NAFTA.

Unless, of course, Rahm is going to propose funding for U.S. workers to go south of the border to work at their old jobs.:banghead:

[OKNancy]

16. What democrats did he tell this to? When? Where? Why?

Just like any article I read, I'd like a little better reporting. All I think is "whatever"

[Moosepoop]

94. Agreed -- this isn't a quote from Rahm

nor is any source for the "Rahm is telling Dems" allegation given. Not even the customary "insiders say" or "according to sources close to Rahm" or "anonymous White House staffers reveal"... nothing. It's a very loose attribution with no backup.

The WSJ printed this paragraph in an article dated Dec 21:

White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel has been telling Democrats a win on the health issue will reverse the slide in public opinion, just as passage of another controversial proposal, the North American Free Trade Agreement, lifted President Bill Clinton in the polls.

Firedoglake picked that paragraph from the WSJ article and ran with the "RAHM SAYS IT'S JUST LIKE NAFTA!11!1" spin.

The thing about that paragraph is that it's impossible to discern whether both phrases in the sentence are being (very loosely) attributed to Rahm, or if only the first is supposed to be what he supposedly has said, with the "just as" portion added by the writer for comparison purposes.

It's all way too sloppy as written to give any credence to, but that doesn't stop FDL and some others from running with it.

[Mojambo]

17. To corporatists like Rahm NAFTA was a smashing success. n/t

[FLAprogressive]

18. And this is the official admission from the White House that NAFTA is viewed as a GOOD thing.

Either that or they know HCR sucks.

[inna]

24. it's BOTH. they're not stupid.

[amborin]

19. K&R

[villager]

20. That sucking sound you hear is the insurance companies vacuuming money out of your pocket...

n/t

[Xicano]

22. Not my union: The ILWU

Sorry for the little bit of redaction I made. It wouldn't be appropriate to post names of co-workers and dollar figures of our policies.

[WeDidIt]

23. I was all ready to get pissed off

then I saw it was posted on FDL.

Sorry, need a better source than Firebaggers. Can't trust a word they post.

[fascisthunter]

26. lol...

[seeinfweggos]

27. firedoglake = grover norquist

[inna]

32. pure idiocy and disinformation

get a fucking grip.

[snagglepuss]

52. If Obama's bi-partianship is good for the US, Hamsher's is as well.

[seeinfweggos]

104. i doubt 99.9999999 percent of americans know or give a shit who jane hamster is

[bajamary]

29. from the WSJ

This is from the Wall Street Journal:

White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel has been telling Democrats a win on the health issue will reverse the slide in public opinion, just as passage of another controversial proposal, the North American Free Trade Agreement, lifted President Bill Clinton in the polls.

for more read
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB126135972428799563.html?mod=article-outset-box

[WeDidIt]

34. In other words, the firebaggers lied

and the subject line of the OP is false.

Thanks for debunking.

[inna]

35. your avatar is truly disgusting.

are you sure you're on the right board?


just wondering.

[WeDidIt]

36. My Avatar is a good Democrat highly placed in a Democratic Administration

The only thing disgusting is anybody on this board complaining about it.

[inna]

38. he is not a "good Democrat", he is a backstabbing DINO.

get a fucking clue already.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=7327746&mesg_id=7327800

[WeDidIt]

40. BULLSHIT!

He's an upstanding member of the Dmeocratic PArty and a powerful member of the Democratic Administration.

You don't get any more of a "good Democrat" than that.

You should get a fucking clue already.

[inna]

41. try harder.

:eyes:

[WeDidIt]

42. Don't need to. I've already proven you WRONG

:rofl:

BTW, great photo.

[inna]

43. borrowed it from you.

i'm glad you're so easily amused, though.

:shrug:

[inna]

44. no you haven't. what BS.

[WeDidIt]

46. You claimed he was a DINO

when he is an upstanding memeber of the Democratic PArty and a powerful member of the Democratic Adminsitration.

By definition, he CANNOT be a Democrat in name only.

Ergo, you have been proven wrong.

[inna]

47. fail.

it doesn't even deserve a response.


:hi:

[WeDidIt]

48. Yep, you failed.

:hi:

[inna]

55. .

[WeDidIt]

56. .

[inna]

61. ok, i give up. you win. that sealed it.

:spray:

:rofl:

:toast:

:hi:

[WeDidIt]

62. 8-)

:toast:

:hi:

[change_notfinetuning]

91. Are you joking, or just a joke? That's a rhetorical question. Please look up

the word rhetorical before answering.

[Raineyb]

59. He is a Dino. Has been for years.

Of course for morons who can't get past the sports team mentality it doesn't mean all that much but for people interested in principles it means a hell of a lot.

Your faulty logic doesn't hide the deficiencies of thinking.

[WeDidIt]

60. No, he';s not a DINO

In fact, anybody who would claim he is a DINO is a DINO BY DEFINITION.

[liberation]

80. Rahm, is that you?

If it is: go suck an egg.

If you ain't, god I hope you are at least drawing a salary. Shilling for free in these tough economic times is just silly, but then again so it is to try to have people trust you not their lying eyes.


LOL, tool.

[tavalon]

66. He's far worse than a DINO

He's a traitor in the midst of Democrats.

[saracat]

69. I guess no one explained the definition of DINO to you. A Dino is a

Democrat who acts against the interests of the Democratic party priciples. Rahm is indeed a DINO.As are his cohorts.

[OnyxCollie]

79. Ask him what he thinks of Kucinich.

Teh stoopid is strong with this one.

[WeDidIt]

84. Nope, Rahm acts 100% within the interests of the Democratic PArty

Those who would call Rahm a DINO are themselves DINOs.

[saracat]

86. What crock that is.Some of us know Rahm personally and some even work for him and can

tell you what a crock that is. Rahm has never supported reproductive choice for instance and actively recruited pro-lifers who stand against that provision in our Democratic party platform, because winning is all that matter, no matter whose rights are destroyed. How do you square that with being a"good Democrat"? But I suppose the platform is meaningless to some people.Did you know Rahm's new phrase is "strategic ambiguity" and it is now the "message" of the WH? Whatever became of transparency? But I guess to some nothing matters.

[WeDidIt]

95. The crock is trying to paint Rahm as a DINO

Only a REAL DINO would do that.

[saracat]

98. Pathetic when the only "fact" that you have defending Rahm is the D after his

name and his appointment to office, which is something all DINO's share. You completely disregard any of the inconvenient facts regarding this man. Sad. Very sad.And very much like a Bushie. You never even answered how he can possibly be considered a good Democrat while engaging in activities detrimental to Democratic principles.

[SammyWinstonJack]

100. -1

:crazy: :silly:

[tavalon]

65. Wow, you aren't very good at this arguing thing, are you?

Saying it's so, don't make it so.

[seeinfweggos]

106. i think your avatar is great

mainly because of the consternation it causes in certain quarters.

[bajamary]

37. reading comprehension needed

No, my post says

This is from the Wall Street Journal:

White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel has been telling Democrats a win on the health issue will reverse the slide in public opinion, just as passage of another controversial proposal, the North American Free Trade Agreement, lifted President Bill Clinton in the polls.

This is exactly what the primary poster said in the beginning of their post.

In other words, my post confirms what the primary poster said.

Perhaps you cannot comprehend a post that is not complementary to MR. Corporate, Daley Machine Inner Circle Rahm Emanuel.

[WeDidIt]

45. Wrong again

The OP said Emmanuel said passing HCR was JUST LIKE passing NAFTA when Rahm did not say that.

The OP posted a falsehood.

[bajamary]

63. let's try this

The Post said:

White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel has been telling Democrats a win on the health issue will reverse the slide in public opinion, just as passage of another controversial proposal, the North American Free Trade Agreement, lifted President Bill Clinton in the polls.

And the WSJ said:

White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel has been telling Democrats a win on the health issue will reverse the slide in public opinion, just as passage of another controversial proposal, the North American Free Trade Agreement, lifted President Bill Clinton in the polls.

So the post and the WSJ agree.

My guess is that you are not able to see they are the exact same thing because you have some Rahm-protection=he=can=do=no=wrong thing going on.

Too bad.

[abelenkpe]

71. Good grief

Will you just shut up already?

[bajamary]

92. another illiterate

Oh boy another rude illiterate posts again.

Must be another die-hard supporter of Mr. Corporate & Daley Machine Inner Circle member Rahm Emanuel.

That explains it :)

[abelenkpe]

101. You mean

Mr. WeDidIt?

Love your sig line btw.

[bajamary]

102. yep WeDidIt

That's the poster WeDidIt

Thanks for the :) re: my sig line

[snagglepuss]

53. Are you illiterate? It supports the OP.

At least this explains why you're being led around by the nose.

[cadaverdog]

97. My first inkling that the Obama I voted for

might not be the Obama I got, was when it was announced that Rahm Emanuel was appointed White House Chief of Staff. I knew the man's background, and I was surprised that Obama would appoint such a lightning rod to this high position. Then the dark cloud warnings; where were the people who worked so hard and so effectively on Obama's campaign, only to be shut out of appointments in the new administration? And it continued; Emanuel slammed the White House door in Howard Dean's face, in what can only be described as the most obvious snub in modern-day politics. Not so much as a "thank you for all your hard work."

And so it began in earnest. We all know the scenario we have lived through in the past months; amazing rhetoric to make us feel good about the guy while he continues to disappoint us time and time again. And always in the background is the Rahm. Is he Obama's Karl Rove? I prefer to think of him as playing Iago to Obama's Hamlet, for this is truly a tragedy of epic proportions.

At least this current situation has moved me off the fence on the current Senate version of "health care." I will fight it with all the strength I placed in Obama's campaign, and if it contributes to Obama's downfall, then so be it.

This is not Change I can Believe In. This is Sound and Fury signifying Nothing.

[laughingliberal]

30. Yes, that's what's bothering us. It will be just lke NAFTA.

Whether there is a bump in the polls remains to be seen. One parallel we are sure to see, though, is the damage to the working class will become more apparent as time goes on. Is he tone deaf to compare this to NAFTA which most Americans hate?

[Kansas Wyatt]

54. The only change in the polls they have seen and will continue to see...

Is the steep dive Obama & Democrats, Inc. have been taking over caving in on REAL Health Care Reform in favor of giveaways for the Insurance Industry and laws forcing Americans to do business with the Insurance Industry.

[depakid]

33. Impressive- either Rahm learned nothing from 1994- or more likely

he doesn't care, so long as he's able to provide favors to his industry cronies.

My guess is the latter- because, while not stupid the man appears to have little in the way of a c principles or a conscience.

[EFerrari]

39. He seems pretty stupid to me. n/t

[HughMoran]

50. What's this - just keep throwing up shrapnel and see if you hit something?

Is this the new 'constructive criticism' that DU will be noted for?

Seriously - when you spend all your time trying to prop up a bowl of jelly, you may me wasting your time.

[tavalon]

67. You might want to look around you

Cheerleaders are dwindling.

[Octafish]

57. It's exactly like NAFTA.

That's exactly the idea.

[MisterP]

68. "we'll ram it up your rear, say it's a raft and not a lifeboat, half a loaf's better than none,

and you'll like it! where else will you go? ha!"

[Greyhound]

70. The American Financial Industry, bringing more deprivation and devastation to Main Street, every day

:kick: & R

[treestar]

72. Rahm and NAFTA in one post

[customerserviceguy]

73. One thing for sure about the "Cadillac" tax

Unless the limits are indexed for inflation, we will all risk being Cadillac taxed before a decade is up. And I don't mean regular inflation, I mean health care inflation, as measured by the raise in premiums.

[Dinger]

74. What A Sickening POS

What the fucking hell is this SHIT? The only change is from r to d. Wow.

[Odin2005]

76. That proves it, we are about to ger screwed up our collective asses.

I thought I elected a Dean clone and all got was Clinton 2.0! :grr:

[grahamhgreen]

78. Eventually, the Chinese will kick out the Americans, we should help that process.

[lonestarnot]

82. Infiltration has certainly done a number on the party.

[xxqqqzme]

83. this will also usher in the

end of public education because there will be no teacher's union to fight this. Teachers lost their 'edicational supplies' deduction a few years ago. With their benefits taxed, they have nothing. Can you say privatized education?

[scentopine]

85. Correct - Rahm has been helping corporations get at middle class savings his whole life.

[laughingliberal]

89. This is the big picture I think people are missing about the Senate bill

The house bill is marginally better. Health Care Reform is badly needed but the end result of this, in years to come, will be seen to be one of the biggest hits to the chance for upward mobility for the working and middle classes. Like those who saw some benefits to NAFTA we can see 'some' good coming out of the bill for some but I know if we don't make sweeping changes to the funding mechanisms and get some sort of public option in there to compete before the mandates go into effect we are in for a 'what were we thinking?' moment a decade or so from now.
:

[Mari333]

88. what a total waste of air that idiot is! nt

[scentopine]

90. Obama Attacks H. Clinton on NAFTA and Health Care

New democrats just keep stepping in it, don't they. NAFTA is a fucking disaster. Centrist land is a surreal place where up is down, down is up, good is bad, bad is good. I guess I just need to learn how to be more of a realist to understand the complexities of the 3 dimensional chess game being played.

--------------


http://www.redorbit.com/news/general/1256979/clinton_obama_ratchet_up_attacks_feuding_extends_to_steppedup_tv/


At the Milwaukee rally, Obama portrayed Clinton as both a partisan and an establishment figure.

"Her supporting NAFTA didn't give jobs to the American people," he said. "Her supporting a bankruptcy bill that made it harder for people to get out of debt -- that didn't help them with the bills that were stacking up on their desk. Hollering at Republicans and engaging in petty partisan politics didn't help health care get done."

The trade issue has drawn attention from both candidates in the struggling manufacturing centers of Wisconsin and Ohio.

Clinton says Obama is distorting her record on NAFTA, which was backed by her husband when he was president.

"I was not in the Senate at the time. I did not have a vote. I find his argument to be quite tortured. I have been a vocal critic of NAFTA starting in my campaign for the Senate in 1999," Clinton said in the interview Friday.

---------------------------

Here is an assessment of NAFTA - everyone except a few CEOs (Rahm's target demographic) agree it has been a disaster for lower and middle class workers.

http://www.carnegieendowment.org/publications/index.cfm?fa=view&id=20009

[Kermitt Gribble]

96. Rahm epitomizes all that is wrong with the "New" Democratic Party.

Hopefully the unions will join forces in opposing anything proposed by this traitor.

[GrantDem]

99. Just wait until the Rahm WH and the Senate get ahold of the EFCA.

The working class in this country is screwed regardless.

[gopwacker_455]

103. Rahm = fucking asshole

[seeinfweggos]

105. firedoglake = americans for tax reform