Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA) is in a tough spot. This Blue Dog Democrat hails from a state that is so “Red” that she and Congressman Charlie Melancon (D-LA) are the only two Democrats out of a total of nine federal elected officials representing Louisiana. In a state that voted for Bush in 2000 and 2004 and for McCain in 2008, it is clear that Sen. Landrieu did not earn her seat in the Senate by acting as a progressive.
Sen. Landrieu was re-elected for a third term in November 2008 and will not face another race until 2014. There is some buzz around the Bayou State that suggests this will be her final term, with many concluding that Sen. Landrieu will take the route of other veteran Louisiana politicians, like Congressman Richard Baker (R-LA), Congressman Bob Livingston (R-LA) and Sen. John Breaux (D-LA), and exploit her political clout in the lobbying industry instead.
Why, then, is Sen. Landrieu’s vote so scrutinized in the health care reform debate? Certainly, she could reasonably vote with her liberal allies in the Democratic Party. She could support the public option with very few consequences. A five-and-a-half year buffer before a potential re-election, if she even chooses to run again, would offer plenty of time for her to rebound from public criticism stemming from her support. The incumbency risk might very well be worth casting a vote against the will of her constituents, especially if she will be forced to work with the liberal leadership in the Senate to promote her own legislation for the rest of her term.
Still, Sen. Landrieu appears to be willing to take “the road less traveled.” In two separate occasions, the New Orleans-born politician has expressed that she does not intend to support the Affordable Health Choices Act, a Senate measure that would create a government-sponsored insurance program that would overhaul the health care industry by offering a public option to compete with the private sector.
On Thursday, August 27, 2009, Sen. Landrieu held her only town hall of the August recess in Reserve, La., a town made famous for strong local opposition vocalized at a program featuring four Obama Administration cabinet secretaries, including Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. Here, Sen. Landrieu responded to questions from the crowd, comprised largely of liberal activists who were instructed to arrive at noon for the 2 p.m. event, so as to ensure they would take up the majority of the seats. Many opponents were forced to wait outside in the heat, as the building was closed at 1:35 p.m. due to the number of attendees exceeding capacity limits.
According to Bill Barrow of the Times-Picayune, Sen. Landrieu used the town hall as an opportunity to repeat “her opposition to a ‘public option insurance plan to compete with private insurers.”
Despite her disapproval for the proposals of her progressive colleagues, Sen. Landrieu believes there is still a need for Congress act now to assure the passage of significant health care reform. She argued that another bill, Wyden-Bennett, would achieve this goal. Affirming her support for co-operatives, Sen. Landrieu co-sponsored the Wyden-Bennett bill, legislation that would establish co-operatives as a means of extending coverage for the under- and uninsured. This measure would “impose a mandate that individuals obtain coverage” and give “individual income tax incentives to cover premiums.”
Sen. Landrieu repeated why she wants to see some kind of significant bill. “Right now employers are trying to cover their employees. They have one program. It’s too expensive. … In Louisiana, 68 percent of our small businesses covered people. Now it’s down to 38 percent. Those people who don’t have insurance then show up to the emergency room and we end up paying for them at the most expensive point of service. … I know some of you are anxious, but we’re trying our best (to find) the best way … to treat people at the front end, not the back end.”
Sen. Landrieu reiterated her feelings about the public option in a CNN interview on Sunday, August 30, 2009.
“I would tend not to,” Sen. Mary Landrieu of Louisiana said Sunday on CNN’s State of the Union when asked whether she would support a public health insurance option included in health care reform bills passed by committees in the House of Representatives. “But, we’ve got to keep working to find solutions,” Landrieu added.
Sen. Landrieu maintained that the Wyden-Bennett bill would ultimately contain costs, without the including a public health insurance option. These sentiments have been rebuked by conservatives, who argue that a system of co-operatives would lead to more government interference, and eventually, an overhaul that would create a single-payer system, a major concern for those against the public option.
While Republicans might rejoice in Sen. Landrieu’s statements, some conservatives warn that Sen. Landrieu is notorious for caving to liberal leadership, even after pledging to vote with the GOP on certain issues. One such example occurred in 2006, where Sen. Landrieu buckled under pressure from Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) to “flip-flop” on her promise to vote against the death tax.
Sen. Landrieu’s vote remains one of utmost importance for both sides. Democrats need her support to pass health care reform before budget reconciliation, an unappealing procedure that requires only 50 votes instead of the traditional 60 to pass legislation. Republicans hope that Sen. Landrieu keeps her word, making it more difficult for liberals to pass a sweeping health care reform bill.
With special interests and politicians from both parties pounding at her door, it is not surprising that Sen. Landrieu is so inundated with information and commentary that the event in Reserve, La. was the only town hall she could handle. Unfortunately, meetings with her constituents in her home state probably would have been the most beneficial of them all.
