The Whole Delivery

In the latest Beltway book that will garner some attention, Think Progress' industrial Igor Volsky certainly got a major catch today from Tom Daschle talking about his new book about how health insurance reform happened. It's a revelation that sure won't endear the Obama Administration towards the base it has already upset too many times before : I asked Daschle if the White House had taken the option off the table in July 2009 and if all future efforts to resuscitate the provision (the public option) were destined to fail: DASCHLE: I don’t think it was taken off the table completely. It was taken off the table as a result of the understanding that people had with the hospital association, with the insurance (AHIP), and others. I mean I think that part of the whole effort was based on a premise. That premise was, you had to have the stakeholders in the room and at the table. Lessons learned in past efforts is that without the stakeholders’ active support rather than a...

The line "You just can't make this up about these ignoramuses" just cannot be uttered enough. Minutes after Kucinich's speech, David Shuster interviewed Baby Prop user and intelligence challenged Republican John Shadegg. Instead of regurgitating the usual government takeover and "kill the bill" line of his party that we have gone accustom to, Shadegg provided an even more entertaining and gregarious moment for the day. Shadegg supports Single Payer! Though the whole interview is comedy platinum (because gold is an understatement), the standout moment came at the 3:14 mark when Shadegg somehow tries to say that his party is against the for-profit health insurance companies. Watch the fun unfold: The laughter just can't be contained for how foolish Shadegg looks. I just wish Shuster would have been able to then ask him if would sign to be a co-sponsor for Alan Grayson's Medicare Expansion Act ? That would have furthered certified how epic t...

Shame that the wonderful revival of the "Hot potato" game is because of a lack of courage .

In the read between the lines common sense culture that political journalism ensures, we are able to decode the simplest of cryptic messages. But with how no one yet on the Democratic side wants to be the upfront person and say "The public option is dead once and for all", then any phrase parsing that could indicate a Democratic figure saying that vaunted message is very silly in my mind. We have already heard Jay Rockegeller and Robert Gibbs outright say or indicate that "The Public option doesn't have the votes in the Senate" the last few weeks in the midst of the public option revival. Yet, the public option is still being talked about. Yet, most sites , and even great ones I respect like TPM , have rushed to proclaim what Nancy Pelosi said in the press conference as her saying "The Public Option is dead." That is not fair at all to the Speaker, and brings any claims of "Nancy Pelosi has killed the public option" are real possible f...

Now let's see if Senator Durbin , who signed the Benett letter in its earlier days, will tell Bernie Sanders later today to not do this . Senator Bernie Sanders, in a brief interview in the Capitol just now, confirmed to me that he’s willing to commit to introducing an amendment that would add the public option to the Senate bill’s reconciliation fix. Anybody still uttering the sentence of "The public option is dead" is someone that really really is an idiot or hasn't been playing attention to the growing momentum for it in the last four weeks This is important, because as far fetched as this seems, if this amendment is introduced, a vote on it would be very hard for the Senate Dem leadership to block. The only thing that could stop it from happening, according to Senate expert Robert Dove, is for the parliamentarian to rule that it’s not germane to the Senate bill somehow — something that seems unlikely. “I think somebody should do that, and I’d certainly ...

For some reason, it just won't. And that's a good thing : The White House’s declaration last week that the public option can’t pass Congress has dumped a vat of cold water on the possibility of a vote on the public option via reconciliation, but this is still an interesting development: Senators Dick Durbin, Patty Murray and Jeff Bingaman have now all gone on record saying that if such a vote is staged, they will vote Yes. That brings the total who have signed the letter pushing for this vote or who support the idea in principle to 30 — more than half the Dem caucus for the first time. Keep the total going .

Quietly, Tom Harkin joined Jay Rockefeller yesterday is virutally proclaiming the public option as dead. With how neither showed no desire to sign up for Michael Bennet's Letter signing for the PO, it shouldn't have been a surprise that the rational Iowa Senator came out publicly to show no support for a position he was an ardent supporter of for so long. "I hate to say it, but I am not certain we're going to be able to get a public option in this bill," Harkin said with a sigh, in an interview on the eve of President Obama's bipartisan healthcare summit. That phrasing may sound relatively optimistic, but the way Harkin discussed the public option made it clear he didn't see much hope for the plan for now. "That doesn't mean we stop trying... I keep reminding people that this bill is not written in stone, like the Ten Commandments, for ever and ever. This is a law, it's a bill, we change laws all the time around here -- that's what we ...

Photo from the AP's Charles Dharapak It has been a wild last 24 hours in the wild life and times of the government insurance option. From Debbie Stabenow and Daniel Inouye adding their names to the Michael Bennet's Public Option push becoming 23 to Jay Rockefeller halting the momentum by somehow saying it would be too partisan to have a public option through reconciliation, the amazing twists and turns of the PO have risen to new unexpected levels. And now today, after MoveOn.org has brought back Heather Graham and Steny Hoyer punted the PO responsibilities to the Senate again, Robert Gibbs has deemed that the PO just doesn't have enough votes to get the full majority support in reconciliation. As Greg Sargent reported, Adam Green sent a furiously expedient response back after hearing what Gibbs said, saying the White House possessed a "loser mentality." Green is right here, and so is Jon Walker and Ezra Klein earlier in the day . President Obama ha...

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news , world news , and news about the economy Are they being stupid and untrustworthy again? That is the perspective one could easily infer from after seeing and hearing what Ezra Klein has said to Keith Olbermann tonight on Countdown in regardless to the stunning revival of the public option. It is information that leads to something we are seeing publically with the petition (now at #19 Senators with Arlen Specter early this evening) maybe just a painful predictable facade for progressives to swallow. "I got to tell you Keith, reporting on this is weird today because everyone that's sign the letter that when you call them every office I call is telling me privately were terrified of this," said the Washington Post and former American Prospect Blogger. After Olbermann asked him if this is yet another leadership problem with the Democrats, Klein reply only needed one word. "Exactly." But he wasn't done. "I th...

Let's hope it's not a "Whatever happens in Vegas, stay in Vegas" type deal as one commentator named accumbens at the Kos said . Greg Sargent reports that Harry Reid, in a day where him and President Obama were state hopping in Nevada, will support reconciliation through a public option : With more and more Senators signing on to the letter urging Reid to hold an up or down vote on the public option under reconciliation rules, Reid spokesman Rodell Mollineau sends over a statement signaling Reid’s qualified support for the move: Senator Reid has always and continues to support the public option as a way to drive down costs and create competition. That is why he included the measure in his original health care proposal. If a decision is made to use reconciliation to advance health care, Senator Reid will work with the White House, the House, and members of his caucus in an effort to craft a public option that can overcome procedural obstacles and secure enough vo...

At the 8:46 mark, Kathleen Sebelius has shown the White House hand in the sudden revival out of nowhere the government insurance option . But the support is only based, once again, on the Senate wanting it pushed through reconciliation. Visit msnbc.com for breaking news , world news , and news about the economy Once again, as they will when they unveil their plan on Monday, the Administration primary focus for a bill remains to be choice and competition . They'll only go with what will be easiest to pass in the Senate still it seems, but have no idea on what the votes will be in the House if the 51 Dem votes for the public option is unattainable, which it shouldn't be. The pressure is back not only on Reid, but on the remaining Dems Senators (especially Russ Feingold and Tom Harkin) to join in on the push. The lobbying money from the health insurance companies that have dried up over the start of 2010 will kick back up at full speed if it already hasn't.

This morning it was 16. And now, the 17th Dem Senator to sign onto the Public Option push is a huge one. It's Chuck Schumer : This is key: Senator Chuck Schumer has just signed the letter calling on Harry Reid to hold a reconciliation vote on the public option. Schumer just fired off an email to supporters in which he announced his intention to sign the letter, which was initially spearheaded by Senator Michael Bennet and three other Senators. He wrote: 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. The momentum is growing. That can't be denied by anyone.

The quietest revival ever may not be too quiet soon, as 5 other senators have joined the "Public Option Push" movement. It is a pleasant surprise . Barbara Boxer, Barbara Mikulski, Frank Lautenberg (Pharma supporter now), Amy Klobuchar, Ben Cardin, Jack reed, and Tom Udall have made the number of Democratic Senators 16 to sign onto the public option pledge. I guess all those saying "pass the Senate bill now" are holding off on that thought.

Sam Stein reports an interesting development. After 9 Democratic senators banded together for a public option push , Diane Feinstein has become the 10th : Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) became the 10th Senator to sign on to a new effort by Democrats to press Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) to pass a public option for insurance coverage using reconciliation, her office confirmed to the Huffington Post on Wednesday. The California Democrat joins a list of mostly progressive members to offer her late-stage support for the government run plan. In a letter to Reid on Tuesday a quartet of Democrats penned urged Reid to pass the proposal through parliamentary procedures that allow a simple up-or-down vote. And Stein notes, Feinstein hasn't been out in public urging that we get a public option before. This is a startling surprise of pleasant indeed: In putting her name among the signatories Feinstein expands the pool of senators pushing for a public plan beyond the progressiv...

To this yesterday, where Mary "Liedrieu" (yeah, not superbly clever) creates her own Republican like revisionist history in saying that President Obama never supported the public option (at 2:13 mark): Liedrieu has every right to believe the America people have amnesia, and she has every right to pull as many fast ones as she normally does. Thankfully, I also reserve to right to call her Mary Liedrieu because she is nothing short of a compulsive liar here, and it is let another shameful moment in how broken our government is. Her lie isn't even a good one considering that all throughout last year President Obama as candidate Obama said that repeatedly, and has said what he has said about a public option this year before going "this is health insurance reform " crazy. And the lies, coupled with feigned denial, as you will see from David Axelrod taking to Ed Schultz on Morning Joe this morning, is sickening to this one's soul. Axelrod uses the canard point o...

Tom Harkin, way back in July, promising true meaningful reform for the "Affordable Health choices Act", an oxymoron now as it ever was: Tom Harkin in October, said a public option will be in the final bill: Tom Harkin in November, on Rachel Maddow (start at 4:02 mark), ending we are "rounding third and heading home": All throughout the last six months, Tom Harkin has said every day that meaningful health care reform would happen, leading me to believe that he was going to fight for meaningful health reform and only get meaningful health reform for his vote on the final bill. It appears now that is certainly no longer the case : Tom Harkin, tonight: Asked by a reporter if the Medicare buy-in will be pulled out, Harkin said "looks that way," before praising a Democratic health care bill without the two public option compromises. "There's enough good in this bill that even without those two, we gotta move," he said. "All the insurance ref...

First, NYCEVE is at a free health clinic in Kansas City. It is a deep : Here is live coverage of that Health Care Clinic: Visit msnbc.com for breaking news , world news , and news about the economy Jew Lewison has written something that is probably the realest post today that can be made about the entire process as a whole: I tend to doubt there's any chance of this happening, but I'm thinking it would be smart for President Obama to concede that the Senate health care bill has serious flaws, even though on balance he believes it is a step forward on health care reform. The basic reason is simple: it's the truth, and that's something the public appreciates from its leaders Instead, the only thing you'll here though is "This bill isn't perfect, but it's a good start" or something along those lines. Nancy Pelosi softens her stand on the public option , and that will make fierce House progressives not happy. Apparently, Harry Reid sent more that one t...

It would be even funnier if it wasn't insulting : Q To follow, now that the Democratic senators have reached this compromise on the public option, does the President feel that he did everything he could to push specifically for a public option -- MR. GIBBS: Yes. Hahaha, he did everything he could for a public option, especially a strong public option. That's great. Besides the end result of it being gone, the President did everything he could for the PO by not voicing a single word about it on Sunday to the Democrats in that prep rally meeting on Sunday. He did everything for it by Rahm Emmanuel being allowed to talk throughout the summer about a trigger being the solution, and that the White House would accept that at day's end. And he did everything he could for it by never demanding that a strong public option be in the final bill. All of those factors, yet he did everything he could for the public option. Based on that, I guess he also did everything he could to keep Va...

Well, the answer to that question is, we don't know where we stand. Questions about what was actually sent to the CBO last night from many respected sources has been plenty. Howard Dean likes it, but maybe because it was an idea of his while he campaigned for the Presidency in 2004 Dean, who previously chaired the Democratic National Committee, said Medicare expansion "makes a lot of sense because you don't have to reinvent another bureaucracy to do it." Still, it is an idea that, implemented correctly, will not make the insurance companies happy. But a key factor that has been overlooked here, and a sign of real change in the system, is this tidbit : "The deal reached Tuesday puts even more requirements on insurers by requiring that 90 percent of premium dollars be spent on medical benefits, as opposed to administrative costs, officials said." Joe Lie still isn't happy with the possibility of even a trigger public option , but he is generally happy w...

From what the AP is reporting, it appears so : Democratic senators say they have a tentative deal to drop a government-run insurance option from health care legislation. No further details were immediately available. And this quote from Harkin, who guaranteed that a public option was going to be in the bill so many times through the last few months, is concerning to meaningful reform Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa told reporters he didn't like the agreement but would support it to the hilt in an attempt to pass health care legislation. Oh gosh. And the suppose compromise for the watered public option, the Medicaid buy in. Well, it's not looking good . In fact, it made Jay Rockefeller sad. Updated : But then again, it's the Associated Press, know for their hack reporting . Reuters reports that Reid debunks the Associated Press report: Reid said reports the government-run "public option" had been dropped were "not true." Something is being scored by the CBO. It i...