Health Care Reform Now On C-span...

[CHUMPS FROM OXFORD]

Senate Finance Committee in session. Sen. Conrad is a stickler!

Doesn't look good. Dems shooting down almost every amendment put forth by Repubs.

 

[TristanTLC]

and so the pissing contest continues..... the power of our government at work.

 

[CHUMPS FROM OXFORD]

Today/Tonight they'll debate whether to include the public option. Should be quite spirited.

 

[TristanTLC]

When you have strong-willed people with different agendas engaged in the legislative process, it tends to be a messy and disorganized process.

Some of you should see if you can find a DVD of the recent HBO "Adams" series and you will learn that the drafting of the Constitution was just as contentious.

We will get some kind of health care reform but it won't be any more perfect than was our Constitution... which allowed slavery and deemed a black person as being 3/5ths of a white person in determining population, entitlements, etc.

Most of you have this idea of the Constitution as the "perfect" document, but is had many flaws which had to be fixed by amendments.

There was no Bill of Rights... they were added later... and promised only to get the votes of several key states. The Constitution went into effect in 1989 but the Bill of Rights did not take effect until 1791.

Legislation, like collective bargaining or any kind of compromise between competing interests is not a pretty process.

We may now see the process on C-Span but nothing has changed, but the republic has endured and will endure.

Al

I believe you mean 1789 Al. And I agree with you that everything is a "work in progress" and that our founding fathers would have never foreseen a black president!

 

[CHUMPS FROM OXFORD]

The public option will now not be dated today or tonight. There are so may amendments to review, it has been moved to next week.

The 72-hour rule was shot down by the committee. Too bad. It would have been nice to let the public see it before it is voted on.

 

[SportsNut]

The public option will now not be dated today or tonight. There are so may amendments to review, it has been moved to next week.

The 72-hour rule was shot down by the committee. Too bad. It would have been nice to let the public see it before it is voted on.

But why would those arrogant b*stards care if the electorate gets to see the bill before it is voted on...? We are simply pawns in their game of chess, and nothing more.

 

[CHUMPS FROM OXFORD]

True. And by the way...The "public option" now looks like a much better bet than a few weeks ago. There is intense pressure to inclue it and I don't know now if the votes are there to keep it out.

 

[Mac1958]

I still think they'll get the public option in. They have to. Obama, Pelosi, Frank, Reid, Dean and their friends are all on record as wanting us to ultimately end up with Single Payer. The public option will be their foot in the door. The arm-twisting is going on right now.