I thought Obama's speech last night was pretty good and I don't know why the guy doesn't give more of them. For that matter, I don't know why he doesn't fill the largest stadium available, as he easily could, and give a big speech for Health Care Reform before a packed, cheering crowd. It would go a long way to countering any impressions out there that the troglodytes who scream at town hall meetings are in any way speaking for the majority of the American public. Didn't Republicans misplay this hand before? I seem to recall them thinking they could play to the extreme right in their party, hate Bill Clinton right out of the White House and parlay his ouster into a permanent majority.
Joe Wilson, the yutz Congressguy who yelled at the president unwisely, was just on the news apologizing yet again and fumbling to explain how a bill which explicitly says —
Nothing in this subtitle shall allow Federal payments for affordability credits on behalf of individuals who are not lawfully present in the United States.
— would actually cover folks who are in this country illegally. It's hard to believe he acted, as he now claims, out of emotion. Easier to believe is premeditated thought that such a heckle would make him a hero with the wingnut crowd and they'd shovel cash into his re-election campaign. What he didn't figure was that he was giving the elder statesmen of his party a chance to seem mature by scolding him, and that his opponent in the next election would instantly receive a flood of donations. So which one of the late night comics will have someone in their audience tonight yelling "You lie!" at their monologues?