Led by the right of center Politico, news outlets are reporting the White House plans to reveal a list of health care reform musts, a list that "reportedly" does not include the public option.Whether or not Politico's unnamed source is correct, I have no clue. I also have no inside knowledge of anything the White House does. I do know that if the president signs a health care reform bill that doesn't include the public option, we'll be back in 5 years doing this whole thing over again. Reform simply is not the status quo. Health care reform was one of my main reasons for supporting Obama for president. It was even on my list. In my opinion, any bill that does not include the public option is not reform.
If the president does indeed neglect to mention the inclusion of a public option, it will be a great disappointment. It would be a travesty to let tea baggers dictate what should be a very serious debate. Hope and Change will take on a whole new meaning if that's the case.
