Why are senate democrats so afraid of the public option??

This is something that I do not understand in the slightest. Every poll from Quinnipiac to CNN to CBS News shows strong public support, in the mid 60s!! It's one of the more popular legislative ideas that I've ever seen. Even in Arkansas, it has majority support apparently. So, again, I ask: Why are so many senate democrats terrified of it? Is it because they don't want to lose the modicum of bipartisanship that Senator Snowe brings? That's weak if so. I refuse to accept the argument that they are just doing the bidding of their corporate/insurance company masters. These people joined the party of FDR, JFK and LBJ. They did not get into politics to be corporate slaves.

What's the real reason they are terrified? It has to be simply that they know it can't pass with 60 votes and they would rather any health care reform pass at all than pass nothing to try to prevent a 1994 repeat?

eR?

summer and from some reports of DUer's who went to these things the atmosphere was nasty. Plus some are bought by the insurance companies. It could also be fear that the buck stops with them and they are looking out for their careers if this thing is a massive failure Republicans will be more than happy to point fingers. There are some that have actual problems with things in the bills that are being presented now which can possibly be cleared up once the process gets further along. I mean take your pick depending on the Senator it can be any one of those reasons imo.

You may refuse to accept it, but, when I saw the amounts of cash many Democrats have received from the pharmaceutical and insurance lobbyists, I fully expected this.

Which is why they say they support it. If they knew they had to pay a premium, they wouldn't be so happy.

I don't believe that's true, but I know that there is an enormous amount of misinformation out there, all the way around.

I wish we could go back to June and rally around the HELP Bill.

If health care had made it this far and he was still an incredibly potent force on the hill and with us, I bet he'd get us an amazing reform package that many would love.

:(:(

Most people in teh country may favor the public option (I certainly do), but there are still areas where those who DON'T favor it outnumber those who do. Republican areas, or Blue Dog areas.

Blue Dogs and ConservaDems are just hiding behind that excuse by trying to pin the blame on their own constituents. This is the epitome of cowardice and deceit.



Nate Silver: 'Mr. Blue Dog, you have a problem on your hands. You're going to lose anyway.', July 24, 2009



The real reason is that the Blue Dogs/ConservaDems are gorging themselves on corporate money for their re-election campaigns, and they are not about to stop their addiction. It all comes back to the money for these pigs.

The Blue Dog and Republican constituency is Corporate America.

..... "The Quinnipiac University Poll, directed by Douglas Schwartz, Ph.D., conducts public opinion surveys in Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Florida, Ohio and the nation as a public service and for research."

which to me means either the poll was conducted in just those states or, at best, was nation-wide survey with no breakdown by state. http://www.quinnipiac.edu/x1295.xml?ReleaseID=1344 I have yet to see any data that shows that Blue Dog districts support a PO. The exception being a poll out of Arkanas that, while accurately describing what a PO would do, asked a bit of leading question as I described here...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=132&topic_id=8689399#8689720

I would LOVE LOVE LOVE to see polling data that backs this claim up ..... PLEASE show it to me .... but so far all I'm seeing are polls conducted nationall. And the Blue Dogs dont have to answer to the enitre country.

8 Senate Democrats and 1 Independent who caucuses with us are corporate whores.

.... I saw a head count last week that showed it as high as 54 .... (crossing my fingers.)

Which reminds me ...... HAPPY RECONCILIATION DAY EVERYONE!!!!!!!!! (of course it wont happen today, but we've been looking forward to this day for a long time.)

.... for so long...

Tow the AHIP line, and you get millions for your reelection campaign.

Cross AHIP, and you get millions of dollars worth of attack ads aimed at you from a bunch of their 527 groups.

Any questions?