If the Senate uses Reconciliation, they should go back to the Robust Public Option

[jsamuel]

right?

[graywarrior]

1. Right.

[WI_DEM]

2. Yes. Can they use Reconciliation to create the Public Option?

[jsamuel]

3. yes, as far as I know

[Lasher]

8. Senate Democrats will not go along with it.

Senator Byrd is particularly opposed. But if they would have resorted to reconciliation, they should have gone with a bill of 10 pages or less to enact single payer and they should have wrapped it up in no more than 30 days.

[jsamuel]

11. I am not sure he is against it if Lieberman refuses to vote for the bill

despite all the attempts to please him.

I am also pretty sure there are not 51 votes in the senate for single payer, although I would like to know just how many there are.

[Demoiselle]

19. 50 plus Biden. Do we really not have 50?

[jsamuel]

21. for single payer?

I don't think so. We had a hard time just getting 220 votes in the House for a public option not tied to Medicare rates.

[Demoiselle]

24. OK. Let them craft a bill that gets 50 votes...with a public option and medicare buy-in.

[seeinfweggos]

23. yep, they can

they just can't change it when it comes back from conference. it's up or down then. as someone posted below, we should now go for the best we can get with 50 + biden. jujitsu this mofo. thank you lieberman.

[lamp_shade]

4. Full and Robust. Yes.

[jsamuel]

6. thanks

I changed my title to reflect a better choice of words.

[MNDemNY]

5. And then some!!!!!

[rudy23]

7. Yes--why spend months compromising to get to 60 BEFORE using reconciliation?

Seems pretty self-defeating. Then again "self-defeat" seems to be the M.O. of the Dems in DC.

[MNDemNY]

9. If we go that route, we should get the best we can get with 51 votes.

The house will gladly go more progressive.

[rudy23]

16. I think that's exactly why we waited until AFTER giving up the farm to threaten with reconciliation

I would love for Rahm and Obama to make me eat my words, but I think this is a cya pr story. I don't think reconciliation is going to lead us to take back all we gave away in the name of getting to 60 votes.

[MNDemNY]

18. That would show where the White House stance is, then would it not?

[grantcart]

10. Go as far as they can

Robust Public Option

Medicare Buy In for 55+

and

Single Payer Option by states.

[MNDemNY]

13. Maybe 35?

Get what we can with 51!!!!!!!!!!!

[Old and In the Way]

12. No guts, no glory.

The Republicans have gone on record that they will be the Party of Repeal in 2010, should the good voter decide we need to return to Crazy Town for another lesson on fiscal mismanagement. So, why not? Let them run on, "The Democrats gave you a public health care system. We're going to make sure that we repeal it if you vote us back in." I'm willing to wage war on this issue.

[chill_wind]

14. Right.

[damntexdem]

15. True, and ALSO add the early access to Medicare.

There should be majority Senate support for both.

[Vinnie From Indy]

17. Never happen

While it is certainly tin foil territory, the argument can be made that the players in this affair are merely performing their predetermined roles. The Joe Lieberman affair could simply be designed to provide political cover for many Democrats. Joe Lieberman will fold and some Democrats will get to crow about how hard and long they fought for "real" health care reform when, in fact, they have given us a pile of dogshit that is designed to fail.

[yurbud]

20. robustest! Open Medicare to anyone who wants to join and cut the other shit.

[yurbud]

22. that is one way all this corrupt stumblefuckery could look like genius in hindsight

If they pull a good bill out of the hat at the last minute, it will be closer to the election and people will be more likely to remember.

Also, the slow dance led to all the panicked donations from health insurance companies to Dems--and what could the insurance companies say if the Democrats screw them, there was an implied quid pro quo? Even though it goes on every day, saying it out loud is a crime. So Dems would get to keep the cash AND do good.

That's what I'd like to see happen, but it won't.

[backscatter712]

25. That's a no-brainer.

And it makes reconciliation a nice stick to hit conservadems over the head with.

We can give them the choice: Vote for cloture and get some of what you want, or we go with reconciliation, bypass you, and you get absolutely nothing that you want.