Sen. Snowe places her nameplate down upon arriving at Capitol Hill Oct. 13, 2009. Photo: AP
Senator Olympia Snowe’s yes vote in the Senate Finance Committee Tuesday was seen by the White House as a huge win. After pursuing her support for months, it seems that the President’s health reform has moved a step—albeit a small one—closer to passage. What does Senator’s support in the Finance Committee mean for the final bill, though?
One thing is for certain; Snowe is likely to garner more leverage than possibly deserved over the next stages of health reform. Her support takes the possibility of a public option farther from reality. She favors a so-called “trigger” that would enact a public option when insurance premiums get too high. Noam Scheiber of the New Republic states Snowe’s disproportionate influence:
“On the other hand, now that Snowe has voted for the bill in committee, she can basically dictate the terms of the final bill…That’s because, if you alienate her during the forthcoming negotiations, her defection from the final bill would be disastrous. Just imagine the atmospherics of Olympia Snowe getting up on the Senate floor and saying she was so serious about passing health care reform she voted for it in committee, but that she can no longer support the bill because it’s moved too far to the left. It would be absolutely devastating.”
Olympia Snowe’s yes vote also makes Harry Reid’s job easier. Harry Reid hasn’t been praised nearly enough for the job he has done holding together the left-wing of his party with the Blue Dogs. Snowe’s yes vote keeps conservative Democrats like Senator Landrieu, Nelson, and Bayh on board.
That’s a very interesting duality — both moderate Republicans and mainstream Democrats can take something positive from Snowe’s vote.
On the other hand, I think more important than anything else is the sheer number of votes Reid gets to garner now. 60 is never quite 60 unless you can get someone from the other party to support the bill. Screw bipartisanship — passage is what this bill needs.
It seems the Democrats are Snowe-blind. Without her, the bill doesn’t have a Snoweball’s chance in hell. And given where Medicare’s going, it’s Snowe country for old men.