"The time is at hand this year to bring comprehensive, high quality health care within the reach of every American."
This soaring rhetoric was delivered in a State of The Union address, and you'd be forgiven if you thought it was Obama, or perhaps Clinton, who first said these exact words.
In fact it was Richard Nixon.
Nixon, as you may know, was a very interesting guy. If it wasn't for the fact that he was brooding, obsessive, and probably seriously deranged, he could have been a great president. In fact if it wasn't for Watergate there is every indication we would all have universal health insurance today.
Initially attacked by Kennedy as just promoting the insurance lobby, Nixon was probably genuine on this one. How own brother died of Polio and Nixon grew up in poverty. His plan would be described today as "pay or play".
Initially, Kenned rejected Nixon's idea.
No public option, it seems.
Later, Kennedy came around, and was prepared to work with Nixon, and then a little thing called Watergate developed, and it all went to hell. As you probably know Kennedy later regretted that he didn't take the Nixon deal when it was first offered; it was infinitely better than nothing.
Today there is an eerie echo of the Nixon dilemma.
Every expert analysis I have seen indicates that reconciliation is not really suited to health care reform, and that the end result will be deeply flawed and will expire when democrats may not even have a simple majority in the senate.
On the other hand, you are not getting 60 votes for a public option, which of course is the second best choice after single payer.
As Krugman has written, "Obamacare" will Swissify America. The Swiss (and Dutch) schemes are basically the Baucus plan. Massachusetts is much the same. And those 3 plans, while more expensive and worse than any other choice for universal coverage, are, at the same times 50 billion times better than what you have now.
I cannot imagine a world where we once again repeat the Kennedy mistake of not taking that first bite of the apple. If we take that bite, and get a 60 vote mandated universal care package, its done. We may tinker with, improve, and redo health care for the next 100 years, but taking it away will never be on the table.
Please please please Obama, I elected you to lead, and to inspire, but most of all to get things done. So in the end when the votes aren't there for the perfect, I will take what we can get. It won't even phase in fully until at least your next term anyway, so we have plenty of time to fight again after the next election.
But we must take that first bite. Do it for Kennedy. Do it for Nixon!