Lesley Gore--It's My Party

This week should have been our party. A decades-long fight to bring America to the notion that health care should be a right, not a privilege has cleared the first, biggest hurdle: getting to the starting gate. The fight isn't over--not by a long shot--there are many hurdles yet to clear, but yet I see progressives everywhere demanding the right to cry. It's your party, Dems, cry if you want to.

I personally don't feel like crying. I recognize that this a marathon, and we're barely in Mile 1. We've got far to go before we've won this race, but I'm just happy we've started. I don't particularly understand those who are upset that we haven't crossed the finish line right now. To me, that completely disregards the hurdles that blocked us from the starting gate and that now pepper our pathway like landmines, waiting for us to take a wrong step.

Don't believe me? Look at the bookings: yet another Sunday of Republicans telling us that this is a slippery slope to the dreaded socialist/Maoist/Leninist state. People like Lamar Alexander on State of the Union, Jim DeMint and Michelle "Bat Crap Crazy" Bachmann on Face the Nation and Lindsey Graham on Meet the Press. And even on Chris Matthews, that learned panel of pundits thinks health care reform will ultimately be a "winner" for Republicans over the Democrats. But fear not, because we can always count on the GOP laying some landmines for themselves too. Look at the mano a mano between Florida senate rivals Charlie Crist and Marco Rubio on Fox News Sunday. So I'm taking the long view, pacing myself, but don't look to me to cry at this party.

ABC's "This Week" - White House senior adviser Valerie Jarrett.

CBS' "Face the Nation" - Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C.; Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn.; Democratic National Committee Chairman Tim Kaine.

NBC's "Meet the Press" - Sens. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.

NBC's "The Chris Matthews Show" - Panel: Howard Fineman, Kelly O'Donnell, Andrew Sullivan and Gloria Borger. Topics: Real Health Care Push: Will It Be A Winning Issue for Dems or Republicans? Elephants in the Room: Are Tea Partiers The Real Republicans Or Party Spoilers? Meter Questions: Will Health Care Be More of a Winning Issue for Republicans Than Democrats? YES: 8 NO: 4; Should Obama Move To the Center Instead of the Left As A Reelection Strategy? YES: 11 No: 1.

CNN's "State of the Union" - White House senior adviser David Axelrod; Sens. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., and Barbara Mikulski, D-Md.

CNN's "Fareed Zakaria GPS" - Two great heads, probably the two most articulate commentators in the health care debate -- who happen to disagree on this bill -- Paul Krugman of Princeton and the New York Times and Robert Samuelson of Newsweek and the Washington Post, battle it out. But first, Fareed travels to Mexico City to speak with the President of Mexico, Felipe Calderon, on the violent drug war wracking that country, sparking civilian death rates that rival Iraq and Afghanistan.

"Fox News Sunday" - Debate between Republican candidates for U.S. Senate: Florida Gov. Charlie Crist and former state House Speaker Marco Rubio.

So what's catching your eye this morning?