Health Care BS

Today’s the day the Dems will try to ram it through, so the effort to flip the “no” votes is reaching a fever pitch. But I guess one way to avoid the arm-twisting is to simply leave town: 

House Democratic leaders are facing an unlikely problem vote: Rep. Loretta Sanchez (D-Calif.). Sanchez was nowhere to be found on Saturday … What’s more, leaders now list the Orange County Democrat as a “noâ€? vote.

Hmm … I thought Pelosi already had the votes. I guess not, eh?

Democratic hand-wringing about her status — geographically and intentionally — underlines just how tight the margin has become for leaders trying to zero in on 216 votes as the clock ticks down to their appointed deadline.

Turns out Sanchez is unenthusastic about the Senate bill:

Sanchez this week told the Orange County Register that she needs to be satisfied that the health care overhaul is affordable. ‘The Senate bill is a bad bill,’ she told the paper.

Thus, she has been getting the full treatment:

The White House and Democratic leaders have been working Sanchez in recent days, with Obama calling her on Friday, according to a Democratic aide. And the pro-reform group Organizing for America on Saturday asked its members in her district to call her office and register support.

Pelosi and her minions think they can “flip her vote on the floor,” but that’s going to be pretty hard to do if she’s AWOL.