Drudge has a headline about Cardoza and Costa flipping to “yes” after a possible water deal in Cali. Confirmed or just speculation? Seems like there is no safe “no” vote at this point and there is no deal off the table to secure 216.

Things seem to be breaking rapidly toward passage. Seems to me anyone who isn’t a confirmed NO is a YES…just holding out for the right deal.

If they give all these whores the payoffs they demand, the whole nine yards goes back to the Senate and needs sixty to pass. If they put it in reconciliation, these will (better be) point of ordered to death. If they ‘deem’ it passed by the Slaughter Rule, can you say lawsuit heaven and based on previous case law, there are numerous grounds on which to overturn it (and yes, I do realize that we’re dealing with a Court which decided (the first go around) that McCain-Feingold didn’t violate free speech; Something tells me there that Anthony Kennedy (who’ll provide the 5th vote either way probably didn’t appreciate getting bashed during the SOTU.)

They’re in a box and they can’t get out IMHO.

“Russia had a spy who repeatedly warned of German attack during World War II. Russia ignored, ridiculed and discredited this spy. The spy did not know his reports were ridiculed”

My guess the Dems will put their spies to death also……….

If they had the votes they would have already passed this. It is absolutely amazing though how many Democrats have turned lemming, marching arm in arm over the cliff. Anybody who lives in the real world would understand that the wave of hatred and rejection they are inciting by deliberately spitting in the face of the majority of voters, cramming this unwanted abortion of a bill down the throats of the majority of voters will end their careers. Yet so many are content to follow the Judas Goat, perhaps the Judas Lemmings that are Obama, Pelosi and Reid as they march off the cliff.

Call them now, and use their local numbers. Tell everyone you know to call them now! This is a fight for the soul and future of the United States of America; for the country we all love, and have inherited and preserved out of the blood and treasure of our forefathers.

Will the American citizens stand and fight as our great Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Guardsmen, and United States Marines, past and present, always stand and fight for our sacred liberty? This is a seminole moment in American history. We will live as one nation under God, or under government? Now is the time of decision! You must act now! Now is the time to let your voices be heard as never before. Where is the march on Washington? Where is the American spirit that never quits? Where is the American spirit that says “no” and “never again” to our enemies, and backs it up at all costs? Our soldiers are willing to die for this country’s preservation. Shall we not stand up on their behalf while they face bullets and bombs so we do not have to?

If you called already, call them again! If you have e-mailed them, do it again. If you have told your relatives, friends, neighbors, and co-workers, tell them to call and email, and fax them again! Stop what you’re doing and do it now! Our great republic is at stake!

Think of your children; and do it for them. Look into their faces; and then pick-up the phone and get on your computer, and let them know, we are still Americans, and we will not accept tyranny from anyone – foreign or domestic. We will never surrender to state control of our lives. Tell them that when you call and email them. Tell them we are not socialists, and we will not live under it now or ever. Tell them like Churchill “We will fight them in the air; on the land; and on the seas. We will never surrender.” Call them now! E-mail them now! Fax them now! Let them feel the people’s power. Do it now!

SheetAnchor on March 17, 2010 at 1:33 PM

Keep it up. For constant on-the-spot reporting i know of few on the blogosphere who can come close, Everyone here understands (or should) the speculative nature of the things you are reporting. What is, is. It will all unfold.

The only thing we can do is drop everything else and keep up the heat, until this plays out. You are providing most of that heat. A fever pitch, which, for our part, I hope we can pass on. That is the idea, isn’t it? We’re past looking at this like an academic exercise. Maybe later.

For fun, afterwards you may want to go back and draw a matrix of all the false leads and whispers that didn’t pan out.

If they pass out Pulitzers…

http://www.npr.org/blogs/politicaljunkie/2010/03/todays_junkie_segment_on_totn_10.html

“Rep. Dennis Kucinich of Ohio, one of 39 Democrats who voted against the health care bill in the House last November, announced this morning that he will vote yes this time around … even though he says the bill is far from perfect.

But other Democrats who vote no may be threatened by either a primary challenge or one from an independent in November. We’ll have Andy Stern, president of the Service Employees International Union, as our special guest. Stern is ready to take on — or take out — Democrats who vote no on the bill … especially if they are responsible for it going down to defeat.”

may be the equivalent to a vote of no confidence for Speaker Pelosi.

Maybe, moderate Dems and Republicans ought to be secretly conspiring to push Pelosi out of the Speaker chair for a more moderate Dem. Now that’s an interesting rumor to stir up the already confused House leadership.

I hear different counts from both sides. I tend to now lean that the Democrats will end up passing it one way or another, but I’m still somewhat optimistic. Pelosi has such a large margin of “no” votes from the first time around that I would think peeling a few more off is very possible.

I’m an American before I’m a Republican, so I don’t want this monstrosity passed, but that being said, it would be hard to argue that Democrats will be much worse off in the coming elections, and it will almost certainly doom Obama as a one term President. If the Democrats play games like the “Slaughter” route, I could see them losing the country for a generation. It will look incredibly illegitimate, almost coup-like.

I see very little of this bill actually being enacted if it is passed. It’s completely unrealistic, and most of it will be repealed, overturned, or ignored before it really goes into effect. Not because the country will suddenly become ultra-conservative, just because it’s just not feasible without absolutely collapsing affordable health care and destroying state and federal budgets.

She is stalking her prey with meat & blood in her teeth & under her claws. Meanwhile, Oberstar (MN) is voting yes. Dan, thanks for all your hard work & dedication in keeping RS informed. I think we all need another pep talk!

His staffers at his office confirm. That is a yes to no switch ladies and gents. Very good news.

you have pulled many of us back from the brink more times than I care to count. God willing, some of these moderate Dems will realize exactly what is going on and will decide to take a chance that maybe they can save their seat in November.

Is there any way that we can get this post forwarded to the offices of the Representatives who are still undecided? If their leadership isn’t telling them these things, it’s a sure bet that reading this might make all the difference to them. If nothing else, they could have some peace in their Congressional offices….

They are totally dividing the country.

According to the American Spectator:

“The House Republican whip team just held a conference call in which they said that the Democrats have 206 yes votes for the health care bill. They need 216 to pass it. There are currently 51 Democrats who are said to be undecided and the leadership can afford to lose 37 Democrats in all, which sounds like a pretty tough road for opponents of the bill (without the Stupak language on abortion, all Republicans are expected to vote no).”

http://spectator.org/blog/2010/03/17/republican-whip-team-says-dems

I look forward to your posts and pray that you are correct. Everyone in MSM seems to think it’s going to pass. As bad as the things are that we know about this bill, there are many other nuggets hidden within that haven’t even received coverage. I just posted about a hidden single-payer provision. Lord knows what else this bill contains.

“House Republicans leaders will attempt Thursday to force a vote on a resolution that would block Democrats from deeming the Senate health care reform bill as passed”

You can catch the full article at Roll call..

http://www.rollcall.com/news/44297-1.html

(I had posted elsewhere that republicans were planning something tomorrow and this is it apparently. Its a little confusing to me as I forget now all the different ways the dems plan on ramming hc through. So if anybody can figure out what tomorrow’s move means for us , please come back and ‘splain in english pleaze. thanks )

I suspect with all this back and forth that the one question we’d all like to ask Dan is, “Given all you know and have seen over the last three days, what chance do you give the Dems of passing HCR as of today?”

Did you take your combat Helmet and Boots with you to Washington? You deserve a medal for putting yourself right on that battlefield. This requires more than the normal hip waders.

Mavericktime, as implied by your comment, America is in a spiritual war. It is a war for the soul of the country. This health care battle is simply the foremost manifestation of the war – socialism versus capitalism; state control versus individual liberty; whether we remain one nation under God, or a nation under men.

It seems that the socialists have been on the offensive, while the forces of liberty have been on defense. The question is, whether those who believe in individual liberty are willing to fight for it with all the ferocity of the socialists.

So far, I am wondering where the million man march on Washington is, given that this is a monumental legislative act, which will fundamentally change the nature of the relationship between the Government in America, and its citizens, in a way that is likely catastrophic for the country. Why is no prominent conservative calling for a million people to show up on Capital Hill? It should be obvious that bribery and payoffs are effective in buying votes on Capital Hill. The only countervening force would be the people rising up and demonstrating in such large numbers that it scares the socialists politicians in thinking they will lose their jobs. Short of this, the socialists are for sale; and it is the peoples’ fault for tolerating such corruption among their elected representatives – by being too silent for too long. Freedom requires action to obtain it, and action to sustain it. Thus far, said action has been too littlel and may be too late. The next few days will tell. Hence, call your Congressman; and tell everyone you know to do likewise.

Being reported by people over at Hot Air. http://www.facebook.com/home.php?filter=lf#!/profile.php?id=1340283369&ref=ts

Sorry, don’t use Facebook. Don’t want feds tracking me

Is that the votes that the Dems are working hard to get? rather than the vote on the Senate bill?

Don’t be surprised if Pelosi gets the votes, by trickery if need be.

That said, I still don’t see how it passes the Senate on reconciliation. Many of the changes are going to be struggles.

And then, what happens if the Senate changes something? It will have to go BACK to the House to be revoted.

This thing is a mess.

http://neoavatara.com/blog/?p=10387

Illinois, especially Chicago, politicians always ask,”Where’s mine?” How many bribes will it take to pass HC? See Tribune’s John Kass at http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/columnists/ct-met-kass-0317-20100316,0,4939258.column

via “deem and pass,” Obama will simply sign the bill. The Senate Dems won’t waste much time on reconciliation.

It will be up to the SCOTUS to put a stop to this.

THEIR constituency wants it. And for that reason, I fear Nancy Pelosi has a better than even chance of passing the Senate version.

From everything I read and hear, across the country about half of the people oppose ObamaCare. But about a third actually support the socialist monstrosity. Indeed, some few of those who oppose it oppose HCR because it does not go far enough: like the Senate bill lacking a public-option. Consider, completely aside from her being the Speaker, Nancy Pelosi will look better to the “Lefty loonies” in her district if ObamaCare happens than if it does not. And THEY are the ones who put her and her ilk in office and keep them there, not us.

The unfortunate truth of the matter is that the majority of individual constituents of most of the Democratic Congressmen want socialized medicine. Despite the fact that a majority of Americans across the country don’t. The Democrats are simply playing to their constituents; and if they can wrangle an earmark and bacon for them, too, then they look even better.

Strangely enough, the model that Obama and the Democrats are following is almost “Karl Rovian”: appeal to your base and not the “moderate middle” for support. And I say this as someone who truly believes that George W. Bush was, at heart, nothing more than a moderate himself. But like it or not, Karl Rove’s strategy worked; at least in the short-term. My fear is that it may work for Obama and Pelosi, at least in the short-term, too.

But hey, unless I am misunderstood, I say keep fighting and keep calling in opposition to this monstrosity. Especially if you personally live in a district represented by a Democrat. Again, they are following what they reasonably think is in their best interest: we still have the opportunity to convince hem that it is not.

And more, long-term, we as conservatives need to stop the name-calling and engage in conversation with the third of the population who see nothing wrong with socialized medicine. And yes, conservatives do engage in name-calling just like the other side. (Of note, I do want to make it perfectly clear that RedState is an exceptionally erudite and civil website.) But unlike them, we have the facts, logic and reality on our side. I personally have convinced a few (not all, not even most, but a few) liberals I know who were initially in support of ObamaCare that socialized medicine will be a disaster.

Because ultimately that is the only way not only to stop ObamaCare but also get this country back on its track to renewed greatness. We must do more than win the ballots, we must win the minds. Because unless we do that, we’ll simply get more so-called “conservatives” who when they get in power, lead this country down the same path of socialism themselves.

if you vote for this.You hear me Vick schnieder!!!!!! Probably not yet.But you will.

http://www.intrade.com/?request_operation=main&request_type=action&checkHomePage=true

We have seen too many false indicators from InTrade: in most cases, only hours before an event will it give a reliable trend.

To be sure, in some things you will not find such volatility, but yes, it can and is being manipulated by people playing games with the system.

(wow, never thought I’d write that) he doesn’t really have much choice on Healthcare. His opening ante before the election was All In. If he gets stopped here, he’s a lame duck before the midterm elections. Yeah, it was an idiotic mistake and an experienced pol would have tried to walk it back, but he’s never had to even try to do that in his very short past.

http://hotair.com/archives/2010/03/17/obamacare-whip-counts-pelosi-in-trouble/

He thinks the progressive blog Firedoglake.com has the best take on where things stand.

FDL sees the count as tied at 208 each. Their assessment is that the people on the fence are by and large conservative Democrats, some of them pro-life. Five voted against the House health care bill in September, and 10 voted for it. But, of these 10, there are some Stupak Democrats.

Dick Morris says that Pelosi won’t go for the Slaughter rule vote, but will have an up or down vote on the Senate bill. However, they will have the reconciliation bill that will have all of their fixes, and with that they will be trusting that the Senate will have the votes to pass it.

I think opponents of the bill have to hope for two things. One – that the CBO score keeps coming back as too high. It came in over $1 trillion today, according to Joe Wilson. It would need to come in closer to $900 billion and have language that says that the bill will reduce the deficit. This would be needed to give Blue Dogs cover to vote for the bill.

Second, we need to hope that Waxman was serious that he wasn’t going to negotiate with the Stupak Democrats on abortion language. But, what was Pelosi’s meeting with the House pro-choice women about today? Are they going to cave in to Stupak’s demands? I don’t see Stupak or his group backing down otherwise.

In any case, House Democrats have to have assurances from Senate Democrats that they will adopt the reconciliation bill. If the Senate Democrats double-cross them, they’ll be sucker-punched again.

on the playground so crazed with adrenalin that they bowl everyone else over in their haste to continue their game? Same thing with this bunch. THeir so myopic that they don’t even notice what’s going on peripherally. But Myopia can be corrected by the lens of election day, as long as the American people are continually reminded of their sandbox bully tactics.

They’ve got their CBO score and it’s more than $900 billion. I guess they’re off to the races now though.

“The CBO projects President Obama’s health care bill will cost $940 billion and cut the deficit by $130 billion over the next decade, The Hill reports.

The bill is more expensive than the House or Senate bills, ‘though the CBO said that the current bill, which builds off the Senate’s bill with changes to it, would make larger reductions in the deficit.’

‘The release of the CBO score sets into motion a 72-hour endgame on health care that could mean a vote in the House on the package as early as Sunday morning.’”

http://politicalwire.com/archives/2010/03/18/cbo_estimate_starts_the_clock_for_health_care_vote.html#ixzz0iXOB7Fms

I was wondering what was happening. Either she is brilliant or she is insane.

I’m voting for insane, like should be on heavy meds and probably is, insane. God help her poor husband. He must spend nights drinking scotch and cleaning his pistol, hoping for an “accident.”

Is it me or did they not ask personal questions last time??

I was going to fill it out, thinking out hard could it be, since it is the short form. Noooo. They want not only the basic stuff, but the names, DOBs, ages of EVERYONE in your home or stays in your home.

What in the world does my DOB and name have to do with any census? Or the names and dob’s of your children? They cannot justify it. Outside the issue of constitutionality, the threat of ID theft is immense. You put it back in your mailbox and you have just given a thief your kid’s ID. It happens all the time. Your kid will be “working” in the farm fields picking tomatoes, or applying for a credit card which will be run up and never paid. I WORKED THOSE CASES!!!

Frankly, this government, and I’m not only blaming the left here, has lost its collective mind. Seize land, restrict water right until people starve, force taxes and premiums on citizens, deny healthcare or fine people for getting it. Madness.

And it is our fault. They govern because we allow them to.