All the more reason to bring as strong a bill as possible to the floor.

I'll believe it when I see it. Given how likely it is that they'll screw it up and how ineffective Ried and Co. have been in the past, the GOP have nothing to worry about...

The number one talking point that should be used by Democrats:

Opponents of health reform keep telling us that human life is sacred. But apparently, for them human life isn't as sacred as corporate profits.

It would be wonderful if Reid and the rest finally grew a pair and simply put together the best bill possible and brought it to the floor.

Unfortunately, history tells me that they will produce an extremely watered-down bill in the blind and foolish hope that somehow, some way, they'll get the GOP to support it--or at least prevent the GOP from having a hissy fit over teh socialism.

Domage - Looks like they've given up on the GOP now and are working on getting something to keep dems from supporting a filibuster, plus, of course, a lot of grease from insurance companies.

Thing is, though, a few Democratic senators who may have threatened to support a filibuster a few weeks ago are now realizing what kind of backlash they'd get from their usually very tepid party.

Dems need to get their house in order. It's one thing to be a party of many voices; its quite another to support a GOP filibuster and derail key party legislation when you have sixty-theoretical votes. If the GOP is going to be a unified block of insanity in an environment where a filibuster is SOP, the Democrats are going to have to close ranks like they never have before.

"...they no longer expect moderate Democrats to stand in the way of passage..."
I believe the correct label is "conservative sold-their-soul-to-corporate-interests Democrats".

"All the more reason to bring as strong a bill as possible to the floor." So many know this and agree...but do the people who have the POWER to make that happen? It is time for those of us who want to continue to BELIEVE to get a sign...

Slow things Down? They want to slow things down? They've been debating this for 10 months. That's longer than it takes to have a baby! (Hopefully the mother has health insurance or that baby would come into the world bringing thousands of dollars in debt with it)

How about this for Republicans:
Lead, follow or get out of the way. Elections have consequenses.
We tried your way for 8 years, now we have to clean up your mess. Grab a mop!

If the plan doesn't have a public option, the Dems should filibuster their own bill.

The precedent here is critical. If the Dems force through a strong bill by breaking up an attempted fillibuster, the Obama presidency, and the Pelosi speakership will become an emphatic, 360 degree, reverse-windmill, slam-dunk.

President Obama will have the juice to push through his progressive policy agenda in the same way Bush rammed through his pro-military industrial complex, pro-corporate, anti-little guy, deregulatory, tax-cut for the rich agenda.

The country and the world will know peace and prosperity for all of its citizens, not just the rich. The Republicans will be doomed to oblivion until they can come up with a platform the contains something besides bullshit slogans and fear/hate mongering.

Then, I woke up.

I know some folks yawn over the health care debate, but it serves as a window into some fundamental flaws in how our country is
governed.

The corporate tentacles are everywhere, and it will not be easy to pass any kind of decent health care bill. Any legislation is tainted now by special interests.

We are at a defining moment in our history. We cannot just serve the needs of the rich and influential. All Americans deserve some semblance of basic, catastrophic healthcare.

It's as if poverty is a choice, that losing a good job and health benefits is just too bad.

This fight is not about socialism, it's about fundamentally addressing some serious flaws in our country's governance (or lack thereof!).

We hear the shrill talk radio voices, sneering at socialized nazifascioneoliberal-send our country into hell crap.

What we don't hear are the sobs of a new mother whose child has TAPVR and can't receive the life-saving surgery because her health insurance expired when she moved to another state.

Total Anomalous Pulmonary Venus Return, or no lung heart connection. Such a condition can cause death within days, if not hours after birth.

How can we decide who lives and dies? Don't we owe it to our children to give them all the best chance?

While the folks in DC pontificate and obstruct real reform, countless children continue to die, needlessly.

Get it right. Give us all a better future. Do not water down the public option. Listen to the cries of those weeping mothers, as their newborn child dies in their arms, not the clink of martini glasses at some lobbyland event.

Screw the GOPers. Simply get a bill passed and then use the reconciliation process to create a final bill that matches the REAL healthcare bill produced by the House.

The 60 votes assumes Conrad and Lieberman will vote for cloture. They are NOT committed to doing that at all.

Conrad is at least dependent on Democratic voters in his state to win. Lieberman won last time with only 1/3 of conservative Democrats and a majority of REPUBLICAN votes.

I doubt whether Lieberman can be kept on the ranch. It's looking more and more like HE's going to be the fly in the ointment.

Meanwhile Obama is meeting with Conrad and the obscene courting of Olympia Snowe continues.

Notice that NO Republican is criticizing her. That's because they KNOW her role is as a MOLE to derail significant health-care reform, by watering down the bill!

They should just tell her to go to hell and the President should get up and demand an up or down vote in the Senate. Any Democrat who does NOT support a cloture vote should be kicked out of the party and receive NO help of any sort from the party.

Cugel is right on. Any Democratic Senature who does not vote for cloture should be kicked out of the party or at least have a primary opponent waiting for them come 2010.

Judging by the behavior of the Republacans, switching parties or going independent a la LIEberman is not an option. LIEberman's little independent party has gotten out of his control.

None of the conservadems is bat shit conservative enought to win a Republican primary dominated by Tea baggers. The club for growth guys will eat DINOs alive.