HEALTH CARE LEGISLATION: Reid faces coalition challenge ("The 60 votes aren't there any more")
Las Vegas Review-Journal ^ | Nov. 30, 2009 | RICARDO ALONSO-ZALDIVAR (AP)
Posted on Monday, November 30, 2009 10:55:24 AM by Mrs. Don-o
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The 60 votes aren't there any more. With the Senate set to begin debate today on an overhaul of the nation's health care system, the all-hands-on-deck Democratic coalition that allowed the bill to advance is fracturing. Yet majority Democrats will need 60 votes again to finish.
Some Democratic senators say they will jump ship from the bill without tighter restrictions on abortion coverage. Others say they will go unless a government plan to compete with private insurance companies gets tossed overboard. Such concessions would enrage liberals, the heart and soul of the party.
No clear course exists for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., ... [snip]
On abortion, no compromise seems possible. On the public plan, a deal might yet be had.
...Abortion rights supporters are backing Reid's approach, which tries to preserve coverage for abortion while stipulating that federal dollars might not be used except in cases of rape, incest or to save the life of the mother. Catholic bishops say they cannot accept that because it would let federally subsidized plans cover abortion.
It might be easier to find a middle ground on the issue of a public health plan ...Reid's bill would create a national plan but give states the choice of opting out. ...
Several moderate Democrats have served notice they cannot support Reid's approach. The lone Republican to vote for the Senate bill in committee, Olympia Snowe of Maine, has said she could accept a public plan if insurers are given one last chance to deliver lower premiums in a competitive market. Combining Snowe's "trigger" with Reid's "opt-out" might be the answer.
If that is the case, it still would have to pass a final test: 60 votes.
(Excerpt) Read more at lvrj.com ...
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I still think this mess is going to fail.
