And we're back! Thanks so much to Dave, Ian and everyone else for taking care of the place while we were gone. Looks to me like they did a fabulous job!
The big health care news on Wednesday was that Blue Dogs and the Democratic House leadership apparently reached a deal on health care reform. In 2009, this has been the template for how legislative fights end in the House of Representatives. Blue Dogs hammering out the final details with Nancy Pelosi and the relevant committee chair, the rest of the Democratic caucus swallows whatever is served up, and the place of the Blue Dogs as overlords is cemented even further.
This time, however, progressives appear ready to force the House down a different path. The Energy and Commerce Committee's markup of the bill, which was originally scheduled to begin Wednesday at 4 p.m. eastern, has been delayed until at least Thursday:
Waxman Postpones Health Markup Amid Liberal Backlash
By Steven T. Dennis and Jackie Kucinich
Roll Call Staff
July 29, 2009, 5:16 p.m.
House Energy and Commerce Chairman Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) postponed the health bill markup that he planned to hold Wednesday afternoon amid a backlash from liberals to the deal that he cut earlier with four conservative Blue Dog Democrats.
It is pretty amazing that an article about liberal backlash was co-written by reporters Dennis and Kucinich, but I digress.
Exactly what, and how much teeth, this progressive backlash against the Blue Dog deal is remains to be seen. Fortunately, we won't have to wait long to find out the details, as the Progressive Caucus will hold a 2:30 p.m. news conference to explain. A few hours ago, I received the following message over email, meant for public consumption:
The blue dog compromise is clearly in direct conflict with one of the core
tenets of the Congressional Progressive Caucus's criteria for a robust public option. The belief appears to be that the progressives will once again just roll over. They won't.
Tomorrow afternoon, the CPC will be holding a press conference in conjunction with their allied caucuses the CBC, CHC, and CAPAC. They are going to draw a very clear line in the sand. We need the largest crowd we can get at the press conference:
Thursday July 30, 2009
2:30 pm
At the triangle on the southeast side of the Capitol
Let's help them out.
I do not know at this time what the specific demands from the CPC and allied caucuses will be, but it cold prevent the bill from being passed out of committee this week.
Waxman will face a difficult task if the committee's liberals vote their objections to the Blue Dog compromises. Because Democrats hold a 13-vote majority over panel Republicans, Waxman can afford to lose six votes on any measure. Eight Democrats on the committee are members of the liberal Progressive Caucus, including the chairman and two of his close allies - Health Subcommittee Chairman Frank Pallone Jr. , D-N.J., and Edward J. Markey , D-Mass., chairman of the Energy and the Environment Subcommittee.
The agreement Waxman reached with the four Blue Dogs would reduce the bill's cost by trimming eligibility for subsidies available to help the uninsured buy coverage; make it easier for private insurers to compete with a new, government-run "public plan"; and exempt more small businesses from requirements that employers cover their workers.
With only eight Progressives on the committee, getting seven to vote against this bill would be very difficult. Still, it is best to see how events continue to unfold tomorrow before making any proclamations about whether or not a health care deal has been struck in the House.
If you are in D.C., please attend the press conference tomorrow. And no matter where you live, join in the fight with the Fire Dog Lake Whip Count tool
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