... as long as he supports the "underlying bill."
Nelson supports reconciliation
After saying yesterday that Democrats should abandon sweeping health reform in favor of a more incremental approach, Democratic Sen. Ben Nelson said Wednesday that he could support reconciliation as long as he supports the underlying bill. Nelson also said he hopes Obama will lay out his preference for moving reform forward in his State of the Union address tonight.
Nelson's comments came during a conference call with Nebraska reporters, which were then released by his office:
I’ve been asked about whether I’d support using the process known as reconciliation now. So, I want to make it clear: If I support a bill, then I will vote for it regardless of whether it takes 50 votes to pass or 60 votes to pass. My position doesn't change just because the House or Senate decides to change the process.
If the bill provides coverage for the 220,000 Nebraskans who don’t have insurance, help for all other Nebraskans who are paying too much for health care, and doesn’t lead to government-run health care and ensures that public funds aren’t used for abortion, then I’ll at least take a look at it.
I’ve also seen some mention of previous legislation I supported that moved through reconciliation, such as the major tax cuts in 2001 and 2003, and some other bills.
I’d like to make it absolutely clear: I supported bills brought forward under reconciliation simply because the underlying bills met my standard for good legislation. I opposed a bill because it didn’t meet my standard of good legislation. Whether it required 50 votes or 60 votes, the process used didn’t change the substance.http://www.politico.com/livepulse/0110/Nelson_supports_reconciliation_.html