Clash Over Health Care Reform Looms
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: And, to our viewers, happening now: the best political team on television on these stories. The alleged Fort Hood gunman is just hours away from his first hearing, and not in court, but in his own hospital room. We are learning about his condition and whether he fully understands what's going on. Brian Todd has details. Are too many different agencies now trying to protect consumers and failing, failing completely? There's a new push for a single watchdog with bite, but big business is pushing back big-time. And she's a one-woman economic stimulus machine. Will the end of Oprah Winfrey's talk show weaken her financial empire? We want to welcome our viewers in the United States and around the world. I'm Wolf Blitzer. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM. Tomorrow night will be fight night in the U.S. Senate. Literally hours from now, senators will start proceeding on a sweeping health care reform bill. Democrats say Republicans want to scare you. Republicans say the real fear is the Democrats' plans. Then, around 8:00 p.m. tomorrow night, 8:00 p.m. Eastern, the face-off, a vote on whether to advance the debate to allow it to go forward. Among these Democrats, who will block it, who might back it? Let's go to CNN's senior congressional correspondent, Dana Bash. She's working the story for us. Dana, still a little bit of mystery out there.</s>DANA BASH, CNN SENIOR CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: A little bit of mystery, but at least one senator who was a little bit mysterious has taken that away. Ben Nelson of Nebraska, he announced today that he will give his party leaders his vote, at least to start debate, that vote tomorrow night. He said, if you don't like a bill, why block your own opportunity to amend it? So, the president can cross Ben Nelson off the list, but there still are a couple of Democratic senators who could put the brakes on his top priority. And they're being publicly coy.</s>BASH (voice-over): Behind the scenes, it's a Democratic scramble to secure 60 votes needed to start the Senate health care debate.</s>SEN. DICK DURBIN (D), ILLINOIS: We're not assuming a thing. We're working hard to bring all Democrats together for the 60 votes necessary to proceed to this historic debate.</s>BASH: And all eyes are on one of the last Democratic holdouts, the senator inside this office, Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Senator Blanche Lincoln's office.</s>BASH: Phones are ringing off the hook. Constituents trying to get through to influence her vote.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, ma'am. I'm sorry about that.</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK. Can I let her know that.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, we're getting a lot of people calling.</s>BASH: Lincoln holds the power to stop President Obama's top priority in its tracks or let it proceed. She's got a tough re- election battle next year in a state Obama lost in 2008 by 20 points, and conservative voters now worry the health care bill spends too much and gives too much power to the government. Democratic leaders are well aware of her political pickle, but try to pressure her with this argument:</s>DURBIN: I would say to Senator Lincoln that I believe most of the people in Arkansas will be relieved and happy to see health care reform. I think the failure to pass a bill is not good for America. It isn't good for any of us in Congress or those standing for re- election.</s>BASH: Another Democratic senator who hasn't formally announced her vote is Mary Landrieu of Louisiana. Aides released these photos to CNN showing her working with staff, going through the 2,000-plus page health care bill. One thing she will find is this -- a sweetener Democrat leaders added to help persuade Landrieu, $100 million in Medicaid assistance she's been trying to get for her home state of Louisiana, still struggling from Katrina.</s>BASH: Now, Landrieu says that she still has a lot of concerns about the substance of the bill, like its cost and the fact that she doesn't like a government-run health care plan, which is in the Senate Democrats' bill. But she has been much more positive about the fact that she's looking towards potentially voting to start debate. And that kind of statement and others are really giving Democratic leadership sources I have talked to more confidence that they actually will get these votes tomorrow night to start debate -- Wolf.</s>BLITZER: I know you know this, Dana. The U.S. Conference of Bishops has just released a letter they have written to the Senate, saying the abortion language in this Senate bill is, what, enormously disappointing, completely unacceptable. Here's the question. How is this going to affect the vote tomorrow night?</s>BASH: The vote tomorrow night probably not so much, but this probably will have an impact on what ultimately passes the Senate and certainly what ultimately passes Congress. You remember this bishops -- the Catholic bishops, they had enormous power in the House. It was basically because of them that they passed very strict restrictions in the House. They are not happy, as you said, in this letter we just got that the Senate doesn't follow suit. It doesn't seem right now as though there are the same kind of Democrats in terms of those who are really looking towards guidance from the Catholic bishops that there were in the House, but in terms of ultimately what will pass Congress and get to the president, the fact that they're once again laying down the marker, that is a sign of major division and problems on this issue once again for the president and Democratic leaders.</s>BLITZER: So complicated, every little part of this piece of legislation. Dana, thanks very much. If you think the health care reform effort in Congress already has been a marathon, just wait. There's plenty more to come after tomorrow's test vote. If keeping track of it all gives you a headache, don't worry. Our national political correspondent, Jessica Yellin, is here to make it very, very understandable.</s>JESSICA YELLIN, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: We will try. The question is, do words like cloture and filibuster make you want to change the channel? Well, don't change it just yet. We want to give you an easy guide to what the Senate is up to on health care. So, you have heard the Senate will be voting on health care this weekend. Now, if you're like most people, you probably think that means we will hear a final decision. But, no, in Congress, nothing's that easy. Before anything ends, there will be many votes, amendments, and weeks of debate. But there are three huge votes to watch for. First, tomorrow night, it's what's called a vote on the motion to invoke culture on the motion to proceed to the bill, really. What that means is, do we agree to start debating this thing? They need 60 votes to move ahead. And some senators who don't like the bill could likely vote yes just to keep the ball rolling. So, if they vote yes tomorrow night, what comes next? Weeks of debate. This is when they add amendments, debate amendments, discuss amendments, amend amendments. And then there will be plenty of other votes along the way. So, Thanksgiving will be long gone. Hanukkah will come and go, probably Christmas, too. Senate leaders are actually hoping that before New Year's, they will hold big vote number two, the vote to end debate. And then the third big vote is the final up-or-down vote on the Senate version of the bill. So what we're seeing this weekend, Wolf, really is just the start.</s>BLITZER: There will be, though, some other major votes along the way.</s>YELLIN: Yes, yes, of course. And you and Dana were talking about one of them. On all those flash point issues like abortion, immigration, a public option, expect major votes on those along the way. The three we point out are the ones that decide whether this thing gets inched forward or not.</s>BLITZER: You will be watching it together with all of us.</s>YELLIN: And trying to explain it.</s>BLITZER: Don't go away, Jessica, good explanation for our viewers. Let's go to Jack, who's got "The Cafferty File." Jack, 8:00 tomorrow night, I know you're going to be glued to your TV set.</s>JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Actually, I'm going to put the brown socks on the left side of my drawer and move the black ones over to the right. And that will probably consume most of the night for me. The national debt has hit a record high of $12 trillion. That translates to about $40,000 for every man, woman, and child in the country. What is particularly troubling is the rate at which it continues to grow, increasing by almost $5 trillion dollars during the eight years of the Bush administration, followed by another $1.6 trillion so far under President Obama in less than a year. No surprise when you consider all of the spending, wars, bailouts, stimulus package, et cetera, under the current administration. Also, the recession, record unemployment mean that there are fewer tax dollars coming in to offset government spending. But the debt is also costing us huge dollars to maintain. The interest alone on the national debt in this country in the next decade is expected to be nearly $5 trillion. If interest rates go up, and they will at some point, the price will be even higher. In 2015, the estimated interest on the national debt will equal one-third of all the federal income taxes collected that year. President Obama has pledged to take serious steps to reduce America's debt. Really? When? Maybe after we spend close to another trillion dollars we don't have for health care reform. And with a midterm election coming up next year, good luck getting the politicians to make any decisions on tax hikes or spending cuts. The only thing they're willing to cut is the taxpayer's throat. Here's the question. How much faith do you have the government will do anything meaningful about the soaring national debt? Go to CNN.com/caffertyfile and post a comment on my blog -- Wolf.</s>BLITZER: Will do, Jack. Thanks very much. Oprah -- Oprah tells her audience that she's giving up her talk show.</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oprah's been on the air forever, and she is kind of a part of everyone's life.</s>BLITZER: But the TV icon's reach extends far beyond her daytime chat sessions. The best political team on television is standing by.