Good morning.
One more day til the big health care summit. We do know one thing for sure: The White House won't fight for the public option. Apparently, including that provision would require the White House to lobby for it on the Hill -- and that is something this White House doesn't do. As Adam Green said so well, "The White House obviously has a loser mentality -- but America rallies around winners."
A trio of corporate villains will be testifying on Capitol Hill today: Akio Toyota to explain why his company took so long to address the serious problems with its cars; Angela Braly, the President and CEO of WellPoint/Anthem to explain why her company is raising rates up to 39%; and Ben Bernanke (yes, I know he's chair of Federal Reserve, but what he did with AIG and the banks makes him a corporate villain for me.)
And, the prospects for repealing Don't Ask, Don't Tell look unclear. A moratorium is not a repeal. Just a reminder, this is what Obama said in the State of the Union:
This year, I will work with Congress and our military to finally repeal the law that denies gay Americans the right to serve the country they love because of who they are.A moratorium does not finally repeal the law. And, it won't end DADT this year.
Let's get it started...
