out during the senate finance committee markup -- i wanted to point out this fall, we saw senator bill nelson and other democrats work to parptionly mitigate senator nelson from florida and other democrats worked to partially mitigate the impact of the bill's medicare advantage funding cuts. this effort, while taking only very small steps, clearly demonstrated that a number of our democratic colleagues recognized the value offered by medicare advantage plans and the danger of enacting the deep cuts proposed by the pending bill. unfortunately, only a limited number of states would benefit from the nelson amendment, so most medicare advantage beneficiaries are not protected from the cut. bethey recognized how important -- but they recognized how important these programs are -- or this program s i also recall that six years ago when enacted the medicare modernization act, we intentionally provided new funding to stablize the medicare health plan program. this was one of the few issues on which there was strong bipartisan agreement during the 2003 medicare debate. i was here. i was on the confere

the most conservative democrat bill nelson is more liberal of the most senators in the house and thereve than the most liberal republican and i assume he eats alone and is a pretty if task really before us is how to deal with these daunting structural deficits within that kind of a political context. frances makes the point that we have research that shows in the past landmark legislation almost always has been passed with large bipartisan majorities and to some extent that is the case. look at final passage votes and they tepid to be lopsided and partisan. and amendment votes are often quite close chgs which is where the content of the legislation is formed. if you look at pre-1980, it was duringing that era that we had that midle thar i mentioned before. you saw a lot of cross partisan coalition building because there were people in the middle. after 1980 as we see a slide towards a more partisan breakdown within the two chambers, you cease disproportionately periods of divided government. if you have a president of one party and a congress control bid the other, you have to have a d

if we would've had more bipartisan support -- this bill nelson from nebraska cost a fortune, his negotiationis date -- for his stake, the medicare expenses being picked up by the government. i blame republicans for not being more bipartisan. i do not understand the idea of lowering the age of medicare would have been made by in program. -- would have been a body in program. host: do you think the idea will come back when they go to conference? caller: i do not think it will. my final point is that is a buy in program. it was not going to cost the taxpayer. i would love the opportunity when i reach the age of 55 in a few years to buy in. it was not going to cost. why was that opportunity removed from the table? republicans ought to have their heads handed to them. host: ted, we are going to get -- let you go and get some other opinions. jamie, good morning, on the independent line. caller: the whole year was a a a thing of political folly ship on the behalf of the gop. the one thing that amazed me was far as news coverage of one of their tibet parties where they were using footage of the atte

bill. the nelson-hatch amendment would go beyond that. it would restrict a woman's ability to use her own funds for coverage to pay for abortions. it blocks a woman from using their personal funds to purchase insurance plans with abortion coverage. if enacted for the first time in federal law, this amendment would restrict what individual private dollars can pay for in the private insurance marketplace. i might also point out that when you look at those who are supporting this amendment, you can't help but have some concern that this amendment is being offered as a way to derail and defeat the health care reform bill, because most of the people who are going to be supporting that amendment will vote in opposition to the bill. it's quite clear that the senate health reform bill already includes the language banning the federal funds for abortion services, so the supporters of this bill are not satisfied with the current funding ban. they're trying to use this to move the equation further in an effort to defeat the bill. i also would point

obama has promised not to sign a health bill that increases the deficit. and so far mr. nelson has not said precisely how he would pay for his amendment. approval of the amendment could invite other democrats to ask for similar deals that might make the bill more palatable to their constituents but more costly as well." well, since that september 9 article, obviously, other senators have asked for the same shielding of their constituents who are enrolled in the medicare advantage program. october 20, 2009, a bloomberg story: "reid leads democrats into carving out favors for states on health. democrats such as senator bill nelson of florida and ron wyden of oregon secured provisions setting aside $5 billion to shore up benefits for constituents who participate in medicare advantage. that program allows private insurers to contract with the government to provide medicare benefits. nelson said the aid isn't directed solely at florida. "it affects several states, including new york," he said." we're trying to grandfather in seniors so they don't lose the benefits they have." well,

bill possible. and that requires some compromises and some folks who have to be satisfied. nelsond to get something for his state. the way that federal medicare dollars are allocated, there is an expansion in will bill, and in nebraska's case it will be paid for by the federal government, and that's worth several of millions of dollars. an advantage of being a hold-out senator, not only do you get hot buttons, but a few bucks for the folks back home. and we saw that with mary landrieu, she was able to win several hundreds dollars for louisiana, and that was called the louisiana purchase, and now the corn huskers kick-back and probably hear something about maple syrup. host: let's go to mike . caller: hi, i would like to implore the people in nebraska to get rid of ben nelson, he sold himself like the cheapest whore, and he really needs to get out of there. he took his eye off the ball, he took the whole nation's eye off the ball. we need a viable health care system in this country, and he just deflected the entire discussion by holding out for the stupak amendment. and then sold h

senator bill nelson of florida -- quote -- "i don't know what the deal is." my colleague, senator landrieu of louisiana -- quote -- "there's no specific compromise. there were discussions. until the package that was sent is scored, we really don't even know what's in it." senator casey of pennsylvania -- quote -- "any big agreement is progress even if we do not know any of the details." senator feinstein of california referred to a meeting on the majority side recently -- quote -- "there was no explanation. it was just sort of 'go, team, go.'." and senator ben nelson of nebraska talking about a similar majority meeting -- quote -- "general concepts but nothing very specific at all." then at least yesterday, mr. president, this new mega bill, this 383-page amendment referencing another 286-page bill, attached to an underlying underlying2,074-page bill -- so that finally happened yesterday morning. but, mr. president, i'm afraid it's not progress enough, it's "time" enougtime enough considee set to vote on this new mega bill in just a few hours, starting at 1:0

if we would've had more bipartisan support -- this bill nelson from nebraska cost a fortune, his negotiation for this date -- for his stake, the medicare expenses being picked up by the government. i blame republicans for not being more bipartisan. i do not understand the idea of lowering the age of medicare would have been made by in program. -- would have been a body in program. host: do you think the idea will come back when they go to conference? caller: i do not think it will. my final point is that is a buy in program. it was not going to cost the taxpayer. i would love the opportunity when i reach the age of 55 in a few years to buy in. it was not going to cost. why was that opportunity removed from the table? republicans ought to have their heads handed to them. host: ted, we are going to get -- let you go and get some other opinions. jamie, good morning, on the independent line. caller: the whole year was a a a thing of political folly ship on the behalf of the gop. the one thing that amazed me was far as news coverage of one of their tibet parties where they were using footage of t

bill. now, i -- i want to thank my colleagues particularly on the other side of the aisle, senator nelson, casey, presiding officer for being major cosponsors for this amendment. they are ones that look at this and say i don't want this in the base bill, this shouldn't be in the base bill, doesn't belong in the base bill. the language should be different. but i'd also like to note to individuals that most people across the country don't want this in the base bill. a majority of the country is opposed to the bill overall. they don't think this is the way we should go. they think it's a wrong way. but even people that support the bill itself by and large don't want federal funding for abortion to be in this bill. a pew poll even showed that 46% of the people who support health care reform want to see the radical abortion language removed, the capps language in the reid bill, and all pro-choice republicans and several pro-choice democrats supported the measure in the house that put stupak language in that removed the federal funding from abortion. the american people feel this way because they

. >> ben nelson was the last democrat to agree to vote for the health-care bill. after successfully negotiating provisions to prevent the use of federal funds to pay for abortion. he spoke on the senate floor after the bout. senate will come to order. the senator from nebraska. mr. nelson: madam president, during the consideration of the health care bill, one of my primary concerns has been ensuring that the long-standing hyde amendment would be incorporated into the bill. i have strongly-held views on the subject and i fought hard to prevent the tax dollars from being used to subsidize abortions. i was pleased that the house included strong abortion provisions in its health care bill in the form of the stupak amendment. i modified this language to meet the senate bill and offered the nelson-hatch-casey amendment to prohibit federal funding of abortion. and i was disappointed to see that that amendment was tabled by a vote of 54-45. i knew then that the underlying bill did not adequately prohibit federal funding of abortion and consequently i would not be able to s

bill. namely those by senator nelson. and then another cloture votes is out there on the substitute amendment that is the senate version of the health care bill the one put together with the house committee and the finance committee. then there is a vote on wednesday on cloture to the underlying bill, three procedural steps, 60 votes each and then we expect the final vote christmas eve at 7:00 p.m. that would be a majority vote at this point* a simple majority vote and any of this could have been -- have been shorter if they agreed to not spend as much time on any of the process. then the next call is from mississippi. go-ahead. >> caller: i am the french. i will go back to my country. my father was sick when he was 55 and my mother sick when she was 60 my parents lived to the age of 90 and 92. when they are sick and don't have insurance it makes them sicker. [inaudible] but not to have any ensure insert any insurance for the poor but for all of the people when they see babies die it is ridiculous. >>host: thank you for th

detectors in their homes and also here to talk about legislation that i've introduced along with bill nelson it's called the residential prevention act. includes three key provisions, first to tren sthen the safety standards, currently they set volunteer safety standards which are underwritten by underwriter laboratories and the legislation makes these mandatory for carbon monoxide alarms sold in the united states. this is especially important in my state. some tend to fail in low humidity areas like minnesota's cold dry winters. seconds this legislation would require the consumer products safety commission to determine whether portable generators sold in the u.s. can be equipped with safety mechanic in additions Å the books that promote the use of detectors in apartment buildings and new homes. when someone dies from accidental poisoning, it's a public tragedy too because we know that so often we could have prevented these deaths from the right safeguards. when i was a prosecutor, i was always frustrated by the time a case got to the office the damage had already been done and the crime had

bill. the nelson-hatch amendment would go beyond. it would restrict a woman's ability to use her own funds for coverage to pay for abortion. it blocks a woman from using personal funds to purchase insurance plans with abortion coverage. if enacted for the first time in federal law this amendment would restrict what individual profit dollars can pay for in the private insurance marketplace. i must also point out that when you look at those who are supporting this amendment you can't help but have some concern that this amendment is being offered as a way to be real defeat the health care reform bill because most of the people who are going to be supporting that amendment will vote in opposition to the bill. and it's quite clear the senate reform bill already includes the language banning the federal funds for abortion services so supporters of this bill are not satisfied with the current funding than. they are trying to use this to move the equation further in an effort to defeat the bill. and i also point out that this is really wron

i modified this language to meet the senate bill and offered the nelson-hatch-casey amendment to prohibit federal funding of abortion. and i was disappointed to see that that amendment was tabled by a vote of 54-45. i knew then that the underlying bill did not adequately prohibit federal funding of abortion and consequently i would not be able to support it. so i began to look for other language to accomplish the goal that no public funds should cover abortion in the new health care bill. and after long days of negotiations, i believe we came up with a true compromise that stays faithful to my principles. and i want to be clear: i stuck to my guns and stood for my pro-life principles. i did not look for weaker language. i looked for clearer language, and my goal stayed the same to:o maintain the standard that we've had in federal law since the mid-1970's. while i respect the senator from kansas' opinion, i have to respectfully disagree. the senate language fully uphold the hyde principle -- upholds the hyde principle like the lange wimg in the hous -- langue house bill. the wording may be

bill. this morning, and nelson and up support for the bill. leaders are expected to comment on that and continue the debate, and we will have those remarks when they begin shortly here on c-span. the house will meet for a brief pro forma÷(t session at noon eastern, and we will get comments from lawmakers, including mitch mcconnell and tom coburn of oklahoma. that will happen after the house meeting and we will have that for you here on c-span. >> again, we're standing by in the gallery, waiting to hear from democratic leaders on a possible agreement about health care. we plan to have better for you live when it gets underway. until then, your phone calls from this morning with "washington journal." editorial section. get more north. gaping hole in administrations plan to move terrorism detainees to a u.s. prison. they write the obama administration is right to continue steady march to close the facility as that the u.s. naval base in cuba, but it will under mine the benefit office a f it merely moves them office a from one place to another wit

bill. is senator ben nelson ready to block the bill because he didn't get his way on abortion?ll talk to him tonight. >>> and sarah palin weighing in on climate change. larry, you were talking about her. we will talk about the controversy over polar bears. palin says they shouldn't be on the endangered list. we will take you to the arctic ice where scientists are getting close to polar bers to track their habitat. that and more stories on "360," larry. >> larry: there's a great polar bear joke -- >> larry: earlier today the house homeland security committee voted to subpoena the white house gate crashers tarik and michaela salahi, i'm tired of this story. the couple has been the target of plenty of late night punch lines. here's letterman. >> how about the kids, the couple that sneaked into the white house for the big state dinner? remember those guys? the salahis, the guy and his wife, good-looking couple. now, they are going to be subpoenaed by the house homeland security committee. and i thought, well, finally, they are being invited somewhere. hey, look, honey. look what we

and the nelson amendment is necessary -- is a necessary addition to the bill in order to protect our current policy and the unborn. i understand that not everyone in this country agrees with my position on abortion. and, again, i know that this issue deeply divides americans on ethical, moral, and religious grounds. while i have said that i don't agree with abortion and believe roe v. wade should be overturned, the nelson amendment -- and this is really important -- does not prevent anyone from seeking an abortion, it does not overturn roe v. wade and it does not place any new restrictions on access to

contract oversight, and the kind of flexibility and agility that we were talking about with senator bill nelson's question. we have to figure out how to manage risk without being averse to risk. and i am talking on the civilian side right now, we have to give them enough discretion to be able to make smart decisions, and yes, maybe even make some mistakes, because they might have made an investment that did not pay off but was worth trying. it is complicated. we want to account for every single penny, but we also want to be sure that we have enough flexibility to be smart as we try to do the job that we have been given. i do not know what the answer to that is, but i would ask for your consideration as we move forward so that we strike the right balance. >> i understand that tension. and there is a real tension. unfortunately the lesson learned in iraq was that there was not enough of that tension. it was all about, we need it today, we need it tomorrow, we do not care what it costs, get it here. so finding that balance is what we're talking about here. that is why the data is input correctly and

we are here today to talk but legislation that i've introduced along with senator bill nelson which wouldhe u.s. consumer product safety commission to enforce stronger standards to protect people against the deadly dangers of carbon monoxide. it's called the residential carbon monoxide poisoning prevention act. it includes three key provisions. first, it would strengthen the safety standards for carbon monoxide alarms. currently, the consumer product safety commission has set voluntary safety standards for carbon monoxide alarms, which are underwritten -- which are written by underwriters and laboratory that the legislation would make the safety standards mandatory for all carbon monoxide sold in the '90s. this is especially important in my state because substandard alarms tend to fail and low humidity areas like minnesota's cold, dry winters. second, this legislation would require the consumer product safety commission to determine whether portable generators sold in the u.s. can be equipped with safety mechanism that detect the level of carbon monoxide in the surrounding area and then a

detectors in their homes and also here to talk about legislation that i've introduced along with bill nelson who would require the u.s. consumer products safety commission to enforce stronger standards to protect against the dangers of carbon monoxide. it's called the residential prevention act. includes three key provisions, first to tren sthen the safety standards, currently they set volunteer safety standards which are underwritten by underwriter i interested or ice storms, something i might be more interested in. when there's a power outage and people are tempted to use generators in their homes. last year's events drove this point home in 2008, two men and a boy died in a minneapolis home from carbon monoxide poisoning due to a use of a portable generator in the home. built authorizes to provide grants to states with laws on the books that promote the use of detectors in apartment buildings and new homes. when someone dies from accidental poisoning, it's a public tragedy too because we know that so often we could have prevented these deaths from the right safeguards. when i was a prosec

according to this bloomberg article, it says "senators's senators charles schumer, bill nelson of florida and ron wyden of or oregon are among those who secured special provisions shielding constituents from cuts." casey -- that's senator casey says he wants -- quote -- "very comparable protections for his state." surprisingly enough. "where more than one-third of medicare beneficiaries participate in medicare advantage." quote -- "it is the kind of thing that will likely be addressed on the floor, he said. "i eagerly look forward to working on the other side of the aisle with all the members from those states with the exception of new york, florida, and oregon who have earned special shielding from these cuts. i look forward to working with them and let's fix it for all of us. right, senator? mr. hatch: that's right. go ahead. mrs. hutchison: i would just say to the senator from arizona, i was wondering if every state could have the same treatment? why not have every state get this shielding for their medicare advantage? that is 11 million people in this country who would be then helped

bill. and i think it is very important that we talk about it, that we make sure that it is very clear exactly what the nelsoney amendment does. and that is it would bar federal funding for abortion, which is basically applying the hyde amendment to the programs under this health care bill. since the hyde amendment was first passed in 1977, the senate has had to vote on this issue many, many times, probably just about every year. and i have consistently voted to prohibit federal funding for abortions, as i know my colleague and friend from utah has done, as well as the democratic sponsors of this amendment. and yet, it seems that some members were on the floor last night misconstruing exactly what the hatch-casey-nelson amendment does. specifically, their claim was that the hyde

three states because their senators apparently extracted a price for passing this bill. >> reporter: even with the deal, nelson and independent democrat joseph lieberman warned that the senate legislation must not be altered substantially when it's merged with the more liberal house bill. the american medical association joined today in supporting the senate version after refusing to back the house bill. meanwhile, reed said talk about a conference was premature. >> we have to pass this bill in the senate first. that is our direction. that is our guiding light. we'll worry about next steps at a later time. >> reporter: the next step in the path to passing a bill comes tomorrow morning when the senate will take another procedural vote. >> ifill: we have our own debate on the mer is of the senate bill and what it might take to get a final bill to the president's desk. sherrod brown is a democrat from ohio and is a member of the senate's health committee and lindsey graham is a republican from south carolina. he's a member of the senate's budget committee. gentlemen, we just heard ben nelson, the famously sought-

i modified this language to meet the senate bill and offered the nelson-hatch-casey amendment to prohibit federal funding of abortion. and i was disappointed to see that that amendment was tabled by a vote of 54-45. i knew then that the underlying bill did not adequately prohibit federal funding of abortion and consequently i would not be able to support it. so i began to look for other language to accomplish the goal that no public funds should cover abortion in the new health care bill. and after long days of negotiations, i believe we came up with a true compromise that stays faithful to my principles. and i want to be clear: i stuck to my guns and stood for my pro-life principles. i did not look for weaker language. i looked for clearer language, and my goal stayed the same to:o maintain the standard that we've had in federal law since the mid-1970's. while i respect the senator from kansas' opinion, i have to respectfully disagree. the senate language fully uphold the hyde principle -- upholds the hyde principle like the lange wimg in the hous -- langue house bill. the wording may be

party leaders had to convince bell nelson to support the bill.hat gives them enough votes to overcome republican efforts to block it. once it passes it has to go to the house and reconciled with the version passed by the house last month. >>> a brutal winter storm is blasting the east coast. 20 inches of snow through the mid atlantic through new york. hundreds of thousands are without power and five deaths have been reported in virginia and in ohio. some travelers are having to bed down in airports. flights are delayed. airports are shut down and the worst is probably yet to come. a delta spokesperson told cnn they have canceled just over 500 flights at the affected airports on the east coast. karen, this has been a mess in the air and on the ground. >> yes. it couldn't come at a worse time, folks are trying to get their holiday shopping done and the commerce people, the commercial people were expecting a big weekend. here we go with a classic nor'easter that could rival some of the records. i don't think we are going to shatter records. this is

bill. if i can just go ahead and answer your other question, if it does not pessin to nelson said he will not support the bill unless some sort of more restrictive abortion language is added to it. >> with more health care debate possible this weekend are you getting any sense of the mood of senators as they continue working on this bill? >> we have been staking out these meetings they have been having on the public option almost every night and when the more liberal senators come out of these meetings that it always seemed to be in a good mood and they say things are moving well. senator chuck schumer of new york was the third ranking democrat in the senate says he thinks things are moving along well but that we talked to moderates and they are not so sure. they don't think they are that close to a deal on the major issues most importantly the public option. >> how was it looking for getting it done by christmas? >> i would say we have heard that senator reid is trying to pull together what he calls a final package for the bill. he is doing that now and his spokesman told us yesterday that t

if it passes, it's likelier that democrats will have senator nelson's vote on the bill. can just go ahead and answer your other question, if it does not pass, senator nelson will not support the bill unless more restrictive abortion language is added to it. >> are you getting any sense of the mood of senator as they continue working on this bill? >> yeah. we've been staking out these meetings they have been having almost every night, and when the more liberal senators come out of those meetings, they always seem to be in a good mood. senator chuck schumer of new york says he thinks things are moving along well, but then we talk to moderates, and they're not so sure. they don't think they're that close to a deal on any of the major issues, most importantly the public option. >> how is it looking for getting it done by christmas? >> iffy, i'd say. we have heard that senator reid is trying to pull together what they call a managers amendment. he's doing that now, and his spokesman told us yesterday that they hope to, they hope to start filing cloture petitions. these are pr

i modified this language to meet the senate bill and offered the nelson-hatch-casey amendment to prohibitat amendment was tabled by a vote of 54-45. i knew then that the underlying bill did not adequately prohibit federal funding of abortion and consequently i would not be able to support it. so i began to look for other language to accomplish the goal that no public funds should cover abortion in the new health care bill. and after long days of negotiations, i believe we came up with a true compromise that stays faithful to my principles. and i want to be clear: i stuck to my guns and stood for my pro-life principles. i did not look for weaker language. i looked for clearer language, and my goal stayed the same to:o maintain the standard that we've had in federal law since the mid-1970's. while i respect the senator from kansas' opinion, i have to respectfully disagree. the senate language fully uphold the hyde principle -- upholds the hyde principle like the lange wimg in the hous -- langue house bill. the wording may be different but the principle is in fact upheld. urn the health care

bill. ben nelson over the sensitive issue of abortion.e goes on to say nelson emerged from reid's office friday night wráhout a deal saying he needed to review a new propose toll ensure no federal funding could be used to pay for elective abortions. this is a discussion on-going. there's a lu of different moving parts. san diego, california on the line for democrats. go ahead. caller: how you doing? host: what do you think about the proposal and what it'j going to accomplish? caller: well i would like to say most of the american public is educated through propaganda and why do i say that? we have people that are incarcerated at guantanamo yet we don't know who these people are or what they've done. everyone assumes because of the immediate dwlat these people are so-called terrorists, and i'm not going to comment on the they should be tried in america but i don't understand the whole situation when people are incarcerated with no due process regardless of where they're from. people just continue to assume that these people are terrorists.

bill. he just became the most prominent and the most outspoken. senator ben nelson, a democrat from nebraska, also indicated he had several problems with the bill early on. he just wasn't as stark as joe lieberman announcing any plans to the luster. mary landrieu, blanche lincoln, these democrats had issues early on. max baucus tried to design a bill that didn't have a public insurance option because he foresaw it would have trouble getting 60 votes and i am not sure he really liked the idea of the public option to begin with -- kent conrad. i could go on and on. joe lieberman is just a nationally known figure that was outspoken and honest about it, so he is taking a lot of flak. but he is far from the only member of this conference that had a lot of issues with the bill currently on the floor. host: new accounts -- newcastle accountspennsylvania, donna. caller: i have been watching this thing throughout and i think at this point we do have to get something done. there are a lot of good things in this. i feel really bad that so much stuff has been taken out. but we

>> yes. >> [inaudible] senator nelson and senator lieberman have said that the senate bill can't really change very much in conference if it's going to win 60 votes. how have your counterparts reacted to that, and what is on the table to offer -- >> first of all, in our meeting coming here and this may surprise some of you, we actually have prepared for this press conference can -- [laughter] we are focused on one thing and one thing only. that is passing this bill. we have, we hope to be able to complete it tomorrow. certainly with the ice storms coming to the midwest, we hope that we can finish tomorrow and not have to do christmas eve, but we'll do whatever's necessary. we are focused on passing this bill. we will work with our house counterparts, with the white house, but that's going to come at a subsequent time. our focus today and tomorrow is to complete this legislation. >> do you have any idea how hard it was to get everybody on board and the delicate compromise? is the reality that the house is going to have to get it back through the senate -- >> no matter how many ways you a

>> if the amendment passes, it is likelier that democrats will have senator nelson's vote on the bill. to answer your other question, if it does not pass senator nelson has said he will not support the bill unless some sort of more restrictive abortion language is added. >> with more debate possible this weekend, are you getting any sense of the mood of these senators as they continue working on the bill lacks >> when the more liberal senators come out of those meetings they also say -- always seem to be in a good mood. senator schumer in new york thinks things are moving along well. we talk to moderates and they are not so sure. most importantly on the public option. >> how is it looking on getting this done by credit by christmas? >> it looks iffy. reid is trying to pull together and the men and, if final changes to a final package of changes for the bill. his boat people have told us we his spokespeople have told us they hope to in the debate on the bill and filing those by the end of the week. >> we thank you. >> sure. thank you. >> what new rules of the internet needed to govern

bills in the house and senate on abortion? guest: that was the main sticking point with senator ben nelson from nebraska.ty leader harry reid met with him for a marathon session for two days at the end of last week to work out compromise language. i talked with senator nelson after the vote this morning and he is adamant that that language does not change in conference. i2congressman stupac has been talking about pressing for the house language but it seems as though moving in that direction could lose support of liberals on the language. host: thank you for the update and have a happy holiday. @uq>> coming up next, two days guest"washington journal." there'll be a forum on the 2010 political landscape and later, a look inside blair house, the president's official guest house. coming up in 30 minutes, general ga

it is likely that democrats will have simitar nelson's vote on the bill. if i could go ahead and answer your other question, signature nelson said he will not sign the bill unless some sort of more restrictive abortion languages added to it. >>-- languages added to it. >> -- language is added to it. >> when the more liberal senators come out in these meetings, they say that things are moving well. senator chuck schumer of new york says he thinks that things are going well and moderates are not so sure. most importantly, the public option. >> how does it look at getting it done by christmas? >> ifill. we have heard the senator reid is trying to pull together a manager's amendment which is a final package of changes to the bill. his spokesman told us yesterday that they hope to start filing cloture petitions. these are moves to in the debate on the bill. >> we thank you. >> coming up, federal reserve chairman ben bernanke discusses the economy and then a look at consumer privacy. >> c-span's 2000 can student can contest this year. the top prize is $5,000. it

bill or on affordibility. but certainly there's plenty of speeches going on. >> you mentioned abortion. as senator ben nelson is apparently working on an amendment. what's that about? >> well, that when the house version of its bill part stupak in michigan succeeded getting language in the bill tightening up restrictions on how abortion could be funded on the exchange, the national insurance exchange that's envisioned under the bill. many of these plans on the exchange, in fact, most of them would be private. these are not public plans but the stupak amendment as it's called here on the hill -- here on the hill restricts how abortion can be funded if you have insurance on that exchange even with your own money. senator ben nelson is a pro-life democrat. he has said he favors the stupak language and he said today that he will be offering an amendment in association with some other senators that closely mirrors if not identically mirrors the stupak language. so we're likely to see a similar abortion debate in the senate as we saw in the house. the open question is whether or not nelson can get 60 votes in a se

dragovic, anderson, roll, nelson, and lee on the floor for ucla. >> marques: this team as bill self wasking about, they like each other allot. >> steve: aldrich with the steal and block and he hammers that basketball. tyshawn taylor. >> marques: the big fellow. he covers a lot of ground. the best of them. >> steve: kansas basketball. shot clock at 35. he has four blocks already. >> marques: he runs all the way out to the three-point line to get a piece of that shot by reeve nelson and trust me, nelson's second effort was definitely influenced. >> steve: watch for the lob. watch for the lob. they go for it. ucla read it nicely. the layup. no. the university of kansas has done a great job getting back defensively any time ucla has had a break opportunity. >> marques: the guys back to the blue area, painted area. nice job. nice attempt at least. another one of the plethora of ways that bill self looks to get his big man off. >> steve: aldrich at least three blocks in every game this year. >> marques: and you can tell he's a team guy. he's not concerned that he has gotten a lot of construct

nelson: madam president, do i need to request permission to speak as if in morning business or can i speak even though the the -- the appropriations bills are on the floor? madam president, i ask consent to speak as if in morning business. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. nelson: madam president, we here have in front of us appropriations bills. we have heavy matters of the deficit. we have heavy matters of how that we're going to get the united states government to bring its fiscal house in order. i remind the senate that it was the last time that we have had a surplus was in 2001, and if we had been wise and had not cut the revenue of this country so significantly, we could have been good stewards of that healthy surplus and we could have paid off the national debt over a 12-year period, and we wouldn't be where we are today, but we are, and in these matters that are weighing heavily on us, it seems that our attention is being continuously diverted to other things, such as white house party crashers and the unfortunate circumstances that one of the most famous athletes finds himself in, tiger woods. we have a debate about

bob casey said he will continue to negotiate with nebraska democrat ben nelson on abortion language for the senate health care bills. those remarks came during a news conference on the 2010 defense spending bill which the house passed on wednesday. this is about 35 minutes. >> good afternoon i'm delighted to be joined by senator stabenow and senator casey. we are in very difficult and challenging times for our economy after the failed policies of the bush administration. yesterday the house passed a 2010 defense appropriations bill. we are here to call for quick passage of this without delay. we could've passed a bill yesterday. we could've passed it today. we should pass it as quickly as possible. first and foremost, this bill provides the funding for our military forces across the globe and ensure they have the proper equipment, proper quality of life, to ensure that they continue to do their job as they face the threats better posed against the united states. but it also assists countless americans who are hit hardest by these difficult times. people love love their jobs through no fault of their own. it would h

together on the floor and i'm confident we'll get them. >> lehrer: senator ben nelson says he has renewed reservations in that bill because of the abortion issue. he's one of the 60 you're counting on. what do you think about that? >> look, there are many issues that have been raised by him and many others. we'll work our way through those issues. again, i'm confident we'll get this done in in a way that will hold the coalition together. >> lehrer: what do you make of this rising opposition among liberal democrats, particularly led by former democrat chairman howard dean? >> look, i think that a lot of people have a great deal of passion about the issue. i have a great deal of passion about it myself. i have someone in my family with a chronic illness and i've had many of the horrific experiences with insurance that other americans are have had and i feel strongly about this. and so does the president. so, you know, people are impassioned and there are some disagreements about aspects of this plan. but there is absolutely no doubt that the reforms that we're working on will be infinitely better than the situation

the bill comes to the senate. senator nelson from nebraska tries to introduce the stupak language that would be an absolute bar from using your taxpayer dollars to fund abortion. he lost that amendment. he said he could not vote for a bill that would allow taxpayer dollars to be used to fund abortion. he gets in a room with senator reid, and he comes up with a compromise. and he claims it solves the problem. well, the problem is that his claim is not accepted by all those who follow this. that the compromise he has achieved on abortion is a miserable failure. congressman stupak says it's unacceptable. the national right to life committee says it's unacceptable. the nebraska right to life committee says it's unacceptable. the council of catholic bishops says it's unacceptable. there is not one pro-life group in this country who believes that senator nelson protected the rights of the unborn. now, how in good conscience do you vote for a bill when that was a big issue? at the end of the day, one last thought, this bill would make

bill. small business health plans, which was s. 1955, drafted by myself and senator nelson of nebraska, former governor and insurance commissioner, was voted out of the "help" committee in march of 2006. on may of 2006, cloture on the bill was not allowed on the senate by a vote of 55-43. i know how tough health care reform is to pass. i had a majority of votes but not enough to begin the debate. at the same time, senator snowe was poised to do a single amendment that would have solved the objection for 80% of those who voted against it. without cloture, that amendment could not be offered. the snowe amendment would have solved the question of what health mandates would be required. the desire for mandate clarification was the objection that had the disease groups working against the bill. the insurance companies worked against the bill and successfully defeated other versions called associated health plans for over a decade. i was able to neutralize much of the insurance lobby by creating small business health plans, we can put small business owners in the driver's seat instead of the federal

bill. that was a product of amendment offered by congressman stup ac and what they're trying do. nelson and hatch and other anti-abortion forces in the senate is insert this language so when they go to congress and combine with it the house bill, it'll survive. but there's a lot of abortion right percentages and this nelson act will more than likely fail. host: clyde on the independent line. morning. is it a must pass this year bill you think? al caller: absolutely not. the best thing they can do for healthcare is get government and insurance companies out of the way and let the patient deal with the healthcare providers. this is about redistribution of wealth and controlling 1/6 of the economy. no bill with the type of legislation in this bill that would, for noncompliance example, it has penalties and fines up to $250,000 for throwing people in jail for five years. why would that be in a health bill? this is a tyrannical bill by a government trying get control of the economy. also it's - we're going to see abortion, illegal immigration put in this health care system and all the negati

the reid bill said we will pay for abortions, simply and straightforward. the nelson-patch and mend and says no, we won't. i think it is really reflected of the vast majority of how americans feel about this. the fact majority of americans do not want to pay for abortions. you asked where was i during the tax cuts. actually i was not here, i was the governor of the state of nebraska and happen to be governor on 9/11. what i personally witnessed was that the economy tank. 9/11 frightened the people. it caused them to lock up their pocketbooks, if you will. they did not want to spend. half -- as that ratcheted down, jobs were lost and it was just a very tough time. i think i had six special senses -- sessions to cut the budget. then all of the sudden congress got together on and -- well, let us leave more money back in the states. let us allow people to keep more of their money which is really what the tax reductions did. i would just tell you from my personal observation the economy started to improve. why is that? because i just fundamentally trust that if people have

, of course the democratic caucus agreed to let this bill get on the senate floor but several of those moderate or conservative democrats like nelson, like landrieux, said they won't support the bill coming off the floor if the public option remains cat ehad taken it upon himself along with chuck shouper to find a compromise version of something called the public option or something that functions like the public option, we're really -- the function is one of policy, the democrats believe that private insurance needs some competition to hold prices down. but it's also a political one. the democratic base strongly favors the public option but there aren't 60 votes for it. harper is trying to find a way to preserve the spirit and maybe the name public option in a way that lets democrats deliver for their base but also deliver the four or five democratic votes, maybe even delivers olivia snowe, republican. one thing is the trigger, there's no public option at first, but if states don't neat certain standards a public option or co-op or something like it would be triggered. >> majority leader reid's timeline, when is he expected to fin

now buried in the senate bill, in the reid amendment is the public funding of abortion which we haven't done for years. i talked to both congressman stupak yesterday, senator nelson, they both agree that the stupak language is far superior, one that actually doesn't publicly fund abortions, whereas this bill now does. you don't need to take just my word for it. you can hear what others have said about it. u.s. conference of catholic bishops who want a health care bill but are opposed to abortion say this: the bill is morally unacceptable unless and until it kphraoeuz with long-standing current laws such as the hyde amendment. in staourbgs which we voted on in this floor in the nelson-hatch amendment which is now not in the bill. you don't have to just take that. you can take bart stupak, democrat from michigan who voted for the bill in the house of representatives, says this about the senate bill -- it's now not acceptable, "a dramatic shift in federal policy that would allow the federal government to subsidize insurance policies with abortion coverage. the american public doesn't want that either. the latest poll, december 22, show that 72% of the americans oppo

we'll pass a bill that's strong and good with the strong public option if we get a chance to do it. i'm confident senator nelson and landrieu and lieberman will allow us. >> senator sherrod brown, democrat of ohio. thanks for coming on tonight. >>> next, former governor howard dean joins us with his take on the state of health care negotiations. >>> later, the state of tiger woods not so great after this week. now, a new story surfaces about alleged hush money to one of his ladies. tubs? when we want. when we're in the mood. it's our choice. announcer: today, guys with erectile dysfunction can be ready with another dosing option from cialis. cialis for daily use is a clinically proven low-dose tablet you take every day, so you can be ready anytime the moment is right. so relax and take your time. tell your doctor about your medical condition and all medications and ask if you're healthy enough for sexual activity. don't take cialis if you take nitrates for chest pain, as this may cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure. don't drink alcohol in excess with cialis. side effects may include headache, upset stomach,

a lot of pro-choice democrats can't stand that language and what it ought of the bill and i believe that senator nelson's amendment will fail if it closely resembles the tupac language. >> the senate is in tomar. what can we expect? >> they are going to deal with a couple of amendments dealing with one by senator-- and all of this by the way is pretty open air. we didn't know until a few minutes before today's vote which amendments that were going to vote on but we think they are going to deal with an amendment by blanche lincoln. it will limit tax breaks for salaries. >> what will you be watching for tomorrow? >> we are definitely interested to see what happens after the president's visit whether he is successful and rallying the troops and there has been some grumbling by democratic aides and i think some democrats that the president has not been hands on enough in this debate in the last couple of weeks. i think for example sherrod brown of ohio told us that he would like to see the president come down and express how important to him the public option as an lean on some of these moderates who are say