If they do support a Republican filibuster, they MUST be expelled from the Democratic caucus. Otherwise that caucus may as well not even exist. It would be addition by subtraction, to use the sportswriter cliche.

Harry Reid will offer them a bill that's a compromise of a compromise.

By the time the Democratic leadership is through offering concessions, I'm starting to doubt that there will be enough reform left in the "reform" bill to make it worth voting for.

It looks like the Democratic "moderates" are going to hold out for a toothless bill that does nothing but transfer taxpayer money to the insurance corporations.

Don't forget Evan Bayh.

Oh, but SteveT, won't Obama look resplendent in his flight suit when he signs it?

Like I said a few days ago, I've watched for too many years as the Democrats snatched defeat from the jaws of victory to have confidence in the Democratic "leadership".

These moderate Democrats are waiting for concessions to minimize any negative impacts on their states, and to get support for other local priorities. They will walk away with an armful of goodies and reluctantly vote yes.

Steve,

It's good to see you use terms like "conservative" and even "center-right" to describe these legislators. Too often they are referred to as "moderate" Democrats, which makes their positions to appear more reasonable than they really are.

Why the F.... are these people called moderates???!!!!

the magic 8-ball sez:

"None of those scuzzballs has the guts to vote agst cloture...unless medical insurance guns are literally pointed at their heads."

I just sent all three a polite email pointing out that America deserves and up or down vote and requesting they allow one.

I urge everyone to do the same.

If there is no Health Care Reform it is because the politicians only interest is money. Politicians are not known for morality and this will prove that truism yet again.

What happened to passage by budget reconciliation?

By the way, it's time to eliminate the filibuster entirely. The rule is not in the Constitution, was originally created by an accident of parlimentary procedure, was rarely used for the first two centuries of the Senate, and can be eliminated by a simply majority vote when each session begins.

It offers no benefit to Democrats, who use it rarely even now and are too spineless to use it on any issue getting nation media attention. It is basically just a benefit to Republicans.

The same should go for the "holds" and the "blue slips" and the other silly Senate rules. The Republicans routines ignore these rules but Reid honors them as thought they are embedded in the Constitution (unless it's a Democrat who is putting a hold on the FISA bill -- then he ignores the hold).

Another benefit to dumping those rules. Today a number of Republicans get elected from Democratic areas because the local "independents" don't agree with the Republican platform but think their Republican is somehow different. Those independents (and, yes, I'm especially thinking of you, Maine) tell themselves that the Democrats can block any really vile legislation via filibuster. Well, get that out of the system. Make the independents realize that voting for their local "nice" Republican is still a vote for the next Gingrich or Lott.

Somebody oughta start lining up some money for the "support of health care reform" that everybody knows will be used to support REPLACEMENT of any Democratic Senator who votes against cloture.

And Obama, the DSCC, and those Senators with the oversized war-chests they use mostly to buy favors by funding their colleagues (e.g., Hillary) should get behind it. The message ought to be loud, clear, and unified: vote against cloture, and the tiny and uncertain gain in popularity among your constituents will be overwhelmed by the massive and uncertain hostility of the party, its leaders, its funders, and its voters.

Follow the money -- these whores will do the corporation's bidding.

The rumor on Ed Schultz is that Reid's public option with opt-out will provide for allowing the opt-out only after the public option is available for one year in a state. Hey, I may have started this idea, and we don't need to stack the deck like that. Let them opt out (by referendum, preferably) before it's gone into effect. (They still won't actually have the guts to do it even in the reddest states.) We don't need to create a constituency in advance, and we don't need the grief of a seemingly unfair process.

New wrinkle, using trigger concept to end an inappropriate opt-out rather than as a condition to making the PO available in a state in the first place: let a state opt out, but make it so the competitive-conditions trigger could be used to end the opt-out if competition stays weak and costs too high in such a state.

Will they really kill the entire effort?

And become heroes of the Fox News nation, like Joe Lieberman? I wouldn't bet the rent money that the answer is no.

How I would love to read a headline like:

REID HEDGES ON LINCOLN'S FUTURE

I will not blame Bayh, Lincoln, Nelson, Landrieu, Lieberman or their crowd if this fails on filibuster nearly so much as I will blame Harry Reid. If he and the other Democratic Senate supporters of decades overdue health reform are unable to come up with sufficient punishment (stripping of seniority, kicked from the caucus, removal from chairmanships) to get these recalcitrants in line, then they don't deserve to be in positions of authority. Failure is not an option this time. My children should not have to face possible bankruptcies and loss of health care because a few corrupt politicians have sold their souls (if they ever had them) to the insurance cartel. We have been robbed of justice long enough.

I fully expect Blanche Lincoln (D-Wal Mart) and Ben Nelson (D - Depends) to side with industry and obstruct the bill from coming to a vote.

Related, it was disappointing to see the discussion on This Week refer to 60 votes as a constitutional requirement. Steve, I hope you can drill in on that embarrassing exchange.

This is not even public policy or a process. This is just a lot of drama for the sake of drama. Just do it already. Senate Democrats and those who caucus with them will feel the fury, and we will not forget.

If they don't vote for cloture, there will be blood on their hands and they will go down in history as traitors to their own party, to the wishes of the majority and the the thousands who will suffer and die needlessly.

Of course Reid and Obama won't look so great either. This does make them look weak, not to have it locked up by now, to have these little quislings yakking away about how they can't quite decide to be Democrats or Republicans, can't quite decide to save people's lives or not....

A bit of historical perspective, while we talk of 'watering down' health care reform:

When FDR passed Social Security for anyone who reached the age of 65, the life expectancy in America was 65. . .

Oh, but SteveT, won't Obama look resplendent in his flight suit when he signs it?

I fear you've jumped the shark with that one.

Sen. Lincoln is up for re-election in 2010. If she succeeds in killing health care reform by supporting the Republican filibuster, how is she going to survive the electoral tidal wave next year with a fired-up Republican base, a demoralized liberal base seething with rage over her betrayal, and no Obama on the ballot?

"Sen. Lincoln is up for re-election in 2010. If she succeeds in killing health care reform by supporting the Republican filibuster, how is she going to survive the electoral tidal wave next year with a fired-up Republican base, a demoralized liberal base seething with rage over her betrayal, and no Obama on the ballot?" - Moonlight

That's Easy. She will run as a Republican (a.k.a. showing her true colors). The question is whether we can field an opponent who will eviscerate her on the basis of that vote.

I fear you've jumped the shark with that one. -shortstop

Meh, just being my usual, overly dramatic self.

It's so much more 'AP headline' than saying, "I fear that Obama will have no choice but to sign a bad or weak bill because of the politics involved and it will amount to nothing more than a high profile photo op."

Question for Senators Lincoln and Nelson:

Of the 45,000 Americans estimated to have died last year because they didn't have health insurance, how many do you think lived in AK or NE?

Needs to be asked regularly until answered.