Progressives Still Demanding a Public Option

These people will be the death of Obama's presidency yet:

President Obama held a conference call with more than two-dozen House progressives Friday about health care reform -- and their adamant demand for the public option.

Two Democrats on the call were far more talkative about the exchange than was the White House. Aides said the president, who is at Camp David for an extended long holiday weekend, listened carefully to the lawmakers but offered no assurances on policy. The White House did not release a formal statement describing the general contents of the legislative call.

Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif., released a statement on behalf of the various progressive caucuses represented on the conference call, designed, Lee said, to pressure Obama to hold the line on the so-called public option, a government-financed move into private health insurance markets.

"Today's discussion with President Obama was a useful and productive conversation," Lee said. "I along with other members of the caucuses once again stressed the importance of including a strong, robust public health option like Medicare in health reform. A strong and robust public option is the cornerstone of any real effort at comprehensive health care reform.

Does Lee know that the president has yet to submit a health care bill, but in fact the bills being debated were written by congressmen? If she wants a strong, robust public health option she needs to go ahead and write one into the bill. That way the Blue Dogs can vote against it and the Democrats can complete their self-destruction.