The current Senate health care bill has a provision (Section 1332. Waiver for State Innovation (PDF)) that will allow states to opt out of the current reform structure if they can provide the same level of care for the same amount or cheaper with a different plan. Given how poorly designed the Senate bill is, [...]

As much as I hate everything Bart Stupak (D-MI) is trying to do as it relates to abortion and health care reform–on policy, personal, and moral grounds–there is one, very small silver lining to his actions. He has made perfectly clear the difference between politely asking for something and fighting for something in Congress. Bart [...]

The Obama administration, in its push to get the House to vote for the Senate’s health care reform bill unchanged, is pointing to the serious issue of lack of competition in the health insurance market as a powerful reason for reform. Obama’s health care proposal, however, no longer does much to actually solve the problem. [...]

Totally aside from any merits of the ethics charges against Massa, recall that Norm Dicks, Jack Murtha, Jim Moran and Roland Burris all had their ethics charges dismissed in December. And then quelle suprise! Roland Burris, who had been threatening to withhold his cloture vote over the Senate bill without a public option, instantly became a convert. The rest were all safely in the “yes” column in the House. You could pretty much eat live babies on TV and get your ethics complaint dismissed if you were ready to play ball and vote for PhRMAcare.

Lynn Woolsey writes today in Roll Call: “The day after the health care legislation is passed, I will introduce a bill calling for the public option.”

Anyone who would write those words should not be the head of the Progressive Caucus.

Bart Stupak’s (D-MI) group of “pro-life” House members–and their demands about abortion language–has once again emerged as the major focus of the health care debate. This should not surprise anyone. Stupak originally made his concerns known back in July. The Stupak amendment became the big fight back in November, when the House first passed their [...]

Sen. Michael Bennet (D-CO) has a new article in the Huffington Post calling for reforming the filibuster. I’m always glad to hear that more senators realize the Senate rules are broken and need to be changed. At the same time, I’m a little disappointed that Bennet does not just call for restoring the Senate to [...]

Woolsey has become a major impediment to effective action on the issues she cares about the most. The failure of progressives in the House to achieve meaningful concessions on single payer, or the public option, or prescription drug price negotiation, or any other progressive principle is largely due to her ineffectiveness. She should step down as the co-chair of the Progressive Caucus.

Anthony Weiner (D-NY) has a new op-ed in Politico calling for giving the public option a vote in the Senate. While he does not address the process dynamics, he leaves the impression that he is calling for an up-or-down vote on the public option as an amendment to the reconciliation bill or as a stand-alone [...]

Watch CBS News Videos OnlineToday on CBS’s “Washington Unplugged,” Rep. Bart Stupak (D-MI) and Anthony Weiner (D-NY) threw some very cold water on the current plan of having the House pass the Senate bill unchanged, followed by the passing of some “fixes” through reconciliation. Stupak said, “I don’t think they have ten votes for the [...]