By the way, just an aside - whatever happend to the promise to pass Health Care using Reconciliation

Remember...?

Remember when the Senate Majority leader said that they would pass health care using the Reconciliation budget clause if necessary?

So why aren't we getting the kind of health care reform we deserve?

Could it be because Democratic representatives themselves don't want it?

I know I heard them say they would use reconciliation to get health care passed.

However, we can safely assume there are more than 8 Senate Dems who don't want a Public Option---ie meaning they won't pass health care.

I don't even know why start a new thread on it. It's known and we know they're the problem. We have Reconciliation but if we have all the Conservadems voting against and maybe some odd questionable 13 Dems----be sure that Reconciliation will mean diddly squat.

They want President Obama and the American people to fail.

I've been hearing reports lately that if it's passed via reconciliation, there are several key issues that will have to be removed...like the gov't having the poser to force HC Co's to eliminate the "pre-existing condition" refusal, and I don't know how many other things that would have to be removed. Those would have to be passed via separate bill & subject to fillabuster.

I believe reconciliation is still in their back pocket, but it will only be used as a last resort.

they will if they have to.

really just starting to heat up?

The battle is on. The battle is mainly to make sure a public option is included. It seems like Dems on the right and left are trying to undermine it now. It isn't going to be single payer. The fight is for the public option. Aim your fire on those trying to stop that.

It looks like the co-op idea went down (good).

Harry Reid reiterated the Reconcilliation option last week. So did Peter Orzag.

People need to stop aiming their fire at Obama who supports it and focus on the Democratic Senators trying to stop it like Kay Hagan, Ben Nelson, Max Baucus, etc.

Stop fighting for something that isn't going to happen (single payer) and fight for something that can (public option).

The Public Option will pass the House. Something not as good will, hopefully, pass the Senate. Then they can reconcile between the two and include the Public Option. Then they only need 50 plus Biden.

Based on the long history of Democrats in Washington:

- we will get something that is referred to as a public option, and it will be half assed, with all sorts of qualifications and stipulations, and will end up being mostly meaningless

- we will get "reform" that is largely toothless and requires insurance companies to change and give up very little

- it will be heralded as "dramatic reform"

- and that will set back the movement for actual, honest to god public health care for all back by generation. Because politicians will say "we've already 'done' health care reform.


Hope I'm wrong.

x(

and it has two wings.