CSPAN CHALLENGES DEMS – AT 7:05 P.M. ET:  Reader Claire Weber-Klein alerts us to a challenge by CSPAN to congressional Democrats:  Go transparent on health care.  From Fox News:

The head of C-SPAN has implored Congress to open up the last leg of health care reform negotiations to the public, as top Democrats lay plans to hash out the final product among themselves.

C-SPAN CEO Brian Lamb wrote to leaders in the House and Senate Dec. 30 urging them to open "all important negotiations, including any conference committee meetings," to televised coverage on his network.

"The C-SPAN networks will commit the necessary resources to covering all of the sessions LIVE and in their entirety," he wrote.

This didn't sit well with Nancy Pelosi:

In a Tuesday afternoon press conference on health legislation negotiations, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi appeared to object to the premise behind the request.

"There has never been a more open process for any legislation in anyone who’s served here’s experience," she said.

Is she serious?  The Dems have just made plans to finalize the health-care "reform" bill behind closed doors, in sessions closed to both Republicans and the public.

President Obama made transparency on health-care legislation a point in his campaign for president:

"That's what I will do in bringing all parties together, not negotiating behind closed doors, but bringing all parties together, and broadcasting those negotiations on C-SPAN so that the American people can see what the choices are," Obama said at a debate against Hillary Clinton in Los Angeles on Jan. 31, 2008.

Unfortunately, Nancy Pelosi missed that debate.  I guess "Desperate Housewives" was on.

January 5, 2010