Grayson, liberal leaders ask Senate Dems to use reconciliation to pass healthcare

Liberal groups with the help of Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.) delivered a petition to top Democrats on Wednesday, imploring them to use reconciliation to pass a robust healthcare reform package promptly.

That petition, which included more than 250,000 signatures, symbolizes voters' growing frustration with Democratic leaders' willingness to "water down" their healthcare bill, Grayson told reporters at a rally outside the Hart Office Building.

"Nobody cares about how many Republicans vote for this bill; nobody cares about reconciliation or anything else," Grayson said. "What they care about is affordable, accessible and universal healthcare, and that's where we are at this point."

He later stressed that lawmakers had "underestimated" President Barack Obama's support for a public option, which he said was "still true," even as Democrats all but agree the likelihood of a government-based healthcare plan is nil.

"That's a point I hope to hear from the president today," Grayson said of the president's upcoming State of the Union address, noting many House Democrats have been unwavering in their support for a public plan. "That's a point I think 51 senators understand."

After the event, leaders from the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, Democracy for America, Credo Action and Grayson delivered the petition to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (Nev.), Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Budget Committee Chairman Kent Conrad (D-N.D.), and moderate Democratic Sen. Evan Bayh (D-Ind.), who said on Tuesday he would not support reconciliation for healthcare reform.

Ultimately, Wednesday's rally arrives at a time of immense uncertainty for Democrats' healthcare bill. The party's top leaders are still without a plan to finish a reform package that satisfies both chambers' members, creating serious tension between the House, Senate and White House.

The 51-vote reconciliation procedure presents one option to complete the bill and bring it to the president's desk. The Senate could pass a second healthcare bill using that avenue that addresses concerns with their first bill, or they could pass an entirely new healthcare bill that better satisfies liberal lawmakers.

Grayson and the liberal camp signaled Wednesday they support the latter route, as it would allow for a public option, among other reforms, to return to the healthcare discussion table, they said.

That was the lesson the party should have learned from its loss in the Massachusetts Senate race -- a message Democrats should heed ahead of 2010, Grayson stressed.

"It's time for us to move ahead and do our jobs, to provide something for this country to show the Democratic party is actually worth electing" the congressman said, noting the choice could not be between "the crazies and the lazies" in 2010.

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