The camel’s nose is under the tent. And this camel is ready to trample liberty in America.

Saturday night, all 58 Democrats and 2 Independents in the U.S. Senate voted to bring H.R. 3590, the government healthcare takeover bill, to the floor for a debate and possible amendments after Thanksgiving. It was the bare minimum to achieve the 3/5ths majority. The senators are now flying to their home districts for a weeklong vacation.

Whenever that final debate occurs, it will take another 60 votes to invoke “cloture” to end that debate. The good news is several senators who voted “aye” to allow debate say they will kill the bill unless the “public option,” the very foundation of the legislation, is removed.

ACTION: Thank you to everyone who called, emailed and faxed senators to oppose government-controlled healthcare. Now, please call and protest at the district offices of your U.S. senator and other U.S. senators — especially the swing votes (Democrats Ben Nelson, Blanche Lincoln, Mary Landrieu and Independent Joe Lieberman) — to express your deep concern.

Remember, H.R. 3590 would increase insurance premiums, increase taxes, costs $2.5 TRILLION over 10 years, imposes an individual mandate that everyone buy health insurance, launches a federal “abortion insurance” program, cuts and restricts MediCare, and would result in rationing. 

The Democrats’ plan would NOT increase affordability or portability of health insurance. NOR would it restrain frivolous medical lawsuits that have been driving up doctor’s insurance and insurance premiums over the last several years. NOR would it reward, instead of financially punish, consumers who live healthy lifestyles.

Dems get their 60 — TONIGHT
Posted: Saturday, November 21, 2009 7:55 PM
From NBC’s Domenico Montanaro

After hours of debating whether to allow debate to begin on a health reform bill, the Senate voted in favor of letting that happen tonight along strictly partisan lines, 60-39.

The outcome had become all but assured earlier today when Sen. Blanche Lincoln, a moderate Democrat from Arkansas, the last Democratic holdout, said she would vote with her caucus.

It is important to realize that this is just the beginning, the opening kickoff if you will. Lincoln, Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE) and Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA) have all said they would not vote for a bill that in the end that includes a public option. And more importantly Joe Lieberman (I-CT) has said he would join a Republican filibuster on the back end if a public option is included.

The other wild card: Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-ME). Snowe, who voted against cloture tonight, is against the “opt out” version of the public option. But, of course, she is in favor of her “Trigger” option.

By the way, don’t be surprised if, as we’ve been saying is possible all along, that at the end of the day, Snowe’s Trigger becomes the compromise — particularly after the CBO said Reid’s opt out would not do much to change the current system and would likely have the adverse affect of raising premiums overall.