Health Care "Summit" Live Blogging

I'm home sick today with a cold. Since my brain doesn't need to be taxed, I figured I can live blog the "summit" at Blair House. I'll also being checking Internet and TV talkers reaction and post some of that too.

1:04 They have started again and Mike Enzi begins with the "cutting Medicare" crap. AGAIN. I'm done. I'm going to sleep and watch post-game later.

12:00 LUNCH! Not sure how much more of this I can take. Time for body language interpretation on CNN. R vs D House members on MSNBC. Afraid to look again at what Fox is doing. I think I'll listen to CSPAN weird callers.

11:44 Eric Cantor is so dumb that he doesn't know that he has no chance taken on points against someone with a working brain like Barack Obama.

11:38 Off topic: My funny mail of the day. The Concerned Women of America sent me mail asking me to fight the "radical homosexual agenda." It has one of the fake surveys with loaded questions aimed at getting you to give you money. Oh, did they send that to the wrong person. This "survey" will now join one from Greenpeace for examples of ridiculously leading questions when I teach polling in American Government for years to come.

By the way, the Concerned Women of America is much more "radical" than any homosexual I have ever met.

11:21 I am now missing the entertainment that would have come from having Michelle Bachmann, Alan Grayson and the other more "interesting" members of Congress.

11:20 Had to go to Fox News to get away from talking heads and hear the summit bloviators.

11:10 Two hours into this and the only things I can tell for sure is 1) the only person in the room who would like to find common ground is Obama; 2) Republicans think "Dr." instead of Rep. or Sen. sounds better today.

11:01 Watching this I think the Dems should just let Obama do all the talking. He takes on each Republican talking point and blows it apart so well while sounding so reasonable. He is demonstrating that he is the best spokesman for the plan. He is also demonstrating why he should have been doing more of that speaking over the past year. I hope he has learned he cannot rely on Dems in Congress to be the frontline troops. He HAS to be.

10:56 I think CNN is running lots of ads so when the Blair House bloviators got to break they can spend long minutes with their panel of talking heads without ads.

10:54 Kyl says, don't raise money to pay for this just do so little that we don't actually need to raise any money.

10:23 Obama actually asks Republicans why they don't like public option. I know this because I've got it streaming via CSPAN. CNN has talking heads and now commercials. MSNBC had commercials but is now back listening to a House Republican not answer the question.

10:20 Steny Hoyer is the first to say "public option." Too bad it isn't going to get in the bill.

10:15 So far no indication that this will be anything more than each side talking past the other. I am waiting for one Republican to suggest something that Democrats haven't said, "it's in the bill."

10:03 I think we are about to have the battle of the poll numbers. It's sound bit time. Oh no, its "Dr." Tom Coburn. Yeah, I want my health care legislation determined by the man who rejects all the science connected to climate change and sees health care as all about fraud and more private sector power.

9:58 CNN goes to commercial and I switch to MSNBC. CNN misses first actual exchange between 2 sides over costs. Yep, those commercials were vital.

9:55 On something completely different, I'm drinking Korean plum tea for my cold. A student gave it to me and it is quite good. Thanks, Haina.

9:48 Harry Reid is coming out feisty today. Verbal slaps back at Alexander. That's fun to watch.

9:35 Alexander says all the Dems and Obama have to do is scrap everything, follow their ideas and renounce reconciliation so that the Republicans have veto power and then bipartisanship will reign. So kind of him.

9:25 Lamar Alexander presents the Republican talking points. He lied early by saying "we want you to succeed." No they don't.

9:20 Obama still thinks 2 parties can agree. Really? The current politics rewards the Republicans for obstruction not compromise.

9:08 The opening statements are on and I expect nothing but platitudes and posturing to start.