So Bernie Sanders is talking about not voting for the newest compromise. A few thoughts.
1. As far as I can tell, he’s saying he’s on the face about VOTING for the bill, but has not said anything about his willingness to vote for cloture. If he plans on being in the 60, but voting against the bill itself, I think that’s more than reasonable.
2. However, if he means he’s not willing to vote for cloture, that changes things. To some extent, I’m going to give him the benefit of the doubt – that this is a negotiating tactic and that in private conversations he’s making it clear to people that when the rubber meets the road, he’s not going to blow this whole thing up.
3. But IF that’s not the case, then as much as I agree with him on the merits, he’s delving into the same kind of irresponsibility that has made the Nelson, Bayh, Lieberman, Snowe, et al party crew such a barrel of fun this year. Regardless of what he thinks ought to happen in an ideal world, he has to know that if health care goes down in the next few months, we’re not getting another shot at it for a decade at least. And he also has to know (contra a disturbingly large percentage of the bloggerati) that this health care bill is still a MASSIVE improvement over the status quo.
It’s a delicate balance – and Sanders is a genuine guy, so I think he understands that. He certainly isn’t pulling any of the stuff we’ve been getting from Lieberman. That said, the dynamic that folks on the left need to keep in mind is that the person who wins a game of chicken is usually the person with less to lose.
Let’s say health care reform has 50-55 guaranteed votes. The battle is convincing the far left (Sanders, Burris apparently) that it’s worth supporting whle also getting some of the people on the right. Sanders’ statement is a shot off the bow, a reminder that he can bolt just as much as Nelson or Lieberman can.
The difference is that Nelson and Lieberman don’t appear to care particularly about a bill passing. They know that they can’t up and say it – because even the most conservative Democrats are going to get raked over the coals if they come out swinging against health care – but if they can plausibly spin it as the fault of the ‘crazy left’ they’ll be happy.
That doesn’t mean there’s no space for Sanders to express his displeasure – and to keep trying to nudge things in positive directions. I just hope that IS what he’s trying to do.