Just two weeks after health care freedom suffered a setback in the House of Representatives, tonight it took a significant hit in the United States Senate, which voted 60-39 (on party lines; Sen. George Voinovich missed the vote) to start debate on Harry Reid's outrageous Washington takeover of health care.

But the truth is it was always a big long shot to think that the Senate would fail to get the necessary 60 votes to start debate on health care reform. Too much was riding on the issue politically for any Democrat, we saw today, to vote against starting the debate. While that means the country is one step closer to a very dangerous, expensive, and freedom-crushing policy being enacted, it also means we now have the opportunity for a robust public debate on the floor of the United States Senate.

The bill is a 2047-page monstrosity. Harry Reid kept it secret while he worked with CBO to include every budget trick and gimmick he could think of, making the ridiculous claim that a vast new health care bureaucracy will actually save us money. After those 6 weeks of secracy and a year of backroom deals, the bill will now be vigorously subject to the light of public scrutiny.

At least five Democrats--Evan Bayh (Ind.), Mary Landrieu (La.), Blanche Lincoln (Ark.), Ben Nelson (Neb.), and Mark Warner (Va.)--made statements today indicating they would not vote for the bill in its current form, and so did Independent Joe Lieberman (Conn.). Some of them even specifically said that they will not vote for cloture (the key 60-vote vote to end debate) on the bill, preventing the mischief of voting yes when it counts and then voting no for political expediency.

If even one of these Democrats or Sen. Lieberman can be taken at his or her word, then all Republicans will need to do to defeat this Washington takeover of health care is prevent amendments from passing that purport to solve the issues these senators have identified. That much is likely in their hands.

In our hands, as activists, is the task of holding every Senator who voted to start this debate responsible for where it goes and how it ends. If we can sustain the grassroots energy we've seen all year, I believe the debate will end with a decisive rejection of any Washington takeover of health care when the key cloture vote happens in mid to late December.

Phil Kerpen
Director of Policy
Americans for Prosperity