Saturday, March 13, 2010

The only other physician I am familiar with in the House is Jim McDermott, my rep when I lived in Seattle.

And McDermott is superb. This House website. This Wikipedia page. He ratted out Gingrich and Boehner, what more can you say?

I think from what I have seen of Reed, she and McDermott could work together in the right directions. There is no question in my mind that each of the two, Reed and McDermott, will put the public interest in seeing healthcare for all, and cost containment reform that will minimally lessen quality of service while quelling the practice of running up the bill and gaming the system. I think each knows substance from sham, when it comes to how the provider community considers the rules, and adapts to maximize cash flows, given rules as they are. Changing the rules should not be left to lawyers and lobbyists, and people guessing at what's legit and what's undue inflation of the bill, from the outside looking in without having been around that partucular block multiple times.

And anyone doubting the situation will NOT be fixed by anything passed by this congress before the general election is unduly optimistic, in my opinion. There will be a great need to undo a lot of the garbage that the special interests inserted into the current mish-mosh thing, and I would be happier with Reed in DC riding herd as best as any one person can, on a process she integrally understands.

Dusty Trice thinks differently, and were he from the Sixth District and on top of things, he might modify his thoughts. He sits distanced, and says, stripped to the nub, he subjectively fails to trust Reed, without any substantial objective fact to back up that gut feeling. I don't discount gut feelings. I go the other way on Reed, strongly so, is all, and I live in the Sixth District and will be voting here.

And if the general election goes with Reed vs. Bachmann I would hope the Dusty Trice folks would not poison the well. I surely would not if it is Clark vs. Bachmann because Tarryl Clark most certainly is a quality person, fully trustworthy to be a sound and honest Representative in Congress, if she prevails in an MN 6 primary, and the alternative is Michele Bachmann.

I would prefer Reed against Bachmann over Clark against Bachmann, and I think Reed might have the better opportunity to defeat Bachmann. Do I have objective "proof" that is so? Of course not, you cannot prove the future, you just read the tealeaves and guess, and gamble. My bet, Reed.

I had favored Clark earlier. I was more familiar with her legislative public persona, because that it the nature of things. And she's been a superb person and legislator suggesting that she'd continue that way.

But I changed my mind. Tarryl Clark is talented, I cannot say a thing about her other than that. She would be a good rep., yet I sincerely believe Reed would be better. I believe she has a history outside of the hilltop in St. Paul, a broader perspective that way showing a diversity that would season the lawyer-heavy mix now in DC, with their friendly ex-Senator, ex-Rep minions of friends in lobbying. Reed would brook none of that. Clark neither, as I see things. Each would be independent of the worse corrupting influences DC offers the weak of spirit, the compromisers.

So, I trust both Reed and Clark, fully, and like each as a candidate, but I prefer Reed is how it shakes out.

At the SD 48 March 16 senate district convention, I will support John Marty, Maureen Reed, and healthcare reform. For the Senate District challenge to Jungbauer, I support Laurie Olmon. I think she has the energy and experience and understanding to do a well-above-average job in the Minnesota Senate. I hope she gets the opportunity to prove my impression correct.

All of that said, the key race is for governor, there's only one in the State, while the numbers of officials in both houses of Congress suggest a bit more leeway in the event Bachmann gains reelection against her better opponent, and that term "Bachmann's better" fits either Reed or Clark.