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Right now, the Senate is voting on a procedural motion to table debate on the Defense bill - which Republicans are hoping to filibuster, in an effort to stall debate on the upcoming Health bill. Because Lieberman didn't show up today, the Republicans just need to stick together on this to prevail - without defections from Collins or Snowe.

Politico reports: Sen. Mary Landrieu got the "Louisiana Purchase." Sen. Ben Nelson got the federal government to pick up most his state's future Medicaid tab -- forever. As part of the deal to win Nelson's support, the federal government will fund Nebraska's new Medicaid recipients. It's a provision worth about $45 million over the first decade. Also from John McCormack... Nelson Agrees to Abortion Funding in at Least 13 States? Harry Reid has released the manager's amendment that Ben Nelson has reportedly agreed to vote for, meaning that the Senate bill has 60 votes. The abortion language includes the phony...

SOLD: Sen. Nelson’s Bribeby Publius We’ll be blunt. The ‘health care reform’ legislation under consideration in the Senate is the most corrupt piece of legislation in our nation’s history. Yes, we understand that is a strong statement and there have been other abominations throughout our nation’s life. But never before did corrupt legislation threaten to radically and forever change the live’s of every American.Exhibit A is the outright bribe extracted by Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Corn Huckster State) from Sen. Harry Reid. As a result of Nelson’s performance in his role of Hamlet in the health care deliberations, we will...

Senator Ben Nelson, a pivotal figure in the health care debate, said Friday that he and Senate Democratic leaders had made “real progress” in negotiations on abortion that could clear the way for a Senate vote on sweeping health legislation. But he said there was no final agreement. “This is one of those situations where it’s probably best for everybody to sleep on it,” Mr. Nelson, a Nebraska Democrat, said as he left the office of the Senate majority leader, Harry Reid, Democrat of Nevada, at 9:40 p.m. “We are still talking and will have some more conversations tomorrow,” Mr....

Only a day after Senate Democrats voted to move into a historic debate on overhauling the nation's healthcare system, key centrists made it clearthat the party is still a long way from delivering on its promise to provide near-universal insurance coverage and contain medical costs. Faced with the prospect of Republican filibusters, Democratic leaders must deliver the same kind of total unity they managed to achieve in Saturday's vote to begin debate: Every Democratic senator, plus two independents who caucus with them, supported the key procedural motion. But several of those senators spoke out today to say that they will...

December 19, 2009 'Betrayed' [Kathryn Jean Lopez] Nebraska Right to Life on Nelson's choice: Lincoln——Nebraska Right to Life and pro-life Nebraskans have been betrayed by Senator Ben Nelson's agreement with Democratic leadership to become their 60th vote for cloture on the Senate healthcare bill, propped up by abortion compromise language which in no way resembles the Stupak amendment in the House bill or the Nelson/Hatch amendment attempt in the Senate. Both of those amendments had protections against taxpayer funding of abortion. "Senator Nelson had a chance to ensure that the longstanding principle of the Hyde Amendment against federal funding of...

Abortion Deal In Sight In Senate Healthcare Negotiations Barbara Boxer is 'optimistic' about reaching 60 votes after all-day talks with Majority Leader Harry Reid and Democratic holdout Ben Nelson. The GOP redoubles threats to slow business to a crawl. By Janet Hook and Noam N. Levey December 18, 2009 Reporting from Washington - With a critical vote looming this weekend, Senate Democratic negotiators closed in Friday night on a deal to persuade a lone Democratic holdout -- Nebraska Sen. Ben Nelson -- to back the party's healthcare bill after a marathon day of negotiations. That would give Democrats the 60...

At Elective Decisions, we're just getting started on Senator Ben Nelson. But we want to know what the American people think. Feel free to vote as often as you like. Follow the link. We will also be happy to provide you with a link to the poll for email purposes. Have fun and vote with passion!

Ben Nelson says that he knows who started the rumor, and that it may be embarrassing if/when that info comes out. Says, no one threatened him or offered him ANYTHING for his vote. He's says the abortion issue is not the only thing stopping him from supporting the Senate bill.

The state of Nebraska is going to do well under the compromise struck by Democratic Sen. Ben Nelson to ensure his support for health overhaul legislation. In the final deal-making, the senator won a commitment that the federal government would pick up Nebraska’s share of the bill’s proposed expansion of Medicaid, the federal-state health program for the poor. ... Mr. Nelson had feared the bill’s proposed expansion of Medicaid would cause financial turmoil for his home state. After the changes, he suggested Saturday that his concerns were addressed. “I’m comfortable it’s taken care of,” he said. ... Five other states,...

Ben Nelson’s “Cornhusker Kickback,” as the GOP is calling it, got all the attention Saturday, but other senators lined up for deals as Majority Leader Harry Reid corralled the last few votes for a health reform package. Nelson’s might be the most blatant – a deal carved out for a single state, a permanent exemption from the state share of Medicaid expansion for Nebraska, meaning federal taxpayers have to kick in an additional $45 million in the first decade. But another Democratic holdout, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), took credit for $10 billion in new funding for community health centers, while...