The way forward to real reform now

[Tom Rinaldo]

Step One: The Democratic leadership should announce right now that they will prepare separate deficit reducing health care reform legislation expanding the government role in providing health insurance to our citizens which will be pursued using the Reconciliation process in the Senate. since it will aim to reduce the federal deficit. That of course only requires 50 votes plus Biden to pass the Senate.

Step Two: The Democratic leadership should inform self described moderate Senators that they fully expect their support on a cloture vote for the current separate health care insurance reform act currently being finalized in the Senate. In return for that support their legitimate concerns will be listened to and taken into consideration in finalizing the details of the expanded government role in health care that will be pursued through Reconciliation. However should the current legislation be blocked in the Senate, that deal will be taken off the table and the Democratic leadership will feel free to craft and draft a Reconciliation proposal greatly expanding the public role without their input - since without winning passage of the private insurance controls and reforms contained in the bill currently under consideration, it will be necessary to create a very robust public health insurance system as competition to force private insurers to operate in the public interest.

Then dare them to filibuster knowing they face certain extreme consequences (from a Lieberman perspective) if they succeed with that filibuster - they will lose any influence they might otherwise might have been given in designing the new health care system in America.

[Tom Rinaldo]

1. Obstructionists like Lieberman need to know they have a lot to lose

if they continue on an obstructionist path. As it stands it appears to them that they only can gain through their obstructionist tactics. That equation has to change.

[uponit7771]

2. Step Three: Reid tells the DNC to fuck off and there will be no reconciliation (next?)

[Tom Rinaldo]

3. I believe this Administration is avoiding reconciliation because

they won't have enough leverage to dilute a progressive agenda if they only need 50 votes in the Senate to win.

[uponit7771]

5. Do you have any facts to back this up?! Again, Obama can't make Reid inact reconciliation but we can

...primary Reid for a more progressive candidate.

[Tom Rinaldo]

6. In the old Soviet Union the head of State was the Premier

But the Communist Party Chief pulled most of the important strings. They had a system where the same person could sometimes hold both roles, and we do not. But just because Barack Obama does not currently hold a position of leadership in the U.S. Senate does not establish that he does not provide leadership in the U.S. Senate. The stimulus plan that passed the U.S. Senate is not now referred to as Harry Reid's plan, it called the Obama stimulus program, and for sound reasons.

All Presidents have influence over the members of their own party in Congress, it just varies by degree from one President to another. Even Jimmy Carter had influence among Congressional Democrats. He was at the low end of that spectrum yet he still had enough pull in the Democratic Party to defeat Teddy Kennedy for the 1980 Democratic nomination. Obama's influence among Congressional Democrats today is substantial. He is at the furthest extreme away from being a lame duck President, he is still early in his first team with approval ratings that dwarf that of Congress, after having won the most resounding victory in a Presidential election since Ronald Reagan's second election.

Unlike Jimmy Carter Obama went out of his way to stock his administration with seasoned and powerful Congressional insiders from a Chief of Staff with strong House ties to a Vice President with strong Senate ties. Do you not think that Republicans in Congress were not strongly influenced by the Bush Administration agenda between 2000 and 2008? Why on earth would it be different for Democrats in that regard?

[Armstead]

4. That makes perfect sense -- hence the democrats will never do it