In the passing of Senator Kennedy, Democrats do you have a steel spine yet?

Many of us knew this was coming, not seeing Senator Kennedy at his sister, Eunice's funeral, the final letter requesting that Massachusetts appoint an interim senator, his absence from receiving the Presidential Medal of Honor and finally the date pushed up for the release of his autobiography in September 2009, instead of early 2010.

All the remembrance, accolades, memories of a fighter that was Senator Edward Kennedy will be warranted for the many days to come, but no fight was harder for Senator Kennedy than the fight for health care reform.

And every single one of the Democrats in the senate, KNOWS THIS.

So, Democrats in the Senate, are you going to put on that steel coat and do the right thing or are you going to become irrelevant, milquetoast individuals who are afraid and tied to one of the most corrupt industries that perform disservice to Americans in this country, the insurance companies?

I have been hard on President Obama and the Democratic congress, but for a reason. We have had no leadership on the health care battle, NONE. We have had to witness the GOP operatives organized and mount the largest MISINFORMATION CAMPAIGN that I have ever witnessed in my lifetime. We have had to watch the GOP take a Democratic cause, fought for since President Harry S. Truman and see it being turned into everything like killing the elderly to socialized medicine. It has been tough, rough and heart wrenching for the millions that voted Democrat, for this very issue, health care reform.

And our side? On slow motion drive, with movement not organized until disastrous polling numbers showed that all this chaos and fiasco on television was not helping us, but hurting us. For that, we all have to take blame.

One thing was correct from Senator Orrin Hatch over the weekend, if Senator Ted Kennedy was there in the fight, all of this involving the health care bill it would have been different in the senate. We should have expected what the GOP operatives and lobbyists would do, they let us know they were spending 1.4 million dollars a day, prior to the town hall meetings starting, so we were forewarned, we just ignored it and was not prepared.

The lack of leadership on the health care front has been painfully clear from the Democrats. We have watched President Obama give a few town hall meetings, but only to clear up misinformation, but not drawing any line in the sand on where HE stands. Senate Leader Harry Reid has been practically non-existent in this battle, sure he gives a few sound bites, but is he doing anything? NO. Speaker Pelosi has been one of the many Democrats who has said out right, no public option, no bill.

Now, we have a chance, for the Democrats in the congress to push the reset button on health care reform. These Democrats have a chance to vote what the American public wants, the public option. If these same Democrats can vote for mandates which will make the very insurance companies we are fighting against billions more richer, then they need to draw the line in the sand and firmly stand on it for the public option.

I know there are other things in the bill just as important like removing the pre-existing condition clause, but do you see the insurance companies fighting over that? The insurance companies won't argue that point because it is a lose-lose for them, believe me, they have given that point up. The point they don't want is robust competition against them, forcing them to change their premiums, forcing them to change their coverage, forcing them to challenge the public option. These insurance companies should be afraid, because they have not been right by many Americans for a very long time.

These Democrats, especially in the Senate, need to come to grips with what they are going to do. This is the first time in over 50 years that we are close on a bill and real reform. This is a place in time for the Democratic Party, a time that will be remembered for many years to come by many Americans. This single issue will make or brake the Democrats in congress.

If these Democrats fail the millions that voted for them, and we are talking about many millions that voted for the "D" label because it was suppose to represent change, they will have to pay at the polls. It is simple as that. This can not continue. We can not continue to have members of congress give us lip service but do not deliver on what WE, their constituents want.

We have stood by as President Obama has bailed out the financial/banking industry to much chagrin by millions of Americans; bail out the auto industry; fight against releasing the torture pictures of the Bush regime; go light on FISA; watched as the very industry by the name of AIG an insurance company largely responsible for the housing fiasco pay themselves in the BILLIONS for bonuses while getting bailed out by the American public. I list all this because many have been quiet, though not liking it, but expecting no more negotiations when it comes to health care. Well, we are not sure what we are going to get in this health care bill, but one thing is certainly crystal clear, NO PUBLIC OPTION expect the Democrats to be in trouble 2010 and on. Don't expect people who put faith in the word "change", to keep listening to you when you don't deliver. Simple as that.

So, Democrats in the House and especially the Senate, what are you going to do? Are you going to dust that steel coat off and put it on? Or are you going to cave because you don't have the heart and guts to vote the right way.

It is up to you.

Cross-posted @ Daily Kos

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