Posted on 10/27/2009 1:25:45 PM PDT by Mount Athos
The House Dem leadership has conducted its preliminary whip count and has tallied up less than 200 likely Yes votes in support of a health care reform bill with a robust public option, well short of the 218 needed for passage, according to an internal whip count document I’ve obtained.
The document — compiled by the office of House leader James Clyburn — was distributed privately at a meeting between Clyburn and House progressives today where the fate of the public option was the subject of some contentious debate, with liberals demanding that House leaders push harder to win over votes.
Clyburn spokesperson Kristie Greco would only say: “We currently do not have the votes for a robust public option.”
Health care reformers are eagerly awaiting the House vote count numbers on the robust public option — which would reimburse providers at Medicare rates plus five percent — because a House bill with a strong public option would increase the of leverage House leaders in upcoming conference negotiations with Senate leaders over the final bill. The exact count has been hotly debated in political circles since last week.
Clyburn told the assembled members at the meeting that the leadership does not have the votes to pass the robust public option, according to a House progressive familiar with the meeting. That sparked aggressive pushback from liberals, who argued that leadership — and the White House — should be working harder to win over the remaining votes the bill needs.
The document shows that 47 House Dems are committed No votes, and eight are Leaning No, for a total of 56. That means of 256 House Dems, only 200 remain, and a dozen of those are listed as undecided. The bill needs 218 votes for passage.
House progressives argue that the document should light a fire under Dem leaders. One House progressive tells me he’s convinced that most of the undecideds, and a number of the No votes, can be won over with the right mix of pressure and incentives — which only the House leadership and the White House can provide.
“Only leadership and the White House can get this done,” this progressive says. The time would appear to be now…
Do you suppose Nancy Pelosi is in full meltdown mode about now?
Ace of Spades blog speculates:
“I’ve been thinking that Democrats have decided this is doomed, so now they are playing exclusively to their base, pushing as “robust” a “public option” as possible. They maybe want to campaign on “We swung for the fences but struck out.”
She will blame it on the GOP and Bush...In reality it’s the Dems decision.
She’s in trouble if she doesn’t deliver this monstrosity soon—before the Nov elections!!! I think some worried DEMS are stalling to see election results before they put their neck on the line. If the DEMS lose badly—chances are in 12 months they will too.
Exactly...they are waiting to see what happens in Nov. If McD blows away Deeds in a state won by Obama by 7 pts, and Christie wins or comes within a point in Blue State, Liberal La-La New Jersey, the moderate dems may balk completely.
This thing is far from the done-deal the MSM is pushing.
Get active: Call you Senators (especially the dems) and tell them how you feel. The message: START OVER COMPLETELY.
“Robust public option” =
inevitable government controlled single payer
And there is absolutely no reason, in the minds of the leftists, to do “reform” without inevitable single payer.
Some of these “NO” votes might actually be listening to the people in theie districts.
We need to say it loud and as often as possible: HEALTH CARE IS NOT A RIGHT. It is a SERVICE that you get if you can PAY for it or if somebody freely gives it to you. Getting health care under any other circumstance, is STEALING.
The only thing I want ‘robust’ is my coffee.
“We need to say it loud and as often as possible: HEALTH CARE IS NOT A RIGHT.”
And, just because something is a right doesn’t mean that everyone else is obligated to pay for it. I asked my liberal neighbor the other day, “I have a right to keep and bear arms, why aren’t you paying for my guns?”
The Democrats are eating their young. This is beyond my wildest imagination. Reid is finished. Communist option is dead.
I been on Bart Gordon’s(D)(TN) case for months. I wonder where he stands.
If this is about choice, competition, and keeping providers honest, why force us to buy from a single povider... who we know we can’t trust?
just damn
Nazi and Dingy - what a gruesome pair, and just in time for Halloween, too.
“The Democrats are eating their young. This is beyond my wildest imagination.”
Let’s hope so londonfog. I always cringe at our side’s ability to shoot their own feet off (The New York race, for example).
My side in New York is the independent!!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.