A Canine Conundrum

An article published on 09/24/2009 by Capital Hill newsgroup Roll Call highlighted political infighting within House Democrats with respect to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi's current proposal for health care reform legislation. Members of the Blue Dog Coalition, a collaboration of fiscally conservative Democrats, have stated opposition to the inclusion of a costly public insurance option pegged to Medicare reimbursement rates as well as a levy on the rich. Interestingly enough, the levy is seen as so liberal that Senate Democrats have already called the surcharge dead on arrival. Speaker Pelosi, however, has made her intentions clear that her proposal will contain the two liberal provisions. Believing that her proposal will have the support of 20 members of the Blue Dog Coalition, Speaker Pelosi asserts that the bill can pass the House of Representatives. Coalition whip, Representative Stephanie Herseth Sandlin, however, believes otherwise.

For any health care reform bill to pass the House, Blue Dog Democrats must be willing to support it. Reeling from previous liberal votes that sparked sometimes violent backlash from their constituents, Blue Dog Democrats are caught in a tug of war between Democratic leadership and their voters. The Blue Dog Coalition has called for a removal of the liberal approach to the public option and taxes on the rich, but this most recent iteration of the health care bill still includes these highly controversial provisions. While current whip counts (projected votes) are unclear, it appears as if Speaker Pelosi's unwillingness to concede to Blue Dog Coalition demands may derail her health care reform proposal.