1 am Monday moring Senate vote?

Thanks for this post

 

I got this one:

[FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif]Dear MoveOn member, [/FONT] [FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif]The latest Senate health care bill has no public option. No expansion of Medicare. And it does too little to guarantee that uninsured Americans will actually be able to afford the coverage they'll be required to purchase.1[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif]Former insurance executive Wendell Potter put it best: the bill is "a big bailout to the [health insurance] industry."2[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif]But it's not too late to fix the bill. And as Joe Lieberman has shown, just one senator willing to stand in the way can force legislation to be changed dramatically.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif]Senator Bernie Sanders[/FONT][FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif], a strong proponent of the public option, has already made clear that he's opposed to the legislation in its current form—and he could decide to block it until it's fixed.3[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif]But there's enormous pressure from all sides to pass a bill quickly, no matter how weak it is. Let's show Bernie and other progressives that we're counting on them to block this version of the bill—and we'll get their backs if they do. [/FONT] [FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif]Can you sign our petition opposing the current Senate health care bill? Clicking here will add your name:[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif]
[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif]The petition reads: "America needs real health care reform—not a massive giveaway to the insurance companies. Senator Bernie Sanders and other progressives should block this bill until it's fixed."[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif]Despite this latest setback, we can still win the health care fight. The House has already passed a strong health care bill with a real public option. It would cover millions of uninsured Americans, offer real competition to the insurance companies, and reduce costs in the long run.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif]MoveOn members overwhelmingly support the House bill. But it's clear from member feedback and surveys that the majority of MoveOn members oppose the Senate bill as it now stands.4[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif]And recent polls show growing opposition among grassroots progressives generally—the very folks Democrats in Washington count on to volunteer and donate to their campaigns.5 One found that one-third of Democratic voters will be less likely to vote next year if Congress doesn't pass a public option.6
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[FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif]So to get real reform, we need to immediately send a powerful message to Senate progressives like Bernie Sanders, Roland Burris, and Russ Feingold that we're counting on them to block this bill until it's fixed.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif]Click here to add your name to the petition:[/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif]Thanks for all you do.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif]–Kat, Joan, Michael, Ilya, and the rest of the team[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif]Sources:[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif]1. "ANALYSIS: House Bill More Affordable Than Senate Legislation," Think Progress, October 30, 2009
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=85097&id=18359-1433181-WsbYrfx&t=5[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif]"Side-by-Side Comparison of Major Health Care Reform Proposals," Kaiser Family Foundation, November 23, 2009
http://www.kff.org/healthreform/sidebyside.cfm
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[FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif]2. "Senate Bill a Big Win for Insurance Companies," Countdown with Keith Olbermann, December 16, 2009
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036677/#34455097[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif]3. "Sanders Could Still Vote No On Cloture," WhoRunsGov.com, December 17, 2009
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=85817&id=18359-1433181-WsbYrfx&t=6[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif]4. MoveOn Members' Views on the Senate Health Care Bill
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=85818&id=18359-1433181-WsbYrfx&t=7
[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif]5. "Poll: Loss of Public Option Causes Big Increase in Opposition to Health Care Bill," Talking Points Memo, December 16, 2009
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=85808&id=18359-1433181-WsbYrfx&t=8
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[FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif]6. "Poll: One Third Of Dems Less Likely To Vote In 2010 If Public Option Dies," WhoRunsGov.com, December 14, 2009
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=85816&id=18359-1433181-WsbYrfx&t=9
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[FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif]Want to support our work?[/FONT] [FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif] We're entirely funded by our 5 million members—no corporate contributions, no big checks from CEOs. And our tiny staff ensures that small contributions go a long way. Chip in here.[/FONT]

 

It is pretty well agreed on all sides then.

This bill isn't any good for anyone and no one wants it.

That means they will pass it for sure.

 

With Ben Nelson coming on board it looks like the Senate will pass a bill. But it still has to go to conference and then whatever comes out of conference has to be passed by the House and the Senate.

It ain't over 'til it's over!

 

There's a good chance that Sens. Sanders or Burris will oppose the bill. I, for one, can not support the bill as it stands. What they should do is kill the bill, then go into budget reconciliation. The only issue is that they can only do things that affect the budget. However, they can expand Medicare and have an optional buy-in for everyone. That would definitely affect the budget. The one big problem is Medicare, without regulating private insurance, would become a dumping ground for people rejected by the death panels at the private insurance companies. However, they probably could still pass insurance regulation as a regular bill. Or perhaps they could pass it through reconciliation because it does affect the budget because of the aforementioned issue with Medicare.

BTW, Magnetic Poles, what are your thoughts on a single payer system? I'm personally not a supporter of it, but I was wondering what your thoughts are.

 

Passing something this big using the reconciliation process has never been done before. Attempting to do so would likely bring the Senate to a grinding halt until the Democrats backed down.

Now, if the Republicans would bring the Senate to a grinding halt and keep it there and the Democrats would not back down, I would go along with using reconciliation. The U.S. Senate being shut down for the next year would be a good thing for this nation since at least 90% of what our members of Congress pass is bad for this nation.

 

Well Paul, I think the bill as it stands is a gift to the insurance companies. I am absolutely for universal coverage for every American man, woman, and child, and a right of every American. I think single payer is one way to do that, but would be open to other ways to accomplish that goal.