Puppetry And Invincibility

While we heard about the latest shootings in Fort Hood, Texas, and our hearts are with the families and survivors, we're not going to focus on it much today. There are too few hard facts, too many rumors, and not enough details for any media organization to make serious and substantive statements right now about that story.

Instead, we're focusing on a different danger, one where the facts are already clear and well-known, though the outcome may be just as final in the end.

Of course, we're talking about yesterday's unethical and ignorant majority ruling in the McCutcheon case by the right-wing activists on the U.S. Supreme Court. As many journalists, scholars, and commentators who understand the ruling have confirmed, the ruling effectively expands Citizens United, allowing virtually any person or group with enough money to buy any election they want.

As John Nichols of The Nation noted Wednesday, while the ruling does leave some few campaign finance laws in place, it effectively has legalized plutocracy in America - or, as Ian Milheiser of Think Progress put it, it legalized money laundering through politics.

However you think of it, what it means for American politics is simple. Individuals in this country now effectively have no voice unless they're billionaires, while politicians are no more than puppets, who will be forced to dance on the strings of whoever has the most money.

It should be noted that, with this decision, the Roberts Court now loses what little legitimacy it had left as a bastion of justice and judicial integrity. Justice Breyer, in a vehement dissent read aloud from the bench, even pointedly addressed this problem of "political integrity" in a system where the only political speech that's even heard comes from those who can effectively scream the loudest.

The Court's problem of integrity on this issue dates back to the 1976 Buckley vs. Valejo decision, when the Court began the journey towards Citizens United and McCutcheon, in both cases where the Roberts Court claims money is speech. Money is, of course, not speech - political or any other kind. The IRS acknowledged as much again just last month. Money is property, property that can be traded for tools to amplify the speech of anyone who can afford it - but money itself is not speech.

This is one of the rare items where some on the far right agree with us. Often cited by organizations like the Cato Institute, or right-wing bloggers, the idea that money is speech actually goes against not just logic and facts, but also property rights issues that many ideological conservatives consider foundational. Not surprisingly to us, RNC Chairman Reince Preibus isn't one of those people. Of course, anyone of clear conscience already knows what those like Mr. Priebus are, regardless of what price he finally negotiates with his donors.

Unfortunately, the culture that enables the kind of success that only favors those who already have money, without rewarding the work of anyone willing to do it has already been identified - correctly - by people like Robert Reich. Reich says that America is slouching towards oligarchy; frankly, after the McCutcheon ruling, we tend to think America is moving toward oligarchy at a breakneck pace. Reich also says that political action is the only way to stop this new gilded age from getting worse.

Sadly, he's wrong. It is, however, the only bloodless way to do so.

That's a point of fact that has been repeated throughout history in every major culture in the world. The difference between now and every other point in history is that now, everyone has access to the internet. As former CIA Director Clapper admitted this week, with the right tools, the internet can allow anyone access to even the most private information - which means the exact time and location of the people and things that are most important to those wannabe oligarchs are now as instantly available to a savvy potential political candidate, as they are to any angry, determined individual with time on their hands, and nothing left to lose.

As events from Fort Hood to 9/11 have shown America and the world, when all kinds of weapons, from guns to simple box cutters, are applied at precisely the right place and time, by people who feel they have nothing left to lose, no one is invincible.

Stop Clowning Around, Dems!

There are perks to being right about important topics, and we got to experience one of those perks yesterday watching President Obama's 'victory lap' speech in the White House Rose Garden, lauding the success of the first four years of the ACA. The President not only praised those who have supported the ACA so far, but also echoed what we and others have said recently: That it's time for Republicans to get over the fact they lost this one.

To our surprise, some conservative pundits like Ramesh Ponnuru finally seem to be taking the President's suggestion to heart that they lost the war over Obamacare, and now they need to move on.

But a lot of our colleagues in the media seem to be having some difficulty with that. The three major cable news channels all seem like clowns, each stuck doing their own schtick - the missing airplane story on CNN, Chris Christie-palooza on MSNBC, and whatever the latest right-wing, anti-Obama hate messaging is on Fox.

We can't help but look at this situation and be reminded of one of our staff favorite fictional political characters, President Jed Bartlet, as he'd reach a conclusion or solve some problem. As soon as the problem was solved, Bartlet seemed to ask, "What's next?"

For Democrats, the answer should be simple right now: Get back to work - and be proud of what you've done.

Logic will tell you that Democrats really shouldn't have such a difficult time running for office this fall. From Republicans like Florida's Governor Rick Scott, who is fundraising with the founder of a series of abusive teen boot camps, to Wisconsin's Gov. Scott Walker, a politically owned tool of the Koch Brothers, it's not as though the modern Republican Party has any honest or serious leadership.

If that fact wasn't obvious before, the ridiculous budget proposal from Republican Rep. Paul Ryan, that was revealed yesterday, should have reminded Americans how unserious Republicans are today. One member of our staff literally thought Ryan's latest revamped plan was a joke, since yesterday was April Fools Day.

As Greg Sargent noted on Tuesday, Republicans only have one plan to run on this fall - namely, that they think Obamacare sucks. As the facts continue to show, however, a growing number of Americans don't agree with them. A majority of Americans support the ACA now - which is why Democrats must run on the success of the program, even as they try take care of Obamacare's loose ends.

In places like Kentucky, that means that candidates like Alison Lundergan Grimes - who is challenging Senator Mitch McConnell for his seat - can't do what Alex Sink did in Florida. Sink lost, in part, because she didn't loudly, proudly, and effectively stand up for what she supported. For Democrats, that means supporting the Affordable Care Act - not avoiding the topic as Grimes seems to be doing.

From Froma Harrup to Bob Shrum, the smart Democratic pundits and campaign advisors are all saying the same thing to Democrats this year: Embrace Obamacare!

It remains to be seen, however, whether candidates will listen to wise council, or to the clowns on cable "news."

No Foolin' - Fight's Over.

Today may be April Fools' Day, but we're certainly not kidding around about our focus today.

For more than seven years now, members of the media have been referring to "Obamacare." And it has now been four years since the 'Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act' - the real name of the law - went into effect.

There have been more column inches in print, more pixels online, more political cartoons drawn, and in general more discussion about this topic than almost any topic that our staff or any journalist we know has ever covered. We personally know more than one health policy journalist who is as sick of this topic as the rest of America is - and this is the topic they're experts on.

Still, when we saw Paul Waldman's piece Monday afternoon at Greg Sargent's Plum Line, we almost had to jump for joy. The title of his piece says it all: "Obamacare fails to collapse. Time to move on, folks." Frankly, we couldn't agree more.

We're fairly sure, however, that many media and political figures on the right feel differently. Much like Election Night 2012, what they're likely feeling is likely a mixture of shock, anger, and denial, along with a feeling of being duped by their own propaganda. Like devoted sports fans who've just watched their favorite sports team get destroyed in the last game of the season, right-wing politicos are still sitting, dazed, hours after the Obamacare enrollment deadline passed, wondering how they could have been so wrong.

Indeed, just as the open enrollment period ended last night, the AP confirmed: The number of Americans signed up for health insurance through the Affordable Care Act has now reached the Obama Administration's optimistic goal of 7 million. Some people have even signed up directly with insurers. It all adds up to 9.5 million Americans who have health insurance now, who were uninsured six months ago.

For those on the political right, the news only gets worse from there.

Not only has the public's support of Obamacare gone into positive territory in the latest ABC News/Washington Post poll - it also hit a new high in the latest poll from Fox, which they quickly buried. Democrats and those on the political left are finally beginning to rally behind the law as well.

For any American who actually cares about fixing our broken health care payment system - which, after all, has always been the point of health insurance reform - the fact that Obamacare seems to be building steam and getting positive results is something to cheer about. That said, as many journalists have noted multiple times (though we personally credit Greg Sargent for saying it first and most often over the last few years), the true test for the law will be if it really works over time.

For now, we firmly agree with Paul Waldman: The time for Obamacare to be a headline issue is done.

We fully expect that some on the right will still cling to the crazy idea of repealing the law throughout the 2014 political season, and maybe even longer. Like a sports fan stuck in disbelief and denial though, still staring at a now-empty television set hours after the big loss, dreaming the outcome had been different, Republicans are going to have a hard time dealing with reality.

The fact is, the fight's over. The political right lost. Badly.

It's time for all of America to move on.