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It could all be planned. While it is certainly a tin foil idea, it could be that the Joe Lieberman incident is political theater designed to provide political cover for Democratic Senators that never wanted a decent, workable health care bill passed. Ol' Joe puts himself square in the middle of it all and threatens to halt the bill with a filibuster if the Senate does not do what he wants. Ultimately, he backs down or the bill is done in reconciliation without him. What matters is that a message is sent that there was a real high stakes battle that took place at the end and Democrats fought long and hard to get a bill done. What gets lost is that the bill that gets done after this battle is still the same piece of unworkable crap that has been discussed as the latest compromise bill.
Joe Lieberman could be doing a big favor for Democratic Senators like Evan Bayh. Bayh has tried desperately not to state a position on health care legislation beyond saying there is a problem. Now, he will be able to go back home and talk about what a great battle he fought at the end to help Americans without health care. The insurance companies that pay his family so well get what they want and he gets to campaign on his tough stance against Joe Lieberman to get health care legislation passed.
Joe Lieberman doesn't give a shit what people think of him. He has a few more years to sell his influence under the table and a lifetime thereafter to rake in millions above the table as an industry lobbyist.
Regardless of the wild speculation about this latest kerfluffle, it will be interesting to note how many of the Democrats in the Senate and in Obama's Admin. crow long and loud about fighting ferociously to get us the "compromise" bill.
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