NEWS

White House Warns Against Dropping Health Care As Party Grows Skittish - Huffington Post

Democratic officials were roiled by the news on Tuesday night that the supermajority they held in Congress, and the legislative possibilities that came with it, were lost with the election of Republican Scott Brown to the Massachusetts Senate seat.

With 60th vote gone, a search for a new strategy - Boston Globe

Republican Scott Brown’s victory has deprived President Obama and his party of the crucial 60th Senate vote they were counting on to pass a sweeping overhaul of the US health care system in the coming weeks, sending Democratic leaders racing to devise an emergency alternative strategy and creating the very real possibility the effort could collapse.

Fallout: Dems rethinking health bill - Politico

Republican Scott Brown’s upset win in Massachusetts Tuesday threatened to derail any hopes of passing a health reform bill this year, as the White House and Democratic leaders faced growing resistance from rank-and-file members to pressing ahead with a bill following the Bay State backlash.

Business Is Booming For Big Drug Negotiators - NPR

If your health insurance covers prescriptions, you are probably a customer of a pharmacy benefit management company. These are third-party administrators for prescription drug programs, and they make up one of the few industries growing during this recession.

Coakley Pollster hits back - CNN

Martha Coakley's top pollster Celinda Lake has a warning for Democrats, insisting that tonight's loss is part of an anti-incumbent fever that threatens to take down Democrats across the nation.

Dean: 'Bush Would Have Had the Health Care Bill Done a Long Time Ago' - ABC

Former DNC Chairman Howard Dean told MSNBC on Tuesday that Republican Scott Brown’s Senate victory in Massachusetts is the latest sign that Democrats in Washington need to toughen up.

Plouffe on Health Care: 'If You Run Away from It, You're Still Going to Get Attacked' - ABC

Speaking shortly before the results started to pour in from Massachusetts, former Obama campaign manager David Plouffe urged congressional Democrats not to give up the fight for health-care reform.

OPINION

GOP win doesn't mean health reform is dead - Washington Post

The biggest political issue in the country today is the Democrats' health-care reform proposal, which lives or dies based on whether it can attract 60 votes to overcome a Senate filibuster.

Why Democrats Should Pass Health Reform Even If Coakley Loses In Massachusetts - Think Progress

The White House and Congressional Democrats are “scrambling for a backup plan to rescue their health care legislation if Republicans win the special election in Massachusetts on Tuesday.” Publicly, Democrats are insisting that health care reform will move forward, but they acknowledge “that Tuesday’s results could force a tactical shift.”

The backstory on seating the newest Senator - Congress Matters

Questions about how long it could take to certify the winner of the Massachusetts Senate election? Or whether there could be a delay in the Senate in seating that winner?

Dear Nervous & Frustrated House Democrat… - Jon Cohn

Dear Nervous and Frustrated House Democrat,

It’s up to you.

Lessons From the Massachusetts Defeat - Robert Creamer

The Massachusetts Senate race is a watershed event that has enormous implications for this political year. The media is intent on making it a referendum on President Obama and his health care reform plan. But that interpretation of the results is just flat wrong.