One wonders?
In a private meeting in the Capitol just now, a dozen or more House liberals bluntly toldNancy Pelosi that there was no chance that they would vote to pass the Senate bill in its current form — making it all but certain that House Dems won’t opt for this approach, a top House liberal tells me.
Of course, the Republicans have been spinning this like crazy, saying that some Democrats don’t support the bill for the same reasons they don’t, socialized medicine, which couldn’t be farther from the truth. A majority of Americans have said it should include a public option. Some polls were as low as 51% and some as high as 69% in support of the public option. I think they need to start from scratch and they should include two provisions (one that is a Republican idea and one that is a Democratic idea).
• Tax refunds for private insurance premiums, &
• A public option that ANY American can buy into and pay premiums thru payroll taxes
Without either one of those options, there really isn’t any reform. Reform should affect ALL Americans, not just the very poor or the very rich.