Democrats and progressives can't believe their good fortune that Nevada Republican senatorial candidate Sue Lowden wants to lower health care costs by adopting a barter economy to pay doctors.
Lowden insists she's not fooling around in an effort to unseat incumbent Harry Reid, Senate Majority Leader who has been trailing in the polls in his home state against phantom opponents for nearly two years.
Here's two video tapes provided by Talking Points Memo although I think Rachael Maddow was a little too cutesy in her presentation Wednesday night on her MSNBC show.
Here's the key text:
"Let's change the system and talk about what the possibilities are. I'm telling you that this works. You know, before we all started having health care, in the olden days, our grandparents, they would bring a chicken to the doctor. They would say I'll paint your house," she said. "[That's] what people would do to get health care with their doctors. Doctors are very sympathetic people."
"I'm not backing down from that system," she added.
Also Wednesday night, Lawrence O'Donnell, once again filling in for an absent Keith Olbermann, said Reid deserves a "Profiles In Courage" award for steering the health reform overhaul legislation through the Senate at a time he knew his constituents opposed the measure.
Talking Points itself wrote:
...Many people had endless criticisms of how he managed the process over the course of 2009 and 2010. At the end of the day, though, it passed. The Senate is where it happened. And Reid was central to the entire thing. That is an historic accomplishment. If his career in politics ends in January, his place in history will be secure.
In January, the Las Vegas Journal-Review paid the Mason-Dixon Polling and Research Inc. for a poll interviewing 625 voters in which half held an unfavorable view and 45% said they definitely would vote against Reid.
As for Lowden, TPM wrote:
There's no end of comedic possibilities thinking through the logistical and logical difficulties of managing co-pays and long-term care and drug costs in chickens and other barter payment. But step back and give it a serious look and ... well, this is this woman's take on confronting medical inflation. It's funny and also sad. But as a contrast it's stark and painful.
Reid's campaign released a statement headed "Seriously ... Has Sue Lowden Lost Her Mind?"
Mason-Dixon Managing Partner Brad Coker commenting on the January poll: "Reid's fortunes are going to hinge on two things: Does he draw a strong challenger, and what does the economy do."
The answer to the first point is clear.
The other declared Republican candidate for Senator is former UNLV coach's son Danny Tarkanian. He has yet to announce a full court press on his opponents.
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EPILOGUE
I'll leave the chicken jokes to the comics and hope Jon Stewart of "The Daily Show" on Comedy Central takes the bait. Historically, it was President Herbert Hoover who campaigned for reelection in 1932 coining the phrase "A Chicken In Every Pot" as the rallying cry during the height of the Great Depression. On her Web site, Sue Lowden writes: "I’m running for the U.S. Senate in Nevada to create jobs, restore accountability in government spending and to fight for your interests over those of Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid and Barack Obama." I don't live in Nevada, but if I did and was a doctor, I'll be damned if I would allow a cow or herd of goats in my reception room. But, only because it is unsanitary.
Readers comments are welcome as long as they remain civil. We reserve the right to delete any comments that are vulgar, libelous and totally irrelevant to this posting. -- Jer
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