Even though the White House has walked back its hedging on the public option over the weekend, Marc Ambinder at the Atlantic is reporting that Obama believes liberals can be pacified, and he will get off the hook for signing a bill without the public option.
http://politics.theatlantic.com/...
Here's what Ambinder writes:
The White House and Senate Democrats won't buckle to demands from liberals that they revise their health care strategy, officials said today.
White House advisers and Democratic strategists concede that President Obama's poll numbers are at post-inauguration lows, and that the public has grown queasy about the health care debate. But they insist that the discontent has its roots in disenchantment over Washington's ways. They note that large majorities of voters disapprove of how Republicans are handling health care in Congress and that President Obama remains the most popular active politician in the country.
It gets even worse:
A White House official conceded today that Obama would have to weather anger from liberals for a while.
The president continues to operate under the belief that liberals will warm to the bill when presented with a goodybag that includes includes an individual mandate, community rating, guaranteed issue, and a minimum required package. There's no chance, really, that a bill WON'T feature these reforms. Quietly, to secure and keep Democrats on board, the White House is going to bargain, providing inducements, like more money for favored projects, etc., in order to secure individual votes.
Meanwhile, Baucus is still looking for a deal with the Republicans:
In a statement today, Sen. Max Baucus said he was committed to a bipartisan bill. "The Finance Committee is on track to reach a bipartisan agreement on comprehensive health care reform that can pass the Senate," he said.
It's time to fight even harder! Sign petitions. Call your Senators and Representatives (Main number at the Capitol: 202-224-3121). Call the White House. It all depends on us. We can't let up the pressure for a second. As Howard Dean keeps saying, health care reform without the public option is no reform at all.