Clyburn: Reid's dealmaking cost Mass. seat

[a kennedy]

COLUMBIA, S.C. — U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's dealmaking lost a key seat in Massachusetts but eventually led to the right strategy to win the vote on landmark healthcare legislation, U.S. House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn said Monday.

Clyburn said the election of Republican Scott Brown to the late Sen. Ted Kennedy's seat was a turning point in passing the overhaul last week. He said at the time, the Senate was pursuing a 60-vote strategy for the legislation to get around filibuster threats by Republicans.

To get there, Reid made several deals with lawmakers, including giving up the public option on insurance and giving $100 million in extra Medicaid money solely to Nebraska to help win support from that state's Democratic Sen. Ben Nelson. Dubbed the Cornhusker Kickback, it was eliminated in the revisions bill, but had caused a stir over such backroom deals that the Republicans pointed out.

"So he got 60 votes. Well, the problem is the Nebraska thing, more than anything else, caused the defeat up in Massachusetts," Clyburn said.

That forced Democrats to rely on their majority numbers, he said.

"That's how we got health care. I don't think we would have ever gotten health care if we stayed on that 60-vote strategy," Clyburn said. "I really believe that that was a blessing in disguise," Clyburn said at his Columbia office.

full: <http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5heK0GKRHfpeoNZMI5Hi0gTGv_rUAD9EOJ4I00>

[ClarkUSA]

1. Also, Coakley was the worst kind of snobby elite candidate who thought she was "inevitable"...

... and alienated the hell out of people.

If Capuano had been the Democratic candidate, we would have kept the seat.

That said, I have every confidence that Scott Brown will be a one-term wonder.

Next time, Democrats will have a fighter who has a common touch.

[Ian David]

3. Scott Brown will probably run for President (against Rachel Maddow?) in 2012. n/t

[ClarkUSA]

9. Yeah, right.

I wonder if MA voters are embarrassed yet over that idiotic lie of their new senator?

[Ian David]

11. I still see some of his bumper stickers. As well as some Bush/Cheney stickers. So, not yet. n/t

[NotThisTime]

7. I have to agree, she was a terrible candidate but I'm not sure they will have a strong Dem that will

win over boy wonder next time... hopefully they will. I'm not sure if Capuano would have won, but he sure and hell would have been a better hands on candidate.

[ClarkUSA]

8. I will bet that Team Obama will make sure Democrats have a scrappy candidate next time around.

I may be wrong, but I suspect it will be Capuano, who is a good retail candidate who's quick on his feet.

[Ian David]

2. There is plenty of blame to go around. It doesn't ALL fall on Dickless Harry's shoulders this time.

[w4rma]

5. Agreed. (nt)

[bigtree]

4. I like Jim Clyburn

... but I question the S.C. legislator's expertise in handicapping Mass. politics.

[Toots]

6. It took sixty votes to "get health care", without sixty we would not have it at all.

I doubt very seriously we could have passed very much at all through reconciliation. Just a few fixes were quite difficult and even some had to be left out because they couldn't get past the Byrd rule. I do not believe just the "Cornhusker kickback" caused the Senate loss in Massachusetts. What caused the loss IMO was the almost complete lack of Media presence by the Democrats over the last year while the Republicans dominated it..

[groundloop]

10. Agreed. And with Traiter Joe we never really had 60 votes on healthcare

Considering all the roadblocks thrown up by Lieberman and a couple of others it's amazing anything at all got accomplished.

[xultar]

12. Clyburn is confused. Coakley sucked that is why we lost the seat.

He's right about the 60 vote strategy being stupid.