Obama’s “pass the bill, whatever the cost” is infuriating many Democrats in the House and Senate

The president has spoken: get a deal done before Christmas, whatever the cost — whatever deals must be struck or compromises made.

There are reports from multiple Senate sources that Rahm Emanuel told Senate Democrats that the President wants a health care bill passed, and that passage is the only thing that is non-negotiable.  That any and every aspect of the bill, including the public option, can be changed or removed if that’s what it takes to get a bill passed.  Pass it, no matter the cost.

Congressman Anthony Weiner (D-NY) and other Democrats in Washington are furious with this approach.  They believe that a small number of rogue Democrats are standing in the way of a once in a lifetime chance to fundamentally change the health care system in this country.

Congressman Weiner said, “Snowe? Stupak? Lieberman?  Who left these people in charge?  It’s time for the President to get his hands dirty.  Some of us have compromised our compromised compromises.”

Speaking on Fox and Friends this morning, Weiner said that President Obama really believes in the public option and he campaigned on the public option, and Weiner believes if Obama had really “put his finger on the scale and said this is what I really want” and really pushed for it, they would get the public option.  Congressman Weiner doesn’t believe that passing something now and fixing it later is a solid approach, as it may be a long time before the Democrats are in position again to implement major reform.  He referred to himself as “angry” over the direction the Senate health care bill is heading.

Newsmax reported on the Democrats coming to grips with the compromise that Obama still calls “the biggest thing since Social Security”:

“The president and vice president pointed out that you take your victories when you can and nothing prevents you from fighting on for the things you believe should have been achieved,” said Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I. “But why spurn a victory in hand?”

“There was frustration and angst,” Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., a leading liberal, said after the meeting at the White House. “Everybody has things they want, and they didn’t all get what they want and that includes me, big-time.”

But Obama got their attention, said Rockefeller, describing a health care remake to cover tens of millions now uninsured as “the biggest thing since Social Security.”

“It’s hard to ignore that,” Rockefeller said.

Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., a moderate who had been on the fence, said Tuesday night it’s time to pass the bill.

At the same time that multiple House and Senate Democrats voiced their displeasure with the direction the health care bill — with some stating they wouldn’t vote for it — Senator Harry Reid has laid out an aggressive time line that he says could lead to a vote on Dec 23 or 24th.

It is clear that President Obama does not want the Senators to go back to their states during the Christmas recess and have a repeat of what happened this summer, where angry constituents voiced their displeasure with the proposed health care bills.  The White House watches the polls, and they see that the majority of Americans are against the proposed health care bill and fear that if they don’t get a deal done by Christmas, they might not get one done.

If you haven’t done so, it’s time to contact your Senators and let them know your position on the bill.  They are YOUR representatives, tell them how you feel.