Cenk wants a Medicare buy-in for everyone passed via reconciliation:
But here is a radical new idea - how about we just do Medicare buy-in for anyone who wants it and not bother to pass any regulations about pre-existing conditions or rescission or anything else.
I agree that a Medicare buy-in is a fantastic idea, but I doubt it could pass via reconciliation. At a glance, I'm almost positive that all of the conservadems would vote against it. That's Joe Lieberman, Evan Bayh, Mary Landrieu, Blanche Lincoln, Ben Nelson, Bill Nelson, Kent Conrad, Max Baucus, Tom Carper and Mark Pryor. It's also possible that McCaskill, Tester and Warner would vote against it as well. And this doesn't even factor in all of the pitfalls of a reconciliation process, including the sunset and ongoing renewal votes.
Furthermore, it would still have to pass the House, and there were barely enough votes there for a "level playing field" public option.
However, I think there are other ways to get this done. A 55+ Medicare buy-in might pass via reconciliation, say, early next year. Same goes for a robust public option. There's also the possibility of adding either or both as an amendment to another piece of legislation. There's absolutely hope for this.