Senate Democrats Told to Keep Quiet on Health Bill Concerns - Roll Call

Senate Democrats Told to Keep Quiet on Health Bill Concerns - Roll Call: "Senate Democratic leaders cautioned their rank and file Thursday to keep their powder dry on a variety of issues related to their health care reform drive as House and Senate negotiators continue to talk about how to ensure final passage of an overhaul this spring.

Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.) said Senators attending a caucus meeting on health care were asked to refrain from making judgments on whether to add student loan provisions to a reconciliation package as well as on the overall bill, in order to avoid disrupting the high-pressure talks between the House and Senate.

“If the big question is what will the House do, why would we go out and start having people draw lines in the sand?” Casey asked. “That was one of the points [leadership made]. The main thing that leadership wanted to do is just give us a sense of the state of play, where things are, knowing that a lot of it would be unresolved but it’s better than just ... coming to everyone saying, ‘Everything’s cooked. It’s done. The cake is here; everybody eat it.’”"