Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) said Tuesday that he’d back a GOP filibuster of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s health care reform bill.
Lieberman, who caucuses with Democrats said he opposes any health care bill that includes a government-run insurance program — even if it includes a provision that allows states to opt out of the program, as Reid has said the Senate bill would do.
Lieberman said he opposes a public option plan “even with an opt-out because it still creates a whole new government entitlement program for which taxpayers will be on the line.”
“We’re trying to do too much at once,” Lieberman said. “To put this government-created insurance company on top of everything else is just asking for trouble for the taxpayers, for the premium payers and for the national debt. I don’t think we need it now.
When White House press secretary Robert Gibbs was asked about Lieberman’s threat to filibuster a final vote on Reid’s plan Gibbs said, “I haven’t seen the report from Sen. Lieberman or why he’s saying what he’s saying. I think Democrats and Republicans alike will be held accountable by their constituents who want to see health care reform enacted this year.”
Lieberman’s opposition confirms that Reid is short of the 60 votes needed to advance the bill out of the senate even with the opt-out provision. Several other moderate Democrats have expressed cynicism at the proposal but are waiting to see final details of the bill.
Lieberman said he is “strongly inclined” to vote to proceed to the debate but that he will move to block a floor vote if the bill is not revised.
“I’ve told Sen. Reid that if the bill stays as it is now I will vote against cloture,” he said.
“I can’t see a way in which I could vote for cloture on any bill that contained a creation of a government-operated-run insurance company,” Lieberman added. “It’s just asking for trouble – in the end, the taxpayers are going to pay and probably all people who have health insurance are going to see their premiums go up because there’s going to be cost shifting as there has been for Medicare and Medicaid.”
Regarding Lieberman’s opposition to his bill Reid said, “I don’t have anyone that I have worked harder with, have more respect for in the Senate than Joe Lieberman,” he said Tuesday afternoon. “ As you know, he’s my friend. There are a lot of senators, Democrat and Republicans, who don’t like part of what’s in this bill that we sent over to CBO. We’re going to see what the final product is. We’re not there yet. Sen. Lieberman will let us get on [to begin debating] the bill, and he’ll be involved in the amendment process.”
Lieberman said that he is very supportive of health care reform but is worried about stifling “the economic recovery we’re in” or adding to the federal debt.
“I feel this way about a national, government-created health insurance company – whether it’s a trigger or not,” he said. “My answer is – we’re – we have the opportunity to do some great reforms here. These exchanges that we’re talking about, I think, are going to drive competition and probably bring the cost of health insurance down or at least contain the cost increases for a lot of people. Let’s give that two or three years to see how it works to see how it works before we talk about creating another entitlement that will end up increasing the national debt and putting more of a burden on taxpayers.”
