Teddy Kennedy’s announcement that he is stepping down from his high-ranking position on the Judiciary Committee so that he can concentrate all his efforts on health care is the strongest signal yet that we’re going to get some form of universal health care bill passed next year.

“As Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, I expect to lead a very full agenda in the next Congress, including working with President Obama to guarantee affordable health care, at long last, for every American,” Kennedy said in a statement.

“This is the opportunity of a lifetime, and I intend to make the most of it,” Kennedy added.

In stepping down from the Judiciary Committee, Kennedy leaves a panel he has served since 1962, the same year he joined the Senate.

Imagine Barack Obama signing a universal health care bill in his first year…something that no one could accomplish over fifty years of trying. Now take a look at his Saturday morning radio address:

Today, I am announcing a few key parts of my plan. First, we will launch a massive effort to make public buildings more energy-efficient. Our government now pays the highest energy bill in the world. We need to change that. We need to upgrade our federal buildings by replacing old heating systems and installing efficient light bulbs. That won’t just save you, the American taxpayer, billions of dollars each year. It will put people back to work.

Second, we will create millions of jobs by making the single largest new investment in our national infrastructure since the creation of the federal highway system in the 1950s. We’ll invest your precious tax dollars in new and smarter ways, and we’ll set a simple rule – use it or lose it. If a state doesn’t act quickly to invest in roads and bridges in their communities, they’ll lose the money.

Third, my economic recovery plan will launch the most sweeping effort to modernize and upgrade school buildings that this country has ever seen. We will repair broken schools, make them energy-efficient, and put new computers in our classrooms. Because to help our children compete in a 21st century economy, we need to send them to 21st century schools.

As we renew our schools and highways, we’ll also renew our information superhighway. It is unacceptable that the United States ranks 15th in the world in broadband adoption. Here, in the country that invented the internet, every child should have the chance to get online, and they’ll get that chance when I’m President – because that’s how we’ll strengthen America’s competitiveness in the world.

In addition to connecting our libraries and schools to the internet, we must also ensure that our hospitals are connected to each other through the internet. That is why the economic recovery plan I’m proposing will help modernize our health care system – and that won’t just save jobs, it will save lives. We will make sure that every doctor’s office and hospital in this country is using cutting edge technology and electronic medical records so that we can cut red tape, prevent medical mistakes, and help save billions of dollars each year.

Our federal highway system rivals our national park system in the ‘legacy’ department. The energy efficiency of federal buildings and schools and access to broadband are not as sexy as parks and highways, but they’re important. Obama is thinking big. I hope he has the same visionary thinking when it comes time to deal with Big 3 automakers’ future. He should buy controlling interests in the companies (at a fraction of the cost of the request their making), pay off their creditors, and retool the whole industry for 21st-century production.

The entire federal fleet of cars should be built by the Big 3, using their most cutting edge technologies. Cars that might not be initially profitable (or competitively priced) can get a guaranteed source of sales.

These are desperate times and we need big, innovative solutions. Obama is showing signs that his vision is a good match for this difficult era.