a rare moment of candor

“What you are observing is a continuation of where we have been for a doggone long time,” he said. “The trouble is you all are looking for news and there ain’t no news.”

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA), via New York Times.

I'm a bit skeptical that health-care legislation will be on the President's desk by the end of the year. Discussion is just now turning from boilerplate to details (maybe). Between the progressives and blue dog (blue cross?) dems in the House, and the "necessity" of bipartisan agreement in the Senate, plenty of competing interests have the power to get something concrete out of this deal.

Hopefully the White House can effectively keep Congress from doing what it would like the most: nothing at all. For the time being, though, we all are looking for news... and there ain't no news.

independence day

Unsurprisingly, President Obama says everything I thought better than I could. From my inbox:

Our country began as a unique experiment in liberty -- a bold, evolving quest to achieve a more perfect union. And in every generation, another courageous group of patriots has taken us one step closer to fully realizing the dream our founders enshrined on that great day.

Today, all Americans have a hard-fought birthright to a freedom which enables each of us, no matter our views or background, to help set our nation's course. America's greatness has always depended on her citizens embracing that freedom -- and fulfilling the duty that comes with it.

As free people, we must each take the challenges and opportunities that face this nation as our own. As long as some Americans still must struggle, none of us can be fully content. And as America comes ever closer to achieving the perfect Union our founders dreamed, that triumph -- that pride -- belongs to all of us.

So today is a day to reflect on our independence, and the sacrifice of our troops standing in harm's way to preserve and protect it. It is a day to celebrate all that America is. And today is a time to aspire toward all we can still become.

Plenty to reflect on without considering our place as a steward of the planet, or far-reaching American cultural influence. I am confident those who would sacrifice our liberty for a little security (or political influence) will steer the ship of America again in my lifetime. I am equally confident they will never set its course.