Keep It Lit

Keep their feet to the fire and keep that fire burning:

Is It Possible The Insurance Companies Stepped On Their Wangers?

Hmmmmm. It appears that the worm may be turning... Seriously, did the insurance companies step on their wangers?

A few days ago the public option was on life supports, seemingly just days, or moments away from time of death being called.

Then the insurance companies produced a quick "study" that turned out to be cooked, threatened to raise everyone's health care premiums if the public option passed, and now all of a sudden I'm hearing optimism about the public option surviving everywhere I turn. [...]

Is it possible? Did they over play their hand and start a bit of a backlash?

Nate Silver at 538.com did a little "10 reasons" thing on the 20th on why the public option is probably gaining momentum...#1 being:

1. The tireless, and occasionally tiresome, advocacy on behalf of liberal bloggers and interest groups for the public option. Whatever you think of their tactics -- I haven't always agreed with them -- the sheer amount of focus and energy expended on their behalf has been very important, keeping the issue alive in the public debate.

Woohoo! That's us, huh???

Specter: 'We Have 60 Votes Without Sen. Snowe'

Appearing on MSNBC tonight, Sen. Arlen Specter (D-PA) asserted that the Democrats have the votes to break an expected Republican filibuster on health care -- with or without Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-ME).

"We have 60 votes without Sen. Snowe, so we can still invoke cloture and move to a vote on the public option," he said.