As you know, Blue America is targeting Blanche Lincoln because she has said she will not support a public option when it comes to the health-care debate. As Jane Hamsher says:

But in the fourth year of their terms, every Senator becomes a Representative for two years. Blanche Lincoln is running for re-election in 2010. If she's ever going to be persuadable, now is the time.

I agree with Jane completely. All Democratic politicians should be backing the public option if they want to see any kind of reform in the health-care industry.

We have a way we think can persuade Lincoln:

You can donate to Blue America's Campaign For Health Care Choice, here. It's getting harder every day, but it's not over. Blanche Lincoln is on the health sub-committee of the Senate Finance Committee and she's running for re-election in 2010. Let's see if her constituents think she should be handing out government goodies to these health industry fat cats and getting nothing in return while they struggle with health care premiums and growing unemployment.

We aren't standing still while the fat cats get fatter. So here's the thing. We've produced three different commercials with the help of BNF's to run in Lincoln's state of Arkansas and we need your help.

We've already raised over $18,000 so far and that's awesome, but what we want you to do next is it to vote for the ad that you think we should run first and you'll be letting us know by adding one, two, or three cents at the end of your donation on our Blue America's Campaign For Health Care page. Here's how it will go.

#1 Blue America Health Care Campaign - Blanche Lincoln: "I Thought We Had Insurance" Add one cent to your contribution if you want to vote for this spot.

#2 Blue America Health Care Campaign - Blanche Lincoln: "Bonuses" Add two cents to your contribution if you want to vote for this spot.

#3 Blue America Health Care Campaign - Blanche Lincoln: "Bailout" Add three cents to your contribution if you want to vote for this spot.

That's it, so a donation for #1 would look something like $20.01

Howie Klein explains:

Help us get the word out about Senator Lincoln by donating whatever you can afford to the spot (or spots) you think will persuade her voters to give her a call. The spot that collects the most money by Friday at noon will win. And if we persuade her to commit to the quality public plan, so will all Americans.

Everyone knows that if we don't have at least a vibrant public option, then health-care reform will be nothing more than health insurance companies giving us empty talking points about cutting costs and they will ultimately bamboozle their way into making just as much money by gaming the legislation and finding as many loopholes as they can. With a public option, we'll at least have a choice about the direction we want our health care system to go and remember, it's a huge start. America has been trying to reform health care since Harry Truman.
Digby has an incredible post up that chronicles the history of this debate. As you can see, it's been an almost impossible task.

But right now there is a real chance for the first time in 65 years to enact universal health care, however imperfect the specifics of it may be. I'm sure whatever they pass will be inadequate, just as medicare and Social Security were inadequate when they were originally passed. It seems to be the American way. But if our political and business elites have finally come to the consensus that America should join the first world and create a system that guarantees coverage to everyone, then I think we have to take the leap while we can. History shows that these chances don't come along every day. In fact, they come along about every couple of decades and we very rarely can even take an incremental step. We need to get universal health care on the books.

Quinnipiac just did another poll which said that almost 70% of Americans want the government to create a health care alternative: Most Americans Support Public Health Care Option, Poll Finds

Sixty-nine percent of Americans support creation of a government-run health plan to compete with private insurance companies, a new poll found. In addition, 52 percent of those surveyed by Hamden, Connecticut-based Quinnipiac University said such a plan would keep the private insurance companies honest...read on

"If we build it, they will come." So, let us know which ad you want us to run and keep the money flowing.

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(before it went very far south )

With the GM bankruptcy forging ahead, and news of plant and dealership closings and sales of companies formerly part of the GM family (can't say the loss of Hummer is any sort of tragedy) pending, I got to thinking about the impression GM made on me as a kid - growing up and getting my first car (it was, in all honesty a 1956 Plymouth, but that's another story) and how the American auto industry, the whole car culture in fact was such an integral part of our lives. How commercials were as much of our culture as the cars themselves and how indelible some of those commercials were to our place in time. I've assembled a montage of some of the memorable ones, not all of them - but enough to make the events of the past few weeks just a bit sad.

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(Jerry Brown: Post-Reagan - Pre-Jarvis - hair and optimism in abundance)

Since today is an election day in California, and since California is teetering on an abyss yet again, I ran across an old Meet The Press from October 15, 1975 featuring an interview with Governor Jerry Brown.

In 1975 California had a $300 million surplus. But then, the average household income was $13K a year (hard to imagine . . .not really). New York City was the problem child at the time, plunging hip-deep in bankruptcy and asking for bailout money from the government. To a lot of people it seemed an abstract concept, the U.S. Government actually bailing a city out, and the Ford Administration were loath to offer any help at first. But that was New York City - it could never happen in California.

Famous last words.

So here is Jerry Brown in his first year as Governor in 1975. Loaded with optimism and new ideas and all was sailing along before that little thing called Prop 13 and the Howard Jarvis Tax initiative blew into Sacramento in 1978. And 34 years later we're casting our eyes to Washington with hopes of a bailout.

I've included commercials for one of the sponsors of Meet The Press - Exxon. Seems the issue of clean coal just can't get off the ground.

Like I always say, some things just never change.

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Nothing political this time, or urgent, earth shattering news of historic importance. Just a sampling of Mexican Radio in 1944. A program sponsored (somewhat endlessly)by Chicklets featuring singers Sofia Alvarez and Eduardo Solis and a wide range of tunes from Mexico City. Nice music, no English - and tons of commercials for Chicklets.

Mix up a batch of Margaritas, drag out the plato de Carnitas and Guacamole and relax.

A jingle we're not likely to see, from the fabulous Paul and Storm. And yes, they're the guys who also came up with that "pay-per-view nun fight" song.

Open Thread below....