Small Group Now Leads Closed-Door Health Care Reform Negotiations

Washington Post:

Three senators are working on the bill behind closed doors.

Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) sits at the head of a wooden table at his office as he and Sens. Christopher J. Dodd (D-Conn.) and Max Baucus (D-Mont.) work to merge two competing versions of health-care legislation into one bill. The three men will be joined by top aides as well as by members of President Obama's health-care team, led by White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel. The sessions started on Wednesday and could be completed this week.

Read the whole story: Washington Post

Comments

[christopherflynn]

and the american people are praying that the "top dog" will make an intelligent decision for the public option....hardly likely, with people like that on the staff...

[charleshugh]

I have come to believe that single-payer is the best option.

As it stands, healthcare reform has become a convoluted gaggle of half-measures that more accurately reflect democrat interest groups than genuine reform.

I would like to see Republicans make the following offer to the Democrats.

Republicans agree to support single-payer. Democrats agree to support comprehensive tort reform.

Once we have a single-payer system, we could focus our attention on reducing the cost of healthcare.

[LITU]

Fair argument, though regardless I support single payer without condition. Thanks for your thoughts.

[Ozarks]

The three stooges live again!!

[ImissBush]

politboro lives

[LITU]

Personally, I'm supporting HR 676, the single-payer (option). And I don't give a rat's whether the health insurance industry survives or fails.

Why would ANY employer prefer private coverage for its employees? What long-term stability and benefits do they perceive can come out of unrestrained costs and coverage discrepancies? A continuation of the capitalist model? The h_ll you say.

[MartinEden22]

Prepare for disappoinment.

[LITU]

No doubt that's true, but it doesn't change a thing.

As a former employer who couldn't afford to cover my employees, I can say unequivocally that a little help would have gone a long way. If the object of the exercise is to give your employees the best available, the private/single payer argument becomes pointless. It's a no-brainer.

[ilse]

Our president has to stand up to those that deny us a robust public option. This is what he wants us to have and this is what "We, the people" want. Anyone who says in order to get blue dog democrats on board, we may have to sacrifice a robust public option hopefully will be removed next election. It is well know fact that those blue dogs who oppose a public option have been bribed by the health insurance industry and to cater to want they want will be the wrong thing to do. Cater to your constituents and not the prostitute blue dogs who are bought and paid for by the health insurance industry. Catering to prostitute blue dogs just to get them on board instead of catering to your constituents needs is immoral and inhumane.

[MyTake]

Wasn't their a campaign logo of TRANSPARENCY YOU CAN BELIEVE IN! Where did that C-Span promise disappear too? And Emanuel declares that there has been enough TRANSPARENCY in the public forum, what a guy!

Three wise men that are bought and paid for by the TRANSNATIONAL CORPORATIONS.

Why didn't the government just give $700 Billion to the Pharmaceutical and Healthcare companies and just make them go away like they did with Goldman Sachs.

Ah, Mr. Prez, the Wall Street bail-out was STRIKE ONE, no public option in healthcare will be STRIKE TWO and failure to regulate the banking system will be your STRIKE THREE and the baseball season is almost over.

[textynn]

Go ahead, Rahm Emanuel, make our day. If you don't demand a Public Option that is geared to start Single Payer, you will be left behind in the dirt. The entire Democratic Party's future depends on getting a robust PO with Single Payer on the horizon. Don't believe me. Try us. We're done with being led by false promises and our leaders allowing us to be extorted in our time of need by a useless industry invented by the useless Elite that does nothing but cause pain. Anyone working on their behalf will see hell getting reelected. The anger that people are experiencing is growing and doing nothing is like pouring gasoline on a fire. Go ahead, make our day!!!

If Montana reelects Baucus I call for a nation wide boycott on Montana. Don't go there and don't do business with anyone there. The time for forgiveness, talk, or just going along is DONE. NO SECOND CHANCES.

Single Payer Now. Nothing else is worth fighting for.
Baucus + Snowe = Kabuki Theater.

WE are not like the dumb Republicans that can be fooled into voting for someone over and over on a stupid wedge issue like abortion. Oh noooooooooooo. NO SECOND CHANCES.

[jmpurser]

Are ANY of those three who you want writing YOUR health care bill?

Health care reform died when Obama took single payer off the table. What we have now is a debate on how much money to throw at the health insurance industry that is the core of the problem today.

[textynn]

yep and all them will not get a vote from me if this is not fixed. I vote Green or Independent. But I will not vote for any of these people working towards a phony PO or against a PO all together.

[LITU]

Yep, yep, yep!

[hilary916]

Better than 3 republicans.

[alienator]

Can someone please explain to me why the "three" are the some of the worse senators that we have?

[ekaw]

Boy this is great...this is definitely what's best for our country! I have so much confidence in these guys and so should you! Now be good Americans and shut your mouth

[ClareP]

Honestly, I don't get why the Washington Post (& now Huffpo too) have to present this as if it is something shocking and unheard of. This is the way committee bills have always been merged, and everyone knows it. There is still a public floor fight over amendments afterwards.

Political reality is that these kinds of discussions can't go on in public. After watching what the right did with every little bit of negotiation this summer, twisting things until public pressure made common sense seem politically dangerous, can anyone doubt that? Completely public discussions just result in hard-line polarization and sound-bite driven legislation that doesn't work because it has to become transparent to the lowest intellects in the us and attack-proof by the most vehement opposition. Let these three do their job, then once it gets to the floor people can worry about it.

[SamKnause]

It is not working for we the people, so the policy of this is how it is always done, needs to be changed. If we the people don't have the right to be in on the discussions, who does? Things in our government need to be changed or we the people are doomed. I have never seen such blatant corruption as has happened in the last year.

[textynn]

The corruption is so bad they don't even hide it any more. It's like when parents take drugs and hide it from their kids, then gradually start shooting up right at the kitchen table.

[Dabunny]

Yes, it is indeed the way it has always been; and that is the point. Once, Kings and nobility ruled absolutely­..deliveri­ng High and low justice at their whim. The rise of the middle class changed all that. The Magna Carta was forced on the nobility by the middle class that had gotten tired of "at a whim taxation" and "at a whim justice" The Magna Carta was "the people" responding to an intolerable situation. It is time for such a response again. The "closed door" system of govt. should be anathema to us all. WE THE PEOPLE ..that's you, me, and everybody else in this country deserve better. We need to have our Govt. responsive to OUR needs...not the other way around. One of the things that most govt. officials seem to have lost sight of is that they are NOT a ruling class..they are public SERVANTS to whom we have given our trust and have asked of them to look out after OUR interests..not the "fake people, ie. corporations. KEEP THE HEALTHCARE DEBATE PUBLIC

[traveler501]

you don't think you are totally overreacting to a simple sitdown to discuss ideas?? one of how many thousand in this process??

[LorettaSingbiel]

Mr. Moore's "Capitalism: A Love Story" truthfully exposed some democrats in-the-pocket of the "healthcare" industry.

With democrats on the take, we can no longer save the republicans from themselves.

It's over folks! WE THE PEOPLE are ALL "dead peasants" now and forever more ... UNLESS our DEMOCRATIC President decides he's mad and not going to take it anymore!!!

[textynn]

They have been trying to wait for a moment of indifference and other major distracting news to just vote some garbage in and call it done. They've geared themselves up for it a few times now. We must keep screaming and we must start demanding these phony bluffs and games end. These senators , most all, are just there for their fat paychecks and they could care less about the people.

Baucus in a currupt criminal against humanity and if Montana reelects him I will boycott Montana and any goods and services coming from there for the rest of my life. That's a bona fide promise.

[wittgene]

I hope the great people of Connecticut get rid of senator dodd. Please Connecticut, show dodd when the people of America say no money to the banks (WTF) that's what we mean! I'll be watching here in Michigan.

[LorettaSingbiel]

Go see "Capitalism: A Love Story". Dodd has the DEATHS of 44,000 americans each year on HIS hands ALSO!!! I expect the republican leadership to put their PARTY first, but when democrats go along for the ride ... I'm ENRAGED!!! And our President needs to put a stop to it!!!

[textynn]

exactly

[holeybuybull]

So there are four seats at the table, and all are filled with the health care industry stooges. Where is the people's representation?