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Only the President Can Save the Public Option

Reid, Obama will decide what gets voted on in the Senate

By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff

Posted Sep 30, 2009 10:08 AM CDT

(Newser) – Pretty soon, Barack Obama is going to have to step in and referee the fight over the public option. No matter what the squabbling Senate Finance Committee winds up agreeing on, it’ll be Obama, together with Harry Reid, who decides what the Senate ultimately votes on, and how that bill is combined with the House's plan. One rep tells Politico that Obama will act as a “cleanup hitter” for the public plan.

Much depends on whether Obama insists on getting 60 votes, or will settle for 51. It’s possible he could ask Democrats to vote to break the filibuster, then let them vote as they please on the actual bill. The Finance Committee “was the toughest terrain for us,” says Chuck Schumer. “It gets easier on the Senate floor, and it gets easier still in conference.”

President Barack Obama gestures while delivering remarks during a health care rally, Thursday, Sept. 17, 2009, at the University of Maryland in College Park, Md.
President Barack Obama gestures while delivering remarks during a health care rally, Thursday, Sept. 17, 2009, at the University of Maryland in College Park, Md.   (AP Photo/Rob Carr)
Max Baucus, right, talks with Kent Conrad, left, as Jay Rockefeller sits in the middle during the markup of health care legislation, Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2009, on Capitol Hill.
Max Baucus, right, talks with Kent Conrad, left, as Jay Rockefeller sits in the middle during the markup of health care legislation, Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2009, on Capitol Hill.   (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
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COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 18 comments
SilenceDogood
Oct 1, 2009 12:34 PM CDT
very well said.
SilenceDogood
Oct 1, 2009 12:33 PM CDT
did you read shonangreg comment you moron, if Obama did as he talked, tort reform, no leaning to Pharma, this would be possible.
SilenceDogood
Oct 1, 2009 12:31 PM CDT
What is the cost of this plan to the American public annually, not the Dems numbers but the OMB's number, and does this cost include supposed savings from Medicare or another hypothetical savings?

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