The Healthcare Summit So Far

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Quick comment on today’s healthcare summit: John Boehner and Mitch McConnell are smart enough to know their own limitations and choose others to speak for the Republican side. And they’ve mostly chosen speakers who are good at this stuff and know how to talk in ways that make sense.

The Democrats, who should be in better shape because they have a single leader, are insisting on letting every leader speak: Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, Steny Hoyer, and Max Baucus so far. These folks are not great speakers. Why are they so lame that they insist on speaking anyway? For once in their preening lives, why don’t they just fade into the background and let President Obama orchestrate their side? Obama may yet come out on top in today’s session, but the behavior of the Democratic congressional leadership so far constitutes political malpractice.