Obama isn't pushing the public option ... "The public option is dead."

All of which raises the question: If so many people hate this legislation, why not rip up the bill and start anew? Democrats will try in the coming weeks, as it moves through committee and to the Senate floor. They'll undoubtedly find a way to increase subsidies to help working families and protect the middle class against a tax increase. But the tinkering can only go so far, because for all of its shortcomings, Baucus' bill is also what Senate Democrats are calling "the White House bill."

Perhaps some of the fire aimed at Baucus should be redirected at the president. The legislation accomplishes much of what Obama laid out in his speech before the joint session of Congress earlier this month. The bill is not only deficit-neutral, according to the Congressional Budget Office, but it also shrinks long-term health care costs. Both are key Obama pledges. The legislation also includes insurance reforms, expands coverage, and has http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/09/16/AR2009091603518.html?hpid=topnews">not upset the careful coalition of industry groups the White House worked so hard to align at the start of this process.

It also moves a stalled process forward, which also delights White House aides anxious to make a deal and move on. Now that all the pieces of legislation are on the table, the president can start building support for a final piece of legislation. Or, to put it more coarsely, he can start buying votes. In recent private meetings with senators, the president has been selling the Baucus bill. No, the bill doesn't include the public option, which Obama has advocated in public. But in private meetings, Obama isn't pushing the public option, according to Senate Democratic aides. "The public option is dead," said one. Instead, the president is emphasizing other fixes in the legislation.

http://www.slate.com/id/2228709/">Mad at Max -- Direct some anger at Max Baucus toward the president.