It's not just the famously unreasonable ideologue Olympia Snowe who cares about these things, apparently. Seven Democrats and Joe Lieberman sent a letter Tuesday to Sen. Harry Reid asking him to make sure the final legislative text of the bill and the final CBO score for it are online, and available to the public, for 72 hours before the first vote in the Senate to proceed to health care legislation. They also asked that the full legislative text of the amended bill be available, with a CBO score, for 72 hours before the final vote in the Senate. Here are the signatories: Sens. Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.), Evan Bayh (D-Ind.), Mary Landrieu (D-La.), Joe Lieberman (ID-Conn.), Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.), Ben Nelson (D-Neb.), Mark Pryor (D-Ark.) and Jim Webb (D-Va.). TPM decries the two 72-hour waits as unnecessary delay, but the senators contend:
In their letter to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, the Senators wrote, "Whether or not our constituents agree with the direction of the debate, many are frustrated and lacking accurate information on the emerging proposals in Congress. Without a doubt, reforming health care in America is one of the most monumental and far-reaching undertakings considered by this body in decades. We believe the American public's participation in this process is critical to our overall success of creating a bill that lowers health care costs and offers access to quality and affordable health care for all Americans." ... "At a time when trust in Congress and the U.S. government is unprecedentedly low, we can begin to rebuild the American people's faith in their federal government through transparency and by actively inviting Americans to participate in the legislative process," the Senators wrote.
But wait, there's more!
Further, the legislative text of all amendments filed and offered for debate on the Senate floor should be posted on a public website prior to beginning debate on the amendment on the Senate floor.
Obamacare allies are right to worry that what's turned up during those waits could endanger the future of the bill, but it's hard to argue the people whose lives the bill may "transform," as Obama would say it, should not get a look at it.