On Health Reform, Three Cheers for Kucinich (And Ann Coulter\’s Still Alive! Who Knew?)

The CBO now says health reform will cut the Federal deficit by $138 billion That\’s a win for the bill\’s backers, and should make it tougher for self-described \’fiscal conservatives\’ in the Democratic Party to vote against this bill. (No, let\’s re-frame that as a positive statement: It will make it easier for Conservadems to embrace this bill.) Now what\’s left is a battle between two clear political philosophies on the left and right: The principled but pragmatic progressivism embodied by Dennis Kucinich, or the nihilistic fury and self-interest that\’s best represented by Ann Coulter. Since both Coulder and Kucinich had a lot to say about health reform this week, it\’s worth taking a moment to compare and contrast their philosophies.