GOP goes after Democratic moderates on health-care fight

WASHINGTON -- Failure is not an option on health care, a leading Democratic senator said yesterday, even as Republicans turned up the heat on moderates who hold the fate of the legislation in their hands.

"We're not going to not pass a bill," said Sen. Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y. With or without Republican support, Democrats will get it done, Schumer said, because a health-care system that leaves nearly 50 million people uninsured and spends more than any other clearly is broken.

Republicans wasted no time yesterday going after Democratic moderates who delivered a Senate victory Saturday for President Barack Obama. The 60-39 vote overcame a procedural hurdle and allowed floor debate to start after Thanksgiving.

Senate Democrats hope to finish their bill by Christmas, but it is uncertain whether Obama gets final health-care legislation this year.

A state Republican leader accused Sen. Ben Nelson, D-Neb., of trying to have it both ways by talking conservative back home and voting with liberals in Washington.

"Nebraskans are finally wising up that there are two Ben Nelsons," Nebraska GOP chairman Mark Fahleson said. "There's the Washington Ben Nelson . . . who gave Democrats the vote they wanted. Then there's the Nebraska Ben Nelson . . . who comes back here to Nebraska and tries to portray himself as a conservative."

Nelson's office had no response, but the Democrat has said he won't vote for a final bill unless it addresses his concerns about limits on abortion funding, as well as his opposition to a new government-run insurance plan.

Another moderate Democrat, Sen. Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas, said yesterday that she also could not support "a government-run, government-funded" public plan.

With hundreds of thousands of uninsured people in her state eligible for existing government programs such as Medicaid, getting them signed up should be the first priority, she said.

Democrats hope to persuade at least one Republican, Maine Sen. Olympia J. Snowe, to vote for the final bill. But Snowe voted with Republicans on Saturday to block Majority Leader Harry Reid's 10-year, $979 billion bill from coming to the floor.