Now I most certainly could be wrong of course. But with all of the beating that health care reform has been taking, with the corporate conservative media’s help... well the wishy washy or outright downplaying of the public option seems to some strategery and not typical Dem capitulation.
It was only a month ago where President Obama stated that the option was in fact essential to a bill. So what gives? Well...
This could be a trial balloon to see how many Republicans come out to support the bill since that was their major complaint. However, surely everyone knows that the GOP will not support any bill. They will find other issues with the bill and follow through on their stated task of breaking Obama.
It’s also quite obvious that the astroturfers are just that, fake and the only true aspect about them is that they disagree with the President. Notice the much broader generic wingnut themes of the protests – it’s not about health care, it’s about everything.
And yet, the media is there with open arms for the most part. They are making it sound like a real debate Perhaps if any of the bills had "war" in the title, the fake protesters would be ignored just like our real outrage was ignored leading up to the war.
I have to think someone as savvy as President Obama who still wants to play the compromising uniting leader is throwing out mixed signals about the public option not being essential as a way to attract our anger and passion. As passionate as we are, it’s not the narrative, it’s not enough.
Additionally it would seem to be a trap for the wingnuts who call the public option, not an option.
The President gets to appear flexible and piss us off all at the same time. It all goes back to FDR’s make me do it pleas.
We should hear conservative consensus on a non public option as the news cycles progresses. What we will find is that he called their compromising bluff and in the mean time, perhaps the angry liberals in Congress will get the advantage over the blue dogs...
After all, the dogs have sided with a group who "wants reform" but not more government - but that illusion will be shattered as the GOP moves on to the next excuse.
Liberals giving a go ahead to any plan means blue dog power. Blue dogs uniting with a GOP who still denounce a weak public optionless reform bill should embolden the progressives to hold their ground.
Maybe I am giving to much credit to the White House, but even by Democratic political collapse standards, it doesn't make sense to concede outright like the media is portraying....