The "Relativity" of the Public Option

I guess you could call this progress:

Senate Democratic leaders signaled Thursday that their version of health care overhaul will include some form of a public option, but it may be limited in scope so they can secure 60 votes to break a Republican filibuster.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) called the public option a "relative term" and Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said "there is not one way to Rome, there are lots of ways to Rome."

"Remember, a public option is a relative term," Reid said. "There's a public option, there's a public option, and there's a public option. And we're going to look at each of them."

Anybody else smell President Snowe's trigger? Cue Jon Stewart:

A public option is only a relative term when you're a Senate Dem leader trying to weasel your way out of doing the right thing--the thing that the majority of the people want you to do!

It's also not a relative term for the House Progressives. It's not a relative term for the Democratic base. In case our "leaders" in DC haven't notice, we've been paying attention, and we'll know bullshit when we see it.