Democrats Flailing On Health Care Reform « NEOAVATARA

Democrats Flailing On Health Care Reform « NEOAVATARA: "Every time I get worried that the Democrats are about to seal the deal on health care reform, the conservatives are saved from the fire by the most unlikely of bedfellows: the extreme left.

Has there ever been a more inept attempt of a supermajority in American history? After Max Baucus created a bill that actually, by CBO estimates, would cut the deficit, I thought the debate was virtually over. And yet, extreme liberalism averted the passage of the bill, by demanding that Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid reinsert the public option into the final bill.

The public option, by CBO estimates, would add hundreds of billions of dollars to the deficit. In the latest bill passed by the House, the cost is at least $1.2 trillion, with some CBO estimates (depending on future variables) exceeding $2 trillion. And that is before they pay for the $250 billion doctor fix for Medicare that will pass sooner or later.

And then, to compound matters, 40 Democrats in the House suddenly realized that they are actually pro-life. Led by Michigan Rep. Bart Stupak, they forced Nancy Pelosi to add an amendment to the House bill that is the harshest restriction on abortion in this country ever. Though it can be argued that it basically reasserts the Hyde Amendment preventing tax dollars from being spent on abortion (Politifact in fact argues exactly that), most liberals feel that it is an over burdensome new regulation on abortion rights. That has gotten the National Organization of Woman, Pelosi and even the President basically promising to remove the Stupak amendment.

Ultimately, where does all this lead? Chaos. The Senate was never going to approve the public option. There may not even be enough votes for the public option for a simple majority, let alone the 60 votes needed to override a filibuster. At least 4 Democratic Senators, as well as Independent Joe Lieberman, have signaled that the public option is a nonstarter."