Reid backs Baucus, expects health bill by recess

By GottaLaff

Repeat after me, Harry: Public option is mandatory. Public option is mandatory. Public option is madatory:

Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) reiterated his party’s case for healthcare, refusing to get drawn into a description of the Finance Committee talks and sidestepping a question about whether he favors a public option. [...]

Asked Tuesday whether a bill would be produced this week, Baucus said “I hope so” without elaborating.

Reid stepped out to defend Baucus at a mid-afternoon press conference, but avoided details. Asked if he was confident that a bill will reach the Senate floor by the time the recess begins on Aug. 7, Reid simply said, "Yes."Pushing back against Republican criticism, Reid also reiterated Democrats’ vow to pass a health reform plan that is fully funded.

“Any plan that passes the Senate will be fully paid for,” Reid said. “When all of the numbers are crunched, the number on the bottom line will be zero … We are long overdue for changes in our healthcare system. The biggest cost to the American public is inaction.”

Meanwhile, GOP leaders continued their public-relations onslaught against the Democratic health agenda, claiming Obama’s ideas would force Americans to lose their current healthcare and bankrupt the system.

Top Republicans also said they aren’t afraid of a voter backlash if healthcare dies in Congress because they believe the public will understand the details.

1. The public often fails to understand details, which is why Dems often fall short when trying to sell their ideas.

2. The only thing the Rushpublics will insist the public understands is their convoluted spin.

3. Harry, read my lips: Public option. That's something the public understands, wants, and is one detail they will remember at election time.