Greg notes an important shift in one of the conservaDem's thinking on health care reform:
Lincoln, who’s getting hammered by ads demanding she commit to the public option, has now shifted towards supporting one, at least in rhetorical terms. In a piece for today’s Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, she says health care reform should include a public plan or a non-profit substitute.
Here’s the key graf from Lincoln (the piece is subscription only):
Health care reform must build upon what works and improve inefficiencies. Individuals should be able to choose from a range of quality health insurance plans. Options should include private plans as well as a quality, affordable public plan or non-profit plan that can accomplish the same goals as those of a public plan.
The assertion that reform "should" have a public plan or non-profit substitute is a shift from her previous position, which was only that she was "evaluating" a public plan or a substitute.
Lincoln has been one of the targets of Blue America PAC's ad campaign attempting to get Lincoln to reconsider her opposition to a public plan. It seems to be working, though as Greg points out, she left a little wiggle room there--"or a non-profit plan that can accomplish the same goals" as a public plan.
Nonetheless, this is critical forward motion from a Senator who is facing reelection this cycle. Could it be that she's coming around to the idea that the Dems' best chance in 2010 is providing real, substantive health care reform? It's hard to imagine that all of the public polling on this issue, showing huge majority support for a strong public plan, isn't finally sinking through with some of them. It certainly has registered with the Republicans--that's why they're hell-bent on obstructing it.