Rep. Allen Boyd (D-FL) represents the panhandle of Florida, which is one of the most conservative places in the country. I don’t expect him to vote like a Democrat from New York City. But I also don’t think he’s a good example of what most Blue Dog Democrats are facing with the health care bill. A lot of the Blue Dogs come from districts that Obama carried, some of them easily. For Democrats that come from districts where McCain dominated, I understand that their constituents have a certain lack of trust of the new administration. For those Democrats, their job is to explain how health care can help them and put the screws to the health insurance industry that is ripping them off and giving them a shitty product. Democrats from really heavily conservative districts should be using more populism, not less. But the Blue Dogs are actually do the worst of both worlds. They’re soft-selling reform while promising to protect the health insurance industry. Of course that is not going to sell well.
Outside of the few districts where the health insurance industry provides a lot of employment, there are no districts where slamming the health insurance industry is bad politics. Sell the bill. Don’t apologize for helping people out.
