Speaker Pelosi is soldiering on, regardless of President Snowe's feelings. She's pushing a strong public option, and has the votes:
Pelosi also said in the [caucus] meeting she believed she has the votes now to pass her more "robust" version of a public option. But she said that she wants to show unity among House Democrats rather than passing a bill with 218 members, the bare majority of the chamber....
A whip count being undertaken by the Congressional Progressive Caucus indicates that support for the liberal public option among House Democrats is just shy of the needed 218. There are "about 200" solid supporters, 15 leaning yes, 20 undecided and 30 "no" votes, according to a Progressive Caucus source. Of the 30 "no" votes, 23 are likely "no" votes on the overall bill, the source said.
To get there, she is doing some very smart negotiating, sweetening the deal for Blue Dogs:
In a closed-door session with a diverse group of Democrats on Wednesday, Pelosi (D-Calif.) offered a $20 billion tweak in hospital reimbursement rates to rural lawmakers.
She said that if House Democrats pass the public option liberals support, they could ultimately have the more centrist version of the provision when the final bill is hashed out in conference with senators, according to some of those in attendance. But many centrists doubt that, and many would prefer no public option at all.
The argument she is using, making the House bill as strong as possible to improve the House's bargaining position in conference with the Senate, is also a smart one. If anything of the public option is going to preserved in the final bill, it's going to be because the House makes it happen.
Pelosi is also listening to us,
arguing against the idea, favored by some conservative Democrats, of mandating that people buy health insurance, and then throwing them into what she called the "lion's den" of the private insurance industry.
In so doing, Pelosi came closer than any member of the Democratic leadership has thusfar to suggesting that the individual mandate is conditional on the inclusion of a public option. Pelosi declined to elaborate when pressed by TPMDC on whether Congress would revisit the individual mandate if the public option can't survive the Senate, but her implication was fairly clear.
The House, she said, "will not force America's middle income families to negotiate with insurance companies."
As I argued earlier, House members who have to run for reelection every two years are a lot more attuned to the fact that individual mandates without consumer choice will be very unpopular with the American people.