It’s time to thank Democrats in tough districts who stood up early for Health Care Reform. These guys did not ask for a special deal from their caucus. They risked their career to deliver health care reform for Americans who need it. The RNC will undoubtedly target Reps on this list the hardest.

These are the kind of Democrat that I am proud to have in my Party. Please help make sure that we keep them around this November.

As of right now, here is the list:

*Nancy Pelosi (to re-distribute cash to needy campaigns at her own discretion)

*Tom Perriello

*Betsy Markey

*Jerrold Nadler (for being the first Rep to propose a realistic path out of the Brown miasma)

*John Boccieri

*Melissa Bean

*Henry Cuellar

*Chris Carney

*Brad Ellsworth

*Gabrielle Giffords

*Ann Kirkpatrick

*Debbie Halvorson

*Russ Carnahan

*Alan Grayson

***

Also, if you have not heard about about the role Steve Benen played in keeping HCR momentum alive after the Brown panic, take a minute to read Andrew Sabl’s write-up here at SameFacts. In fact if anything Sabl’s piece, which does not mention the influential strategy memo that Benen wrote, understates the contribution that Benen made. Staffers have told me that Benen’s memo crossed the desk of a number of influential Representatives, so it is perhaps not a coincidence that the memo eerily predicted the pass-and-amend strategy that Pelosi successfully adopted. Major kudos to Steve.