Battling Democrats, Obama Backs Snowe
23 October 2009 3:06 pm by Taylor Marsh
–updated – bumped–
President Barack Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama, and their daughters, Sasha and Malia, sit for a family portrait in the Green Room of the White House, Sept. 1, 2009. – Photo by Annie Leibovitz/Released by White House Photo Office
Now, that’s a handsome family.
However, this is anything but. Brian Beutler reporting:
Multiple sources tell TPMDC that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is very close to rounding up 60 members in support of a public option with an opt out clause, and are continuing to push skeptical members. But they also say that the White House is pushing back against the idea, in a bid to retain the support of Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-ME).
“They’re skeptical of opt out and are generally deferential to the Snowe strategy that involves the trigger,” said one source close to negotiations between the Senate and the White House. “they’re certainly not calming moderate’s concerns on opt out.”
This new development, which casts the White House as an opponent of all but the most watered down form of public option, is likely to yield backlash from progressives, especially those in the House who have been pushing for a more maximal version of reform. …
All this from Obama after he finds out Sen. Harry Reid is so close.
Then this from Ezra Klein:
The conversation centered on Reid’s desire to put Schumer’s national opt-out plan into the base bill. White House officials were not necessarily pleased, and they made that known. Everyone agrees that they didn’t embrace Reid’s new strategy. Everyone agrees that the White House wants Snowe on the bill, feels the trigger offers a safer endgame, and isn’t convinced by Reid’s math. But whether officials expressed a clear preference for the trigger, or were just worried about the potential for 60 votes, is less clear. One staffer briefed on the conversation says “the White House basically told us, ‘We hope you guys know what you’re doing.’”
Obama obviously doesn’t believe Reid can keep so called moderates like Lieberman, Nelson and Landrieu on board and if he loses Snowe too, because the Senate bill has public option opt-out, it will be real trouble for him. I guess Pres. Obama doesn’t get that backing a trigger approach to health care “reform” will give him even more trouble that will be a lot bigger headache in the end.
The title to this post has been changed.
