Conservative Democrats Expect a Health Deal

Conservative Democrats Expect a Health Deal
By CARL HULSE
Copyright by The New York Times
Published: September 1, 2009
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/02/us/politics/02bluedogs.html?th&emc=th


WASHINGTON — Like her colleagues, Representative Stephanie Herseth Sandlin, a South Dakota Democrat and leader of the fiscally conservative Blue Dog Coalition, has been weathering the summer of health care discontent.

There have been the angry constituents, the worried business leaders and even productive talks on what an acceptable health care overhaul should look like. Despite the clamor, Ms. Herseth Sandlin said she still believed that she — and perhaps a majority of the more than 50 Blue Dogs — could ultimately get behind a health care package if it was reasonable and represented a consensus Democratic view.

“I want to support necessary change,” she said. “But I don’t want to support radical change.”

Even after the tough town-hall-style meetings, unrelenting Republican assaults and a steady stream of questions from anxious voters, interviews with more than a dozen Blue Dogs and their top aides indicate that many of the lawmakers still believe approval of some form of health care plan is achievable and far preferable to not acting at all.

“I can’t tell you how comprehensive it will be, but I do believe something will get passed,” said Representative Michael Arcuri, a second-term Blue Dog Democrat from New York.

The political temperature of the Blue Dogs — and their ideological counterparts in the Senate — after the five-week recess is crucial. As representatives of some of the nation’s most conservative territory represented by Democrats, they potentially have the most to lose if a Democratic bill spurs a backlash. Even with healthy majorities in Congress, every Democratic vote is critical given the reluctance by some Democrats to consider a major overhaul and near blanket Republican opposition.

One lawmaker in the group, Representative David Scott of Georgia, said his determination to enact a health care overhaul had been increased over the recess because of what he called the spread of misinformation and other unfair tactics engaged in by the opposition.

“I think now more than ever we must get strong in our resolve to pass health care insurance reform legislation,” Mr. Scott said.

Another coalition member, Representative Adam B. Schiff of California, said that despite the intensity of the health care fight over the last month, he was not sure the Democratic landscape had changed all that much from when House members left Washington in early August.

“The members that were skeptical of the public option going into the recess are still skeptical,” Mr. Schiff said. “Those who were supportive are still supportive.” He suggested the major transformation was among Republicans, who seem far less open to any health care proposals given the heated sentiments aired by conservative voters.

Administration officials, who have been talking regularly with lawmakers, said they found that most Democrats remained engaged and eager to explore ways to reach agreement.

“For the lion’s share of Democratic members of Congress, this isn’t about looking for a way to make this disappear,” said Rahm Emanuel, the White House chief of staff, about the health care issue. “This is about trying to find common ground for a yes vote.”

Senate Democrats have similar internal tensions. Several more conservative Democratic senators have expressed reluctance about elements of proposals favored by liberals, especially the public insurance option, and concern about the overall price tag.

With the recess in its final week and the health care debate nearing a potentially critical moment, Congressional Democrats are also pressing the administration to move more aggressively to unite Democrats. On Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Senator Christopher J. Dodd, the Connecticut Democrat who oversaw the drafting of the Senate health committee’s bill, said President Obama must “step up and really frame this again for us.”

But even as some moderate and conservative Blue Dogs signaled they were still ready to move forward, it was clear that others could support only a substantially scaled-back approach. That could mean a bill that would fall short of the Democratic goal of extending coverage to the almost 50 million people without health insurance.

“Without wholesale changing the bills, I just don’t see how it’s going to work,” said Representative Jim Marshall of Georgia.

“I didn’t intend to vote on it before I left D.C., and I certainly haven’t changed my mind about it,” said Representative Walt Minnick, a Blue Dog from Idaho.

The sensitivity of the issue was demonstrated by how cautious lawmakers were in even discussing it. Several Blue Dogs declined to talk publicly about their views, while others said health care had become a proxy for general voter distrust of the federal government and fear about the Obama administration’s perceived intrusion into private markets.

But the sense from those who did consent to interviews was that once Congress resumes, Democrats need to figure out what they could agree on and how far they should go in remaking the health care system, given the political and fiscal restraints.

With Republicans essentially out of the health care picture for now, Blue Dog members from suburban and rural America said they could provide the ideological balance to the more urban members of the Democratic caucus, who are pushing for a sweeping plan of universal coverage that has drawn public criticism.

Still, the Blue Dogs are split on whether any new health insurance options should be packaged more like a cooperative familiar to voters in the less populated states represented by Blue Dogs or the public insurance idea being pushed by other Democrats.

“I’ve heard too many stories of Iowans who can’t afford health insurance, or can’t get coverage for the care they need,” said Representative Leonard L. Boswell, a Blue Dog member from that state. “I support a public option so that we can bring down the costs of premiums and curb the inflation of health care costs.”

But Ms. Herseth Sandlin, while not ruling out the idea of a public plan, said Democrats needed to think strategically, decide on the limits of a plan that can attract majority support and revisit the issue in the future if they cannot achieve all they want now.

“We have to be pragmatic and forge some deal that moves us in a positive direction,” she said. “We have expended unnecessary energy on elements of the plan that I don’t think are essential. I remain optimistic that when we come back in September, we will recognize how important it is to get half a loaf.”


Reporting was contributed by Bernie Becker, Andrea Fuller, Janie Lorber and Ashley Southall.