What? Now all of the sudden it’s a race to the finish? Now we are supposed to listen to the Senate democrats and believe that they are actually trying to pass the healthcare bill before the Holiday recess? Well, yes. And here’s why I think it’s a good thing:

1.    It’s about time. The last deadline that the senate was racing against was the one that Obama suggested and that was… August. So, for the last 4 months they have essentially worked on one piece of legislation, and yeah, it’s not at all out of the box thinking or pressuring anyone about anything to think about passing it… sometime… this… year…

2.    No More Public Opinion. Everybody had August to go and complain in person to their senator or to hold impassioned town hall meetings. We don’t have to give everyone another chance to take the Christmas presents they don’t want and throw them at their state senators over the health care reform bill. My point is, if you haven’t said it by now, there is no way you are going to sway anyone over the break. You’ve had plenty of time, no more. Just pass it or don’t.

3.    Roll Time. Obama is on a roll. He just got the Nobel Peace Prize, brokered a deal in Copenhagen, met with the Russians about nuclear arms, and he’s about to close Guantanamo (the only thing that is taking longer than the health care bill!). The momentum is in his favor, and all you guys have to do is roll with it. His approach to politics is working, and it will work in the senate- just give the country the Christmas present we all deserve.

4.    Because it’s a good bill. We’ve all heard a lot about the new bill- how it will do this or that or it will cost this or that. Bottom line, this bill will insure tens of millions more Americans, stop the insurance companies from denying coverage based on pre-existing conditions and go a long way toward making sure we are dealing with medical issues as they happen, not when they are emergencies.

5.    Democrats- you need this. No matter far left liberal or centrist nay sayer, if you do politics under the banner of the Democrat party, you need to have a victory on your side going into the mid term elections. Folks, it will not work for the Party to be going against its own president- that just will not fly. Not only is he on a roll and making things happen, he is the leader of the best thing the Democrats have had since Bill Clinton. Blow it now and you are shooting yourself in the foot for the midterms and even further down the line- as two years after that with a lame duck president and you will not get much love from a state that has just watched you spend 3 years doing very little. My point is- stand together, people.

So yes, let’s rush to get this thing done all of the sudden and go home, sip egg nog, and laugh with our families about how weird that all was.

Photo Credit: Cliff1066 (via Flickr under CCL)