Nelson Plans To Tell Obama To Slow Down On Health Care Reform

Sen. Ben Nelson hopes to offer President Obama some friendly health care advice when he and Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) meet at the White House today: Slow down.

"Let's not set an arbitrary deadline and say, 'We've got to have something done by the August recess,' (even) if it can't be done, so we don't end up with a self-fulfilling failure," said Nelson on Thursday after speaking on the Senate floor and before heading over to the White House.

Nelson, a conservative Democrat from Nebraska, said that it would be better to say that just getting something "...out of the Finance Committee onto the floor is progress. So let's identify progress and keep moving in the right direction."

Nelson wasn't certain, however, that he'd be asked for his opinion.

"He's called the meeting. I'm going to find out what he has to say," he said. "I don't know what I'm going to hear from him. I guess I would hope that he would ask my opinion on how to proceed and give me his ideas. We've had that kind of exchange before, as we did most recently on the stimulus package. So it's a sharing of thoughts back and forth. That's what it's about."

Nelson played a central role during the stimulus debate. He helped pull three GOP votes over to the Democratic side, but cut tens of billions of dollars in aid to states in the process. Now state governments are cutting services and laying off workers, which undermines the purpose of the stimulus package.

Obama has called for a full Senate vote on health care reform before Congress breaks for the August recess.

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Comments

[mahkee]

12:37 PM on 07/18/2009

You get as much money as Ben Nelson (or 'Nellie' as W used to call him) has from the entrenched industries profiting from our current health care system and of course he's going to want to slow (and eventually to kill) the process of reform. Baucus, Nelson, Lieberman ... they must make the choice to help or they must be shamed into helping by we at the grass roots level publicizing the money they've taken from these industries and how they themselves benefit politically by being impediments rather than facilitators. We're sure missing Ted Kennedy right now.

[expired]

01:16 PM on 07/17/2009

Having a majority in both houses and the white house is useless, at best.

[flossophy]

03:36 PM on 07/17/2009

It's useless if your policy ideas are no good... people are smarter today than they were in 1933. You can't just ram that junk through anymore.

[jonjon66]

12:49 PM on 07/17/2009

I knew these so-called "centrist" all of which are white would join forces to try and ruin the proposed health care bill.

[wjm457]

10:35 AM on 07/17/2009

Yes. Let's not rush into something that we've been discussing for 60 years. The fact that we've been talking about this for a long time, and we're seen as "rushing it" underlies the fact thar our congress is impotent. If you can't look at the various ways countries around the world deal with this problem and not come up with a solution, I suggest you resign and allow someone with guts and brains to get in there and get it done. America- A great place to live, not a great place to get sick.

[Bush-Rolled]

03:17 PM on 07/17/2009

Thank you for saying it so well!

[Blufftonian]

10:28 AM on 07/17/2009

But no, I've got to get a health care bill passed this year!

IT'S MY DENSITY!

[hollywoodjaxx]

09:25 AM on 07/17/2009

Why don't we just cut off the health care plans in congress until they get something done in the way so single payer and then include them in the plan they come up with? While we're at it we could roll their retirement funds into social security as well. They don't think of themselves as the ruling class do they? HA!

[PaxEterna]

07:51 AM on 07/17/2009

Fast or slow, it doesn't matter.

As long as SINGLE PAYER is off the table, there is nothing of benefit in the process for the American people.

Demand these people give up their benefits, or give us the same.

[elcojonu]

08:13 AM on 07/17/2009

Must walk before we can run, think of the cast of characters we're dealing with in this country.
Let's get a Public Option before we move on to the ultimar goal of UHC.

[elcojonu]

07:16 AM on 07/17/2009

SLOW DOWN !
Mister, it should have been done back in the 30's with Social Security, Unemployment Insurance, etc. !
Go back to Nebraska and look after the Anguses, concentrate on what you do best ( raising great cattle ).

[nwmother]

06:40 AM on 07/17/2009

If the dems can't find a way to reform the for-profit health care industry with control of the congress and executive branch they deserve to be replaced by people who have the balls to stand up to the lobbyists and insurance mega-corporations. I will support dem primary challengers in 2010 if the incumbents are unable to pull their heads out of the trough.
Cancel ALL federal workers health care benefits (I'm tired of subsidizing their policies while I can't afford my own), give them back their premiums, and force them to find private insurance on the open market. See how long it takes to reform the system then...

[EGB]

09:08 AM on 07/17/2009

This is a good post.
No one will pull his/her head out of the trough. The biggest lesson for me in the recent major-issue debates has been seeing the extent to which the Senate is owned by business interests. It is grim. The entire Senate is a trough, and no one will stop feeding as long as the slop is flowing. The electorate counts for nothing compared to the campaign funders of industry.
I wish someone would organize a march on the Senate to let its members know whom they ought to represent.

[Terypat]

06:15 AM on 07/17/2009

The problem with senetors like Nelson is they like their job, but they really don't want to have to work at it. Let's face it, for the past eight years stuff was put in front of them by Bush's White House and they were told to vote. End of story.

Now they have a President that wants input from the congress and senate, and all we have heard for seven months is "slow down!" or "it can't be done!"!

I really do hope that the complainers like Nelson are voted out of office. The sooner the better.

[nwmother]

06:41 AM on 07/17/2009

amen

[AirViceMarshalPark]

05:12 AM on 07/17/2009

Senator, if you don't support Obama's health care plan, we are going to publish pictures of you without your toupee.

[RJII]

02:18 AM on 07/17/2009

more and more out of work people are losing their health insurance every day. So, get to work. You've had decades to fix this mess.

[JoeySoCal]

12:35 AM on 07/17/2009

Slow?!?!? It's 2009 A-hole. You already missed the deadline by a multitude of decades. Get it done- NOW! Go- you heard me. Git. Go earn your sweet dam government healthcare plan, Senator, sir.

What kind of a role model are you setting for you grandchildren? Why do today what you can put off till tomorrow? You sorry slacker. Very inspiring, very inspirational. You should start your own club, The Procrastinators. The Stallers. The Feet Draggers. The Moles.

[Kundah]

11:37 PM on 07/16/2009

I got tired of all the corruption and the weakness of the Democrats so I became an Independent.
So I guess no ones cares about passing a health care plan that actually works and is economically sound. The people who don’t have coverage need to wait until a very good program is put in place. If this plan is anything like the bailout I feel the country will be in deep trouble.

[Kundah]

11:27 PM on 07/16/2009

I agree that President Obama and the Democrats should wait! The government has not done a good job with the two bailouts and I don’t trust them with putting in place any large new programs with out looking at the cost and any other issues. The president has time, let’s wait until we see some signs that the economy is turning around. Stop being so impatient its best to get this right the first time. Common sense people.

[PR one]

11:32 AM on 07/17/2009

It's common sense to get it right the first time if there is a first time. But by the way it has been delayed by the Health Care Industrial Complex, it would be my Great,Great grandchildren's that will overhaul health care.