In America, Crazy Is a Preexisting Condition  —  Birthers, Town Hall Hecklers and the Return of Right-Wing Rage  —  In Pennsylvania last week, a citizen, burly, crew-cut and trembling with rage, went nose to nose with his baffled senator: “One day God's going to stand before you …

Party prepares liberals to accept deal  —  After the toughest week yet for health reform, leading Democrats are warning that the party likely will have to accept major compromises to get a bill passed this year - perhaps even dropping a proposal to create a government-run plan that is almost an article of faith among some liberals.

‘We were duped’: Two British women tricked into becoming stars of campaign to sabotage Obama's healthcare reforms  —  Two British women have claimed they were duped into becoming the stars of a campaign to sabotage Barack Obama's healthcare reforms.  —  Furious Kate Spall and Katie Brickell claim …

54% Say Passing No Healthcare Reform Better Than Passing Congressional Plan  —  Thirty-five percent (35%) of American voters say passage of the bill currently working its way through Congress would be better than not passing any health care reform legislation this year.

Dealers wait for ‘cash for clunkers’ payments  —  Some consider dropping out of program  —  By Joe Taschler of the Journal Sentinel  —  A growing number of auto dealers say the process of getting paid under the government's “cash for clunkers” plan increasingly resembles some of the wrecks accumulating …

THE PENANCE HAS NOT BEEN PAID.... Following up on this item from yesterday, I had an interesting conversation via email yesterday with Bruce Bartlett, a veteran of the Reagan and H.W. Bush administrations.  Bruce made a point that really resonated with me, and he was gracious enough to allow me to republish it here.

Obama and the Practice of Medicine  —  Why is the president convinced so many doctors and patients are making irrational decisions?  —  Printer  —  Friendly  —  On the defensive because of an increasingly skeptical public, President Barack Obama has recently spoken extemporaneously about his health plan.

Emanuel Wields Power Freely, and Faces the Risks  —  WASHINGTON — As White House chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel was the one to bring the hammer down on Sidney Blumenthal.  —  Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton wanted to hire Mr. Blumenthal, a loyal confidant who had helped her promote the idea of a …

Health Debate Fails to Ignite Obama's Grass Roots  —  MUSCATINE, Iowa — At her home on Tom Sawyer Road here the other night, Bonnie Adkins agreed to begin spreading the word that President Obama's embattled health care plan needed help.  —  Ms. Adkins, who for the past two years devoted hundreds …

Handicapped Woman Cries After Assault By Union Thugs at Town Hall (Video) ... Update: Woman Speaks Out on Being Stomped On  —  A handicapped woman with a walker cries as she tells how union members pushed her out her seat at a town hall:  —  Gee, do you think the state-run media will report on this attack?

Shopkeeper 'didn't want to shoot' robbers  —  2 suspects dead, 2 injured after 72-year-old opens fire in New York City  —  NEW YORK - The sidewalk outside the Harlem store still was smeared with blood Friday, and the glass on the door still was blown out.  —  Above the entrance …

Kenneth Bacon dies at 64  —  Kenneth H. Bacon, a former Wall Street Journal reporter who became chief Pentagon spokesman under President Bill Clinton, died Saturday at age 64.  —  Bacon had been battling melanoama, and was on leave was his job as president of Refugees International, a Washington-based group he joined in early 2001.

Whole Foods Boycott Picks Up Steam (Guest Voice)  —  EDITOR'S NOTE: In the past we ran a line about Guest Voice posts not necessarily representing the opinion of TMV or its writers.  But after we ran many Guest Voice columns by conservative talk show host Michael Reagan …