Using the Web to Pressure Nelson on Health Care | Newsweek Voices - Jonathan Alter

Did a grass-roots group get Sen. Ben Nelson to rethink the public-plan option?

By Jonathan Alter | Newsweek Web Exclusive

Jun 16, 2009

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If President Obama's agenda is going to stand a chance, he needs to hold all of the Democrats in the Senate. The least reliable is Sen. Ben Nelson of Nebraska, a savvy conservative from a deep-red state who will use his leverage for whatever he can get.

Now some progressives think they've figured out a way to use the Web to pressure Nelson, whose big contributions from the health-insurance industry and banks has made him a target. But they still have a long way to go, and Nelson is fighting back against the blogosphere. It's old vs. new—rough-cob politics in the Cornhusker State, or perhaps just in some virtual version of it.

Nelson has a formidable adversary in Lawrence Lessig, a Stanford law professor and arguably the nation's best thinker on the legal implications of the Internet. Lessig got tired of just thinking and writing, and after deciding not to run for Congress he decided to try to clean it up from the outside.

His organization, Change-Congress.org, is claiming its first "major victory." In early June, Nelson backed off from his comment that a public option for health insurance was "a deal breaker" and let it be known that he would not join any filibuster against the president's health-care bill.

Lessig says this came after ChangeCongress announced it would spend $10,000 in online ads and send 3,000 direct-mail pieces to Democratic donors in Nebraska pointing out that Nelson received more than $2 million from special interests in health care who oppose the public option.

Rather than attack Nelson as a scoundrel, Lessig calls it his "Good Souls Campaign," which is aimed at "good people trapped in a broken campaign-finance system they refuse to fix." He has launched a "donor strike," asking politically active donors not to contribute to any federal office holder who hasn't endorsed the Durbin-Specter "Fair Elections" bill for public financing of congressional campaigns.

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Health & Education are foundation of organizing of a nation. And any individual-level and 'national-or international-level' institutional sharing in these sectors is a 'productive-investment' for generations to reap benefits on long-term basis.
In fact; Health, Education & Transport are such three sectors of Economy where highest %age of peoples can be adjusted to work, based on factual analytical studies. So, no doubt, it'll be a remarkable example for other countries especially for developing countries and African countries, what President Barack Obama is navigating, thriving & striving for.
We must have to join hands with ???foresighted??? Political leadership & ???Marvelous Statesmanship??? of President Barack Obama and dynamic Obama administration, also concentrating Health Care development policies to control health care high cost, insufficiency of Health care providers for a quality and affordable care as well.

Saving $94 BILLION in governent spending would do a lot for our economy but at every turn it means cuttin out some useless industry . The insurance industry in a large casino business that in some cases the government forces us to put up our money whether you want to or not (automobile) . It is a bet you never win because casinos do not lose money . What would happen if we all decided not to bet ? Just put the monthly insurance payments in a FDIC bank account and only think about in as insurance money and not a nest egg . I got a letter from the really big phone company saying that my rates were going up and how happy I was going to be with this rate increase . Big business has played the Rope-A-Dope trick on us for years and we have become brain washed while our government makes laws that force us to be in the game . When I saw the Cspan cameras showing insurance lobbyist on the floor of congress handing out checks I knew we were dead meat .

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Posted By: TZ192583 @ 06/29/2009 4:27:17 AM

JOIN HANDS WITH BARACK OBAMA -(also in Policies & successful implementation) For YOUR better future
Highly appreciating highest ranking of ???Marvelous Statesmanship??? as US President ??? Barack Obama, with outstandingly passionate, highly responsible & reserved comments without any interference in sovereignty of Iran, in yesterday???s News Conference, expressed witnessing concerns with ???Global-Eye??? i.e. a ???Human-Eye??? regarding on-going Regional Peace Policies leading to Global Peace Initiative & Sustainable International Development Process. Of course, these positive policies & moves for ???Development-For-All??? are visibly long-term & long-lasting and Historically recording of remarkable (Burraq Obama-Administration under your ???foresighted??? Political Leadership of Peoples Government (of the peoples, by the peoples, for the peoples) of United state for ORGANIZING FOR AMERICA, and our new millennium approach & commitment to taking care for better environment on our Planet ??? of an ???un-biased??? Human Earth.
Obviously, strong response by 60 to 77 % and much silent approvals of the rest must be inspiring on highly reserved, responsible and strong stand of your fabulous proceedings on national & international issues especially related with national, regional & international peace & development, Economic development, financial re-structuring and re-organizing with peoples??? friendly ???regulations??? for healthy pace-of-economy???, and especially Research-Oriented Educational development & Health Care Reforms. Consequently it???s national & international ethical responsibility of all who are more than 80% (in my opinion) approving & endorsing your foresighted Political Leadership & brilliant Statesmanship, to come forward joining hands National Spirit i.e. the call-of-time for ORGANIZING FOR AMERICA, with ???above-self??? & ???above-communities??? , 'above-group', 'above-party' & 'opposition just for opposition'.
Health & Education are foundation of organizing of a nation. And any individual-level and 'national-or international-level' institutional sharing in these sectors is a 'productive-investment' for generations to reap benefits on long-term basis.
In fact; Health, Education & Transport are such three sectors of Economy where highest %age of peoples can be adjusted to work, based on factual analytical studies. So, no doubt, it'll be a remarkable example for other countries especially for developing countries and African countries, what President Barack Obama is navigating, thriving & striving for.
We must have to join hands with ???foresighted??? Political leadership & ???Marvelous Statesmanship??? of President Barack Obama and dynamic Obama administration, also concentrating Health Care development policies to control health care high cost, insufficiency of Health care providers for a quality and affordable care as well.
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Posted By: Apolitical @ 06/24/2009 2:48:51 PM

The health-care reform with 72% support from American public is indeed ripe for grass roots initiative to bludgeon the representatives and senators for its backing and eventual approval into law. GOP is planning on another political suicide by opposing it in mindless lemming fashion. We'll let them. The Dems have the vote to pass it. We should just exert more pressure on the other recalcitrant Democrats.
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Posted By: unionave @ 06/19/2009 4:59:11 AM

Saving $94 BILLION in governent spending would do a lot for our economy but at every turn it means cuttin out some useless industry . The insurance industry in a large casino business that in some cases the government forces us to put up our money whether you want to or not (automobile) . It is a bet you never win because casinos do not lose money . What would happen if we all decided not to bet ? Just put the monthly insurance payments in a FDIC bank account and only think about in as insurance money and not a nest egg . I got a letter from the really big phone company saying that my rates were going up and how happy I was going to be with this rate increase . Big business has played the Rope-A-Dope trick on us for years and we have become brain washed while our government makes laws that force us to be in the game . When I saw the Cspan cameras showing insurance lobbyist on the floor of congress handing out checks I knew we were dead meat .