Asked under what circumstances she would support a public option, Landrieu responded, "[v]ery few, if any. I'd prefer a private market-based approach to any health care reform that would extend coverage," according to the Monroe News Star.
"I'd like to cover everyone -- that would be the moral thing to do -- but it would be immoral to bankrupt the country while doing so," Landrieu said. The public option as currently conceived is expected to be a deficit reducer.
Landrieu also said she'd continue her long history of opposition to a cap and trade system to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. "I'm not supporting that approach, but I'm open to hear modifications," she said.
The only thing more infuriating than her refusal to support keeping insurance companies honest is that she's being disingenous about what the public option and cap-and-trade systems are. ACES is a market-based approach through creating a new market of tradable emissions permits. It's not much different than the approach taken to acid rain. A public option would offer competition and choice in the health insurance market- two conservative economic buzzwords that Milton Friedman would have smiled at- is a market-based approach. Essentially, on these two big issues, we have come to the table offering the approach they ask for, and it's still not enough.
Landrieu is not our top targets on the OpenLeft/HCAN/DFA whip count for a switch, but she hasn't ruled out support for a public option yet, and I'm not yet ready to give up. One big reason is that we are one vote farther with the death of Sen. Kennedy, and no clear timeline on when we will have a replacement, so getting every Democrat to support a public option becomes that much more important.
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