SURRENDER AND DECLARE VICTORY:

Obama to stress common ground in health speech ( Michael Kranish, September 4, 2009, Boston Globe)

[I]f some parts of the reform effort fail to gain enough support, Obama could deploy a backup plan that includes measures such as ending the denial of coverage - and give him an interim victory. At the least, the potential for passing such a plan could give the president leverage to win concessions from Congress.

Amid all the angry discussion at town hall meetings, relatively little attention has been paid to the fact that many Republicans agree broadly with Obama - though not necessarily on the details - on ideas such as making it easier for small businesses to band together to buy insurance for their employees and for workers to take their insurance with them from one company to another, keeping the plan deficit-neutral, and imposing new regulations on the insurance industry to make it easier for anyone to get coverage.

What wouldn't we give for a Republican to offer an amendment requiring insurance companies to provide you with auto coverage for pre-existing damages....

Posted by Orrin Judd at September 4, 2009 11:03 AM