Under Pressure, Blanche Lincoln Shifts On Public Plan
Looks like pressure from the left might be getting results, albeit limited ones, in the case of “centrist” Dem Senator Blanche Lincoln, who has been resisting any commitment to backing a public health care option.
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’s position had made her a top target of the left. The Blue America PAC, which is headed by liberal bloggers Howie Klein, Digby, dday, Jane Hamsher and John Amato, raised money for ads targeting Lincoln in her home state of Arkansas, pushing her to commit to a public option.
To be sure, Lincoln left herself wiggle room. The non-profit substitute for a public plan could take many forms, and the idea is viewed in some quarters as a potential ruse to avoid creating a strong public option. But Lincoln clearly seems to be shifting on the question.
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re: the ads, Digby wrote them and raised money for them, and I directed and edited them. They were practically a Hullabaloo production. Could we at least get some mention among the “liberal bloggers?”
I hope they keep the heat on her until she says it in no uncertain terms that she supports a public option. And for all of those concern trolling Dems in Congress worried about liberal and progressive groups targeting ConservaDems…Suck. On. This!
sorry dday, fixed it. my apologies. was rushing to post and omitted the name…
So wait, a Senator from Arkansas is waivering, and two things happen; progressive activists and a site that raises a very small amount of money in relative terms made ads to run a year and a half in advance of her re-election campaign, and Wal-Mart came out with a more aggressive stance, at least on paper, in favor of healthcare reform…and we’re going to imagine the former had more impact on a Senator…from Arkansas?
Let’s at least try to keep these things remotely believeable, like imagining a Senator from North Carolina who doesn’t have to run for re-election until 2014 cares what MoveOn thinks.
Brien Jackson can you show us where WalMart has weighed in at all about a public option? I have time on my hands so I can wait all day.
They didn’t, but neither did Lincoln. She essentially talked about cutting cost, which was the cru of Wal-Mart’s joint statement with the SEIU. Although it does stand to reason that Wal-art would benefit from the inclusion of a public option. In any event, it seems quite a bit more likely that, amongst recent developments, the largest corporate/political entity in the state taking a more pro-reform line would logically stand to have had a bigger impact than anything ActBlue could do in a state McCain won by 20%.
And Greg, to not even mention the Wal-Mart development in the course of discussing the stance, or change in stance, of a politician from Arkansas seems a little bizarre.
Brian, where did WalMart articulate the stance that Lincoln did today?
Well:
“Health care reform must build upon what works and improve inefficiencies”
Compared to:
“We believe payment reform and efficiency initiatives need to be at the center of healthcare reform.”
http://wonkroom.thinkprogress.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/health-letter-final-6-30-2009-president.pdf
So Lincoln is in part cribbing from the Wal-Mart/CAP/SEIU letter, and in other part taking from the Co-Op/trigger idea (the Wal-Mart letter advocates a trigger mechanism for reducing costs as well).
To put it right out there, you’ve really got to play dumb to imagine that internet progressive activists have more influence on a Senator from a state that gve 59% of its votes to John McCain than even slight movement on the question from Wal-Mart, who more or less owns the state.
Brien so you think we should just overlook the fact that she came out in support for some form of a public option today because…….You want us to? Dude the kids room is down the hall…that away >>>>>>>>>>>>>
So wait a second, you guys believe that an amateur leftist ad campaign that’s raised all of $23,000 for a progressive ad campaign in blood red Arkansas made an incumbent Senator with $2.2 million in the bank and whose only challenger at this point is a first time candidate who just insulted an entire region of the state a few weeks ago change her position on a major policy question that has millions of lobbying dollars swimming around it…and *I* need to go to the “kids room?” Funny, I’m not the one playing make believe interest group.
Brien, you think that the ads are the only pressure she’s getting from the left? dont you think that other fairly influential people are weighing in too? you want us to believe the only person she listens to is WalMart? hey, if she wants to say that I’ll print it.
“a quality, affordable public plan or non-profit plan that can accomplish the same goals as those of a public plan.”
I am interest in what Blanche Lincoln thinks the goals of a “public plan” should be. I am willing to bet that she did not explain this in English. I am further willing to bet that at this point she sees the point of a “public plan” or “non-profit plan” as doing nothing but providing her cover to lather her insurance industry masters with lavish amounts of corporate welfare and a new base of marks…I mean customers.
“Brien, you think that the ads are the only pressure she’s getting from the left? dont you think that other fairly influential people are weighing in too?”
With all due respect, that’s extremely disingenuous. You’re the one who cited “pressure from the left” and Blue America PAC in particular, implying, at least, that it was pressure from Blue America that forced the shift. If you know of other groups putting the screws to Lincoln then go ahead and say so. You’re the journalist working for The Washington Post Company after all. But you cited Blue America specifically and no one else.
The conservative oppose the single biggest benefit to small businesses. Why?
Come on, y’all. Let’s stop bickering among ourselves and not worry about who gets credit for what. Let’s keep our eyes on the health care ball that America needs so desparately.
Greg, I’m with you on this – hook, line and sinker.
Senator Lincoln,
I run a small computer repair shop in Conway. I have over three thousand customers I email regular. We talk about politics and the environment including the Global Warming charade. Not one of my customers agrees with Cap-and-Trade or Government Run Health Care. These people from all lifestyles with one thing in common we are Arkansans and we vote. Obama has lied several times to the American people. He wants the nation to follow California’s type of environmental laws and bankrupt the USA. WE CANNOT AFFORD ANY NEW TAXES Senator Lincoln. Cap and Trade is nothing but a tax.
Obama’s popularity is dropping while the nation is tuning into FOX News and what FOX is reporting is scary. FOX has more viewers than CNN and MSNBC combined. Obama would like to kill FOX and conservative talk radio. The house is debating a bill that will compromise our freedom of speech. Congress wants to dictate to me my doctor, put a meter on my thermostat and tell me what kind of car to drive. Our government is telling us the planet is warming due to CO2 emissions while the planet seems to be in a cooling phase. We have had the coolest June in over a century. According to science, the temperature would not be decreasing if carbon emissions were causing it to rise. It seems either Congress is using faulty science to make decisions or just wants another way to get more money from Americans. Another aspect to this CAP AND TRADE TAX is it allows the federal government into our homes. Dictating to the citizen what appliances we can purchase what type of energy we can use and so on. This is scary Senator Lincoln. You have no business in my home dictating anything. Obama is also meddling in the constitutional rights of states.
Can you remember a strong President standing with the background of the Berlin Wall giving that beautiful speech? Ronald Reagan made every American proud to be an American. Obama seems to be ashamed of this great country.
Senator Lincoln you represent the people of the great state of Arkansas not Obama’s socialist agenda. If you allow Pelosi and Obama to lead you around by the nose, you are not representing the people who elected you. Arkansans are watching these issues closely and we are not happy with the way things are panning out. I expect massive turnout for the 2010 election across this nation. Obama is trying to push these bills through before this election and if he is successful, democrats do not have a chance in hell in 2010.
Please do not vote for the Cap-and-Trade or Health Care Reform. Arkansans are strongly against both bills.
We know a public option works – our Senators, Troops, and government officials sure seem to like THEIR insurance options!
All we want is to have access to the same choices our Senators, Troops, and Seniors have access too!
If you don’t want a Public Option, don’t choose it – but please don’t listen to the Big Insurance Lobbyists lies about Health Care Reform, because they are just afraid of the competition!
Danny,
Your color is coming through strong- not your logic just your color. You have a problem with the President and anything he desires for us is a problem for you. I know how you voted in the last election. You have a closed mind and we can all see it. Your buddies that you share these ideas with all applaud you, but in the bigger America, you are biased from the first letter of your email. C’mon, lose the bias and see the big picture and be honest with us. You are against the President and if he wants a health care bill passed then you will be against it.