Did you know that Max Baucus' own health care plan included a public option modeled on Medicare?

http://finance.senate.gov/healthreform2009/finalwhitepaper.pdf

Page 27 of the pdf

"The Exchange would also include a new public plan option, similar to Medicare. This
option would abide by the same rules as private insurance plans participating in the
Exchange (e.g., offer the same levels of benefits and set the premiums the same way).
Rates paid to health care providers by this option would be determined by balancing the
goals of increasing competition and ensuring access for patients to high-quality health care.
A number of options could be considered to determine who runs the plan, who is eligible
for it, and how to ensure that the public-private insurance competition lowers costs and
improves quality. The Independent Health Coverage Council, described below, would
inform these decisions."

Isn't that fascinating?

And here's a story where he's "fighting tooth and nail" for it on May 28th according to a staffer
http://discuss.epluribusmedia.net/content/baucus-fighting-tooth-and-nail-public-option-says-spokesperson

Oops! By July 28th he's killing it off.
http://crooksandliars.com/john-amato/baucus-leaves-america-behind-senate-fin

some folks are willing to stand up for their own ideas and beliefs. Some are willing
to forget for the right amount.

He said it was a good bargaining chip.
http://swampland.blogs.time.com/2009/03/26/max-baucus-and-the-public-plan/

It's obvious why they didn't want single payer on the table, because it would have made it more difficult to bargain away the Public Option.

to all those nice people in Montana.

industry.

Here is a popular Montana Blog with a good list of other lefty montana blogs. See what you think!

http://4and20blackbirds.wordpress.com/

If I lived in Montana I would be pretty pissed off at being played as he appears to be doing to his own constituents.

Homegrown Montana anger at these double dealings would help a lot. I think right here in very little time we've uncovered mountains of duplicity on his part.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Max_Baucus


2008 re-election campaign
Main article: Montana United States Senate election, 2008
Baucus sought re-election in 2008 in Montana, a state that has been undergoing political change since 2004 when it elected Democratic Governor Brian Schweitzer, and then Democratic Senator Jon Tester in 2006 by a slim margin. Montana was the only state in the U.S. to switch a chamber of its legislature to Republican control in 2006. The legislative chamber had a one-seat Democratic majority that switched to a one-seat Republican majority.

Baucus raised a record amount of money for his 2008 re-election bid, 91 percent of which has come from individuals living outside of Montana.<7> Similarly, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, Baucus' 2008 campaign raised $11.6 million, only 13% of which came from Montana donors; the rest included millions from health care and other industries overseen by Finance and Baucus' other committees.<8> The overwhelming ratio of special interest and out-of-state dollars to donations from Montana donors have raised questions:

So as Baucus and other lawmakers attempt to craft a bill that can smash through a virtual gridlock of interests, the awkward question lingers: To whom are they more attentive, their voting constituencies back home or the dollar constituencies who are at the Capitol every day?<9>

As a result of Senator Baucus' significant fund raising advantage, in the week that he announced his intentions to run for re-election, he opened eight state offices – one more than he has official offices in the state. Senator Baucus also announced that he had hired 35 full-time campaign staff members.

Senator Baucus won re-election in 2008 by a 73-27 margin.

The initial version probably got the input of every Democrats, including those who were shut out of the discussions (including the 6 who were supporting the public option). Probably the reason why the public option disappeared.

Snowe said that, once the discussion was reduced to 6, the public option was never discussed.