Victory Tastes Like Defeat

Health Care Reform passed last night, due in large part to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's determination and guidance (yay!). This morning, President Obama signed an executive order applying the Hyde Amendment (ongoing ban on public funding of abortion) to the new legislation (BOO). Initial reports from the feminist front indicate that this is not simply an affirmation of the status quo (which sucked to begin with), but an actual rollback of reproductive rights and expansion of Hyde's influence. And, oh yeah, it's extra disheartening coming from a supposedly pro-choice president, who has continuously denounced Hyde altogether.

Remember this cover of Ms. magazine? I'm not so keen on it now.

And this guy? This Democrat? He needs to fall. off. the face of the earth and take his abortion bargaining chip and all the Republicans who were obnoxious heels throughout this whole process with him.

Women on the Map

President Obama, announcing the new White House Council on Women & Girls:



Along these same lines, a new position in the State Department has been created under Hillary Clinton to address women's issues on a global scale. Purely awesome.

The President Speaks

Senator Robert McCallister once said on the show Brothers & Sisters, "I am the most ambitious man you'll ever meet." Had he not been a fictional character, this would still not be true, as the most ambitious person anywhere has got to be President Obama. If I didn't know that before tonight, I surely know it now. Yet, Obama's ambition is not really about personal gain or achievements, which is what makes it so appealing to me. Listening to his speech tonight, I was amazed by how much he wants to accomplish in this country... by the end of the year even! Some would say it's too much, but I for one am all for optimism. I think that if you are realistic, it is realistic you will achieve realistic goals. Obama obviously craves the extraordinary, which means fostering a palpable belief in those goals among Americans... which is really the first step towards making anything possible. It's pretty apparent that not everyone believes yet, and some probably never will, but I think if this country can attain half of what he talked about tonight, we'll be doing okay.

Transcript of the speech here.