Long Live the Public Option!
Sen. Tom Harkin: “We will have a bill on the president’s desk before Christmas, a health-reform bill. It will have a lot of good stuff in it. It will have a lot of prevention and wellness programs in there that I’ve been fighting for. And it will have a public option… The question of if it doesn’t isn’t even an option.”
Plus, Republicans won’t be involved in putting a bill together: “This will be a proposal by the Democrats to bring a bill on the floor. And that’s what I have said before, that the people of this country… pretty overwhelmingly elected Barack Obama last fall and to make changes. The people of this country overwhelmingly elected Democrats to the House and Senate… We should be proposing the changes to be made.”
**********
Sen. Harry Reid: “We are going to have a public option before this bill goes to the president’s desk… believe the public option is so vitally important to create a level playing field and prevent the insurance companies from taking advantage of us.”
The two comments sound very much the same, suggesting that both Harkin and Reid were uttering talking points. Still, this is a very promising development. As many of us have been saying for a long time, Republicans had their chance. Obama reached to them, as did Senate Democrats. And how did they respond? With obstructionism or outright opposition, because they have no interest in reform and are trying to block it no matter what. And so, of course, it makes sense for Democrats now to go it alone, with or without the few remaining Republican centrists.
It sounds to me, though, like there is now a firm commitment to including a public option in whatever bill goes to the floor. There’s really no way Democrats can back away from it now — their own leader, Reid, has committed to it. But will the bill that ultimately emerges from Congress include a public option? Well, that’s the key question. And it’s still not clear what the answer is. I certainly hope Harkin is right.
(Cross-posted from The Reaction.)
11 Responses to “Long Live the Public Option!”
Well they have not sold moderate democrats yet. Unless they do the public option is not going anywhere.
The stake hasn't been driven through it (or through Nancy Pelosi's heart) yet.
Michael –
Did you see Helen Thomas on the subject of the public option? Holy cow, that woman is awesome. Here's the youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOXRZCpM7nA
Also: DLS, if we could dispence with the violent language, that would be much appreciated. Unless, of course, you're actually calling for the murder of Representative Pelosi, in which case this looks like a job for the Secret Service.
I thought that maybe this time, nobody would overreact in a silly way to what I wrote, but noooo…
The public option isn't dead — oops — the public option has not formally been rejected yet. [sigh]
I like the part about not caring what the Republicans think. Warms my heart.
This is excellent news to me too. Time to ditch the “bipartisan” BS and get this done. The GOP fingerprints on the bill should be ditched too, I'd say. If they're not going to vote for it anyway who cares what amendments they want in the bill?
Because the only thing bipartisan about this is the opposition. Like I said before, they have not sold moderate democrats. Get out the hose Liberals you need some more watering down to get it passed.
DLS, I know the world can be a confusing place, and while it's not common, I'm sure there are others like you who have a hard time distinguishing between policies and people. See, you know the public option? We call that something in the realm of “policy”, not an actually living thing. Saying it will be killed or have a stake go through it's heart is in no way offensive, because it's not actually alive. Nancy Pelosi, my dear confused boy, is what we call a “person”. As in, a living, breathing person of the female persuasion. Now here's the really tough part: while it's appropriate to use somewhat violent language in opposition to a policy, it's NOT appropriate to use violent language against people. Many mights say that bringing a person into a conversation (where she has in no way been mentioned at all) for the sole purpose of using violent language against her, well, many might say that's particularly inappropriate.
If this continues to be confusing, just let me know, and I'll be here to help you out however I can, love. *pats DLS on head*
“Like I said before, they have not sold moderate democrats.”
I'm assuming that by “moderate Democrats” you are referring to people like one representative from my state– Parker Griffith. Griffith has been parroting GOP talking points and even been making some rather interesting comments regarding Nancy Pelosi. Some other “moderate Democrats” also passed an amendment for abstinence-only sex education. Those “moderate Democrats” just passed a clone of Romney Care, which the Republicans STILL didn't vote for even though it was their idea. Now call me crazy, but a “moderate Democrat” would be someone who seemed more to the center than the far right.
And quite a few of those “moderate Democrats” have recently been getting a rather large influx of money from health insurance interests. They're definitely “sold” alright… Just not in the way you mean.
The people you're referring to are not “moderate Democrats.” They're “stealth Republicans,” and if Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi have the guts to point that out and bankroll their opponents if they don't get in line, then I'd say there's a chance.
And my far-right friends claim John McCain is a Democrat.
*shrug*
The left-wing of the Democratic party looks alot like the right-wing of the Republican party. :Meet the new boss, same as the old boss”