“There is no way in its present form that I will vote for it.”
That’s what Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., says of the health care reform plan currently sef forth by Senate Finance Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont. Without a government-run public option insurance plan, Rockefeller said, he cannot support the health care reform bill.
Rockefeller’s statement, made in the middle of a conference call with the liberal Campaign for America’s Future just moments ago, demonstrates just how complex a task Democratic leaders face. Tweak it one way, and you lose moderate Democrats. Tweak it another way, and you lose liberal Democrats like Rockefeller.
Even worse, a failure to pass any bill would be a serious embarrassment for President Obama on his signature issue.
