The president will not say anything about what the Senate is trying to do with reconciliation because his summit with the Democrats and the Republicans is coming up this week. And he does not want to do something that will knock off the bi-partisan bill that he wants. And hopefully in this summit the Republicans will come up with some ideas that will sound rational. Or will they be the party of no, will they even show up. It will be interesting to watch. And with it being telecast live I can't wait to see what happens. Did you catch the second day of CPAC, will catch it here.
Reid hints he could back public option
- 02/19/10 04:47 PM ET
The office of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) Friday provided a hint that the top senator could reintroduce the public health insurance option under the right circumstances. In a carefully-worded statement, Reid spokesman Rodell Mollineau addressed majority leader's stance on the government-run plan for the first time since a group of senators sparked talks of passing it using the controversial budget reconciliation process, which only requires the approval of 51 senators.
Mollineau said:
Senator Reid has always and continues to support the public option as a way to drive down costs and create competition. That is why he included the measure in his original health care proposal.
If a decision is made to use reconciliation to advance health care, Senator Reid will work with the White House, the House, and members of his caucus in an effort to craft a public option that can overcome procedural obstacles and secure enough votes.
If a decision is made to use reconciliation to advance health care, Senator Reid will work with the White House, the House, and members of his caucus in an effort to craft a public option that can overcome procedural obstacles and secure enough votes.
The public plan was thought to be dead when Reid stripped it from the final healthcare bill in December because he could not attract enough centrist support with the bill included.
But a letter circulating among Democratic senators has given some Democrats hope that the plan could become law.
Senate Democratic Caucus Vice Chairman Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) on Thursday became the first senator to sign the bill, bringing the total number of signatories to 17 and adding even more momentum behind the push.
But the inclusion of the public option is still a far way from becoming reality in part because of hangups that Mollineau tacitly acknowledged in his statement.
Reid will serve as the ultimate arbiter of whether or not the senators will pass healthcare reform legislation using the reconciliation process. And it's while its clear that Democratic leaders are weighing the use of reconciliation to pass a bill, they have still not arrived at a final decision.
Still, Reid's statement indicates that the leaders are considering the reintroducing the public option alongside their deliberations on reconciliation.
Republicans have scoffed at the renewed push for a public plan, saying it is out of step with what the majority of Americans want.
They have also said that the election of Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.) should serve as indication that the public does not want Democrats to push through with their current healthcare bill. MoveOn pressures Obama on public option
- 02/19/10 03:34 PM ET
The public option revival movement seems to keep picking up steam and MoveOn.org wants President Barack Obama to notice.
During a week that more and more Democratic lawmakers declare it's the put the public option back into healthcare reform, MoveOn sent an alert to its members Friday urging them to contact the White House and tell Obama to get on board. So far, 18 Democratic senators and more than 119 House Democrats have signed on to letters in support of including a public option in the final healthcare bill.
"The public option was given up for dead, but in the last week, first a trickle, and now a flood of Democrats have been calling for it to be in the final 'reconciliation' bill," the alert says. "It'll be a whole new ballgame for the public option if President Obama throws his weight behind it too." [Emphasis theirs]
Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said Thursday that the Obama administration would get behind the public option if they believed the votes were there in the Senate. Less than a week before Obama will host a bipartisan healthcare reform summit and just days before Obama is supposed to unveil his latest healthcare reform plan, media reports indicate the public option won't be on the table that day.
Liberal activists were vocally unsatisfied with Obama's advocacy for the public option. Though he supports it, and administration officials have said the same repeatedly, liberals don't believe ever put any muscle behind it, which made it easier for centrist senators like Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) and Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) to insist it be stripped from the bill.
But with Democrats now eyeballing the budget reconciliation process as a way of passing a final healthcare reform bill with a simple majority, centrist votes aren't necessarily essential, giving some liberals the sense that there's an opening for them to bring the public option back to life.
During a week that more and more Democratic lawmakers declare it's the put the public option back into healthcare reform, MoveOn sent an alert to its members Friday urging them to contact the White House and tell Obama to get on board. So far, 18 Democratic senators and more than 119 House Democrats have signed on to letters in support of including a public option in the final healthcare bill.
"The public option was given up for dead, but in the last week, first a trickle, and now a flood of Democrats have been calling for it to be in the final 'reconciliation' bill," the alert says. "It'll be a whole new ballgame for the public option if President Obama throws his weight behind it too." [Emphasis theirs]
Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said Thursday that the Obama administration would get behind the public option if they believed the votes were there in the Senate. Less than a week before Obama will host a bipartisan healthcare reform summit and just days before Obama is supposed to unveil his latest healthcare reform plan, media reports indicate the public option won't be on the table that day.
Liberal activists were vocally unsatisfied with Obama's advocacy for the public option. Though he supports it, and administration officials have said the same repeatedly, liberals don't believe ever put any muscle behind it, which made it easier for centrist senators like Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) and Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) to insist it be stripped from the bill.
But with Democrats now eyeballing the budget reconciliation process as a way of passing a final healthcare reform bill with a simple majority, centrist votes aren't necessarily essential, giving some liberals the sense that there's an opening for them to bring the public option back to life.
From: "Kat Barr, MoveOn.org Political Action"
Date: February 19, 2010 1:28:03 PM EST
Subject: Tell Obama: Fight for the public option
Dear MoveOn member,
Big news out of Washington: President Obama plans to unveil his preferred version of health care legislation before next week's bipartisan health care summit.
The public option was given up for dead, but in the last week, first a trickle, and now a flood of Democrats have been calling for it to be in the final "reconciliation" bill.
It'll be a whole new ballgame for the public option if President Obama throws his weight behind it too.
Can you call the White House today and urge the president to include a strong public option in his health care package?
Here's where to call:
The White House
202-456-1111
Then, please report your call by clicking here:
Most pundits and Washington insiders gave the public option up for dead in December. But they're being proven wrong (again).
Under a process called "reconciliation," the Senate can pass the public option with a simple majority—so it's not subject to threats from conservative Democrats. And this week, 18 senators signed a letter to Senate Majority Leader Reid urging him to bring the public option up for a majority vote, following 119 House Democrats who sent a similar letter earlier this month.
What's more, yesterday Obama's Secretary of Health and Human Services said the president would support the Senate if they decide to bring the public option back into the fold.
The public option has support from a majority of Americans and in both houses of Congress—and just makes good sense for helping lower skyrocketing health care costs and providing choice for more Americans. We've been fighting for it since this debate began, and we need the president to step up and fight too.
Thanks for all you do.
–Kat, Joan, Peter, Carrie, and the rest of the team
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