Sign the Petition Demanding Bennet Offer the Public Option Amendment

by: David Sirota

Sat Mar 20, 2010 at 11:45

[Note]: Stupak presser cancelled, so Chris posts when he posts. Meanwhile this from David. -- Paul

Per my post last night about major primary pressure on Colorado Sen. Michael Bennet, Firedoglake has an important petition I hope everyone will sign. All it asks is that Bennet, the supposed public option leader, offer the public option amendment in the Senate when the health care bill comes up for a vote:

Senator Michael Bennet of Colorado led the effort to show that a majority in the Senate supports the public option. Was it all for show? Did Michael Bennet only champion the public option when he thought it didn't matter?
Because his Democratic primary challenger, Andrew Romanoff, has a few things to say about that:
"I am deeply disappointed to learn that no member of the U.S. Senate is willing to offer an amendment to restore the public option to the health care bill."
Well, that makes two of us. What member do you suppose he has in mind? Can you think of one?
Sign our petition to Michael Bennet: show your commitment to the public option. Introduce the public option for a vote during next week's Senate debate.

Sign the petition here - and then please pass it on to anyone you know. Wherever you are on the underlying bill, if you support a public option, then you should be able to support the Senate simply taking a vote on the public option - which the Senate has so far refused to do.

David Sirota :: Sign the Petition Demanding Bennet Offer the Public Option Amendment

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Sign the Petition Demanding Bennet Offer the Public Option Amendment | 17 comments

Done (4.00 / 3)

BTW: listened to your Friday podcast yesterday evening. Thanks for posting those over on your webpage...

by: glacierpeaks @ Sat Mar 20, 2010 at 15:56:30 PM UTC

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Done and done. (4.00 / 4)

Whether you support the PO or not, it's important to keep in mind that this pressure for a vote is very important strategically. The Dems in the Senate repeatedly use this "we don't have the votes" excuse to cover their asses so no one besides the Blue Dogs has to risk being on the record as being against legislation that their base strongly supports.

We have got to stop allowing them to get away with this with no consequences. Even if we don't win this particular fight to force a vote, we send a message that we intend to make it harder for them to keep playing this game.

by: Oaktown Girl @ Sat Mar 20, 2010 at 16:05:46 PM UTC

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Done. (4.00 / 3)

Montani semper liberi

by: Sadie Baker @ Sat Mar 20, 2010 at 16:10:54 PM UTC

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Done (N/T) (4.00 / 2)

by: William Timberman @ Sat Mar 20, 2010 at 16:14:13 PM UTC

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Off topic funny (4.00 / 2)

Bill - I was so tempted to mark your comment here as "troll" so everyone above you who wrote "Done" would have a "rec", but for no apparently reason, yours and yours alone would be "Troll". The very thought tickled me so much, I actually started laughing out loud and even did one of those embarrassing "snort" sounds. (Good thing no one was around to hear it!).

by: Oaktown Girl @ Sat Mar 20, 2010 at 16:29:24 PM UTC

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:-) (0.00 / 0)

Would've served me right.

by: William Timberman @ Sat Mar 20, 2010 at 16:42:57 PM UTC

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:-) indeed! (0.00 / 0)

And that's why I love you!

by: Oaktown Girl @ Sun Mar 21, 2010 at 05:52:56 AM UTC

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Kind of like (4.00 / 2)

duck, duck, goose?

Montani semper liberi

by: Sadie Baker @ Sat Mar 20, 2010 at 19:54:09 PM UTC

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Ha! n/t (0.00 / 0)

by: Oaktown Girl @ Sun Mar 21, 2010 at 05:55:39 AM UTC

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Sign the Petition Demanding Bennet Offer the Public Option Amendment (4.00 / 1)

If the Bennet amendment is offered, would that cause the Senate AND the House to have to vote again? Thereby giving the repugs more opportunity to derail the bill?

by: danny6114 @ Sat Mar 20, 2010 at 16:18:57 PM UTC

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Exactly (0.00 / 1)

That is how Obama and the Centrists have boxed us in. If they do introduce the PO, then we get nothing. If Obama won't fight for the PO, it's time to move on and make sure next time we get a President who is working for us.

"Oh. My. God. .... We're doomed." -- Paul Krugman
http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.c...">http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.c...">http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.c...

by: WorkingClassDemocrat @ Sat Mar 20, 2010 at 16:27:19 PM UTC

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I don't think they will (0.00 / 0)

Some how they have created the mindset to believe if they pretend it can't happen then we'll forget that they didn't do it. The bottom line is that they are putting political capital on their credit cards. Payment is due Nov 2nd. Don't expect anything before then.

"Oh. My. God. .... We're doomed." -- Paul Krugman
http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.c...">http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.c...">http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.c...

by: WorkingClassDemocrat @ Sat Mar 20, 2010 at 16:24:51 PM UTC

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this is bad politics (4.00 / 1)

If the amendment is offered, it needs to be defeated for the bill to pass. Do we really want to make some Democrats go on the record as opposed to a Public Option when the next phase (after the bill is signed) is to get one included in the program?

I'm all for a PO, but this is terrible politics.

by: OfftheHill @ Sat Mar 20, 2010 at 16:24:58 PM UTC

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I think that's exactly what Jane would like. (0.00 / 0)

I think she believes that some Democrats have acted without the best interests of the people and openly in defiance of the principles they presented during their campaigns. I think she would like to see which ones. What's that saying about a scorned woman?

"Oh. My. God. .... We're doomed." -- Paul Krugman
http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.c...">http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.c...">http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.c...

by: WorkingClassDemocrat @ Sat Mar 20, 2010 at 16:41:14 PM UTC

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I'm not for making Democrats going on the record as being opposed to anything (4.00 / 2)

I'm for making Democrats go on the record as being FOR the public option.

If they're worried about looking bad, they can vote FOR the public option. Everyone's happy.

Btw, this will all be happening after the Senate bill is law.

by: liberalmaverick @ Sat Mar 20, 2010 at 22:51:32 PM UTC

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Dun Did (4.00 / 2)

The Dems have boxed themselves into a veritable no-win. May as well make the most of it. If they fail to pass the bill, they'll be attacked as failures. If they do pass it, Republicans will demagogue them to death over mandates, taxes and the IRS role. And if we can count on one thing, it's that when Republicans attack Democrats, Democrats curl up into a fetal position.

by: Helzapoppin @ Sat Mar 20, 2010 at 17:09:55 PM UTC

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Done (4.00 / 2)

Three things to keep in remember if you have qualms about this:

a) The Senate debate is not an argument about 'bill or no bill.' The Senate version of health care will be law if there is a Senate debate at all. Instead, the Senate debate is about whether you will end up with the Senate version of the bill or some version of the Reconciliation bill.

b) this is the part that i'm least sure about and a detailed policy analysis from someone who knows more would help - the difference between the Reconciliation bill and the Senate bill is fairly minimal compared to the possibility of building progressive power and passing a public option.

c) Even if b) is not accurate, it is still a viable and potentially extremely useful negotiating strategy to force the democratic party to take a stand on the public option. It will force a public debate about the point in b) and will help us understand better what the Democratic caucus in the Senate is made of as well as help to continue to build progressive momentum for more substantive health care reform (now, certainly, but also for the future which we allegedly all agree on).

by: dr anonymous @ Sat Mar 20, 2010 at 19:05:10 PM UTC

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Sign the Petition Demanding Bennet Offer the Public Option Amendment | 17 comments

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