Clyburn: Public Option "Could Very Well" Return, Schumer Signs On

[cal04]

by mcjoan
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2010/2/18/838347/-Clyburn:-Public-Option-Could-Very-Well-Return,-Schumer-Signs-On

The quick success of the Bennet reconciliation/public option letter, now with 17 signers has breathed new life into the public option. The latest to join in is Chuck Schumer, who sent an e-mail to supporters saying

I just added my name to their effort to pass a public option through the reconciliation process, and I wanted you to be the first to know.

This is far from a done deal, but it’s an opportunity to break through the obstructionism Republicans have pushed for the past year.

Schumer is the most significant co-signer yet, because of his position in Senate leadership. House leadership has weighed in, too, with majority whip James Clyburn expressing cautious optimistim that it could happen.

House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-S.C.) said the government-run plan, which had been scrapped in order to win over centrists' votes in the Senate, could reemerge if the Senate were to use a procedural tactic to pass a set of additional health reforms with only a simple majority vote.

"So I think so far as the public option is concerned, if you're going to do a 50-vote or a 50-plus-one strategy, rather than a 60-vote strategy, I'm not too sure that the public option cannot be a part of this plan," Clyburn said during an appearance on MSNBC.

"Because we were trying to get the 60 votes by dropping the public option, so if you're not going to do a 60-vote strategy but instead a 50-plus-one strategy, the public option could very well be a part of this package," the whip added.

Still unknown, though, is where the White House on this, or even on using reconciliation to get a bill finally passed. The latest, albeit vague, statement came from a CNN interview on Tuesday with Sebelius.

Sebelius said the president's proposal is unlikely to include a government-run insurance plan that is anathema to most Republicans. The public option is part of the House-approved bill but was dropped from Senate legislation.

"A lot of the Republican members of the House and Senate said on day one when this debate began that they would love to work with the president, but they could not work around the public option. Now that don't have a public option, I'm hoping they're good to their word and come to the summit not just with their ideas but with a proposal.

"There are a lot of good Republican ideas in both the House and Senate bills," she told Gupta. "I hope the Republicans come ready to roll up their sleeves and get to work."

This still leaves some question as to what the White House is really pushing for in the summit next week. On today's conference call, Sebelius gave no hint of what the plan the White House will provide will be, other than she "hopes" that it takes the best of the House and Senate bills. Whether this is going to be a scaled-down approach that the White House still thinks it might be able to get Republicans on board with, or a feint to get the House and Senate to hammer out there differences is completely unclear.

Apart from whatever is happening with this summit, though, is the fact that there's a decent chunk of Democrats in both chambers who are pushing for comprehensive reform through side-car reconciliation. And the composition of the coalition coming together in the Senate, or at least those willing to sign the letter, shows that they're serious.




Clyburn: Public option 'could very well' return to health reform bill
http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/81847-clyburn-public-option-could-very-well-be-reinserted-into-health-bill

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1. Maybe they woke up and realized if they don't, they will lose big in the November elections.

[DJ13]

2. Sadly I think this is a ploy

The PO is being trumpeted now so that Obama will have a bargaining chip to offer as a sacrifice to the Republicans in the HCR meeting next week.

Im not expecting it to last.

Translation, our party is willing to get the hopes up of their base just so they can dash them once again on the altar of bipartisanship.

[thereismore]

3. Yes you are probably right. But if it helps improve the bill, I'm open to it. nt