I have seen scant attention paid to the substance of what should and/or will go into the proposed "sidecar" legislation, other than it will include the items that were being negotiated in the House/Senate conference on the health care bill. I don't believe that the Public Option is among the items being negotiated and if it isn't, I'd like to know why.
We know that the Public Option doesn't have 60 votes in the Senate, but according to some in the Democratic caucus, it does have 50 votes, at least the weakened Senate version. So if the sidecar through reconciliation will only require 50+1 votes, why not include a Public Option?
For that matter, why aren't Democrats talking about cramming every goodie they can into that sidecar bill that has the support of 50 Senators? Let Lincoln, Nelson, Lieberman, Bayh and the other crybabies go and sulk while real Democrats actually get something done for America. Add the Medicare and Medicaid expansions, remove the antitrust exemption, add a Public Option, even a weakened one will be symbolic enough.
If Democrats can figure out how to deliver a Public Option specifically, it will save their bacon in the 2010 elections and beyond because it will energize their activist base, who ostensibly have already written off the Public Option. It will energize the teabaggers too but they will be energized no matter what and if they're the only ones that are energized, which will be the case unless Democrats can actually pass meaningful reform, Democrats will be in big electoral trouble.