Senator Max Baucus is apparently going to release his health care bill today. As we have already discussed on Open Left, there is a strong case to made against the bill, it probably won't be close to the final bill, and it does not have 60 votes in the Senate. Despite all of this, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid appears ready to push forward with the Baucus plan:
An aide to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid says, "Although we don't agree with everything in this bill, Finance Committee's mark represents critical momentum in this process."
It is momentum alright, but not in the direction we need to be going.
In response to the release of the Baucus bill, Open Left is joining with CREDO Action to tell Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to make sure a public option is included when the bill goes to the floor of the Senate.
Click here to sign the petition.
Assuming the Baucus bill passes the Finance Committee next week in some form, the next step in the process is for the Senate Finance Committee and the Senate HELP Committee -- which passed a public option under the late Ted Kennedy -- to combine their bills into a single piece of legislation. This merging is largely determined by the Senate leadership, and so it is important that Harry Reid hear from us.
Click here to sign the petition.
This petition also represents the start of a new era of expanded activism capabilities for Open Left. Over 81,000 people have taken action in the myriad campaigns we have conducted over the past two years: Bush Dogs, Donna Edwards for Congress, Better Democrats, No On Larry Summers, Senate Whip Count, and many more. Starting today, all 81,000 activists are being invited, by email, to participate in Open Left Action, which will become a regular feature here. Open Left Action is designed to help provide more leverage to the strategic campaigns we pursue in our mission to build a progressive governing majority in America. We are starting Open Left Action by joining with CREDO Action in an effort to keep the public option alive in the Senate:
Click here to sign the petition.
We have the votes to pass a public option in both chambers, as long as we use reconciliation in the Senate. There are not enough votes to pass the Baucus plan in either chamber, at least according to the 60 Senate votes for which the bill was designed. So, at this point, not only is keeping the public option better policy, but it is also the pragmatic move. Join with Open Left and CREDO Action to tell that to Senator Reid:
Click here to sign the petition.
A new phase in the health care fight, and a new era for Open Left, starts today.
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