

On MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow Show Wednesday night, Maddow broke an exclusive story on the battle for health care reform, and declared, “This is cracking heads time in the Democratic Party.”

“We can report exclusively tonight, that two major power brokers on the left have told MSNBC that they are encouraging a Senate strategy now, in which the leadership would revoke chairmanships and other leadership positions from any Democrat who sides with a Republican filibuster to block a vote on health reform,” Maddow said.

ADVERTISEMENT

Not revealing the names of her sources, she continued, “Regardless of how individual senators would vote ultimately on the bill, committee chairmen or subcommittee chairmen who allowed Republicans to force a 60-vote requirement for passing health care…under this type of strategy would be in danger of losing their chairmanships.”

How big a deal is being tossed off a chairmanship spot? Well, as Maddow puts it, “That would be the Senate equivalent of busting a Lieutenant Colonel down to Private.”

The plan that essentially is intended to shame Democrats into supporting health care reform, Maddow says.

“This is cracking heads time in the Democratic Party right now,” the liberal MSNBC host declared. “This is arm-twisting, vote-counting, ‘are you a real Dem’ time for the proponents of health reform.”

What about Democrats who simply don’t care about losing a chairmanship post, and continue to refuse to back the party’s chosen health care bill? There’s a back up plan. Maddow explains more in the video below.

ADVERTISEMENT

The following video is from the MSNBC Rachel Maddow Show that originally aired on Wed., Oct. 7, 2009.





Download video via RawReplay.com