“Fortune favors the bold.”
So, who wants healthcare reform? I’m not talking about a healthcare bill half ghostwritten by Republicans who refuse to admit that fact. I’m talking about real reform.
Apparently, not as many as I thought, at least that is what you would believe if you participated in the “Harkin Scolds Ed Schultz On Public Option” thread last night.
I remember last year, this site was buzzing about a Public Option. Healthcare reform, based on competition and choice. It wouldn’t be that difficult. We have the infrastructure in place. All we had to do was to expand Medicare. We could start modestly, by lowering the age by 10 years now, and another 10 years later, and so on until we had universal choice. Middle class jobs lost in the private medical insurance sector would be absorbed by the expanding Medicare infrastructure. If you liked the private plan you had, you could keep it. Unfortunately, we were repeatedly told that we didn’t have the 60 votes in the Senate to pass it.
So, why didn’t we have the 60 votes? We can argue this question till we are blue in the face. A better question for today is why don’t we still have the 54-55 votes that we did have last year?
The facts on the ground:
- The House passed a Public Option.
- The Public Option will directly reduce the deficit.
- Lincoln opposed a PO, she gets primaried and her challenger raises nearly $4 million in 24 hrs.
- Kent Conrad opposed the PO, now his approval rating hovers in the teens.
- 18% of voters for Scott Brown were Democrats who support the Public Option.
- Arlen Specter signed on to the PO/Recon letter and resurrected his re-election bid.
- In Nevada, only 34% support the Senate bill, while 56% support the public option.
- In Illinois, only 37% support the Senate bill, while 68% support the public option.
- In Washington State, only 38% support the Senate bill, while 65% support the public option.
- In Missouri, only 33% support the Senate bill, while 57% support the public option.
- In Virginia, only 36% support the Senate bill, while 61% support the public option.
- In Iowa, only 35% support the Senate bill, while 62% support the public option.
- In Minnesota, only 35% support the Senate bill, while 62% support the public option.
- In Colorado, only 32% support the Senate bill, while 58% support the public option.
- Democrats consistently support a PO by between 70 and 80%
- The same Democrats support a PO via Recon by between 50 and 60%
State by state numbers courtesy of:
Reasearch 2000
And if we call it a “Medicare Expansion Reconciliation Sidecar” MERSC, I’m sure we could hit that 80% democratic support by reconciliation. And, as a neat side effect, we could sweep in 2010!
So I will ask again. Why don’t we have the votes? Don’t Democrats read polls? Or is it something else?
There were 55 votes for the Public Option last year. And it was announced dead.
On Tuesday, February 16th there were 4 votes for a Public Option by reconciliation.
On Friday, February 19th there were 19 votes for the Public Option by reconciliation.
On Monday there were 30 votes for a Public Option by reconciliation.
On Tuesday there were 33 votes for a Public Option by reconciliation.
As of this posting, there are 34 votes for a Public Option by reconciliation.
Many here, and on Capitol Hill will say, “After 70 years, we have a bill, let’s just pass it. At least it’s something.” The Republicans are right on this one point, that “something” is roundly despised by a majority of all demographics. And they should know, because it’s chock-full of their ideas.
It's a little too late in the game to advise a tippy-toe approach. The pressure is building. The votes are mounting. Anticipation has already infected the base.
The only guarantee here is that if Dems don't push the envelope now, the only "likely" label you can put in front of democratic voters is "likely to sleep in on November 4th".
Even if we don't get the Public Option, dems will reward those seen as making the strongest push for it.
Trying and failing is respectable. Under reconciliation, if we can get the MERSC / PO amendment on the floor and it fails, we get the conserva-dems on the record. Then we fall back on the HRC bill as it stands. That’s the beauty of reconciliation. We get an up or down vote.
Failing to try is the true suicide.
It’s do or die time.
So here is what I propose.
Get on your phones, update your blogs, get on your radios and TV’s and street corners and ask this repeatedly:
If Republicans are so sure that the Public Option is soooooo unpopular; if they can stand there and say that a Public Option Sidecar would be "Political Suicide" or a “Kamikaze Mission” or that it’s “Rejected by Americans”, and if we “jam it down the throats of American” that they will run on repealing our “Socialist Plots “as per their talking points as of late…
Then why talk us down? Why ain’t they sitting in the middle of the street yelling JUMP?
Public Option via Reconciliation = Medicare Expansion Reconciliation Sidecar Act (MERSC Act)
We are begging for MERSC now! If we don't get it, they will be begging for it in November!