This winnable fight

Written by: Mike Stagg on Aug 13, 2009 3:20 PM EDT

Linked to groups: Democracy for Louisiana, Acadiana DFA, Training Academy Alumni, Class of 2007

Despite the fact that, up to now, the public space in this debate has been abandoned by our side in Louisiana, the fight for healthcare reform is still winnable and, in fact, must be waged because the future of our party depends on it.

I attended the Rural Listening Tour event in Reserve, LA, last month. While the protesters got the media attention, the vast majority of the people there were hungry for information that the four cabinet secretaries offered them. I believe most of the people at that event could be won over to support healthcare reform if someone would speak to them about it common sense terms.

That view was reinforced recently when the Ouachita Chamber of Commerce took a neutral stance on healthcare reform. The easy vote for them would have been to get in line behind the national chamber, behind their local legislators, behind their congressman and behind their governor to oppose this legislation. That they did not indicates that there must be some significant portion of their membership who is at least open to suasion on the issue.

More after the break.

We can win this fight in Louisiana if we focus not on the elected officials and not on the lunatic right, but on those people in the middle — those small business people, workers and heads of households who know that the current system is unsustainable but have had concerns raised by the claims being made against the plan.

The pathway to victory here is to place this issue in three contexts.

The first context is historical. Healthcare reform is as necessary today as Social Security was in 1935 and Medicare was in 1965. The opponents of healthcare reform are saying the same things today about this effort as opponents of Social Security said back in the 1930s and opponents of Medicare said in the 1960s. They were wrong about Social Security. They were wrong about Medicare. They are wrong today about healthcare reform.

The second context is local. Tip O'Neil was right, "all politics is local." Our governor jumped into this fray in order to advance his national ambitions. Now, Medicaid budget cuts have been made because he could not say no to a tax cut a year ago nor say yes to a tax hike to avoid the cuts this year. The Louisiana Hospital Association says that those cuts are going to cost nearly 2,000 healthcare workers their jobs and that cost shifting to compensate for the revenue lost to the cuts will drive up the cost of care for those with health insurance. Jindal is worsening Louisiana's healthcare crisis with his political grandstanding.

The third context is what has been happening to families in recent decades. Defined benefit pensions have all but disappeared. Employer contributions to 401Ks are shrinking. And the ranks of companies even offering health insurance is shrinking. Three strikes and you're out of luck! The President's healthcare reform plan will relieve some of the pressure on middle and working class families by making coverage more affordable and making insurance companies treat customers fairly.

Healthcare is the issue that can win middle and working class voters back to our party in this state if we speak to them clearly about the issue and the context of it. Their personal experiences with the healthcare industry has left them with indelible scars that cannot be spun away. But the key is not to abandon them, but to speak to them directly.

The most cost-effective way to do that is via a web-based media campaign not unlike the campaign that elected President Obama last year.

I have put together a proposal (PDF) that would enable us to reach 2 million Louisiana residents over the next three to four weeks. We can do this very cost effectively.

Please download the plan and review it. It contains the ads and scripts for two of the three videos that will link to the ads.

It is not a perfect plan, but it is a plan. It will enable progressives in DFA lead on this issue when others in our party are too timid to do so.

It offers us a chance to lead. It offers us a chance to turn the tide. It offers us a chance to make our party and its values resonate with voters who have not had a reason to consider us in a while.

If, after looking at the plan, you have any questions and/or you want to join this effort please contact me either through DFA or through this blog.

Thank you!

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Location: Lafayette, LA 70506