Dems are annoying me. PASS Health REFORM! PERIOD. And Chris

[babylonsister]

Dodd? WTF is up with you?

[babylonsister]

1. Tim Noah up on Rachel now, and he's good and smart, Slate. nt

[roguevalley]

9. Dodd is auditioning for his next job, His old man lost his job in congress over

being a dipshit too. it's genetic

[babylonsister]

15. Wow. Nasty as you want to be. Good job, while I think Dodd did a fine

job in the many years he was a senator. What's your problem with him?

[roguevalley]

17. I used to be a HUGE fan. But the deal that landed him in such jeopardy with

the electorate smells like the deal Lisa Murkowski got into over a sweet deal on land down the road from me. Given as he is on the way out, he is just shooting what's left of his once good reputation telling us to drop crap that he won't even have a part in determining.

nasty as I want to be? No. Just flaming disappointed in one of my favorite senators. he was once on my radar for president. he needs to shut his trap over legislation and the rest and go with a little bit of dignity. and frankly, its my opinion based on disappointment. one opinion out of 154K.

[babylonsister]

22. Sorry, but I took issue with

the hit you gave him in comparing him to his old man; neither of them deserve that.

I also am so disappointed in Dodd; bringing up Kennedy's legacy and then just dropping the ball?

He has no future in the Senate, so what is his problem? He could be fighting more fiercely, and he's not. I imagine he's thinking about his future wherever that leads, but also wish he'd go out with dignity, fighting for us.

[Pirate Smile]

2. I KNOW!!! There is ONLY ONE real option and, for once, the best policy decision is the SAME as the

best political decision.

Pass the Senate Bill, then clean it up in Reconcilliation.

That is the ONLY real choice. It is the best political choice.

Republicans aren't going to say - well, they only voted for HCR once so I wont mention it. They've already voted for HCR. I don't understand why this isn't obvious to them

The chatter about passing a smaller bill is stupid for Multiple reasons - it wont pass the Senate, it would be LESS progressive then the current Senate Bill - yes, LESS progressive.

Letting it die is what will really demoralize their base.

Right now, I just can't understand why this isn't so clearly OBVIOUS to them. What.The.F@#k! :wtf: It is driving me crazy. I literally started crying reading last night's NYT article about what they thought they could pull out and pass. They pre-existing conditions exclusion only applied to kids. It is crumbs. It's practically nothing.

What are they doing???!!!!

~ sigh ~

[babylonsister]

3. I have no clue. I cannot believe they're giving up after fighting for so many

months. The silence isn't helping.

[Pirate Smile]

4. Plus the best option requires NOTHING, not one little thing, from Republicans. It is all within our

power. We have enough Dems in the House to pass the Senate Bill. We have enough Dems in the Senate to use Reconcilliation to make important fixes - we don't even need Lieberman, Nelson, Lincoln, Landrieu, etc. We only need 50.

If they stop now, they had it completely within their power to provide Health Insurance to 30 million uninsured but chose NOT to do so. Same with fixing the Excise Tax and adding subsidies through Reconcilliation.

We can do it. It is insane to think it is better to let it die, to let the uninsured stay uninsured, to let the skyrocketing cost of HC continue unabated, to continue having people with pre-existing conditions be excluded by insurance companies, lifetime caps,etc.

Why would they no longer care about those people needing help and the fact that the system will bankrupt the country? Why do they think it is better for them politically?

We are on the f@#king 1 yard line and they are choosing to forfeit the game.

I'm just completely baffled and stunned. It is just so stupid.

[babylonsister]

5. I'm with you. I do not get it. Are we being played, or have they really

dropped this after months of fighting for it? I am also baffled. And disgusted if nothing results from hcr in whatever form it might take.

[Pirate Smile]

11. They are now driving the pragmatists and policy-wonks who defended them crazy.

I wish they would just put out a damn statement that they are going this way and working on the specifics.

It just seems so bizarre because no one is even talking about the uninsured or all the people dropping it would screw over. It is like the moral argument for doing it is no longer applicable because one Republican won one friggin Senate seat with 51% of the vote. They don't seem to ever mention that that state was an anomaly because they already HAVE this type of program to cover 98% of their citizens. Doesn't that matter? Of course, they didn't care as much because it wasn't going to effect them or they only thought it could negatively impact their current system. All the uninsured and people with pre-existing conditions just didn't really matter to at least 51% which included a significant amount of DEMOCRATS. Shameful.

Well, you've given me a nice little spot to rant my rant that has been driving me nuts for the past couple of days. (I was going to post a smilie after that but I am just so not in the mood for it).

[babylonsister]

12. I am at a loss, too. I have to think they are weighing their options and

doing the right thing, but this admin has been tone deaf when it could have counted. Maybe they don't want to say something that will kick them in the butt? Sigh. I don't know.

[Pirate Smile]

19. Yeah - article now out that Nancy and Harry are trying to figure out how to Pass the Senate Bill

plus Reconcilliation.

I feel some relief now. I was waiting for this leak. I was actually waiting for it yesterday.

Reid, Pelosi work to save reform

Struggling to salvage health reform, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi have begun considering a list of changes to the Senate bill in hopes of making it acceptable to liberal House members, according to sources familiar with the situation.

The changes could be included in separate legislation that, if passed, would pave the way for House approval of the Senate bill - a move that would preserve President Barack Obama's vision of a sweeping health reform plan.

-snip-
The changes are being worked on this weekend with plans for Pelosi to present them to her caucus next week, according to sources familiar with the situation. But, sources stressed, neither Reid nor Pelosi know if this strategy can win the support of their members, but they are attempting it because it is the quickest path to passage.

Earlier this week, Pelosi said she did not have the votes to pass the Senate bill through the House unchanged. And Reid, who lost his 60-vote majority on Tuesday, does not have the votes to make wholesale changes to legislation his chamber passed last month.
So, leaders are considering making limited changes that can be passed using a budget process called reconciliation, which only requires 51 votes in the Senate.

The changes being considered track closely with the agreements House and Senate leaders made in White House meetings last week, according to a source. They include the deal with labor unions to ease the tax on high-end insurance plans, additional Medicare cuts and taxes, the elimination of a special Medicaid funding deal for Nebraska and a move to help cover the gap in seniors' prescription drug coverage. Pelosi is also working to change the Senate provision that sets up state insurance exchanges. The House prefers a single, national exchange.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0110/31886.html#ixzz0dPdDHQtV

[sandnsea]

6. Now wait a minute

If Pelosi can get subsidized insurance, a public option and Medicaid expansion through on a budget bill, and it can pass the Senate with 51 on reconciliation, then shouldn't they go for that? Then they can come back with the insurance mandate, pre-existing deal as part of some kind of bill of rights thing.

The Senate subsidies and the 133% of poverty for medicaid really wasn't that great. I had hoped we would at least get an expansion of subsidies and some sort of public option in conference. I'm willing to see what she has in mind.

[Pirate Smile]

7. I'd love to know because they keep floating stupid stuff - we are on the same page re

what to try to get through Reconcilliation.

Some dumb game of chicken between the House and Senate better not be going on which just kills the bill.

Just get it over with. The idea of waiting a month or so is just idiotic.

I hope they are getting this all figured out behind the scenes but nothing has leaked about them actually doing it. Just stupid ideas that will end up killing it all.

[sandnsea]

14. Gibbs said they are

Pelosi and Reid are figuring out the best way forward. I don't think it's a game of chicken. I don't know if they'll be able to come up with anything substantial, but I'm willing to give it a little time to at least see if they can't get something from the House bill through.

[Pirate Smile]

18. Finally - here is an article about Nancy and Harry trying to negotiate how to Pass the Senate Bill

plus Reconcilliation to incorporate the changes they already agreed on.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=433x147113

[babylonsister]

8. Thank you. There's a way for this to happen? I am thinking their

silence and inaction is loud.

I have wondered why the Dems are so quiet. Are they that out of it, or do they have a plan?
I'd prefer the latter, but don't have much faith.

[sandnsea]

13. According to Gibbs, Pelosi & Reid are discussing options

What he actually said is, No, it is not on the backburner, but they are going to let the dust settle and let Pelosi & Reid figure out what they can accomplish. It's not like the President's plate isn't full.

Now how that got distorted to putting health care on the backburner because the President's plate is full, well, you know how it got that distorted.

I'm not terribly hopeful honestly, but I do think there are slight possibilities out there. And that whole "relief" of not having to worry about the 60 votes, my thought was that maybe being forced to use the 51 votes will work out better anyway. I wouldn't be surprised if that wasn't where any sense of relief in the White House came from as well. Wouldn't you be relieved to pick up the phone and just laugh at Joe Lieberman? Don't you think there was at least some joking about poor old Joe losing his place in the limelight?

I just don't think there's one set straight path to anything, ever. Never has been in my life.

[ibegurpard]

21. I would support this wholeheartedly

Seriously!

[Clio the Leo]

10. ha ha, Babs is fired up and ready to go! NT

[Hamlette]

16. But then Jane will lose. We can't have that. After all, she's a progressive.

three problems in the house. Blue dogs won't vote for it (scared Brown won to defeat HCR) progressives won't vote for it because they think if they defeat this they will get a better bill. And they might. In a couple more generations maybe. Finally, there is some infighting between the two houses. The house thinks the senate is a bunch of prima donnas who will not keep their promise to "fix" the bill in later legislation. My understanding is Reid can't get 51 votes for expansion of medicare or a public mandate.

There is a temptation to think a dictatorship (like the last 8 years) is the only way this country can be governed.

[ibegurpard]

20. Yes!

Only I haven't seen any healthCARE reforms yet...