She will be the only Republican, thus far going forward that will probably vote for health care reform. The biggest question is the public option and after the lobbyists for the insurance industry put out a highly questionable report yesterday about costs going to increase with reform, the Democrats should move forward on everything including the public option.
I saw on television the Republicans looking defeated. I am not cheering about that because the defeat was on the side of the insurance companies and for any individual that has the best damn health care in this country and to be so damn selfish, it is a shame and just sad.
Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) said Tuesday that she intends to vote for the Senate Finance Committee's health care reform package. She cautioned that her vote should be seen as a sign of her faith in the process going forward, not as support for the final package that will arrive on the Senate floor.
"Is this bill all that I would want? Far from it," said Snowe. "Is it all that it can be? No. But when history calls, history calls, and I happen to think that the consequences of inaction dictate the urgency of Congress to take every opportunity to demonstrate its capacity to solve the monumental issues of our time."
Snowe's statement came several hours before a scheduled committee vote.
"My vote today is my vote today. It doesn't forecast what my vote will be tomorrow," she said. It does keep her at the negotiating table and at the center of the debate; Snowe risked marginalizing herself if she voted no.
Snowe is well aware of the math. Her vote, she said, comes with knowledge that Democrats don't need Republicans to pass the landmark legislation.
"The majority has the votes. It has the votes in the House. It has the votes in the Senate. So it shouldn't be about the mathematics of vote-counting, but rather the mechanics of getting the best policy," she said.
Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) was thrilled at the news, complimenting Snowe for her "very thoughtful statement. It'll be well remembered and I thank you for it." read more here...
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