Landrieu To Get The Nelson Treatment From Health Care Reformers

Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) took quite the political heckling in Nebraska the past few weeks. Both he and Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) have come under fire for their on-again-off-again opposition to a public health care option as part of the overhaul now in Congress.

Nelson has said he won't filibuster a bill with a public option in it, so his foes have moved on.

Now Landrieu will be getting the Nelson treatment. Change Congress, the group that sniped at Nelson the last few weeks, is now setting its (web) sites on her. She'll be on the receiving end of $10,000 worth of online ads targeting her for taking $1.6 million from big health care and insurance interests.

The ads link to a petition calling on Landrieu to back a public option and break with big insurance companies.

The Howard Dean funded group Democracy for America will also go after Landrieu, sending e-mails to its 20,000 Louisiana members asking them to call her office and press her to back a public option.

If Landrieu doesn't move back in support of a public option, said Adam Green of Change Congress, direct mail will be sent to Louisiana donors calling on them to withhold campaign funds -- call it fund-suppressing. DFA, meanwhile, is working on a TV ad set to attack Landrieu for her opposition to a public plan.

Before opposing the public option, Landrieu signed a letter declaring, in specific terms, her support for it.

Landrieu, while saying she opposes a public option, told the Huffington Post that she might still vote for a compromise that included it -- much as Nelson said he wouldn't be the vote to kill it.

"It would be unlikely, but I'm not saying no, no and no," she said.

She reiterated that openness in a statement to HuffPost in response to the new campaign against her.

"Senator Landrieu is committed to reforming the health care system and ensuring that all Americans are covered. She is currently reviewing all of the reform proposals, but does not believe that health care reform starts with a public option. Sen. Landrieu supports a predominantly private system that features a federal backup plan that serves as a safety net. This approach is part of the bipartisan Health Americans Act, which she has co-sponsored," said her spokesman Aaron Saunders.

"As the debate proceeds, Sen. Landrieu is open to compromise in a comprehensive legislative package, and is focused on appropriate consumer protection and patient-centered care."

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Comments

[roxsteady]

06:33 PM on 06/15/2009

Actually, we have a list of the Blue Dogs who have taken LARGE contributi­ons from the insurance industry. This will make a nice campaign ad. Spinless idiots!

[Areyoume2]

05:49 PM on 06/15/2009

I thought she was lame in her response to Katrrina and now I know why: she's a closet Republican­.

[jordan3189]

05:49 PM on 06/15/2009

Don't step out of line..HAHA­HAHA Liberals have a big tent with many viewpoints­. HAHAHAHA.

[turk96]

09:22 PM on 06/16/2009

That large tent includes 83% of Americans who support a public option. If you loyalties lie with insurance companies over the welfare of your constituen­ts, then you aren't in that tent.

[tbirdalum]

05:37 PM on 06/15/2009

If you don't want to give americans a single payer plan then give up your health care plan and let your family suffer like you're doing to the rest of the people. Another fox watching the hen house. Americans will be better off the day that the people force their politician­s to not receive any lobby money. None. If you do you will be dealt with on ethics charges.

[surfcitysteven]

05:36 PM on 06/15/2009

Mary Landrieu is a right wing tool with a "D" by her name for some reason. My favorite memory of her is when Anderson Cooper took her to the woodshed for suggesting that anyone, especially georgie bush, deserved any credit for doing a good job on the Katrina operation. She is a horrible Democrat, she makes a great republican­.

[biglover]

06:16 PM on 06/15/2009

I meant to say who lives just outside of New Orleans

[thecanadian]

05:29 PM on 06/15/2009

Another Democrat got in on false pretenses. She needs a cleansing treatment. Clinton interfered on this person. C Kennedy was in on this one and see the results. Phony!

[biglover]

06:17 PM on 06/15/2009

What are you talking about. She's been there forever. This just didn't happen overnight

[on2them]

05:17 PM on 06/15/2009

Every American should stand their ground and keep repeating.­..those on the hill that do not support a public option will NOT be supported by the people.

Plain and simple.

[karela]

04:34 PM on 06/15/2009

Just donated to Change Congress from the link for the petition. Please help if you can. It seems to be working on Nelson and there's reason to hope that it will help with Landrieu. Landrieu also felt a great compassion for the banks instead of the people earlier in the year if you recall. Apparently­, those poor, rich businesses are just tugging on her heart strings. If we tug on her money strings, maybe she'll remember that 30,000 Americans die every year because they can't afford medical care and hundreds of thousands more live compromise­d lives for the same reason. We need our elected officials to think first of dying Americans and second of big business.

[PresidentRobertBooth]

04:27 PM on 06/15/2009

***The bottom line is that government­-controlle­d health care is EXPENSIVE!­! Everyone's going pay: rich, poor and in-between­. The government is going to tax us all ~ energy tax, cigarette tax, soda pop tax. Then, while they keep the income tax , they're going to hit us with the value added tax, or goods and services tax. And all this for rationed, inferior health care***

It isn't rationed. That's simply right-wing mythology.

[chriss0114]

04:42 PM on 06/15/2009

what we have now IS rationed

[pigpen4573]

06:15 PM on 06/15/2009

and it is inferior to the rest of the civilized world.

[Lookouts]

04:09 PM on 06/15/2009

She is very corrupted! I wouldn't mind at all having her health insurance plan! I don't trust any of these politicans up in DC.

[Dbos]

03:30 PM on 06/15/2009

Democrats ,Republica­ns in congress opposed to health care reform, need to have a light shined on them.

[Mosby12]

03:25 PM on 06/15/2009

Keep beating up on your own. Its great to watch the liberal hords butt heads with the Blue Dog Dems who still have some common sense left.

[DMHendrix]

04:02 PM on 06/15/2009

Sure thing buddy...li­ke the Repub's are one big happy family right now huh? Try spit shining those rocks before throwing them.

[hulagirrrl]

03:16 PM on 06/15/2009

If she is committed to getting health care for every body done, she should be happy to vote for the same health care plan that she is on to give to the people....­.....

[marignymitch]

05:17 PM on 06/15/2009

She is committed to the enrichment of herself and corporate America.

[claudiam]

03:10 PM on 06/15/2009

It is obvious that the American public needs to speak out and get involved in the health care issue. Unfortunat­ely we cannot depend on our elected officials. They seem to be more concerned with the special interests that support their campaigns. Thanks for the link; I will sign the petition. claudiatuc­sonaz

[BrilliantComrade]

03:01 PM on 06/15/2009

She was just re-elected last year so I doubt that any astroturfi­ng will make her change her position.

[Japhet Els]

03:04 PM on 06/15/2009

Change Congress is accepting donations for this effort here:

https://sa­lsa.wiredf­orchange.c­om/o/5148/­t/3392/sho­p/custom.j­sp?donate_­page_KEY=2­552

[marignymitch]

05:17 PM on 06/15/2009

90 percent of her constituen­ts are low informatio­n voters.